Sunday 7 June 2009

Magellan Roadmate

By Alexis Kenne

In the 16th century, Ferdinand Magellan was the first known explorer to circumnavigate the earth, a feat he accomplished under the rule of the Spanish crown. Since then, his name has been associated far and wide with navigation. It should come as no surprise that a global tracking firm bears the Magellan name; nor is it surprising that the Magellan Roadmate series has a number of easy-to-use, practical features to make navigation easy.

The Magellan Roadmate series consists of several models of handheld GPS devices for the North American continent including the United States. Each one has ease of use through their interactive displays that are so simple to understand, you really don't even need to read the directions! The common features include six million points of interest (POI). With these points, you can click on the icon and the GPS will give you directions, including which exit to take, as well as other helpful information about the locations. POIs include gas stations, hotels, ATMs that are searchable by category, name, and city or nearest to your position.

See below for other shared features. The home icon allows you to set any location to be your home base. QuickSpell is a capability of the Magellan Roadmate GPS system that lets you check spelling while you type, and it quickly and easily searches POIs and addresses for you. SayWhere is a feature that uses text-to-voice technology to give you street names and turn-by-turn instructions to get you to the next stop on your journey. Auto re-route and SmartDetour are two of the greatest features of the Magellan Roadmate. These help you avoid congested traffic due to accidents, road construction, or other factors. Your route will be re-assessed, even as you turn off in other directions to avoid heavy traffic. Auto NightView is a very useful feature that automatically resets the LCD screen settings for brightness, color, and contrast for ease of navigation in low light situations. Address Books come standard on each of the Roadmate GPS systems. You can save information for use on future trips, and avoid having to look up the same POIs over and over again.

There are plenty of other great features available, though they don't come standard on all models. For example, the Roadmate 1430 has a handy tow truck icon that displays your exact whereabouts so tow trucks can locate you easily in an emergency. On the 1200, 1400, and 1430 models, you can take advantage of 2D and 3D screen view options. And, every Magellan Roadmate comes with detailed maps of each North American country, in addition to Puerto Rico and Hawaii. Your position will be located to within 3 meters of your actual location in real time, and the unit's rechargeable batteries last for three hours before needing a recharge. The Magellan Roadmate GPS makes customizable routes a reality, and some units have the ability to load up to twenty locations at once!

Users love the flexibility and grand detail received in using these sleek little compact GPSs, especially since you can take them anywhere! You can also attach it to your windshield or dash with accessories that comes with. There is a volume adjustment so you can hear around noisy situations, and the level will come back down when it becomes quieter. Additional maps are available for download for the UK and European countries, as well. For everyday life, excursions into traffic or your own little epic adventure, the Magellan Roadmate GPS is a fantastic buy!

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