GPS - for Dummies - HELP Please.

Guys, I have a few months of driving to do in Thailand.

I need a GPS that is inexpensive, reliable, easy to use and happy if it's just basic.

Unlike many of you, I'm not an enthusiast, I just need to get from A2B. It would be nice if the GPS voice was that of a sexy French maid (fishnets and a feather duster) ... but, if it sounds like Adlof Hitler on a bad day ... I can live with that.

Recommendations and costs?

Which ones to avoid?

Lastly, where to buy?

As always ... thanks in advance ...

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David there is a whole section on TV - Thailand GPS and Maps or something that covers much of this in great detail.

I guess Garmin is the most accepted, many people using apps on their mobiles as well with varying degrees of success.

Just go to Se-ed at Tesco lotus and buy the cheapest Garmin. 3995 baht..make sure it's dual language .. sorted!

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David there is a whole section on TV - Thailand GPS and Maps or something that covers much of this in great detail.

I guess Garmin is the most accepted, many people using apps on their mobiles as well with varying degrees of success.

Mate, appreciate the heads up.

Recent owner of a jalopy, so don't venture much down these parts ...

David there is a whole section on TV - Thailand GPS and Maps or something that covers much of this in great detail.

Moved

Uhm why not just use google maps on your phone?

If your just gonna use it a few months I dont see any reason to get a proper GPS in this day and age with smartphones being what they are. It works very well in Thailand.

Uhm why not just use google maps on your phone?

If your just gonna use it a few months I dont see any reason to get a proper GPS in this day and age with smartphones being what they are. It works very well in Thailand.

If you're going to use a smartphone there are two issues: (i) you need a data package for the 'phone, (ii) the lag in updating your position can be very noticeable, and at times problematic.

I have a cheap-ish Garmin which I find invaluable. The larger screen size (than a 'phone) and the spoken voice make using it much easier.

The only problem I have is that I can't use it when my partner's in the car. He always disagrees with the Garmin, claiming to know a faster/better route, or saying that I've programmed the destination incorrectly. I turn it off to avoid disharmony - even if that means journeys take longer and/or getting lost.

No sexy French maid voice on the device. In fact, there are no English voices on the 'phone - only grating American. The choice of Thai voices, though, is fantastic, with dialects from North, South, Central and Isaan regions, both male and female.

Registering the device to get updated maps is a pain. You have to download a Windows-only piece of software to do so - useless if you only have Linux machines. (Doesn't run under Wine.)

Uhm why not just use google maps on your phone?

If your just gonna use it a few months I dont see any reason to get a proper GPS in this day and age with smartphones being what they are. It works very well in Thailand.

If you're going to use a smartphone there are two issues: (i) you need a data package for the 'phone, (ii) the lag in updating your position can be very noticeable, and at times problematic.

About how much data would you use up travelling from say Bangkok to Chiang Mai?

Uhm why not just use google maps on your phone?

If your just gonna use it a few months I dont see any reason to get a proper GPS in this day and age with smartphones being what they are. It works very well in Thailand.

Delli, thanks for that suggestion ... but there's an assumption in there.

I have a 'dumb' phone.

Uhm why not just use google maps on your phone?

If your just gonna use it a few months I dont see any reason to get a proper GPS in this day and age with smartphones being what they are. It works very well in Thailand.

If you're going to use a smartphone there are two issues: (i) you need a data package for the 'phone, (ii) the lag in updating your position can be very noticeable, and at times problematic.

About how much data would you use up travelling from say Bangkok to Chiang Mai?

That's missing the point. It's not about the volume of data used; you need to have a 'phone package that includes a data plan.

Uhm why not just use google maps on your phone?

If your just gonna use it a few months I dont see any reason to get a proper GPS in this day and age with smartphones being what they are. It works very well in Thailand.

If you're going to use a smartphone there are two issues: (i) you need a data package for the 'phone, (ii) the lag in updating your position can be very noticeable, and at times problematic.

About how much data would you use up travelling from say Bangkok to Chiang Mai?

That's missing the point. It's not about the volume of data used; you need to have a 'phone package that includes a data plan.

You can easily buy a 3G sim card and subscribe to a data plan. However, as 3G is is capped at 7 GB per month (maximum) then volume of data is very relevant.

You would only use a tiny fraction of 7mb (Which 7gb plan is that anyway)...

