Procedures a little complicated. Although I was given a method to extend my warranty through AAA - it was impossible to contact either Magellan or AAA to have that supposed guarantee offered. Should not promise any promotions and then keep a customer waiting so long for a reply that the offer expires. Would be reluctant to do business with such offers again as an incentive.
[+]
10.0
Purchased Three 4250's
In June I purchased my referbished unit. It performed so well, I purchased one for my Grand Daughter a few months later. She is very happy with it, so I recently purchased one for my Son.
I particulary like the bluetooth, being able to speak commands to it, anouncing the street names and the chime when I reach my next turn.
I have found new and better routs to places that I have been going to for years. I travel around the Blue ridge mountains some. It sometimes takes me on up, down and crooked roads. It evedently does not know if a road is good or bad. I have learned not to rely on it in the mountains.
I just updated the map (Spring 2009 version), in mine with no problems. It was duck soup. Simply insert the card, turn the unit on and push the reset button. The new map has more and updated points of interest. I have not gone on a long trip, so can't comment on road changes. Just purchased an update for my Son, and will install it this weekend. I will probably get one for my Grand Daughter. I foung great prices on them at Amazon. Saved about $30.00 each.
I had some problems with my Son's unit, and Magellan was punctual and very good to work with.
[+]
8.0
Working good so far ?
Magellan replaced a faulty Roadmate 6000T with this model after numerous phone calls to their extremely poor customer service, but that's another story. Anyway, the unit came with updated firmware and maps, so that was nice. The 4250 is not bad at all, it acquires a signal pretty quickly and recalculates very swiftly if you make a wrong move. I like the amount of warning signals the unit provides before your turn and the split screen as you get close. So far it is pretty accurate and I am quite impressed with it. The voice recognition is not that good as the unit has trouble recognizing certain words, but the "magellan go home" feature is nice when you just want to get out of somewhere quickly. Overall the 4250 is a capable "get you to where you need to go" type of device, the only bells and whistles feature is the rather sketchy voice recognition, which can be disabled. A qwerty keyboard would have been nice, and you only get one female voice. The AAA guide is also quite handy.
[+]
8.0
Register IMMEDIATELY and keep it updated!
I've had my Model 4250 for about eight months. Lacking experience with competing products for comparison, I have been more than satisfied with it. I never got around to registering or updating the unit until the screen froze a few days ago. The software update went smoothly. The improvement in the unit's operation was profound. By not registering immediately upon purchase, I may have cheated myself out of the `09 map update. (There is no way to tell which generation of maps it has.) Instances of the unit's having wrong or outdated map information have been very few and minor.
Thankfully, I have had no occasion to find out if customer service is as bad as others have said. My gripe list includes: (1) Do something about the weakness of the audio. An external jack for an earphone would be welcome. I cannot imagine using this device as a Bluetooth speaker phone. But it would be great if the unit's audio could be patched through my Bluetooth earpiece. (2) I cannot get it to respond consistently to voice commands. Also, it often mistakes something said on the radio for a voice command, and has to be brought back to the previous mode manually.
After reading customer reviews for many GPS products, the AAA tie-in was what got me to go for this one. When AAA touted a slightly higher-end one to me as a bargain at $250, I sprang for my new one from Amazon for $170. Now, when there are plenty of refurbished ones much cheaper than that, this model is well worth recommending. But be sure you know where you will stand regarding warranty: Magellan will not register units bought on auction sites!
Very good in all! I bought the refurbished one. And VERY worth the price. Drove from washington to california and never lost service. Its very accurate, everything works perfectly! Thank you very much.
I purchased the Magellan Maestro last year and have been very pleased. The turn-by-turn spoken directions are clear and there is plenty of warning for your next turn.
Some highway addresses are tricky to put in a GPS, probably any GPS. In my area Routes or Highways often have street names along portions of the road.
Businesses should note GPS directions in their ads.
[+]
8.0
Nice. It does what I need it to and I can trust the results.
It does as it advertises. So far, the maps have been extremely accurate. The only variances have been very recently opened routes that were just under construction (like the 694 unweave the weave in Mpls and the new four lane through Staples, MN) I haven't mounted it yet as I live in MN where it's illegal to mount it on the windshield. What I do is wedge it between the dash and the windshield with a piece of rubber. One nice feature I wasn't expecting is the elevation measurement. It's interesting to me to know how many feet above sea level various parts of the state are, like, for example, my office is 1237 feet above sea level!
