Alright guys, I need a little advice. I've got a non-nav G and my current GPS, a Garmin Nuvi 250?, looks to have bought the farm today. Now, I get lost in my own back yard, so this tool is something I can't live without. I was wondering what you guys use, for those of you who don't have a built-in Nav, and what you'd recommend? I've got a few requirements for the next model, but I'm pretty open to most all suggestions. Here's my list:

Things I require:
-Lifetime maps. I don't want to have to mess with map upgrades on a yearly basis anymore. That was a pain.
-Lane assistance
-Junction View

Things that would be nice:
-Lifetime Traffic
-Bluetooth

I like Garmin and would probably prefer to stay with their products, as I'm familiar with them already, but I'm open to other manufacturers. Are there any features you guys would suggest that I haven't listed? Are there any free-standing units that integrate well with the G? (Bluetooth, or other?)

I've looked into the Garmin GVN 53 (their integrated unit) and I remember seeing a post a little while ago about somebody on here having one and being happy with it. Any advantages going with an integrated unit, apart from the clean look of it? Is something like this possible to add with a 2010 Non-Nav?

Note for the mods: My apologies if there are already a few GPS posts out there. I did try a search, though I was told 'no results found' when searching for 'GPS' -- Too short a search string?

Thanks for the help and please let me if there's any more info I can provide.

 

Here's an idea you might not have considered or maybe not aware of?
I just use my android phone (got the new bionic from Verizon) with Google maps and navigation built in. It has traffic info, is constantly updated & has a picture of most destinations (if you have the street view on google it will show the same on the phone etc.) The only drawbacks I can think of atm are no lane guidance (hey they could add it later maybe) and you can't get it started if you are not within a service area. You can however route to an area that has no signal before you leave an area that does and then it "downloads?" that area and you'll have it working fine in that no coverage area...
I've used garmins and the nav units in Infiniti & Acura, and I LOVE using the navigation on my phone, very satisfied.
NOT to be confused with Verizons own "Navigator" app which I have not tried...

 

My Android phone nav works better than my Garmins but I still use the garmins in my company vehicles.

The unit I have and love, meets all of your requirements is the Garmin 2595LMT. Its got voice, 5" screen (I will never go smaller again), lane assit etc etc

check it out: https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=134&pID=97146

 

Depending on the year of your car you want to check out the forum we had on the directusnav GPS solution for inifiniti..

I got that unit installed in my car it's pretty sick

 

The new 34xx series look real good. Cpu's have been upgraded. The device is rather snappy in panning and moving the map around. Has pinch/zoom, portrait/landscape, etc.

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=134&pID=97509

Can probably find it cheaper on amazon or elsewhere.

A key feature this device supports which many don't is the ability to make custom routes. Create a route on your pc, upload it to the gps, then follow. Perfect when it's more about the travel than the destination. Used this function on my 7x5 for my motorcycle trips all the time. After all, the best trip on two wheels between 2 points is one which involves as many curves and turns as possible

 

Thanks for the replies all. I have considered going with a phone GPS, though I've got a few issues with that:

(1) I don't want to tie up my phone as a GPS while I'm on the road
(2) Battery life
(3) AFAIK, the GPS apps on smartphones don't offer lifetime map updates.

That said, I'm not opposed to the idea but I'm kinda oldschool about liking my devices to do one thing: it's job. I don't need my GPS to look at pictures or listen to XM radio or anything like that, just get me to where I want to go.

The directusnav option looks pretty amazing, but $1,700.00 is a bit more than I am looking to spend. I think I'll rule out the GVN 53 as well, being that it doesn't look like it supports many of the features I'm looking for.

Interesting that Garmin 2595LMT was mentioned, as I was looking at that model, as well as the 3490LMT. Good to know that the CPUs are faster in the 34xx series, as I hate waiting for these things to 'recalculate.' Also, Custom Routes I'll add to my 'Things that would be nice to have' section, as I can definitely see how this would come in very handy. Thanks for mentioning that, Jsolo.

I'm kind of ignorant about the G's Bluetooth capabilities in a non-nav version; can one pair a GPS receiver with the car (so that directions, etc. are spoken through the car's audio system, rather than the receiver's built-in speaker?) Would you want to?

Looks like I've got some research to do on the Garmin 3490LMT and 2595LMT.

 

Sounds like you've got yer mind just about made up, that's cool.
I'd just like to add:
1. unlike my old Droid 1, the new bionic, when using 4gLte allows me to make and receive calls without interrupting the GPS when I'm using it. Granted the screen changes when I get the call, but I can switch it back during the call and the same goes for making calls. In fact this new bionic phone (and several other new ones with very fast processors) just kick azz at multitasking.
2. I get pretty good battery life considering it's always plugged into the charger when I'm using the auto cradle & gps. Also, I have an extra battery and a battery only charger (got the costco bundle) so I can actually swap in a fully charged one whenever the need arises, unlike Garmin Gps's (to my knowledge). In addition, I even have an extended battery for it that I've never needed, only got it cause I just couldn't resist the half price sale and like you, I'm also concerned about battery life, but like I said, haven't used/needed it once.
3. Google maps has way more (timely) updates, they are free, (including smart-phones) just like on the net and completely painless, as it can be set to do so automatically, like mine. Every once in a while (several times per year), I turn on my phone and see a little notification that informs me that Google maps has updated itself, I just say "sweeet" every time I see that, makes me love it even more. Example: there are plenty of new roads being built that I'm aware of in my area and Google maps has them updated by the time I'm finally able to drive on them. Traffic data is there too, free.
I always thought it was greedy for GPS makers to even charge for updates, now, more than ever. Even though they only charge you once for a lifetime upgrade, which they do by simply charging more for the units that come with it.
4. To sum it up, now that I have this latest phone, I couldn't ever imagine any need to have a separate portable GPS.
I also prefer dedicated equipment for specific purposes especially home stereo components etc. But no phone is just a phone anymore and this phone just rocks! I also have a hacked Pandora app on it, it was free and has no ads like the paid version and I get unlimited skips, unlike the paid version!
Satellite acquisition is very good and fast as well. Just about anything else I want it to do (within reason) is available with an app.
Okay, I'll stop now.

 

^^CO, what happens when you're not in a data capable area?

 

I addressed that in my first post in this thread cause I knew it would come up.

 

Captain, you must be a salesman, thanks for the insight! I'm interested, but here's my dilemma with the phones, and perhaps why I didn't sound so excited about the idea in my earlier posts:

(1) I've got an iPhone 3GS on AT&T. I'm waiting to possibly upgrade when the 5 comes out.
(2) I've spent a fair amount of money on apple's app store, which is why I'm not very enthusiastic about switching to a Droid (even though today's Droids are far superior to the iPhone, IMO.)
(3) I'm on a family plan with AT&T and the idea of moving 4 phones to a new service (possibly Sprint if I were to go that direction?) doesn't sound like lot of fun.

I know the iPhone has a few GPS apps, some pay-for, other free. If I were to go with a phone solution, I'd like to have as few exposed wires as possible to a semi-permanent dock, Bluetooth integration with the G (or directly wired in, if possible), and software that can provide the features I've previously listed. I'll do some reading on what the GPS apps for the iPhone have to offer, in relation to a standalone unit and post my findings for posterity.

 

GarminStreet pilot for iphone is another possible solution. It's a similar UI to their other PND's, but runs under the IOS. It offers offline map data (upwards of around 2GB for the entire NA region). $60 is the price IIRC.