Buying a portable GPS system

July 10, 2023 7:51 AM

My Garmin is old, and I'd like to update it. Because of possible theft, I want something that's easy to stash in the glove compartment when I'm away from my car, and that appears to be a challenge.

I like using a portable GPS system in my car instead of my phone. They are much easier to see and hear.

However, when I previously used one in Chicago, I returned to my car to find a note from the police advising me not to leave it on the dash because of possible theft.

The old one mounts on a sort of bean bag thing, and it's super easy to stick it in the glove compartment. But when I look at descriptions and reviews, mounting often doesn't seem to be specified. Photos often don't show the back. The only reason I know there's a problem with one version of Garmin is because an Amazon review said it it was made to stick to the windshield and wasn't easy to remove and replace. In general, I find that things that rely on suction to stick eventually don't work well.

So I'd appreciate some advice and recommendations for a portable GPS system that's easy to take down and put back.

posted by FencingGal to Travel & Transportation (5 answers total)

Best answer: Garmins have a "common mount"... they all mount the same way, so your "bean-bag" mount should work on the new one as well, and many of the competitors have adopted similar mount as well.

I personally think the problem is if you have a mount that'a affixed to the dash, that's a sign you have something of value in the vehicle as well.

One POSSIBILITY you may want to consider is get a holder that lets you mount it from the rear view mirror. It'd look like a phone mount, and nobody leaves their phone in the car. :)
posted by kschang at 8:08 AM on July 10, 2023 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Please note this question is not about whether you think theft is a legitimate concern.
posted by FencingGal at 10:17 AM on July 10, 2023

Response by poster: Well, Forbes and PC Magazine seem to think they're worth reviewing for 2023.

If you can't address my actual question, feel free to skip this one.
posted by FencingGal at 10:50 AM on July 10, 2023

Best answer: If your need for a new one is lack of updates and not general crappiness (slow, bad battery, etc.) we're still using Garmin Nuvi 1490s that Garmin relegated to out of support at least six years ago already. They're now fed OpenStreetMap data and work fine with that, though unfortunately not all Nuvi models do.
posted by Stoneshop at 11:31 AM on July 10, 2023

Best answer: TomToms are held onto the dash by a suction cup, and the GPS part removes from the handle part with a screw-on thing. They are very easy to pop off, take apart and store away when not in use.
posted by The_Vegetables at 7:34 AM on July 11, 2023