The one thing I haven't been able to work around is the car charging. When I plugged in the car charger it went to an instructional screen and just stayed there rendering it inoperable as long as the charger was plugged in. There might be a setting I'm missing. This is my first GPS and there is still novelty in it for me.
[+]
8.0
A Plumbers Review
I'm a plumber do a lot of driving around the Dallas Fort Worth area and have used it a few time on road trips and it gets me where I want to be 99.9% of the time, there is one road in Arlington that is being moved and confuses the unit when I drive the new one. The thing I like the most is that it works ALL THE TIME; any weather any time. It does have a few quirks but from what I understand they all do. It will think I'm on an access road sometimes when I'm still on the highway or vice versa and it does not always give the most direct route but it will no deviate too far and is tolerable. I would recommend reviewing the written directions before your trip. Also the traffic subscription in my opinion is a waste. If you ask it to reroute around traffic it will give you a 10 minute detour around a 2 minute traffic problem, however; I do know the area and traffic patterns well and have my own shortcuts during rush hour that are proven so this might just be a personal opinion. Over all I cant believe I didn't get one before because of skepticism.
I love this product, except for its slowness with points of interest, I have no complaints and can't imagine being without it again
[+]
2.0
Will not repair when outside warranty period
Our GPS is just 18 months old. It suddenly stopped tracking and wasn't picking up any satellites. I called Magellan, and the woman told me my unit was "defective". However, their policy is not to repair units that were outside of the 1 year warranty period. I could however trade it in and purchase a refurbished unit at the discounted price of $109. All I had to do was mail in my current unit (which I am sure they WILL repair and sell to someone else...they just won't repair it and send it back to me). This is the biggest money making scheme by a product corporation I have ever encountered. I told her I didn't want another unit, I wanted mine repaired...even if that meant I had some upfront costs. Nope, they don't do it.
I am replacing my GPS, but will never buy another Magellan product again.
[+]
4.0
Kicked the bucket after a year
Worked OK for a year - although the on-screen keyboard is terrible and the address entry is strange and not well labeled (street before number). After a year it refuses to boot. It's stuck on the startup/logo screen and will not reset with reset switch or connect over USB.
THIS PRODUCT IS NOT WORTH YOUR TIME OR YOUR MONEY
SCREEN LASTED 3 MOS AND SUPPORT SAID I HAVE TO BUY ANTHER REFURSHIED ONE
THERE IS NO SUPPORT AND THAT IS A SHAME
AMAZON SOLD IT AND THEY SELL JUNK ALSO
[+]
8.0
Good GPS to purchase
I bought this about a month ago and I use it for my work out in the field. It's been good. The text to speech is very helpful, I don't need to look at the screen much. It has voice command when you say "Magellan" it activates that future, that has been tricky you have to say the brand name a certain way to work. Everything been great except that the battery life isn't very good as I would like it to be, I usually keep it plugged while I use it. Sometimes when it's asleep, I can't get it to 'wake up' but it eventually does, I don't know if it's me, or the GPS. Overall it's been great and it's gotten me everywhere clearly. The maps are 2007 but I haven't had a problem getting anywhere.
[+]
8.0
Nice GPS - Better than the average
I bought this GPS through the Auto Club (AAA) because they have AAA recommended locations programmed into the device. This is a nice device with plenty of features but has some of the common drawbacks as well. I own another like it so this is a bit of a comparison
Pros:
Sharp display
Very nice large screen
Better than average instructions
Voice prompts volume excellent
Data entry simple and straight forward
Good battery life
Cons:
It When traveling on a freeway with express lanes and local lanes it takes you down the local lanes. There may be a way to turn that off but I haven't found it. I understand it now so I can ignore it. It is particularly annoying with a horse trailer behind you.
The case gives you very limited space to grasp the device and when you touch the screen some times it changes the view or the volume settings.
Does not let you put in your own POIs - If it does I don't how so please let me know
Overall I am pleased with the device and would recommend it in either the AAA version or this one on Amazon
The only problem i found is that the screen was damaged when i recieved it. It was a battle to send it and to recieve it. Even with my tracking info it took 3 months to recieve it only for in about a week the screen had a smudge on it ( i assume because its plasma). Uggh i paid $354 dollars and the nav system works fine its just i expected more for so much money.
[+]
6.0
Loved it until....
I loved the Magellan Maesrto 4250 for months, until I tried to update software on it. I really liked everything about it until that day. It worked well and I was pleased that the street names were spoken so I wouldn't need to read it while I was driving.
