Turn right onto Easy Street
I scored one of these bad boys through work last week. And let me just say, it's prettty freakin cool. This is a relatively inexpensive model, in the 300 hundred dollar range but I have seen them well over 5 bills.
I have been spending more time in the office the last year or so, but as the nice weather approaches, I find more reasons to visit job sites and put the paperwork off so having this unit sticking to my windshield will be a great aid. I have a decent handle on the streets of Boston, but in less than a week, my girl "Gipsy" has already shown me a few routes from A to B that I never knew before. Before the Garmin, I would tend to travel routes that I am familiar with. At times that would require back tracking to a certain spot. Just today, I was at the Museum of Fine Arts and needed to get over to a job near the Bayside Expo Center. Two weeks ago, the route I would have chosen would have taken me double the time it took today. I know most of the neighborhoods of Boston, but I don't always know how those hoods connect to one another, so Gipsy is taking some guesswork out for me. And as a friend recently said to me while raving about his Garmin, "she has a sexy voice too so it's a bonus!"
Another bonus, that before I had one didn't realize was a feature is the points of interest. No matter where you are, you can go to this screen and look up restaurants, banks, museums, etc. Bottom line, I can now find the closest burrito in a matter of minutes. And the first time Ben heard "arriving at Benjamin & Caleb's House" from the backseat, seeing and hearing his reaction was worth the (company's) purchase price right there.
Looking forward to many adventures to unfamiliar towns and cities with Gipsy leading the way!
Good deal. I'd like to get my parents set up with one of those out here.
Posted by: Jeff | May 21, 2008 at 02:26 PM
How do you find 'Gipsy' outside of the city? I ask because I have the same exact unit, and driving up the pike a couple weeks ago to Fenway, I figured I'd see which way the unit suggests, and it told me to get off way back in Newton. Cripes! That would have taken me forever had I listened to it. I think I have the settings all properly done up too.(fastest route, major highways, etc) It happened again going to a local golf course too. (and the British womans voice is pretty hot)
Posted by: brisson | May 21, 2008 at 02:35 PM
I haven't really used it outside the city yet. So maybe I did my review a bit early. I have found that the routes she chooses within Watertown are very strange.
We're heading to the Burg and to the Southwick Zoo this weekend, it'll be interesting to see how it does there.
Fenway via Newton seems weird, you sure you didn't tell her you wanted to take Green line in?
Posted by: Jeremy | May 21, 2008 at 02:46 PM
Your review for the most part is right on. Don't get me wrong, the device is great and extremely helpful. I just question some of it's choices and wonder what it would be like had I not known that Newton isn't the best way to Fenway and actually took it. It will be interesting to see how you feel after more usage.
Posted by: brisson | May 21, 2008 at 02:57 PM
Note to self, don't get Chris a GPS for a wedding gift, he already has one.
Posted by: Jeremy | May 21, 2008 at 03:01 PM
HAHAHA..ZING....I'll test it again tonight. From Andover to Fenway.
Posted by: brisson | May 21, 2008 at 03:16 PM
Yeah I agree- I like my GPS for the most part (Magellan, different model) , but it has messed me up sometimes too! My favorite feature is re-route so if you're stuck on 95 but don't know the backroads- it will help you out!
Posted by: colleen | May 28, 2008 at 10:12 PM