 "COSTCO has it for $349.99 Dec 11-24." | 2007-12-12 |
| - Reviewed By weissmar48 |
| Great unit for the price. Even if I turn off and never use the voice commands, it beats the comparable Garmin unit (Nuvi 660) because of the AAA info and the price.
Especially a good deal at Costco from Dec 11-24, 2007. |
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 "No Software Upgrade is Disappointing" | 2008-10-07 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3GFE4U1Z3ZDAX |
| Magellan units are okay, but their support is very disappointing. Also, having bought this unit for a few weeks only, you would think that they would provide you the updated software for free. They don't. And that's a big negative on my book. So any positives I have for this unit will go down the drain. They should provide free software for at least the first year you've bought the item. I suggest looking the other way and getting others instead. |
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 "OK GPS" | 2008-10-06 |
| - Reviewed By lubeatcoop |
| I bought the refurbished model and it froze initially and wouldnt even reset. I had to Hold the power button down for several seconds to get the unit to turn off. I upgraded the firmware and it has been working fine. Some of the maps/poi are outdated (as are most of the gps on the market) but the routing is very accurate and fairly quick. Try the firmware update to correct problems. As with most electronics the hardware is cheap and the software (map updates) is where they get you. br / |
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| "October 2008 - Beware - item is outdated and freezes up" | 2008-10-04 |
| - Reviewed By User: ALCSTS99WXVIH |
| I read all the reviews and ordered the 4250 Oct 1st 2008 from Amazon. I thought it was a sure thing. The unit came in and would only show me the "Magellan" name screen after the blue line moved from left to right to indicate start up... but right there is where the unit Froze up. It wouldn't go any further. I then kept the unit plugged in for the reccomended 6 hours to fully charge. This did not help. (Charger was working). Tried to use the "Reset" button on the bottom - no avail. Went to Magellan website - it says " if unit continues to freeze up - download and install update firmware". Well I did this, but if the unit is FREEZING UP before starting your computer WILL NOT Recognize the 4250. Thus you can't install the firmware. I got a Dud from the get go. And this is unfortunately my first experience with Magellan and GPS. So I've got a REALLY bad taste for this name brand. It's made in the Phillipines... and obviously quality control is sub-par. br /br /I called Amazon today October 4th (got the unit the night of the 3rd via UPS) - and found they no longer stock this unit. In fact - there are TONS of REFURBISHED units available. This does not bode well. Magellan customer service isn't open on the weekends (when most of us working folks have time to call) - which is kinda crazy. So I'm just returning the item for Refund to Amazon - who in fact has been GREAT to work with over the phone today. They told me I'll get a full refund once the unit is back at their place. Then again - my $250.00 is tied up for 7 - 14 days until they make the refund happen. br /br /I don't know - perhaps I'm just unlucky in this endeavor. The only thing I'll reccomend is for anyone here in the last part of 2008 comtemplating getting a 4250 - don't. It's outdated. Maps are Oct 2007 - and Magellan wants to charge you $75.00 to get the 2008/2009 Map updates according to their website. |
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| "easy to use" | 2008-09-30 |
| - Reviewed By steveandmelh |
| I really love my magellan maestro. It is really easy to use and very self-explanatory. I didn't really need the manual. There were a few instances that it gave me odd directions but it was on VERY rural roads that are probably not even on a map. In every situation, the route was obvious and I didn't have a problem at all. The only thing I would like is to have a different voice option. I have a hearing problem and "Maggie's" voice is sometimes hard to understand. As long as I don't have the radio too loud or the kids aren't screaming, it is fine. |
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| "Great unit... if you upgrade to the latest firmware" | 2008-09-30 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1RGSMP6LIJH84 |
| The best piece of advice that I can give is to immediately update the firmware. The device came pre-loaded with firmware version 2.32. The latest available for free from Magellan's website is 4.6. This latest firmware has solved the constant crashing problem, and further address many of the complaints of the previous generation of software.br /br /Overall, I find the Magellan quite easy to follow. It's definitely a communicator... telling you two or three times of each impending turn. It gives you a split-screen view of upcoming turns, and beeps when you're at the turn. The map is clear and concise, and seems to have about the right resolution of those little extra side streets. I personally prefer it over Garmin's view.br /br /There are certain quirks to the interface, however. The address book is hidden under "routing," and it is difficult to add a previous address to your address book. Similarly, there is no way to independently adjust sound effect levels, so either that annoying "CLICK!" is