Goodyear GY500x Truck GPS

Which TA's? We have been trying to find one, have looked in multiple truck stops.

 

If you Logout here , then come back as a Visitor ... you should be able to see ALL the banner ads here.

Just keep refreshing the the page and you'll find either a banner for the Goodyear or for the Garmin. (Both ads will take you to the same site)

Then just click on the banner.

And you can order the Goodyear on-line.

 

Garmin has great maps in general. There is little doubt that this will be the case with the 465T. This will be the most expensive of the 4.3" units due to additional features (lane change warnings, bluetooth enabled, NTTS breakdown database built-in, real-time traffic.) With so many new players entering the "truck GPS" market this year, the real question for those new players will be "How good is the truck routing???" That's really the bottom line. Units due to ship in June from Garmin. The usual battery of DieselBoss testing will occur.

You're not going to find one yet, Barb. Production units have arrived at the factory. It will take some time to get through the distributors and on to the actual shelves. T/A will have them first and my guess is that they will be on their shelves during the first week of June. (Dieselboss status - some testing completed. Ongoing.)

PC Miler update: First software update for the PCM430 Navigator is scheduled for June. Existing owners will be informed on how to update at that time. It will include updated maps, fixes, and feature enhancements based on the first six months that these have been out. Also estimated for June is a 7-inch version. (Dieselboss status - extensive testing completed on current rev. New software update and the 7-inch units will be run through the ringer next month.)

As you can see, June will open the flood-gates for truck GPS choices and several different pricing levels ($299 - $500) depending on brand and features.

 

Dieselboss
Could you tell us anything about your testing so far?
Thanks
rag

 

On which one? I can't speak about the Goodyear or the Garmin yet because it would not be ethical to comment on beta test units that will never be on the shelves.

As far as the PCM430, we have tested the hell out of that in the real world. Of the 2 available units (WorldNav and PC Miler Navigator) the PCM430 is definately the current one to beat in our opinion.

 

Dieselboss,

First off, I'd like to thank you for your efforts to advise us on the various features of what appear to be a new generation of GPS units geared to the commercial trucker. Having someone knowledgeable of GPS units for truckers and the needs of truckers is invaluable. Having bought a $900 Magellan RoadMate, only to find it marginally effective, at best; it's reassuring that in the future I can make a more informed choice.

That said, could you tell me; given a budget of say $2,500, would that buy a commercial trucker anything more than what is available with the upcoming units? I have, in the past, seen in-dash GPS units that use GPS technology combined with CD's, which I assume are mapping information, and they easily, ran over $2,000. What does that kind of expenditure buy you that you can't get in the average GPS offering?

 

The in-dash systems have been around for many years now through the auto manufacturers and the semi truck makers are also now finally implementing this technology. The advantage of those is that you have no hardware device to mount and no laptop needed. They run off a DVD drive located somewhere in the vehicle (usually in the trunk of a car or in the dash of the truck) and getting an updated map DVD usually costs several hundred dollars each time. But all of that has always meant nothing to us because those systems did not contain what is called "truck attributes" in the maps. To truck drivers, we are looking for 5 things in any GPS:

- Accurate and complete maps
- Ease of use of the software itself (how hard is it to "click around" in and what "bells and whistles" does it give you)
- Truck attributes (how well does it identify low bridges, tight turns, non-truck roads, and HazMat routing)
- Design (How rugged is it, how clear is the screen, how loud is the volume, how easy is it for us to break a button or a plug socket)
- Support. (Is there someone that I can call and get a human located in America on the phone who understands the product and can help me)

The actual price of the choices IS a factor to a small extent, but I find that to most veteran drivers the price doesn't matter as much if the unit does what it is supposed to do. Once in a while we have drivers in the shop that argue us down $20 on a laptop mount while I am looking at $6000 in chrome pimping out his rig, but in general the drivers are much more concerned on how the thing actually makes his or her life easier.

To answer your question, no, it wouldn't matter if you have 2,500 to spend right now. Not as a driver anyway. If you are company owner you can spend way more than that on fleet management and navigation hardware and software. There is a system in the early stages right now that the larger trucking companies are playing with that combines several technologies into one. It allows the dispatcher to send the load info to your satellite uplink screen built into the dash. You get the load specifics, the address, the appointment time and date, etc. THEN there is a button that says "Drive." When you push that, it automatically makes you a truck-legal route to your destination and works as a GPS to guide you there. In addition it can also allow your company to GPS track your movements for fleet management. I really think that this system will be the future as far as company drivers.

For owner-ops and independents, they will be looking for a less expensive, more portable solution and that is more in line of what I specialize in. We are former owner-ops who took what we know about the unique world inside that cab and we are not beholden to any company or organization. We test, then whatever passes and is determined to make it easier to work as a truck driver will show up on our site as the best available brand of that particular product.

As I've said several times, the big buzz in the next 90 days is going to be a flood of truck-attribute handheld GPS units. There are two of them available now and at least 3 more going to hit the shelves soon. They are going to vary widely in size and features and price. So my goal is to make sense of it all for us, and for you.

 

Thank you!

 

DieselBoss,

As I have said any number of times, your unbiased product evaluations and advice are one of the most valuable resources available to us. As always, I cannot say it often enough, how much I appreciate your detailed replies and efforts to provide drivers to make informed decisions when purchasing equipment.

I would like to suggest a new thread that provided a broader forum that allowed for question or comments on a variety of trucking accessories without having to feel we are going off-topic. I have myself felt that my questions one various topics not related to the GY500x (I don't have the least idea of what the GY500x is, beyond a GPS navigator). Just, a thought...

The reason for this suggestion is due to a personal interest to get your input on the availability of any devices that would provide drivers the ability to interface a laptop with our Qualcomm's so we could download or print messages from dispatchers. Or, to possibly get your opinion on non-GPS products. Which brings up the question; Are you evaluating products other than those related to GPS navigation?

Well, thank you.

 

Er, you don't mean the 430 is good, do you? Cause I could input some test data into that theory. I have one right now and it's either the worst gps ever made or possessed by the devil himself.