September 19, 2006

New GPS: Rand McNally GPS Navigator

Rand McNally has a new GPS, the Rand McNally GPS Navigator, coming out with an interesting twist; it has 26 pre-loaded Road Trips on the unit that have recommended routes, attractions and other points of interest. The trips range from the coast of Maine to Sonoma County in California. Other than that, it’s not a bad little GPS either. It of course has a SiRF star III chipset, and takes a thin streamlined look on the dashboard; not as thin as the Garmin Nuvi, or TomTom ONE, but still at 1.4” it won’t take up much room when packing or storing. It’s got voice prompted turn directions, and typical features such as MP3 player, millions of POI’s and a built in battery.

Features of the Rand McNally GPS Navigator

Simple, intuitive, and easy-to-use system with preloaded maps of the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands for voice-guided door-to-door routing

Portable and lightweight design that's a full inch thinner than many GPS devices in its class, so it takes less space on the dashboard or in your a purse or briefcase

The Rand McNally Road Atlas and Travel Planner for a big picture overview of where you're going

26 Best of the Road™ trip itineraries with suggested attractions, restaurants, and shops selected by Rand McNally's award-winning editorial staff
Product highlights:

Clear voice prompts tell you when to turn

Automatic rerouting if you miss a turn

"Detour" button to route around traffic jams

Bright 3.5" color touch screen with 2-D and 3-D modes

Day- and night-view map modes

Large keyboard for touch screen entry

"Go Home" button that directs the driver home from any location

Multistop route planning and mileage calculator

Doubles as an MP3 player

Easy access to millions of Points of Interest

Each box includes:

Rand McNally GPS Navigator

Rand McNally Road Atlas and Travel Planner

Memory card with full maps of the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands

Windshield mount*

Vehicle charger

AC adaptor

Quick-start guide

USB connector cable

Software utilities

Documentation DVD
GPS product specifications:

Unit dimensions: 4.5" W x 3.2" H x 1.4" D

Weight: 7 oz. (approximately 0.5 lb.)

Display: 3.5" color TFT LCD, LED backlight, 320 x 240 pixels, 65K colors, QVGA resolution, and landscape view

Hardware buttons: on/off, volume control, destination menu access

Battery: Lithium ion battery

GPS receiver: SiRF Star III with 20 channels

Antenna: Built-in patch

PC compatible: USB cable

Languages: English, French, and Spanish

Available through Rand McNally