What's your budget for GPS?
My vote is for Nokia 520/521 which is around $50 on sale and offers
OFFLINE GPS navigation (does not require activation or data).
Another AT'er had the same dilemma and went the Nokia route, hopefully he'll chime in with an update.
Warning, the threads are long so I would skim them:
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2367512
http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2368312
Yup, that was me. I carry my Nokia Lumia 520 everyday, everywhere. It's in my left front hip pocket, with nothing else, so the screen won't get scratched.
As a GPS it's absolutely adequate, IMO. When using it in that capacity, I go to the main screen and tap the icon for Here Drive. It loads in about 6-7 seconds, and I can pick a "recent destination" or get a new one. I can enter an address, or enter something like "costco" etc. If the latter, it will give me several Costco's in the region to choose from. I hit the [Start navigation] button and the show begins. I stick with the default female voice, and it's very clear, plenty loud, even with my substandard hearing I have no problem making her out.
I downloaded the California maps as soon as I got the 520, haven't ventured out of CA yet. Mostly, the instructions are accurate.
After trying out the GPS functionality of the 520, I returned my
unopened Garmin ~$150 GPS to Costco for a full refund.
Beep turn left, beep new text message, beep someone poked you on facebook, beep take exit 27A on the left then bear right, beep you have a spam email.
No thanks, dedicated device for me.
That's not the way it works with the 520. I'll hear something like "in 500 yards turn left onto McDonald Avenue." Just as I approach the intersection she'll say "now turn left." And then, if I'm going to make a right soon, I'll hear "keep right."
Occasionally the instructions aren't accurate, mostly they are very accurate. For instance, sometimes, if a street makes a slight turn one way it's interpreted as a turn. So, yes, I've found myself cursing because I got off track by virtue of inaccurate maps or device interpretation of maps, but I bet that even "dedicated" GPS's have those glitches. Mostly, I can trust it. But sometimes it's flat out wrong and you have to keep in mind the notion that sometimes you have to override the instructions, be prepared to do so. It might entail stopping, even restarting Here Drive. The great majority of trips have no glitches at all, fortunately.
Using Here Drive does not use data. I do have a data plan, it's $10/mo. using Airvoice. The minutes roll over and I now have $50 credit, I have auto-refill set up against a credit card. I'm going to call them at some point soon and ask if I can change to the $10 for 3 months plan and keep my current credit. I just don't make many calls with it, don't give out the number to people unless I need them to be able to call me away from the house, the main reason being that I don't get service at home, at least not reliably (AT&T network, spotty in a lot of places in my region). That doesn't worry me, because I don't need cell phone service except on occasion and on those occasions I usually have service.
By default, the 520 using
Here Drive shows a map on the screen while navigating. I stand it in one of the cup holders under my dash, it's perfectly positioned, and I can see the map. But usually I don't require the map, the voiced instructions are all I want and I just hit the lock screen button on the side to turn off the screen and save the battery. I bought a cheap device that plugs into the car's cigarette lighter into which I can insert a charging cable to charge the 520. If you have the screen lit while navigating it does use a fair amount of juice. It's handy if I'm driving and find my battery low, I can just charge as I drive.
I bought a low profile protective case for the 520, but don't use it. I prefer to just slip it in my pocket when not using, it's been fine. The case would just make it bulkier and heavier. I bought two extra batteries, which I keep >75% charged in the fridge. Popping a battery in/out takes <10 seconds, more like 5.
The 520 has been a tremendous thing for me, certainly in terms of driving in my region. If I'm at all uncertain, I just set it up on Here Drive in the car. I don't drive a lot, so I do use it often, even in areas I've been in a lot. Over the years I've been much more into bicycling than driving a car. It's a way different thing driving, largely because highways are the thing in a car when practical, impossible on a bike when it's not a street.
If I'm doing the bike thing or walking, I can still use the 520. I use a different app,
Here Maps.
I've downloaded a ton of apps, most of which I've never checked out. One of my favorite apps is
MyAppFree. Every day they have another app you can download free that day. Mostly they are for-$ apps, that want the promotion, I guess. I never DL games, a lot of them are games. One exception, a couple of days ago I DLed
Blek. The reviews were
all 5 star, I figured I'd give it a go. I've only paid for a handful of apps, probably not more than 5 bucks worth.
Not long ago I went to Amazon and bought a 64GB microSD card for the 520. Man, that's a lot of storage! Windows Phone 8.1 allows you to store videos, music and photos (and app downloads!) to the SD card. I have a ton of huge MP3s on it, copied all my data from my previous 32GB card to the new bigger card, have the 32GB microSD card in my DSLR in a microSD-->SD adapter.
It amazes me that I can buy a 64GB microSD card (that they even exist!) for ~$30. I remember when a 1GB 3.5" HD cost ~$1000.
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