Magellan RoadMate 1210 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator

I was provided an evaluation unit of the Magellen Roadmate 1210 Portable GPS Navigator. This is not my first experience with a portable GPS unit, I have been using a TomTom One for a couple of years. Upon opening the box, you will find the GPS (pre-loaded with maps of the United States, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico), vehicle power adapter, windshield mount, adhesive mount for your dashboard, and a small instruction booklet. It comes charged, so that you can immediately begin using it. Once you have entered your home address, you are basically ready to go. I don't think that you can get a simpler setup. This is a fairly thin unit and the screen, at 3.5", should be good enough for a lot of people. The windshield mount is excellent; once attached to the windshield, it is impossible to move the mount. And the GPS remains in place, benefiting from a very good attachment to the mount, yet the unit can be adjusted quickly and easily. You will not need to worry about the GPS moving during normal... more >>

This is a great value GPS that is almost identical to the Magellan 1220, which has TTS (Text To Speech), which reads off the road names for you. It's only a few dollars more, and it is well worth it. That said this GPS is a great value/budget GPS. It is nearly the same as the Garmin 350 I purchased a few years ago. -- Size/Mounting. It's actually thinner/smaller than most of the GPS units out there. The downside is that you only get a relatively small screen, but for the majority of people out there, it's going to be good enough. It mounts on the windshield or on an adhesive pad you can apply to the dash. They work really well, although it would be nice if Magellan would have an option for a bean bag dash mount or something similiar. -- Functionality As far as mapping, routing, etc it works pretty well. A few times it would decide to send us in the wrong direction at the start of the route, after pushing past the initial wrong directions, it corrected itself. This may be a... more >>

Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation devices were expensive luxury items only a few years ago. But with advancements in technology, these devices have become far more powerful and much less expensive these days. Because of these factors, GPS sales are on the rise, and the major GPS manufacturers are scurrying to cover all the bases and offer all of the desired features at attractive price points. While some of these devices also act as MP3 music players, show picture slideshows, and even offer Bluetooth connectivity with your cell phone, not all of us desire these frills or want to pay for things we really don't need. For those of us that just want a simple GPS navigation aid, to help us get to our intended destinations, and don't want to overwhelm our bank account to acquire such an item, Magellan offers the low cost RoadMate 1210; a no-frills pocket-size navigation device with a 3.5-inch color touch screen. The Magellan RoadMate 1210 comes preloaded with maps and points... more >>