GPS Gadget

I finally decided to get a hand held GPS device.  Based on online reviews and comparing features and cost, I decided to go with the TomTom One from TomTom.  Here are some of my observations so far.  First it seems to be very accurate.  The initial position when I turned it on seemed to be exactly right.  I still have some experimenting to do to see how accurate it is (1 ft, 10 ft, 100 ft).  However when I told it my address, it placed my house a few blocks up the street from where it actually is!  So the map is a little off!  Generally it seems to do a very good job of giving directions (I like the British woman voice, for some reason it gives me the sense of someone who knows where they're going).  It gives plenty of notice of upcoming turns.  In the two longer trips we've taken with it to central Wisconsin, some things were a bit off.  First, it doesn't seem to quite have exactly the right location for all parts of highway 10.  Sometimes it thinks we're driving in the field next to the road, and sometimes it assumes we're on another road.  It keeps trying to give directions on how to get back on to highway 10.  On today's trip in Washara county, it also behaved strangely on some of the county and town roads.  Sometimes it would say to turn right or left on a road that was just curving to the left or right.  It's like it thought there was a jog in the road or something.  On both trips, it did get us to our destination, but it would be wise to make sure you review the route and know the major roads you'll be taking before going on the trip.  Then you don't have to just rely only on the voice instructions, because sometimes they are not right.  The TomTom One also computes the expected arrival time at your destination and updates that throughout the trip.  It seemed to initially overestimate the time needed for both of our trips so far by almost 50%.

Another thing that impresses me with this device is that if you ever start taking an alternate route (or a wrong turn), it adapts and recalculates the best route.  Overall I'm very impressed with this device - detailed maps and directions for the whole U.S. in the palm of your hand.  I can't even count the number of times in my life where I could have used one of these!

I would like to understand better how accurate and precise it is, and I would also like to see how it works on an airplane.  I will write about those in the future.