Mio Moov 310 / 300 Review

Note: Mio Moov 310 and Mio Moov 300 are identical with 1 year Traffic messaging service included in the Mio Moov 310

Pros
The Mio Moov 310 is one of the most stylish and feature packed portable GPS navigation system available at such an affordable cost. The Moov 310 features a 4.3" widescreen LCD monitor that is almost 1" bigger than most GPS navigation devices at this price.
The Moov 310 joins a handful of GPS devices that is considered the thinnest on the market, measuring at less than 3/4" thick. The stylish and compact design of the Mio Moov 310 houses a powerful Samsung 400 MHz processor with 1GB of internal memory. This attractive GPS device also features a 20-channel GPS receiver with a SiRFStar III chipset with the new Instant Fix II technology. The processor and the chipset both are new technology that were recently released. Users will be enjoy the incredibly smooth and fast navigation that the Moov 310 has to offer. In addition, this GPS unit has built-in map database, so you won't ever have to shuffle for various SD cards for your maps.

The Mio Moov 310 also features a text-to-speech technology that will give drivers turn-by-turn direction with speech guidance that tells a driver of exact street names. In addition, its internal TeleAtlas-based maps covers all 50 US states as well as Puerto Rico with 3.5 million points of interest. If you need traffic information to be displayed on to the screen, TMC (Traffic Messaging Channel) is included with a free 1 year trial subscription on the Mio Moov 310. There is also an SD/MMC card reader as well as a USB port for PC direct connection.

Cons
The downside of the Mio Moov 310 is its inability to play media files. The SD/MMC and the USB port are all for map updates and firmware/software upgrades. But at this low price, you're probably looking for a basic GPS navigation system anyway. If you're not too concern about media playback, the unit is a great stand-alone navigation device.

The battery life of the unit is also relatively short when compared to TomTom's 4+ hours of battery life. The Mio Moov 310 has about 2 hours of battery life, but that's at optimal factory conditions. Expect this number to diminish as you use it more often.

The unit features a small database of 3.5 million points of interest. This is considerably smaller for today's standards. However, 3.5 million is still quite a large number and should cover most of your favorite major-name stores, hotels, restaurants, gas stations, and emergency facilities.

Overall
Ultimately, the Mio Moov 310 is worth buying if you're looking for an essential and affordable navigation unit. Expect to find this basic GPS device anywhere from $190-$250.

Magellan Maestro 4250 (Maestro4250) Review

Winner of the CES Innovations Award of 2008 Design and Engineering Award in In-Vehicle Navigation, the Magellan Maestro 4250 is an extremely impressive portable GPS navigation unit.
The Maestro 4250 features a standard 4.3" LCD touchscreen display. The colors are vividly rich and the contrast is impressive, making it visible in direct sunlight or bright viewing environment. The entire unit is quite possibly the thinnest available on the market, measuring at a little under 3/4" thick.

But Magellan did not sacrifice functionality and features for its compact design. In fact, if anything, Magellan packed more features than anyone thought possible in such a thin product. For starters, its fast internal SiRFstarIII™ internal processor will give users a fast-response navigation, eliminating any worries of laggy or stuttering navigation. The Maestro 4250 also features 6 million points of interest, which is an average number of POI for GPS systems today. However, it makes up for in its integration of AAA's Tourbook database, which allow AAA members a guide for nearest AAA-discounted attractions, restaurants, and hotels. In addition, the AAA feature in the Maestro 4250 has a Roadside Assistance ability in the case of an emergency for members.

The Magellan Maestro 4250 has built-in Bluetooth technology, allowing drivers to communicate with hands-free calling with call status and caller ID displayed on the Maestro 4250 LCD screen and you could even import your phonebook and dial from the unit.

This compact GPS navigation unit also features an intelligent Voice Command feature that allows a driver to tell the unit where to go without reaching over and stretching to command the GPS unit via its touchscreen. The voice command is most certainly a unique and innovative feature for any GPS navigation units, a huge plus that sets the Maestro 4250 above many of its competitors. Of course, the Maestro 4250 could speak back to the user... not literally of course; but it does feature text-to-speech technology that enables the device to actually say street names like "Turn left on Smith Street" instead of just the vague "Turn left in 500 yards."

Another great feature of the Maestro 4250 is its ability to coordinate its re-routing calculation with the built-in traffic information receiver; which gives the unit the unique ability to re-route drivers around heavy or slow traffic. It also has an easy-access SD Card reader, day/night lighting modes, multi-perspective navigation, and maps of the US (all 50 states), Canada, and Puerto Rico.
The Magellan Maestro 4250 is indeed an excellent ingenuity that comes at an above average price. With all the features and unique functions, this easy-to-use GPS navigation device will surely impress consumers for many years.