Hi all,

Will be returning to Thailand at the end of the month.

I always rent a car from Petchburee car rent and pay 3000bht to rent a GPS unit for the month.

I am thinking it may be worth just buying one.

How much for a basic unit and where is a good place to get it?

PS. I can highly recomend Petchburee, I have rented about 10 cars from them over the years and never had an issue.

Free pick up and delivery, great service.

http://www.thairentacar.com/

Try Gadget Trend in BKK, they are main distributor of Garmin units + maps for Thailand. They have a 1250 model for sale at 3900 bath incl latest maps preloaded.

http://www.gadgetrend.com/

You don't even have to go to BKK but can send them an e-mail or phone them. When I bought my 205W (discontinued), they gave me a bank name and an account no. Paid the money and 3-4 days later I received my unit, and I am by the way very happy with it.

Thanks for the reply, sounds like a good deal.

Will only be in Pattaya for 3 days before I hit the road and not going to Bangers at all, so looking for a local purchase in Pattaya.

Tukcom on Pattaya tai (South) Rd has many GPS's around 3000 baht. Garmin and every make really. 2nd or 3rd floor has them. Also Power Buy has them I believe.

A word to the wise: If you are not here yet, buy your Garmin BEFORE you come. They cost twice as much here as in the U.S.! There are a lot of people selling the Thai map chip cheap. You can buy that after you get here. Also, the latest models Garmin offers are not available here. They always seem a year behind and are charging top dollar for the same models that are on clearance in the U.S. It's a jungle out there, but if you do your homework, you will save a bundle!

Cheers.

A word to the wise: If you are not here yet, buy your Garmin BEFORE you come. They cost twice as much here as in the U.S.! There are a lot of people selling the Thai map chip cheap. You can buy that after you get here. Also, the latest models Garmin offers are not available here. They always seem a year behind and are charging top dollar for the same models that are on clearance in the U.S. It's a jungle out there, but if you do your homework, you will save a bundle!

Cheers.

I have a Garmin GPS and I need to get the Thai map installed. You mentioned that their are a lot of people selling the Thai map chip cheap. Exactly where do I find them? Prefer Pattaya.

A word to the wise: If you are not here yet, buy your Garmin BEFORE you come. They cost twice as much here as in the U.S.! There are a lot of people selling the Thai map chip cheap. You can buy that after you get here. Also, the latest models Garmin offers are not available here. They always seem a year behind and are charging top dollar for the same models that are on clearance in the U.S. It's a jungle out there, but if you do your homework, you will save a bundle!

Cheers.

I have a Garmin GPS and I need to get the Thai map installed. You mentioned that their are a lot of people selling the Thai map chip cheap. Exactly where do I find them? Prefer Pattaya.

You can try Tukcom on South Patt road, bring your unit and ask around.

Gadget Trend in BKK can install the original Thai maps for you too, at a prize.

I have a jailbroken iphone 4 and also an ipad 2 and I just download TomTom for whatever country I work in including Thailand for free. Cost normally is $69.00 USD but with cydia it's free.

A word to the wise: If you are not here yet, buy your Garmin BEFORE you come. They cost twice as much here as in the U.S.! There are a lot of people selling the Thai map chip cheap. You can buy that after you get here. Also, the latest models Garmin offers are not available here. They always seem a year behind and are charging top dollar for the same models that are on clearance in the U.S. It's a jungle out there, but if you do your homework, you will save a bundle!

Cheers.

Garmin GPS units purchased in the US do not have the Thai OS (firmware) and therefore cannot use junction view with the local ESRI Thailand Street Map .

A word to the wise: If you are not here yet, buy your Garmin BEFORE you come. They cost twice as much here as in the U.S.! There are a lot of people selling the Thai map chip cheap. You can buy that after you get here. Also, the latest models Garmin offers are not available here. They always seem a year behind and are charging top dollar for the same models that are on clearance in the U.S. It's a jungle out there, but if you do your homework, you will save a bundle!

Cheers.

Garmin GPS units purchased in the US do not have the Thai OS (firmware) and therefore cannot use junction view with the local ESRI Thailand Street Map .

Ouch! Would you have any problems with Thai Garmin units working in various other countries? Like Europe or the US?

A word to the wise: If you are not here yet, buy your Garmin BEFORE you come. They cost twice as much here as in the U.S.! There are a lot of people selling the Thai map chip cheap. You can buy that after you get here. Also, the latest models Garmin offers are not available here. They always seem a year behind and are charging top dollar for the same models that are on clearance in the U.S. It's a jungle out there, but if you do your homework, you will save a bundle!

Cheers.

Garmin GPS units purchased in the US do not have the Thai OS (firmware) and therefore cannot use junction view with the local ESRI Thailand Street Map .

Ouch! Would you have any problems with Thai Garmin units working in various other countries? Like Europe or the US?

If you are talking about junction view, the firmware and junction view files and map files must all match. The basic map files (gmapprom.img) are all interchangeable between Garmin nuvis.