too loud, or the turn-by-turn instructions are too quiet. And finally, while you would think that your car is in the middle of the little triangle indicator, it's actually a little bit in front of it. Overall, though, these are minor complaints, and don't detract from the overall score of 5.br /br /Whenever I have trusted my own navigational instincts over the Magellan, I have been proven wrong. Near-instantaneous remapping is a feature that I use almost constantly. Not only that, but if there is a route that you prefer to take, you can simply charge on ahead and take it, and the Magellan will re-route accordingly. Estimated times seem to be about right. The additional points of interest database, while 90% useless, is actually 10% useful for finding gas stations.br /br /While there are things to nitpick about the unit, once updated it's actually suprisingly reliable, useful, and intelligent. I'd gladly buy it again. |
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| "Great GPS for the Price" | 2008-09-29 |
| - Reviewed By User: A28XFXNCNI9Z4T |
| I purchased this GPS for a road trip to Baltimore recently. It was easy to use and worked extremely well--clear directions, good volume, sharp screen and good graphics. The only thing I wish it had was a "Traffic Alert" to tell you about bad traffic rather than just rerouting you all of a sudden until you realize minutes later, why. br /br /Nonetheless, both the software set-up and traffic subscription were a breeze. No problems with Magellan support when I called them for additional info. I did my research before hand and this product suited my needs perfectly for the price I was willing to pay. Love the AAA roadside info--POIs, restaurants, ATMs, etc., very helpful. I definitely would recommend this product. |
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 "Completely Satisfied" | 2008-09-29 |
| - Reviewed By User: A134O5ZGRDVK2M |
| I purchased my GPS from Beach Camera, awesome jobs guys, it was here fast and works great. One thing to be careful of, do a search on any company when buying online first. I had made that mistake before dealing with Beach Camera, this other company promissed a low price, but then called me trying to have me add things like a newer map, they said their Magellan 4250 came with a 2004 map. The weird thing, is that line didn't come out until 2007, so why the three year old map???br /br / |
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| "Was Impressed For the Most Part" | 2008-09-22 |
| - Reviewed By User: A15IC27Y2UYQ3H |
We recently used the Magellan Maestro 4250 on a trip to the Midwest. My husband named her "Vicky". For the most part, the Magellan worked flawlessly unless my husband would try and get "Vicky" flustered by making several very fast turns.
I was slightly disappointed that the unit was shipped with the 2007 map instead of the updated 2008/2009 map. I guess it would have been less annoying had it stated that I was purchasing a unit with an outdated map. The first address, I tried, was my daughter's as she lives in a fairly new house and the Magellan would take me to an area east of her house. By scrolling I could get to her neighborhood but then it showed her street as the last one in the subdivsion, when in reality there are and have been for some time several more streets as her house is over 3 years old.
But all in all, I am happy with my purchase. It's not the perfect GPS but I seriously doubt, that there will ever be one. It sure beats getting lost. |
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| "Magellan Mestro 4250 GPS works real well" | 2008-09-20 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1QYX0992QMXOP |
I reviewed GPS models from Garmin, Tomtom and Magellan for a trip to Seattle, Victoria and Vancouver. I selected Magellan for several reasons. First it was priced lower than comparable Garmin and Tomtom models. Second I liked the user interface better, it is easier to use because as you type, it narrows down next allowable characters. Third it has 20 channels to connect to GPS satellites 8 more than than the other two. Finally the AAA information in addition to POI is a plus.
It worked real well and saved me a lot of trouble if I had to use a map to find where I was going from hotels to airports to ferry ports.
There is room for improvement though. A walk mode would be useful when you are not driving, this model does not have it. Customizing the display to show more items is desirable. Faster simulate mode, Changing the voices would have been a plus. Including MP3 and Video player can reduce having to take more boxes with you. The interface should add more ways of creating favorites, typing exact address is not easy. Finally why not load maps from Europe, Australia etc.
All in all I was very pleased and happy I purchased this model. |
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| "Magellan works well" | 2008-09-20 |
| - Reviewed By User: A333FBBQQPZUJF |
| I've only used it about 5 times. No problems. Some of the comments I read here nearly caused me not to buy a Magellan. If you read about the Tom Tom and Garmin, you'll hear the same kind of complaints. I researched all of the GPS manufacturers. They're all about the same, but Magellan is less expensive and it has all of the AAA features, plus I like the fact that I got an extra year on the warranty just for being an AAA member. |
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