Buy Garmin 255w GPS Devices From Garmin Online.
Why buy 255 GPS devices? And with so many different makes and models of GPS devices on the market today, how do you choose? Comparing features, options, prices, and accesories between different manufacturers and models can be like comparing electronic apples and oranges.
A good starting point in the search for your next GPS device is the Garmin Nuvi 255w. There’s a good reason why this model is among the most popular GPS units out there — priced at just under $160, it’s one of the most affordable of all wide-screen navigation devices out there. But don’t be fooled by the low price of this unit, because the Nuvi 255w packs a ton of features into a wide-screen tool that can grow with your needs.
The first thing you will notice about this device is that it’s good-to-go right out of the box. It is already programed with over 6 million maps and points of interest, including popular restaurants, stores, gas stations, etc…and it’s pretty easy to download additional maps and updates online. Garmin’s Nuvi line also allows you to add your own “favorites” and customized points of interest to the existing database, which is a nice standard feature that isn’t always available on many other higher-priced GPS systems.
Plug it in and turn it on, and you’ll see a redesigned information screen which makes it a breeze to find your way around the many features of this system. The icons on the touchsceen are user-friendly and intuitive, and you’ll be surprised how many functions you can access from this little device from the “home page”. All in all, the set-up on this Garmin is so easy I belive even my grandmother would be up and running in less than 5 minutes.
One of my favorite features of the 255w is the speed limit function, which displays the speed limit of road that you are traveling…right next to the actual speed of your vehicle. If speed limit suddenly changes (have you ever gotten a ticket in a speed trap?), it will show up on the screen display, and you can adjust your actual speed accordingly. This means that you may never have to worry about being pulled over by the state trooper in your rear view mirror any more…but I’m sure you never speed anyway.
Here are some other cool features that you will find on this unit:
* A handy “Text to Speech” feature that reads the driving instructions to you, so that you don’t have to take your eyes off the road in order to operate the device.
* The “zoom” feature gives you an instant macro-view of the area that you are driving in, including 3-d terrain features. This is great for giving you the “big picture” of your position and the road, or when you need a “map view” without pulling out a map from under the front seat.
* Take a wrong turn? No problem…this model instantly recalculates your new position and gives you revised directions on how to get back on course.
* This Nuvi 255w has a larger screen display than even some pricier competitors…and the larger the dispay the better the resolution, and the less time you will need to get the directions that you’re searching for.
* Do you use Google Maps or Mapquest to get directions? You can download these search results directly to your Garmin through your computer’s USB port.
The are a couple drawbacks to this model, but nothing major: The default voice giving me directions on the road was a little bossy in my opinion, but maybe that’s just me. There are several other voices to choose from, and it’s easy to find one that is more pleasing to the ears.
All in all, the Garmin Nuvi 255w is easily the best GPS value on the market today. You can go with a pricier model that will give you bluetooth capabilities, voice recognition, and a thinner screen, but these upgrades will cost you up to three times as much as the 255w. And with this unit selling for just $160 with no tax and shipping at Amazon, the Garmin 255w is easily the biggest bang for your GPS buck today.
How Does a GPS Device Work?
Generally speaking, GPS — or Global Positioning System – receivers all operate by the same priciples: the GPS unit “locks in” to a signal transmitted from space by a network of satellites launched by the manufacturer. Garmin has 2 dozen of these satellites operating in a very precise orbit over the earth, and first the GPS receiver in your car needs to lock in to the position of 3 of these satellites at the same time. After the receiver has locked into these three satellites, it can then triangulate the exact location of the GPS unit itself…And by comparing the time elapsed form when the signal was sent out by these satellites to the time it was received by the unit set up in your car, the Garmin Nuvi 255w is able to display a real-time “map” of your vehicles’s location, direction, and points of interest.
Becasue the position of these satelites is constantly changing, the GPS device must make continuous calculations of their movement in relationship to the receiver itself in order to determine it’s own position. But if the receiver can’t locate three satellite simultaneously, your GPS will not operate.
For the Nuvi line of receivers (including the 255w), Garmin has created a new technology called Hotfix. What makes this technology so remakable is that it remembers the position of all three satellites that your GPS receiver is tracking when it is turned off. This means that when you turn it back on, the receiver can instantly predict the exact position of the satellites that you were tracking previously. As a result, this dramatically reduces the amount of time it takes to get the gps back online the next time you need to use it. Amazingly, HotFix is able of accurately predict the location of it’s satellites for up to three days after it was last used.