i'm finally looking to get a GPS after getting lost too many times and am trying to decide between two garmins (c550 and c580). one has FM traffic alerts and one has MSN Direct traffic alerts.

does anyone here have experience with either one? i'm trying to figure out how useful they are or aren't, how accurate they are, and if it's worth it. most of my travel is in the NE between philly and boston so any users that have experience i'm all ears.

if neither seem worthwhile i may even drop down to the c340 and forego the bluetooth as well which is fine since i have my bluetooth headset.

 

i have used my buddy's garmin and its not bad......it gets confused sometimes though....personally i prefer my magellan but thats just me

 

I got a Tomtom last month (won the office football pool & treated myself). Im supposed to be able to access traffic thru my bluetooth phone but I cant get them to link up. Otherwise I like the Tomtom. I dont know anyone with the Garmin's. If I dont show up for ribs tomorrow, Chris, you'll know my GPS didnt work. I already put it in my "points of interest."

 

I've heard good things about the FM traffic alerts, not so much about MSN

 

^ have you heard bad about MSN or just haven't heard anything either way? i was looking at the prices and FM seems to be a more expensive long term way to go if i end up liking the service.

 

I have a Tomtom and also had problems getting the traffic through my phone. I bought the FM traffic antenna and it works great. You just need to have a traffic information transmission to receive. You should be go with the area you're in.

FM=free. (mine is anyway)
MSN=$$ service correct?

PS I think the TomTom is better than the Garmin mainly because I can progam in more waypoints for scenic drives and I have 11GB free to save favorites and routes etc.

 

from what i understand the FM one that i'm looking at is through Total Traffic Network. the first 3 months are free but after that they hit you up for $60 for 6 months. MSN is $50/year or $130 lifetime. \

maybe i need to start my search over and include TomTom. most of the reviews for the features i wanted/needed pointed to garmin (cnet and consumersearch.com being primary). i just need something.

 

From what I've seen and heard about the MSN direct features are superior in so far as the info the provide... but it's highly dependent on your area. Some areas will have 100% coverage and then 10 miles down the road you'll be at zero.

It's something that of course will get better with time, but for now it's an issue.

 

I've got a Delphi 200 GPS with TMC (AKA Total Traffic Network). Check TMC's site for coverage:

http://www.realtimetraffic.net/

This is the system that's broadcast as RDS messages from Clear Channel stations. The GPS picks those up, and warns you when there's an alert on your route. You have a choice of ignoring or re-routing.

It really paid off on my Christmas trip to New York and central Connecticut (Meriden area). While in Maryland neaded north it put me on US 40 for a while to avoid a 10 mile jam around Aberdeen. Then again to avoid the mess through Delaware. Coming home, traffic was backed up at the southern end of the NJT up to (and beyond) that accursed toll booth in Delaware. It put me onto I-95 through Philadelphia, then onto US 1.

Years ago that same 30 mile backup through the end of the NJT and Delaware resulted in a twelve hour trip from NYC to Northern Virginia. I'd say this year TMC saved me at least two or three hours coming home. Maybe an hour or two headed north.

The coverage maps on the web site are accurate.

The Delphi receiver comes with a lifetime subscription, and I stumbled onto a deal where $300 got me the GPS and the receiver. The GPS has the same SIRF chip everyone else does, and maps by Navteq. Generally pleased with its route finding. Interface is a little clunky - most reviews complained about that. Traffic antenna is separate, vs integrated in the power cord for the Garmin.

IMHO, if you're running the I-95 corridor, traffic alerts will be worth their weight in gold.

Ken

 

i'll probably go with the c580 with the MSN Direct. i travel 95 so it would probably be worth for the travel alerts. between FM and MSN, the price thing is the one that is getting me since MSN is a full year free and cheaper thereafter.

for MSN's features, the movie thing would be cool but i don't really go to the movies, the gas thing would be useful for most but work pays for my gas and i almost always go to the same station anyway, and i'm really not too concerned about the weather feature since there's not much i can do about it anyway.

so really it's about whether i think MSN's service will get better in the near future or if FM's higher price is worth going that route. both services seem to have coverage in my area, NY, and Philly where i spend most of my travel time so it's good enough for now. hmmm.....i'm not very good at making decisions.

 

Yeah - decisions are tough. I spent over six months poring over web sites and Best Buy's weekly ads before finally making my decision. Ultimately kind of a slam dunk because of the great deal I stumbled on. If not for that, I might still be looking.

One thing to check is the source of the traffic data. TMC gets theirs from Inrix. For all I know, they all get it from there, but I never checked MSN. Definitely did not want anything over a cell phone, since I don't own one. Inrix is great because they get data from road sensors, police and traffic cam reports, and their dust network.

As I started my northern trek for Thanksgiving, just getting on the Capital Beltway, TMC warned me that there was a brush fire at the Cabin John Bridge. That had to have been a police report. That detailed information saved the day. I went around the beltway the other way.

On my Christmas return trip, while I was still in CT TMC reported the customary jam on NJT car-only lanes. I enjoyed my clear drive on the car-truck-bus side, laughing at the jammed car-only side, until the last mile or so before the merge.

Ken

 

Here's a good, detailed GPS website, complete with reviews: http://gpslodge.com/

Spend half an hour there and I think you'll find the answer to your traffic question.

 

I bought the Garmin 680 when I moved to DC in November. I have the factory Nav system in my RX8 but needed something for my other car (RAV4).

It works great. It gets traffic updates and routes me around the worst jams. It also gives me a weather report and tells me where the cheapest gas stations are, and what movies are playing nearby. I've taken it to Cleveland and Tampa and it downloaded information for those areas when I got there.

You get free info for one year. After that you have to pay for it.

I like it better than the factory Nav as that system only routes you along the shortest route, or surface streets only. The latest update for the factory Nav is two years old and there is no indication that another update will ever be issued.

 

thanks, NY. that answered the questions i had been wondering about. so now it's just a matter of price and who i want to hitch my wagon two in this battle between TMC and MSN to have the better coverage. it seems as if TMC has been making the right decisions and partnerships so that may be the right choice.

 

I bought a Navigon that comes with a lifetime subscription for traffic at no extra cost. The display is the best I have seen. Also you can bluetooth your phone.