Also when travelling between Bangkok and Chiang Mai (Or out in the countyside)... Data can slow to a crawl or be non existant making the GPS phone usless...

You would only use a tiny fraction of 7mb (Which 7gb plan is that anyway)...

Also when travelling between Bangkok and Chiang Mai (Or out in the countyside)... Data can slow to a crawl or be non existant making the GPS phone usless...

I recall seeing a 7 GB plan but can't find it now. Maybe it was postpaid. For prepaid there's Happy Internet 890 a month with a 5 GB limit, so if you have a Happy sim it's just a case of topping up and dialling the number to activate Happy Internet.

I've heard 3G is good all over Thailand nowadays.

Edited March 5, 201412 yr by edwardandtubs

PM me for a price offer

Uhm why not just use google maps on your phone?

If your just gonna use it a few months I dont see any reason to get a proper GPS in this day and age with smartphones being what they are. It works very well in Thailand.

Agree. Thai GPS is crap, do yourself a favour and go with this advice.

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The OP stated in a follow-up post that he has a "dumb" phone, ie not a smartphone, ie not capable of accessing the Internet. Therefore, the post suggesting the purchase of a Garmin device with a Thai map seems to apply. He doesn't say where in Thailand he will stay so let's give him an idea where in Bangkok he can buy it and the name of the map he should get installed. Remember that he is new to Thailand and probably not very familiar with the geography of Bangkok. I believe there is a Garmin shop on Sathorn Road. What is the exact address, ie the house number, or perhaps better even the URL of their website? (Am on the phone and it would be complicated for me to look it up and insert it here)

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https://www8.garmin.com/cgi-bin/dealers.pl?country=Thailand

You can buy the cheaper Garmin units at any SE-ED book store. They are usually in Tesco Lotus supermarkets. Hope that helps!

Look for Nuvi42

https://m.se-ed.com/Product/List/3253

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Edited March 9, 201412 yr by casualbiker

I don't think I will buy it.

Go into gadget trend in Amarin plaza. I think they still have the nuvi 1250. They were around 3 or 4 thousand baht last time I looked. If those are out of production, just get the cheapest nuvi and you will be set. The maps of Thailand loaded onto those nuvis are great. There are many preloaded voices too -- I don't think you can get French maid English, but they have Auzzie, UK and US girls on there

If you do buy the Garmin, make sure it's programmed in your language of choice before you leave the store.

They should do it for you- GPS4U in Fortune Town did mine and it was dead easy to use right out of the box. (Nuvi40- now supplanted by the Nuvi42)

That's why I'd be reluctant to buy one in TESCO or Big C- unless they can program it for you- and the nice guys selling electronics at the big box stores probably don't have the know-how.

Edited March 30, 201412 yr by impulse

Dedicated GPS is a thing of the past.

Any smartphone + sygic will do the job better and cheaper.

No data plan required, the maps are downloaded and saved for any country you want.

I use a cheap I-mobile phone with Sygic and it works perfectly well.

I have no data plan at all.

Free 2 week trial

http://www.sygic.com/en/gps-navigation

Edited March 30, 201412 yr by BritManToo

Dedicated GPS is a thing of the past.

Any smartphone + sygic will do the job better and cheaper.

Multipurpose devices don't do things better than single-purpose devices. A smartphone with a similar size-screen + Sygic will either cost more than a Nuvi 40, or have a B-spec screen etc. It will also have a worse map.

Dedicated GPS is a thing of the past.

Any smartphone + sygic will do the job better and cheaper.

I use my phone with "Navigator" (free app) when I'm walking around town- and it's perfectly adequate- even better than the Garmin for walking around.

But give me my cheapo Garmin Nuvi40 for my car.

In fact, I don't know if I could get around Bangkok at all without the turn by turn from the Garmin. I sure wouldn't want to try it after a couple of weeks ago when my normal route was blocked by protesters. GPS saved me... So many one way streets and streets that end suddenly.

I also believe the dedicated devices are well worthwhile for driving, and def do not agree they are a thing of the past.

My garmin was bought here in Thailand. When I went back to the states, I loaded a North American map onto it, and it worked so well I could not even believe it. It even covered my trips to Mexico. I had not even planned to use it anywhere else other than Thailand when I bought it, but the device has pleasantly surprised me in so many ways since.