Why Truck GPS?
 

Hi,
I’m planning to install Truck GPS system in my truck, after giving lots of thoughts and convincing myself with its features! The most interesting feature, which surely convinced me, is its capability to propose a best shortest route to my destination, considering my truck’s specifications, and taking the starting and ending places of my journey. The capability, if so works as described, will make me free from the cumbersome route research; which I have to perform for my journey to be shortest, economical, and safe from possible hurdles (we face at eleventh’s hour); like, re-routing, road-blocking, traffic stuck-up, low-bridge, sharp-turn, road-restrictions, time-restrictions, load-restrictions, and so! Wouldn’t a great feature?

There are many Truck GPS systems, I searched on the Internet! Each offers different specs and prices? But what my wisdom suggests, rather going directly to the company, I should first, conduct a small sort of opinion survey, before finally putting finger on to best one.

Could you please share your experiences with Truck GPS system? A few which I could research were made by: Teletype, Garmin, Magellan, and TomTom. Each one filled with useful specs, but the Teletype’s Route Planning Capability according to my truck’s specifications, is more attention catching?

I’d appreciate all the professional truck drivers who would share the experience they had, and post their reply to this threat.

Looking forward to your knowledge-based suggestions and sincere recommendations!

Thanks.

gunga

Magellen & TomTom don't make truck specific units. A quick search on this site for "teletype" will bring you up plenty of horror stories.

While there are a number of both PC based & handheld GPS solutions - none of them will still ELIMINATE the good old Rand McNally. I had TWO GPS's in my bus - one Pioneer (Z3, same as my car) and one Lowrance (that was supposedly designed for trucks & bus's). They BOTH consistently came up with DIFFERENT routes (the Pioneer was usually the more cost-effective routing), and BOTH took me down streets/highways that I should NOT have been driving a 45'/12'6"/36,000lb bus with a 12' trailer on - usually at 4AM after a gig. No fun backing a bus/trailer down a 400' street that the "idiot box" told you do go down ("turn left at the next light").

The Garmin 465T has been somewhat highly reviewed - as have the (dreaded) Teletype units - as far as "trucker specific' GPS goes. Some laptop based solutions have also been well reviewed - in addition to having a much larger screen. Google earth satellite is also real help in getting last mile to the dock and navigating parking lots. The best solutions are often "blended ones". When I get into my OWN rig - it'll have and in-dash Pioneer - likely a Z3 (that I pulled out of my bus) and either the Garmin or Teletype - PLUS I already own a laptop/Microsoft streets & trips/GPS dongle - so chances are that ALL THREE will be fighting to choose my route (PICK ME, PICK ME!).

But NOTHING is a SUBSTITUTE for your DUE DILIGENCE as an operator, and at least PEEKING into your MCA to make sure your idiot box intended route is OK to truck on. It also lists state-by-state restrictions, HM routes and a bunch of other trucking-pertinent info. 2010 edition due to hit the shelves any day now...

Better to LOOK NOW - than BACK LATER...

Rick

I use Microsoft Streets and Trips..... with reasonable caution.

I enter the Start and End and other stops like fuel and then bring up my Qualcomm directions and adjust the route if I think I need to. Most of the time the route is checked over and readjusted before I go anywhere.

I think it's a safe tool to use and very cheap as long as you go over the route. Also I can draw "Avoid Area" boxes and then the computer redraws the route going around them.

I do the same thing. You can also set up parameters in the preferred road settings that will route you primarily on 4 lane and interstates. Once I get into a city close to the customer I use company directions the fist time. Only thing I use my garmin nuvi for is for street name warnings. It also has a display I like that gives you the speed, moving hours, stopped hours, avarage speed etc all in one heads up display. I rarely look at the speedometer in my truck anymore. I also rarely program the GPS to the customer address. I don't have the truck specific NUVI. Got mine at Sams for $170...750 series.

Surprisingly I also like the mp3 player included. It uses SD cards that I can load with audio books or music. The touch screen display is convenient and easy to use without taking my eyes off the road. Better than the radio actually.

