Car or standalone? Which GPS is right for you

by Jessie Atkin

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Map reading is an all but obsolete skill -- especially in the younger generation -- due to the wonderful invention of the global positioning system or GPS.  The global positioning system has made driving simpler for the most part, but it isnt flawless.  What technology does and what it is supposed to do often varies.  Let us examine the success and shortcomings of the GPS system both in car and on phone.

Many simple GPS units dedicated to direction and nothing else can be pretty directionally challenged.  The inaptly named Never Lost is well known for disregarding any construction and attempting to lead travelers onto closed highways and streets.  Users can get very frustrated, and very lost, indeed. 

However, anyone who has ever used two or more brands of GPS can tell you that the same destination does not always mean the same directions.  Cloud cover can even cause a loss of any directions at all.  The more dependable models (where cloud cover is concerned) tend to be those built into cars or on cell phones. 

Most cell phones today come with some sort of GPS application.  Often there is a trial period before monthly payments get involved.  The iPhone has opened up a whole new world of cell phone capabilities with access to Google Street View, walking directions, and standard GPS.  The iPhone too has changed the game where screen size is concerned.  One of the major upsides to a separate GPS unit used to be the visibility and size of the screen, but the iPhone's size can rival that of many GPS systems.

The iPhone itself is expensive, and a regular phone's screen will still be small in comparison.  GPS on the phone too can cost quite a bit depending on use.  Keep a GPS plan for an extended period of time and it's possible the privilege will cost you more than an original unit might have.  A standard GPS unit is also known for being clearer when it comes to volume.  Those little dings and computerized voices are much easier to hear from the dashboard than from a phone (and often that can make all the difference between missing a turn and just making one).

The fact is a cell phone's convenience factor can often swing the vote in its favor, but both GPS in and of itself, as well cell phone versions, have their positive sides.  Whether its long term use, an accepted car feature, or volume control, the GPS unit itself is also very convenient.

To be fair all GPS systems will at one point or another be frustrating.  Whether you're looking at your phone or at your dashboard odds are one problem or another will arise.  Nothing's perfect, not even the iPhone.  Perhaps a phone has less of a chance of being stolen than a portable GPS mounted on the dash, but that's what glove compartments are for.  Overall, GPS remains a spectacular invention, whether in the car or in your pocket.