I needed a new GPS navigation for Cari and I so I looked around a bit and ended up buying the Mio Moov 300 GPS from Staples which turned out to be a mistake. I’ve heard a lot about these navigation units and how they’re quite ‘hackable’ with different software and have never really heard anything bad. I paid $179.99 for it from Staples but I found the Mio Moov 500 at Radio Shack today for $149.99 and returned my 300 to Staples. I didn’t go for the 500 since the overall setup of the Mio was not what I liked. I’m sure if I would have spent more time with the Mio Moov 300 and even hacked it, I may have liked it but overall it was frustrating – the battery charge royally sucked, it took me down a one way street, still took forever to find satellites half of the time with its special “SiRFInstantFixII”, lacked a lot of POI’s and that’s just the beginning. On a good note, I did like the option to show me each turn in the directions and how it directed me for the upcoming turns but it was not impressive nor worth the money I paid for it.
So, back to square one and looking for a reliable GPS with text-to-speech that I like. I wish I could actually test half of them before I bought one….and before you say it, some stores have a few that work but most of them around here are demos and nothing but a box.
