John,
We have a Garmin 255; spoken street names; 3.5" screen. It's on sale this week in Canada for about US$100, about half what I thought was a good price last year. I have zero experience with the trucker version, but, FWIW, will still give some opinions
If you haven't checked amazon, they have some interesting reviews to digest as well:
http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-4-3-In...1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1260631093&sr=8-1
First of all, I am very happy with my GPS and even use it in the car for 1-2 hr trips even when I know where I'm going because I like the onscreen info. However, for a long cross country trip it is just one more tool, albeit a favorite one. We always travel with official DOT maps for every state/province we'll be in, a road atlas, campground directory and The Next Exit. You are traveling blind if you use a GPS to replace any of these other tools.
I suspect the trucker version is filled with as many errors and omissions as the regular one we have--they aren't going to use different maps, just different algorithms for plotting a route. The maps are not updated uniformly. My son's 3 yr old house in a 4 or 5 yr old subdivision does not have a single street, including the main access through street marked--it's just a big white space. Just to give you a couple of examples you'll be familiar with. Buttonwood is one of many private campgrounds not in the POI database. If you can play with the GPS in the store, plot a short trip from the east into Mexico,PA. The regular GPS will have you turn on that first 135° lefthander down to the river--or use any other close to home route you know you wouldn't want to be on. I'd give the trucker version one strike and it's out.
Our GPS paid for itself on a trip to Lancaster Co., PA. I don't mean to insult anyone--the former cowpaths and buggy roads that have been paved into highways are part of the charm of the place, but we've been there a couple of times without a GPS. The GPS navigated us around Lancaster flawlessly and we had complete confidence in lingering over dinner into darkness that simply punching the campground back into the GPS would take us back without any drama. Having said that, the Sight & Sound Theatre, one of the major attractions, is not in the POI.
What I like least about the GPS is that it has no intelligence--don't even try to put in a waypoint--few options and no overrides. We drove halfway across NE on US30 while the GPS tried to get us back onto I80 at every single interchange. If you select the fast route the GPS will take you miles out of the way to get onto an Interstate. If you select the most direct you'll be turning down every single gravel country road that knocks a couple of feet off your route--like I said, never drive blind.
A couple of issues to be aware of:
Garmin know the instant you unwrap that nice little package under your tree... and turn it on for the first time... and it acquires the satellite. Your warranty is now ticking and you have 3 mon. to log on and download the latest out of date map updates. Don't save money by buying an open box.
The cheapest US models do not have Canadian maps and the cheapest Canadian models only have the northern US states--not very useful for the typical RV'er.
Spoken street names and turns is a very useful feature. I found lane assist to be too rich for my first "let's try this out first" GPS as it is usually only on high end models where you pay for other stuff like bluetooth and MP3 that I didn't need. For anyone not sure of the difference: on an Interstate with a two lane exit ramp--spoken turns will tell you to keep right first; then once onto the ramp, it will tell you to keep right or left for whichever lane you should be in; or it says "keep right then keep left." With lane assist you will be positioned into the proper lane with beautiful graphics of the overhead interstate signs. Lane assist is not a big deal for driving through Cincinnati on I75, but check out a map of Nashville on I65 to see a huge benefit.
Lane assist is the only feature for which I would even consider the 4.3"; 3.5" is big enough for me.
Garmin, but not the older Tom Tom's at least, automatically magnifies the map as you approach a turn. This is a really nice feature as extraneous crossroads usually aren't even there, Interstate ramps barely show up, but when you come to your ramp it is greatly magnified to show the lay of the land.
The onscreen speed limit display is also very useful. Most of the time it changes exactly as you pass the sign beside the hwy.--pretty cool. However, that feature doesn't work anywhere in Canada and fairly often not in the US either.
My personal preference is not to attach the GPS to the windshield--illegal in MN and CA--and I really like this Garmin mat. It has a high friction bottom and is filled with shot. I adjust it a couple of times on a day long drive, but it has never fallen off or slid forward even in a panic stop, even in my Accord which has a downward slope on the dash.
http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-010-10...-Mount/dp/B000LRMS66/ref=cm_lmf_tit_4_rsrssi1
This is a really expensive price, almost Canadian
A friend recently bought one in VA in a large discount sports store--can't remember their name, Dick's I believe, for less than $20.
Henry
