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Enjoy the view: GPS with wide-screen displays

Bonnie Cha
Bonnie Cha, Senior Associate Editor
Updated April 30, 2008
One of the great things about in-car GPS devices is that they give you both visual and audio navigation prompts to help you get to your destination. That said, the view isn't always that great when you're squinting to check out maps and text-based instructions on a small screen. To date, most portable navigation systems have been equipped with 3.5-inch touch screens, which has worked so far but is obviously not ideal. To be fair, GPS manufacturers are a bit restricted in what they can do, since they still have to keep the devices compact and portable. Yet, companies are now starting to churn out systems with slightly larger screens, usually in the 4- to 4.3-inch range (hey, every little bit helps, right?) and some even up to 5 inches. Here are six such systems. And remember, in addition to screen size, you'll also want to make sure that the displays offer good color output, sharp resolution, and readability in various lighting conditions.

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Product name TomTom GO 720
TomTom GO 720  
Garmin Nuvi 750
Garmin Nuvi 750  
Sony NV-U83T
Sony NV-U83T  
Magellan Maestro 4040
Magellan Maestro 4040  
Mio C520 Navigation Receiver
Mio C520 Navigation Receiver  
Harman Kardon Guide Play GPS-500
Harman Kardon Guide Play GPS-500  







Review date August 31, 2007   March 05, 2008   April 30, 2008   April 05, 2007   June 19, 2007   July 12, 2007  







CNET editors' rating 8.0 out of 10 8.0
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7.0 out of 10 7.0
Very good
7.0 out of 10 7.0
Very good







Users' rating 6.4 out of 10 6.4
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6.8 out of 10 6.8
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6.0 out of 10 6.0
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6.2 out of 10 6.2
Good
6.4 out of 10 6.4
Good
6.8 out of 10 6.8
Good







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Review summary The TomTom GO 720 delivers with sleek looks, good performance, and a full set of features that includes a map-sharing function for the most up-to-date maps and a helpful safety tool. The Garmin Nuvi 750 delivers beautifully on almost every front, but the portable navigation system hits a speed bump with its sluggish performance. The Sony NV-U83T is a seemingly attractive in-car GPS with a large display and useful navigation features, but it shows its ugly side with poor directions and subpar performance. Sporting a sleeker design and interface, the affordable Magellan Maestro series offers drivers an accurate in-car GPS device with useful trip information, thanks to its partnership with AAA. The sleek Mio C520 is a good-value GPS device, packing in advanced navigation features, a large screen, and other extras for an affordable price. However, you can get a better user experience and smoother performance from competing systems. Style and ease of use mark this basic portable navigation and multimedia device, but the Harman Kardon Guide + Play GPS-500 doesn't offer the same smooth performance and efficiency of competing products.







Product series   See all products in this series   See all products in this series    







My Products
Basic Specs
Weight 7.8 oz 6.7 oz 8.8 oz 8.5 oz 6.7 oz Info unavailable







Manufacturer Warranty 1 year warranty Info unavailable Info unavailable Info unavailable Info unavailable Info unavailable







Destination Automotive Automotive Automotive Automotive Automotive Automotive







Included GPS accessories Docking station , Mounting bracket , Car power adapter USB cable , Automotive windshield mount USB cable , TMC antenna , Vehicle mount , AC power adapter , Car power adapter USB cable , AC power adapter , Car power adapter , Windshield holder , Automotive windshield mount USB cable , Carrying case , Charging cradle , AC power adapter , Car power adapter , Windshield holder USB cable , Carrying case , Cleaning cloth , AC power adapter , Mounting bracket , Car power adapter







Included GPS software TomTom HOME MapSource City Navigator North America NT Drivers & Utilities Info unavailable MioMap v3.3 Info unavailable







Data memory type SD Memory Card SD Memory Card Memory Stick Duo SD Memory Card SD Memory Card SD Memory Card







Antenna Built-in Info unavailable Built-in Built-in Built-in Info unavailable







Audible assistance Navigation instructions Navigation instructions , Street name announcement Navigation instructions , Street name announcement Navigation instructions Warnings , Navigation instructions Navigation instructions







Maps included USA , Canada North America USA , Canada , Puerto Rico USA , Canada , Puerto Rico Canada , USA Info unavailable







GPS PC connection Bluetooth USB Hi-Speed USB USB USB USB







System features Built-in speaker , Preinstalled POIs , TomTom PLUS ready , Built-in microphone , 2D / 3D map perspective , Built-in FM transmitter , Hands-free calling via Bluetooth Custom POIs , Garmin Lock , Built-in speaker , Preinstalled POIs , Built-in microphone , Built-in FM modulator , 2D / 3D map perspective , Hands-free calling via Bluetooth Built-in speaker , Preinstalled POIs , Built-in microphone , Text-to-Speech (TTS) , 2D / 3D map perspective , Internal angular rate sensor , Hands-free calling via Bluetooth , TMC (Traffic Message Channel) ready Preinstalled POIs , 2D / 3D map perspective , Hands-free calling via Bluetooth Calculator , Built-in speaker , Built-in microphone , Speed limit warning , Hands-free calling via Bluetooth , Optional external GPS antenna connection Built-in speaker , Preinstalled POIs , 2D / 3D map perspective







GPS functions / services Info unavailable Automatic route navigation Info unavailable Info unavailable Info unavailable Speed , Distance , Altimeter







Navigation waypoints Info unavailable 500 Info unavailable Info unavailable Info unavailable Info unavailable







Navigation routes Info unavailable 10 Info unavailable Info unavailable Info unavailable Info unavailable







Design features Info unavailable FM , MP3 player , Audio book player , Picture viewer , Travel clock , Currency converter , Measurement converter , Calculator , Touchscreen Touch screen , USB port , Cradle connector Info unavailable Info unavailable MP3 player , Video player







GPS receiver Info unavailable Info unavailable Info unavailable 20 channel 20 channel Info unavailable







SBAS Info unavailable Info unavailable Info unavailable WAAS , EGNOS WAAS Info unavailable







Product name TomTom GO 720   Garmin Nuvi 750   Sony NV-U83T   Magellan Maestro 4040   Mio C520 Navigation Receiver   Harman Kardon Guide Play GPS-500  







Full specifications Full Specifications Full Specifications Full Specifications Full Specifications Full Specifications Full Specifications







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$258-500
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$296-570
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$347-400
from 9 stores
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$199-527
from 8 stores
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$237-350
from 5 stores
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$200-339
from 3 stores












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