I went with the Magellen 750 - same as the Hertz "neverlost" system

Scroll down the link below and you can see my installation. Mounted where it is, the controls are in fingertip reach, in keeping with the s2000's ergonomic theme. It does not block my view or provide distraction, but it is always in my peripheral vision and an eye-flick away from straight-ahead viewing (no head movement required) and easier to see than the gauge cluster. The screen is small, but in this location close enough to give excellent detail. Although the windshield suction mount was intended to be temporary, I am pretty fond of the way it turned out and now plan on keeping it permanent.

The 750m is a hard-drive based system, which means that it is quick and that all US maps are instantly available to you, instead of having to be loaded up like with the garmin. OTOH, this means that you must store the "brain" with the hard drive somewhere - mine is in the empty space in the toolbox.

It also provides full routing and voice prompted direction - but I can't always here it when cruising loud with the stereo turned up.

It can be had on ebay for $500 -$1000 depending on how new the software is.

Saved my ass last weeking coming back from Mega Meet 4!

I like it - YMMV.

-JD


https://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=212549

 

Garmin just came out with the 2620 which is also hard drive based. Although it can hold the entire US on the hard drive, I prefer the compact flash option of the 2610. Firstly, CF means it's solid state which is better in a shock environment like our S2000's. Secondly, I think having a subset loaded actually means the unit will access data faster since it has less of it to index. I'm using a 128mb CF card but if you use a 512mb I believe you can load up the entire US + Metro Canada. 512mb CF is only $70 online. Also, the CF based 2610 comes with PC software so I can plan out routes and edit waypoints from my PC. The 2620 is preloaded with the entire country and does not come with the PC software.

I heard good things about the Megellin and there was a comparison on the two online but I forget the link.

For me, I went from a Garmin StreetPilot III to the new 2610 and noticed lots of improvements like touch screen, remote and most importantly, routing is about 10x faster.

 

After the 2620 was announced, I called Garmin to discuss the technical differences between it and the 2610, so I could make a better decision between the two. Other than the obvious difference of the 2620 having the entire US on the 2GB drive, I was informed that the other "not so obvious" difference was the CF interface which was modified to accept the specific 2GB drive; apparently, there was a bug in the drive that Garmin was able to work around in their interface. This is the reason they will not support the same drive in the 2610.

As Chris said in his previous post, for me, having the CF card was a better solution for our application. Also, the 2620 (or any hard drive based GPS) does not ship with the base software or maps; consequently, if there were a catastrophic HD failure, I would have to send the unit back to Garmin for repair and/or reload. Since I have no problems loading/downloading the SW/maps to my 2610, it was a better solution; I have the SW and maps available at any time on my computer(s).

 

Chris5659,

There is an article on http://www.pocketgps.co.uk/garminsp2610-50.php

What PPC software did you use? What PPC?

I know Co-pilot and TomTom crash like there is no tomorrow. People buy them because of the neat 3-D maps and they don't work right, and, at least for TomTom, they have no support...

I have had Mapopolis for over a year, no crashes yet. Excellent customer support and free software updates. You pay for the map upgrades when you want them. It is faster than the old Garmins or Magellans to calculate and recalculate routes - about the same as the new one. It also uses NavTeq maps just like the Garmin but cheaper updates. At the end of the drive I have a PPC I can use. Granted no remote, but I don't change my destination while driving and I can quickly enter in an address on my PPC when parked. Here are all the parts and for me, putting it all together was fun too. About 1/3 the cost of the Garmin.
Dell Axim - $277
GPS Bundle (GPS and Mapopolis Navigator) - $190
Car Charger - $20
Arkon CM088 pedestal mount - $20 (from Buy.com)
Proclip Mount for Axim X5 - $35
Extra Power Outlet - $5
P.I.E. Hon-Aux - $50
TOTAL (not including shipping or tax) - $597

I know a lot of us have different opinions, but I would never switch back to a dedicated GPS system, it is too limited for me.

-Jordan

 

Thanks Jordan. That's good to know. I was using the CoPilot and consequently had the bad experience. I will def check out the option you listed with Mapopolis should I need another gps in the future. I'm also assuming using the P.I.E. Hon-Aux, you can't listen to the radio while navigating correct?

FYI, the Garmin 2610 is $719 at Amazon (including all mounts, cables, etc.) so I'm not sure how you came up with 1/3 the cost for your solution @$597.

 

I listen to MP3s on my ipod through the hon-aux.

I went off of their site (Garmin), I looked at the 2660's price of $1750. I just went back, they have the 2610 for $1200, 2620 for $1500+ and the 2650 for $1400.

Apparently other sources discount the units 30% online - good to know that.

-Jordan