Portable Car GPS System Reviews - Top 5 Portable GPS Units Roundup

Portable Car GPS System Reviews - Top 5 Portable GPS Units Roundup
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Portable Car GPS Systems

Garmin, Magellan, Tom Tom, these are names that many people throw out when it comes to portable car GPS systems. There was a time where car GPS systems were made for specific cars, usually luxury cars, and not everyone had access to them. As times have changed, so have the GPS systems. They’ve become portable and more affordable, and more stylistic as time has progressed. Some portable car GPS manufacturers have tried integrating their software with smartphones to try and spread their influence. So far, none of these efforts have truly paid off, as the smartphones have usually fallen flat when integrated with the manufacturer’s somewhat obsolete technology.

This portable car GPS system reviews overview covers the reviews of some of the more popular, reviewed GPS systems available. This does not cover smartphones that have GPS integrated with them. These are strictly portable car GPS system reviews.

Garmin nuvi 3790T

Garmin nuvi 3790T Review

The Garmin nuvi 3790T is Garmin’s latest approach to the portable car GPS market. With the release of smartphones that have GPS capabilities, larger, thicker portable car GPS devices have been under heavy pressure. Garmin took this as a challenge and created the nuvi 3790T. The Garmin nuvi 3790T is one of the slimmest and stylish portable car GPS devices from Garmin. It looks very much like an iPhone, rather than a large bulky device. This Garmin nuvi 3790T review goes through the design, display, user interface, features, and performance of the device. The nuvi 3790T is a great addition made by Garmin and pushes the boundaries of a portable car GPS system. However, with the constant rise of powerful smartphones, one has to wonder if consumers will continue to carry around 2 similar devices, especially if the 2 devices look so similar.

TomTom GO 630

TomTom Go 630 Review

TomTom portable car GPS devices, along with Garmin devices, are among the most popular choices for consumers. The TomTom GO 630 is no exception. Featuring great connectivity abilities with Bluetooth technology, the TomTom GO 630 is a great hands-free portable car GPS device. The TomTom GO 630 can also be paired with the TomTom Traffic Receiver or an optional subscription to TomTom Traffic to get access to IQ Routes technology. This enables the TomTom GO 630 to not just use shortest distance as the best route, but utilizes live traffic feeds to give you the best and fastest route. This TomTom GO 630 review goes into details around the features as well as the not so nice issues of the portable car GPS device. The TomTom GO 630 is a great choice for consumers, however, with subscription based traffic information coming at a price, one has to wonder if consumers are willing to pay that price. Current smartphones have traffic technology embedded in with their maps, effectively making them free traffic updates, as opposed to paid.

Garmin nuvi 755T

Garmin nuvi 755T Review

The Garmin nuvi 755T is the successor to the nuvi 750. The nuvi line from Garmin is among some of the more popular portable car GPS units, and the Nuvi 755T is no exception. The Garmin nuvi 755T comes with a nice sleek design on the outside, and great little features on the inside. The nuvi 755T offers lane assistance, giving you a 3D view of the landscape to keep you on the right lane at the right time. This Garmin nuvi 755T review covers the features, performance and the not so nice issues with the portable car GPS system. Garmin seems to have come to the conclusion that free traffic updates available through smartphones will harm them in the long run if they continue with subscription fees. The nuvi 755T has an FM receiver and offers free lifetime traffic updates. This may be Garmin’s method of trying to fight against the free traffic available on smartphones.

Magellan RoadMate 1700

Magellan RoadMate 1700 Review

Magellan is also a long time favorite for many consumers of portable car GPS units. The Magellan RoadMate 1700 doesn’t try to take the same direction as other GPS units, trying to mimic small smartphones. Instead, the RoadMate 1700 shouts out as a large, easy to read 7 inch giant of a GPS unit. The Magellan RoadMate 1700 is a gorgeous large portable car GPS unit looking to capture the market that doesn’t care for small devices. This Magellan RoadMate 1700 review covers the user interface, features and cons of the large portable car GPS unit. Like other portable GPS units, the Magellan RoadMate 1700 suffers from the lack of free traffic updates. Coupled with the large size, the Magellan RoadMat 1700 may be fighting an uphill battle to capture the market.

Motorola TN30

Motorola TN30 Review

Motorola is a name that comes up with smartphones, such as the Motorola Droid X, but oddly enough, they have branched out and released portable car GPS units as well. It’s a bit of a conflicting product as their smartphones have the capability to be a portable GPS unit. The Motorola TN30 is a bit of a bulky unit but it’s the standard portable car GPS device. This Motorola TN30 review covers the design, pricing and downsides of the GPS unit. Motorola may have a pretty strong share in the smartphone market, but judging on the abilities, or lack there of, on the Motorola TN30, shows that they will not gain a strong foothold on the portable car GPS unit market.

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