Review on Garmin DriveSmart 51 NA LMT-S: Lifetime Maps, Traffic, WiFi, Bluetooth & More! by Stephen Parkell

I am giving this product a relatively low rating as it does not meet the needs for which I bought it. I have a Toyota Avalon with built in GPS that is over four years old. The GPS mapping system, at least the old one, is becoming obsolete. In heavily built-up areas like the Tristate Area and Washington DC, my GPS has trouble navigating properly. In addition, the Points of Interest database is also outdated. Several times I was referred to gas stations and restaurants that no longer exist. Unfortunately, updating my Toyota's internal mapping system costs $250 for a one-time update. I have decided, that buying a portable GPS with lifetime software updates makes more sense. With that goal in mind, I picked the Garmin DriveSmart 51 as the best value for money. Unfortunately it was a disappointment in terms of both direction and attractions. During the first road tests, the GPS failed in two areas. This initially led me to a dead end. It was a road that had been impassable for several years. Even my 4 year old in-dash system knew it had hit a dead end. Another problem with the directions arose when I changed the recommended route. To do this I used the "Shape Tool" and clicked on the highway I wanted to use. The system seemed to react correctly and changed the route, to include the highway I chose. However, he did by adding a "formation point" to my preferred route. As expected, when I ran it, it ignored any active confirmation of this point. However, a few kilometers after refueling, he tried to steer me towards this "formation point" again, even though my next stop, my final destination, was in the opposite direction. The GPS recommended 3 restaurants in my area that had been closed for some time, two of them for over a year. And I should point out that my first action after purchasing Garmin was to go to their website and download the latest maps and software. There were a few other issues with the device that bothered me. A couple of times, while I was sitting in my living room reading up on the device's capabilities, it started guiding me along a route even though no GPS simulator was selected. When I took the device to my car and plugged it in, I found that it reinitialized some of the settings I had changed and reset my "Saved Places". the quick voice was loud and clear. I also like that the "Find a location" voice command searches for locations far outside of your current range. For example, he found one of my favorite burger chains, Steak & Shake, by identifying the nearest store 170 miles away. My in-dash system limits such voice requests to 30 miles or less. Conclusion: If you don't already have a car GPS system and want something that you can control with your voice, you should consider this. But if you are looking for something to replace outdated data,