Uneven performance | Magellan Maestro 3225 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navitgator

A pretty good value with some shortcomings | Magellan Maestro 3225 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navitgator

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	• Magellan Maestro 3225 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navitgator Magellan Magellan average customer review:based on 12 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

.79 map downlads?!

I recently purchased the 3225 Maestro. I finished reading all of the reviews and before I took it out of the box learned that you can't update the map. So, I called Customer No-Service and the Indian rep told me that yes, you can update the map and although it is not available yet it will be - someday! How much does it cost I asked - she said 79 or 99 cents - she wasn't sure. Hmmm, I thought. So I exited the call and went to the website - found that most of the map updates for other units are $79.99!!!! Wow!
I live in Raleigh, NC - lots of new roads and construction, so will look for something with more accurate maps - if I can find one!

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Uneven performance

I originally had a Garmin 340 but it fell off the windshield once too often and died. I briefly had a Mio but I found it useless - nothing intuitive about the interface. Then moved up to the Magellan 3225.

Pros: intuitive interface, often accurate, inexpensive, and provides good detail on how long the trip will be, arrival time, etc.

Cons: smaller display images/letters than the Garmin - a problem for me as I need reading glasses to see it; biggest problem is that it gets the route wrong too often. Returning home, it always goes 3 exits on the interstate past my home, exits, takes a u turn, and goes back 20 miles. Of course, I don't need this route but this is an example of its unreliability. My last complaint is that it can't calculate more than one destination on a trip. (You can program multiple destinations but it calculates them as separate trips.)
I miss my Garmin and plan to go back.

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A pretty good value with some shortcomings

Recently, I found I was going on a business trip to somewhere I didn't know. I felt that was the perfect time to buy an inexpensive GPS unit. This Magellan (which I bought at B.J.'s) seemed to fit the bill at $150.

This unit has many excellent points. It quickly acquires the GPS signal. It keeps the GPS signal well, even indoors. Also, it has a good text-to-speech capability (i.e. it says "Turn Right onto Main St." instead of just "Turn Right"). It has a built-in trip computer that can be useful on long trips. In addition, it has day and night modes, so the map screen doesn't blind you at night. It is also a small, easily portable unit.

Unfortunately, the unit has many shortcomings as well. The biggest one, to me, is: you cannot update the maps in this unit. If a street isn't in the unit, it can't be added through a map update.

You can add custom POIs (i.e. "Pizza Hut" or "Showcase Cinemas") pretty easily within the unit. However, the tool to add POIs on the computer is nearly useless. Instead of showing streets, it shows the US and you must enter a latitude and longitude for each POI, manually.

In addition, the speaker inside the unit is too quiet. Even at its loudest setting, I couldn't clearly hear it over highway noise and background music. Since there is no Bluetooth support, there is no way I could clearly hear the unit at highway speeds.

In my case, several key areas I will visit on my trip had out of date maps. Since they cannot be updated, I returned the unit.

I recommend checking this unit to make sure it has streets you need in the areas you plan to visit, before buying it. If it has the streets you need, it is a good value. Otherwise, look at the TomTom GPS units (even their cheapest one can be updated).

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Helps save gas by displaying shortest route . . .

I just got this unit earlier this week, and I've been very happy with it. I'm not very technically inclined, but I've been able to figure out how to use it with little difficulty. I knew nothing about GPS units at the point where I decided I needed one, so did lots of research online and in stores. I had a specific price range in mind, plus certain features in mind. Minimally, it had to speak street names instead of just "turn right in 500 feet". And it was nice to discover that it "chimes" right before your turn (at about the point you'd turn a turn signal on). I could get lost in an empty room, but this unit explains the route as your going along very nicely. I feel like I'm saving gas using this (and who doesn't need that these days!), because even when traveling between familiar points, I'll ask it to calculate the "shortest distance" between those points. I'm having a bit of trouble setting up the cradle on the dashboard, but even just setting it on the seat beside me and listening has worked well for me. All in all, I feel like I got a very satisfactory unit for the price, one that will meet my needs without difficulty. Also, there are at least two routes that can be chosen to get to my house, so just to test it I skipped the turn it mentioned; it rapidly recalculated (I'd say in no more than two or three seconds), and had me turn at the next turn, the one I primarily use anyway. Convinced me that if a turn is missed it's able to rapidly recalculate and keep you on your path. I'd recommend it highly!

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Better than the Garmin Nuvi 350

I bought this Nav because my Nuvi350 was damaged (long story). Having own the Nuvi for 3 years I was very skeptical about the Magellan. Last week vacation in California, I had the chance to put it to the test and I'm pleased to report that it passed with flying colors!

Pros:
Direction is excellent. For example, "left turn FOLLOWS by a right turn". With the Nuvi, you are told to turn left without further instruction until AFTER you make the turn. Sometimes (especially in the city), there could be an immediate left or right turn after you make the initial turn and you find yourself in the wrong lane.

The Magellan also gives better direction on the interstate. For example, I prefer "stay on the current road, Los Angeles I-5" better than "turn left/right on Los Angeles I-5" (Nuvi) when you don't actually turn. It seems like a small detail but makes a big different when you're traveling at 70 MPH.

Satellite pickup: excellent, usually with 30 seconds of initial startup.

Exit Point of Interest: A big plus. When traveling on the interstate, you can hit "EXIT POI" and it would list all the POIs in the upcoming exits. This feature is not available in the Nuvi.

Compact: thinner and lighter than the Nuvi.

Cons:
Battery life: only 3 hours vs. 6 hours on the Nuvi. Personally, I don't think it's a big deal since I always use the car charger.

Point of Interest Databse is a bit small (1.3 million). This is redeemable. Just google "magellan 3225 point of interest download" and go to anandtech website. Follow instruction to download 6 million POI.

Price: I can't elaborate but you can get it for $150.

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3.5" color touch screen display NAVTEQ ON BOARD includes pre-loaded maps of the United States, Canada, Hawaii and Puerto Rico Text-to-speech (TTS) 1.3 million searchable points of interest (POI) and 1GB of memorySiRFstarIII : fastest GPS position acquisition in the industry QuickSpell : intelligently searches and checks spelling when entering addresses SmartDetour : prompts drivers to route around heavy or stopped freeway traffic 1200mAh Li-Ion battery which lasts up to3 hours Includes winshield mount, basic cradle, cigarette lighter adapter, USB data cable and adhesive disk

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3

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