Help for the Geographically Challenged

My issues with directions stem from two problems:  I am also a "landmark" person, where I can get from here to there if it's some place I've been before AND I can visualize buildings and things that are near where I need to go (after all, street names very rarely have anything to do with the actual street...Acorn Court can be anywhere, but there's only one road between the Shell station and Mapco off of the interstate south of Franklin).  I also take directions quite literally so when it says, "Take your next left", the very next place I can turn left is where I go.  As you might expect, this is rather frustrating even when I get GOOD directions.  MapQuest and Yahoo Maps have been helpful, but not 100%.  Enter my thoughtful girlfriend and the best birthday purchase ever, a Garmin StreetPilot c340.

Upon opening the box for the Garmin Streetpilot, you find the unit itself, USB cord, software CD, instructions and windshield mount.  The Garmin is pre-loaded with maps, however they likely will not be completely up to date.  But since there are maps installed, using the Garmin is a snap right out of the box, even using the default settings.  Mounting the Garmin to your windshield uses the provided mount with giant suction cup to attach to the glass.  Slide the clip back and it will cling to your windshield and the Garmin may be placed on the mount.  While the unit is sitting there, it is charging at the same time...valuable because the internal battery lasts a decent amount of time, but seems to run dry rather quickly. 

An important bit of information to be noted is all GPS run off of satellite.  If, for whatever reason, the GPS can't find a satellite, it will NOT help you.  This may be for good reasons (you're in a parking garage) or for unknown reasons, even driving on a clear day. 

Turning on the Garmin you see the touch screen with two options:  View Map and Where to?  Touching View Map will show you the road you are on, once the satellite finds you.  The exception to this is if you are off road, or on a road created since the maps were loaded onto that Garmin.  In either case, your location will be found by the satellite, but you will be 'floating' (i.e. not on a road on the Garmin).  Touching "Where to?" opens other options to find a location by category (lodging, recreation, hotel, etc), by entering an address, a list of your preferred locations or recent selections. 

The option to spell the name or address of where you are going is made a bit difficult by the touch screen keyboard.  This keyboard is in ABCD order, not QWERTY order.  All of us know we aren't supposed to operate a GPS while driving.  And all of us do it anyway.  Because this keyboard is not in QWERTY order, it makes it more difficult to find the correct letters AND the keys are a bit too small, making it easy to touch the wrong letter.  I'd say this is the biggest downfall of this unit.

After entering your desired location, you are guided by vocal prompts ("in 500 feet turn left", then again right as you approach the turn "turn left").  Also there to aid you in getting to your destination are turn arrows on the map itself and directions at top of the screen. A checkered flag marks your arrival at your destination, as well as "Arriving at destination, on left." from the voice prompts.

Even with the reminders, our highways can sometimes be confusing with turning left, bear left, keep left or (as I heard from the Garmin once) "turn SHARPLY left").  You will miss a turn, especially when you're in an unfamiliar area.  But fear not!  The Garmin will still track your location and direction via satellite and once it has determined you are off course, will utter "Recalculating..." and provide the quickest directions to get you back on track.

Other less used, but valuable options are the ability to find a place by just browsing a map (using the "-" and "+" buttons to zoom in and out), then touching that object and "Go!" to head to that destination.  You can also perform searches "near" your current location, in different cities (your home city is the default), along your current route or near the end of your destination. 

Once of the most useful features of this unit is the ability to save favorites, particularly your Home location.  Let's say you've used your Garmin to go to a party, deep in a large subdivision with a lot of turns.  You know you're going to have trouble remembering how to get out of there, but what do you enter into the GPS when you're leaving?  Simple.  Tell it to go "Home" and it'll get you out of the subdivision and on your way.  Once you've hit a familiar path, that route can be discontinued so you don't have to listen to the directions when you know where you're going.  Again, if you live in a new subdivision that doesn't appear in the Garmin's maps yet, you cannot mark your home exactly, but you can substitute something close to get you there.

Extended vacations will benefit in some way from the Trip Information screen, which shows averages, travel times, time stopped, etc.  Since this information typically comes standard on most newer cars, it is of limited usefulness.  Arrival time is obviously valuable just for general planning and if you're meeting someone at the end of your trip.

Other Settings include: Brightness (auto switches when dark), map detail, time formats/zones, daylight savings, route preference (shorter distance or faster time), avoidances (road types you want to avoid, such as toll roads), attention tone (before voice prompts) and languages.