I was getting ready to write a couple of reviews of new products and realized I hadn’t fully tested all the features. So I’ll save them for another time. But that got me thinking that I could at least give you the scoop on what I’m playing with at the moment.

Automotive Navigational Devices

Let me say that these are among the best gadgets to come out in a while. At first I thought they were simply luxury devices, but prices have gone down and I now own two, so I’ve decided they are a lot more than just fun toys.

I first got interested in GPS technology a few years back when GPS receivers were made available to the public at a reasonable cost. I traveled in my car quite a bit, so I thought having one would be useful. I would certainly never be one of those lost hikers you year about, or drive half way across the country in the wrong direction. Nope, not me and my little GPS receiver.

I was so excited the day it came. I took it out to my yard with the manual and started it up. It acquired the satellites and eventually pinpointed me. There was a little dot in the middle of Florida. I was extremely impressed (and a little unnerved, knowing just what those darned satellites can do up there).

I read about waypoints and calculating trips and some things I actually found hard to understand. Then I took my GPS to Atlanta and found it didn’t help me at all. I mean, if I were on an expedition for National Geographic I might have used it. But for the average traveler, I was disappointed.

Then the automotive devices came out. Now that’s what I needed, I thought. But they were way too expensive. So when they finally came down in price, I just couldn’t help myself. I got a Garmin C340 (which is now in our other car and I use the Nuvi). And let me tell you, I loved it. Still do.

While I can only speak to these two products by the same manufacturer, most of them have similar basic functions, and those are the ones I find most useful. So most of the information in this article should relate to most any auto GPS receiver out there.

As far as using it for directions, it works great, although personally I like to Mapquest my trip and print it out ahead of time. But it’s still great for this purpose. Sometimes it takes me on strange routes, but mostly it’s very accurate. I had to go to a job in Orlando a while back and it took me on a faster and cheaper (kept me off the toll roads) route.

Probably the best feature and one that I use a lot is to help me find places, whether it’s a place I need to go and haven’t been able to find it on a map before starting out, or being in an unfamiliar city and wanting to go to a specific restaurant or store.

For example, I had to take my son to an event out-of-town, and I was left with nothing to do for several hours. So I thought I’d get some shopping done. I knew I could get a lot done at Target, but I had no idea where I Target was. So I just typed it into my GPS and it showed me where all the local Targets were. I picked the closest one and told it to take me there and it did.

Then yesterday I was at the beach with my son and we didn’t feel like driving home, so we thought maybe we’d stay in a hotel. Instead of driving around looking for vacancies and checking prices, I just looked up “lodging” on my GPS, called a few places (they give you the phone number in addition to the address), then let it lead me to the hotel I chose.

That thing is great.

I also have a few addresses stored in it. Even though they are places I can drive to by memory, there have been times when I’ve wanted to get to a place while I was on the road and wasn’t sure of the best route. Another example, I was coming home from the beach when I decided to stop at a friend’s house. She lives quite a distance from me so we don’t get together often. But this trip took me fairly close to her house. I wasn’t quite sure how close I was or the best route, so I just punched up her address from my “favorites” list and my GPS took it from there.

The Garmin C340 is a basic unit that is wonderful. When my son began driving I put it in the car he will be sharing with my mother. I feel so much better knowing he has that with him. If he needs gas or gets lost, it should be able to help him out.

I have the Nuvi in my car. It has a few more features (it plays MP3’s, so I can listen to music and audio books and has Bluetooth so I can use my cell phone with it – but I haven’t tried these yet). The best thing about the Nuvi is that it’s small and flat, so you can take it off your windshield and slid it into it’s case and take it with you. I like this because I fear having a GPS unit in the car is an invitation to break in. Plus, if you really want to, you can use it while you’re walking around. The worst thing is that the windshield mount won’t stay stuck on (not a problem with the C340).

In any case, I think these things are wonderful, even for people like me who are usually pretty good with directions and have a car loaded with maps. Plus, every man should have one. That way they don’t have to ask for directions. Instead they can discretely obtain them from their GPS unit. If anyone sees them using it, they simply look cool using their high-tech gadget. These things could usher in a whole new society of men getting places on time! (This observation was made to me by a man, I should note).

So I strongly suggest investing in one, especially if you have new driver in your family. And it’s a must for road trips or for anyone who has just moved into a new city. The prices keep dropping and more varieties of units are available, so having one isn’t as much a hit in the pocketbook as it once was. And if you go on vacation, take it with you. Some rental cars offer them now, but not all do, so why not bring your own? I can’t tell you how much time mine saves me when I’m out of town.

So that’s the latest of my gadgets. Believe me, I have more, so I’ll share more in the future. In the meanwhile, stop by the Wireless and Cellular forum and tell us what your favorite gadgets are and why. You might be making someone’s day