Really need some help choosing a GPS.
My main concern is… Manufacturers want you to continually buy maps - and I use/fix devices years beyond when most people discard them. But one GPS brand - TomTom I think… For years I think maps could be copied from new models into older ones. (People with new devices would upload them for everyone else.) TomTom started saying their next lot of maps would change format. This meant they would be incomatible with older units. But next year came and the maps didn't change. As I said this was years ago, and about that time I stopped keeping track.
So… Do newer maps still work with older devices? If so, are there any restrictions, like I need to get only particular model/s, etc.?
If you can't use new maps in old models any longer, are there models that will accept the maps that come with Chinese units?
Are those Chinese maps decent, updated? Or old and with even more mistakes than the manufacturer's ones?
Secondhand is fine, but what model!? Here's the rest of the things I need it to have (not a long list):
- If you can't copy maps any longer, then I guess it should come with 'lifetime' :-( maps.
- A huge screen is not necessary. Prefer 4" or 5".
- AUDIBLE (not just visual) speed & red light camera alerts
- Advanced Lane guidance
- "Junction View" would be nice to have, but only having #3 is ok.
- Accepts voice instructions/address input.
- Suction cup mount.
Thanks for reading.
Most GPS navigation devices I see now (TomTom, Garmin, Navman, etc.) [claim to] offer free lifetime maps. Whether you can really hold them to that, I don't know, but I suspect you could get them to replace the unit if they ever do stop releasing maps for it. This is probably because you can easily get free maps on just about any smartphone.
Speaking of which, a smartphone might be your best bet if you want extended support, since they tend to be the most extensible and not locked into one vendor. I personally like HERE Maps for offline & good navigation support. On the other hand, some people don't like using their phone because they have smaller screens, and the software does not always have as many features. AFAICT, lane guidance is only available on Google Maps of the free apps, though NAVIGON has it too. You could always try one out first and see if it works for you.