A firmware update was issued for this unit, and as I tried to update my unit, my Magellan went blank. Now the unit does not work at all. I can turn it on, but can't even get the main menu anymore. I have contacted Magellan a couple of times but were not given any useful information from them. Very disappointed with the customer service and the poor system for updates.
For now, I'm without a GPS and am trying to decide which brand to try next.
[+]
6.0
Some good features
I put a lot of miles on a class B RV and am enough of a geek to travel with 4 GPS's including a Garmin 780 and this Magellan 4250. I have over 10,000 miles using the pair and have definite preferences between them. The Garmin is much better for navigating and bluetooth with superior graphics and much easier search and route features. Sound is better on Bluetooth and communication with the phone to return calls, etc is easy to use.
The Magellan has a better POI's because of the AAA database but is frustrating because you have to cancel the current route to search. Neither lets you search along the route as does the DeLorme PC GPS so many of the POI's are behind you. Neither will show rest stops which are important in an RV (the DeLorme does). I like Magellan's allowing you to choose whether it displays arrival time, time to go or distance to go on the main screen. It also shows compass direction. When on a trip you may want to know the distance to the next town and Magellan auto-enters town names based on distance from current position while the Garmin makes you enter the entire name and then puts them in some arbitrary order making you go through several screens for a common name like Centerville. Magellan however does not let you search for the city center as does the Garmin. You have to enter an address or intersection. Magellan routing is not as good as it may take you a long way out of the way on a long trip. A recent trip from Texas to Colorado showed 1018 miles on Magellan and 804 miles (correct) on Garmin. The MOST IMPORTANT problem I have had on the Magellan is that it will not find "Lee's Summit" Missouri. I had to look up the zip code and then Lee's Summit was listed as a choice.
The other GPS's I use both require a laptop but have several important features. The DeLorme Street Atlas is good for trip planning and alternate routing distances as well as rest stops. The Good Sam software shows campsites but is poor for routing and hard to sync.
[+]
10.0
A great investment!
This was a great investment purchasing this item! We have used it numerous times since purchasing it and it has paid for itself..literally. LOVE the way it auto reroutes if you can't make the required turn for some reason. It gives you the quickest way back to where you needed to be.
It gives you ample time to know when to switch lanes for your upcoming turn, actually 'beeps' when you are at the actual place to turn and so forth.
Definately give this a 5 star rating and recommend it for anyone. Easy to program as well so that is a BIG plus too.
I was impressed with Magellan service when I needed help to sync phone and get map updates. They responded quickly, courteously and solved my problem. However the first time I tried to use the Maestro 4250 to navigate, it froze and would not "unfreeze". I tried rebooting, updated the software, but nothing helped. I ended up returning the unit, which Amazon and Electronica processed promptly
[+]
2.0
magellan maestro series and roadmate series
For the Love of God ...please stay away from Magellan. Non speaking English customer support is a nightmare. I am not prejudice but appalled at how sorry a company can be.
I have sunk over 500 for the maestro 4250 and around 300 for the roadmate 2750 I think it was. Both worked about a year. I am so upset all I can say is stay away from them.
[+]
8.0
Bought a second one after the first was stolen!
I love my magellan. I prefer the wide screen to some of the units my friends have, I like that it announces several times before you get to your turn, and does a bell sound well in time for you to make the turn. It announces the street, and it re-routes you well if you actually blow a turn. The only thing that is a little bit of a hassle is when it doesn't get a satellite hit right away when you were traveling a different route - turned the unit off before you got there - and are now starting from a different location. I think that happens with all of them though.
Went to the coast right after we go our MM 4250 took the Grand Son to Pikes street market. woodland park zoo. The way the freeways have changed since I was at Ft Lewis in 73 would have left me hopelessly lost, but was able to navigate first try everytime!! Best investment I ever made!!!
Ron K. Keller WA
[+]
2.0
Magellan Maestro 4250
Zero customer service, Windshield Mount cracked same day warrenty expired and they would not send me a replacement. Forget about using the bluetooth, most of the time you can not understand the voice directions, other than that the unit is good for the price.
I am very pleased with this item.It helps me a lot. I am very directionaly challenged.
[+]
10.0
Bought one, getting one for me!
