Best GPS unit?

Now, that's funny!!!

 

I figured Rand McNally, being a well established, world leader in maps, should be on the cutting edge of GPS technology and since they publish the Motor Carrier Atlas (with all the restricted routes & low bridges, etc.) we're all familiar with, I wrongly thought they'd have a pretty good handle on truck routing.

I bought the TND 710 for the $400+ and was sorely disappointed. I had a demon-possessed unit that went back to the factory at least twice (and it's gone for a few weeks each time). They never could get all the problems fixed. Since I wouldn't let up on my dissatisfaction (even writing a letter to the CEO), they agreed to send me the TND 720 when it came out, instead of the refund I requested.

The TND 720, although not as plagued as the previous unit, still has it's problems. Despite all the routing problems and other malfunctions, the biggest disappointment I have is the plug-in for the power cord is woefully inadequate. It is flimsy and is a poor design to begin with. I've had to replace the power cord a few times - meanwhile you're without it when it stops working. The recommendation I gave to Rand McNally in a letter (which they never responded to) was to have a SOLID (durable) tubular plug-in that would have a 90 degree elbow so that it would hang down (or up, since it could swivel) to go in any direction you needed for your power source or cigarette lighter, instead of the doomed to fail design of the straight out the back cord that always gets bent down, which causes the plug-in to break inside the insulator. If you can't depend on the power cord to last, you don't have anything anyway - it doesn't matter how good of a device you have. You'd think that a world-renowned company like Rand would have done some R&D to develop a power cord to last at least several years. Like my laptop power cords - they've lasted years. I was just told today by a supervisor in customer support that the newest models are going to still have the usb style power cord but it will be on the side of the unit. IMO, that's not solving the problem. It still needs to have a 90 degree elbow to keep it from bending.

I'm open to anyone's input on any other GPS's that are truly durable and hopefully more dependable on routing. Of course, I still use the old atlas and make calls to customers to get specific directions when possible. That's another thing the gps does a lot - totally take you out of the way, even on to truck restricted routes, sometimes GOING RIGHT BY the street you need to be on.

 

I've used rand gps units for 5 years and never bent a plug. Have you checked the support thread here on the forums? Mark kling is the guy to talk to.

Plug the unit in and then wrap the cord around the neck to support the wire so it doesn't pull on the plug. Since alot of people can't grasp that simple fix the new x30 units have wire holders built in to the holder.

 

I bought a Rand McCrap at the Pilot in Laredo and by the time I got to Dallas I had already taken it back for a full refund. That was quite a while ago though. Maybe the newer models work a little better than mine did. Lol, it was an improvement though over that very first truck GPS that was made by Teletype. The trucks stops sold the Teletype units for $500 and they would only lasted a couple of weeks before taking a crap. They didn't even have enough memory to recalculate a route if you missed a turn.

 

My suggestion would be Copilot on a tablet. I've run for months a side by side comparison of Rand, Garmin Dezl and Copilot and Copilot wins, as I've stated in an earlier post. Standalone GPS devices are a huge disappointment.

 

What kind of tablet do you use? How do you have it mounted? Pictures of setup? Id like to try this

 

Samsung Tab2 tablet, 10 inch. Bought a RAM mount from Dieselboss and it rocks. I've posted pics in another thread, I'll find for you. You won't be disappointed. Drag and drop capability is useful since my company dictates my routing and fuelling.

 

There's already a picture of my Galaxy Note 10.1 2014 running Copilot on page 10 of this thread. I'm also using a RAM mount.

 

I'm in the Mojave desert, so I may lose connectivity...
http://www.thetruckersreport.com/tr...-prostar-drivers-share-your-tablet-mount.html

 

Oh well there you go. I'll have to check out your pics. I hope you are enjoying your tablet as much as I enjoy mine. It's the best navigation money I've ever spent.