I've used both, DeLorme and Streets and trips on a laptop. Both are generally good a picking a route, but it takes a bit of savy to have the instinct to know where to check to see if it's a truck route. As a final check, I call the customer and make sure the routes I'm looking at are ok for me to run. Most times, yes, but once in while... Just enough to keep you on your toes.

Well if you ever have to make a delivery in the middle of the night during a new moon with a snow storm, a downpour, or when the fog is so thick you can’t even see the road signs much less read them, then you will be happy you are using a GPS navigation device.

Now that’s a separate story altogether. Although there are several products that advertise and promote themselves as being truck specific for both laptops and standalone GPS units, the reality, however, is that is more of a myth than it is a reality. The truth is none of the trucking specific GPS solutions do what they advertise they do and all of them are also plagued with numerous other problems to boot.

I can tell you my brother in-law couldn’t wait to buy the new Garmin 465T as soon as it came out, even though I warned him to wait several months first to see if it really works like advertised. Nevertheless, he didn’t listen to me and has been cussing the 465T ever since he got it and is going to try to get his money back.

Thus, the moral of the story is if a GPS solution advertises that it does truck specific routing you can bet it is going to be a rip off.

:micro:

The next question is whether you should go with a standalone GPS unit or a laptop solution. To me since the vast majority of drivers today already have a laptop in the truck or are planning on getting one, then they should go with a laptop solution because it is a much cheaper solution.

For instance, I bought my laptop mount for about $40 at mobilelaptopmounts.com almost 5 years ago and today after everyday use it is still in as good of condition as it was the day I bought it and will obviously last as long as I continue to drive.

Plus only a laptop solution gives you a panoramic view, which makes trip planning much easier and navigation much better as well. To me standalone GPS units are fine for cars but not trucks.

Also with a laptop solution you can multitask and do several jobs simultaneously. For instance, I use Streets & Trips as my GPS solution. Thus, in the mornings when I’m getting ready to go, I open up the saved trip file I’m currently using, and then two more instances of Streets & Trips that I leave minimized. That way if I need to check the exact miles from point A to point B real quick I can do it without having to close the current trip I’m using first. If I need to determine if I want to accept a preplan, I can just bring up a minimized blank Streets & Trips and check it real quick. If I run into a detour or a traffic jam, I can use another instance of Streets & Trips to route myself around it real quick and then resume my saved trip file when I’m back on course. You can’t do all of those things with a standalone GPS device.

By the way, I also do all my logging via my laptop as well, I do all my printing and scanning via my laptop and printer, I send in my completed trips and logs via laptop, I do all my faxing via laptop, emailing and instant messaging with family and friends via laptop, cruise the Internet and keep up with the world via my laptop and my Verizon aircard, and I have all my music on my laptop. I also have two mega external hard drives chock-a-block full with movies, TV shows, and football games that I also peruse on a regular basis. I just couldn’t function without a laptop.

Hey I do Streets & Trips the same way. My company sends me the truck route and then I can call via Qualcom for the final directions. Thus, I just sync the route in Streets & Trips with the route my company supplied me. I also sync up the final directions in Streets & Trips as well. Plus, I use the Windows Live Local button in Streets & Trips to get an overhead birds eye view of the shipper or consignee to see the best way to enter and also to place a pushpin in the precise location, and that way I can get turn-by-turn directions directly all the way to my final destination. As a matter of fact, I would never drive on any roads without first double checking my routes and directions and making sure there are no low clearances or restricted routes to screw things up.

By the way, have you guys that are also using Streets & Trips tried out the Truck Stops Plus add-on template for Streets & Trips yet? Get it...I highly recommend it.:thumbsup:

I used both Delorme and Streets & Trips when I first started, but Delorme was a lot harder to learn, it was slower to use, and the maps sucked. So I eventually just stopped using it altogether because I learned that I prefer Streets & Trips. Plus Streets & Trips is cheaper too.