I bought one for my hubby for his birthday to update his old Magellan. This one is AWESOME! I love the voice command and hope they continue to develop this. When you're driving in traffic, it's nice to say "nearest gas" and get directions, or "where am I" and get instant feedback. The screen is clear and the voice seems clearer than his old one. I want one too!! I'm ordering mine today. A very good, easy to use GPS.
The GPS was easy to use (much easier than my expensive in dash system) and got us everywhere without fail. I will never again go on travel without it. I am not familiar with how other portable GPS' compare, but I liked this one after my research, and it met all my expectations at a good price.
We recently purchased this relatively inexpensive unit prior to a trip to the west coast for use in our rental car. Cosmetically the unit is great....compact and stylish. It is easy to read even in bright sunlight, very good 'ease-of-use', and the accessories are top quality, ie. mounts, cables, etc. The voice function is excellent and easy to undestand even for an old guy with marginal hearing. That's the good. The not-so-good would be that the maps are 2+ years old and clearly out of date in some areas.....updates are rather expensive at about $80.00 from the Magellan webpage. One would think that when you buy a new GPS unit that it would have up-to-date software which brings up another point. The installed operating system software was also quite old and had to be updated (free of charge but a pain in the butt) before the AAA functions would operate. Directions are pretty easy to do this. All that being said, the unit tends to get confused easily if you take a detour or miss your turn. Had numerous instances in CA, when a freeway exit was missed, that the unit got 'lost' and would tell us to turn left instead of right even when the traffic signs said different. Overall, it's equal to or better than the 'factory' nav system in my own car which cost a whole lot more. At $185.00 it's a great deal even if it does loose its way at times. I think we all have that problem!
[+]
4.0
Update and traffic made it stupid
I've had this device since Feb 2008. In Dec 2008 I signed up for a one year traffic subscription and did a firmware update. I've regretted it ever since...I don't know which one did it, but it now picks completely asinine routes most of the time. When driving on the freeway, it will tell me to get off then right back on. Or go an exit short or further than it should and wind through obscure neighborhoods rather than sticking to main streets.
The favorite one I've run into lately is driving through downtown Seattle on a clear freeway with the "most use of freeways" option selected for the route: it says to get off the freeway, drive six blocks through downtown away from the freeway, make a right and go for one block, then another right and go the six blocks back to the freeway to get back on it. Even in good traffic, that little detour will take 5-10 minutes. And a lot more almost any time of day.
With the traffic subscription, it colors the road to indicate traffic volume (green for moving, red for stopped, etc.). However, if you have an address programmed, the line that indicates the route you are taking covers the traffic information so you can't see it at all--worthless. I clicked on every option on the device and couldn't figure out a way to change the route indicator line.
I think there is one newer firmware upgrade, so I need to install that and see if it helps. There's no way I'm buying the updated 2009 maps for $[...] bucks. That's a good chunk of the purchase price of a new unit.
[+]
8.0
Good item, but some drawbacks
The pros is that it works. It gets me from place A to place B, which is great. I like the system, but I think the reason I buy things is because their defects are less defective than the next product.
That being said, some cons are that:
1. Sometimes it takes 2-3 minutes to initially pick up enough satellites to tell you where you are. This is a little longer than most GPS's I've used. So if you aren't going to travel with it on all the time, don't expect it to be able to immediately pick up your location and help you reroute.
2. I haven't figured out the 6-mo traffic subscription yet. Maybe someday.
3. Don't try to use this in hands-free mode - you can't speak without the machine thinking you're saying 'Magellan,' which is the keyword that makes the unit think you're talking to it. This must have happened 5 times in half an hour in a car trip before decided we'd rather hit buttons.
[+]
8.0
GOOD EXCEPT THE EXTRA CHARGE FOR NEW VERSION
It's ok.
But the map of this GPS is an old version.
If I want to update the map to a new version, I have to pay extra money (about $90)
[+]
8.0
Beats TomTom and Garmin
I have had TomTom and Garmin GPS units. This is the best one I have had for actual navigation. The voice recognition really adds value for hands free, worry free driving. The choice of fastest or shortest route is easy and is a bonus. After the first unit was defective, the replacement unit has functioned well. Problem with trying to update maps, but will try again. Only complaint is having to buy map update rather than included with original purchase, but . . , the unit is the best I have had.
[+]
6.0
Magellan Maestro 4250
I like the features on the gps, especially the text-to-speech feature. The maps on this gps are very out dated and magellen wants $70-$80 for what they claim are up-to-date maps. The signal for the turn also comes on a little late, especially if you are not coming to a stop before turning. Other than the above mentioned complains I really like the gps and it has worked pretty well for me the few times I have used it.
[+]
10.0
Maestro 4250 - outstanding unit
The first thing I did when my unit arrived was upgrade to the most current version of the operating system. There were a couple of minor things I needed to try a few times before getting them right when using the unit. Reading the manual first would have been helpful, but after using this unit for a couple of days I'm hooked. The AAA information is great, the maps are accurate, and the voice command option is very nice. (If only I could get the kids to stop finding ways to use "Magellan" in a conversation) If you miss a turn the route recalculation is extremely fast. Both the brightness and volume of the unit are excellent. I would recommend this unit to my best friends.
[+]
10.0
magellan gps 4250
excellent product. very happy. easy use and set up.a great buy. i would suggest this to anyone. thank you.
[+]
2.0
Features almost useless when on a route
I've had this unit for about 8 months. The feature about finding the nearest coffee or restaurant with a voice command only works when you are NOT on a route. If you're on a route you have to rely on map icons which don't come into view until you are about 1/2 mile from the POI, and then you have to touch the icon, if there are multiple icons you have to scroll through the list. So to use this feature with a voice command when you're on a route you have to cancel the route. If you use the traffic feature the latest "upgrade" eliminated the automatic pop up warnings, now you have to wait for the signal to change colors and again scroll through the list. This unit has you spending tons of time hitting the touch screen while you drive to make it useful, exactly what the opening screen warns you not to do, go figure. It doesn't appear that Magellan actually tests their units outside of a lab, in the real world the features are useless unless you plan to pay more attention to the unit than your driving. Software seems buggy also, many times on the freeway it will want to route me onto the offramp and then back onto the onramp, or direct me past a left turn and have me do a u-turn instead. I will say that most of the features are great if you don't mind stopping in a parking lot to use them. I also have Garmin units, software is way more driver friendly, just avoid the MSN Direct Traffic feature, it's useless as the signal is too weak. The other traffic service is much better.
[+]
10.0
Works Great! Best Value for the Price. "Make a Legal U-Turn..."
I got this unit for Father's Day 2008. It was up and working within a few minutes of getting it out of the box. The unit powers up quickly and finds the GPS satellites right away.
I can pair it to my Bluetooth phone without issue as well (Samsung i760). Although the sound quality is pretty good, it does pick up all the background noise, so not a replacement for a bluetooth headset or other handsfree. It also doesn't pull from your contact list on your phone, so you have to know the number you are dialing. Not a feature I would give 5 stars, but bluetooth and phones are quirky anyway regardless.
The mounting system that comes with the unit works well on my Prius and is a little finicky on our Accord. The Accord dash is very long, which makes the windshield slope at a sharp angle, so you have to undo all the knobs to loosen the holder, squeeze it in and then re-tighten everything. You only have to do it once (I bought a second one to avoid moving it between cars) and it stays. I have had the mount in my Prius for a year and it hasn't moved or even gotten loose. The line of sight is good and has some pretty fine adjustments to tweek it to just the right viewing angle.
The maps seem to be right on target, however, if you are taking a long trip and it tells you to go one way, the return trip isn't necessarily going to take you back the exact same route. I'm not sure if that is the traffic service trying to reroute or just a glitch in the map program (which isn't Magellan's issue but the database software, of which there are only 2 databases used by all GPS systems). It would be a nice feature to have a "return" feature that would remember your route for the return trip.
I also have a AAA membership, but haven't really found the AAA information helpful or up to date (2007 is the last update I believe). I don't use the Points of Interest much, but they can be helpful finding gas (it would be nice if the traffic service also had gas prices available, which would be easy since many sites provide this service and they are usually pretty up to date).
All in all, I have been pleased with the unit. It gets me where I am going. Yes, sometimes, it can be confusing when there are odd intersections or you have to make several quick turns together (yes, yes, I know, make a legal u-turn at the next convenient intersection!). I read a lot of reviews before purchasing (I always overthink these things and spend hours reviewing something to the point of overkill). There were knocks on customer service (which I haven't had any and I have updated the firmware 3 times and updated the map twice with little or no issue), but when I do need service, I have always been able to get them on the phone fairly quickly and email responses are quick.
I think at some point, all GPS units that are in a similar price range provide about the same functionality. I liked the database Magellan uses and thought having AAA available as well were the pluses. Customer service pretty much sucks everywhere these days (except Amazon, which has been great with service and returns for me for almost 10 years now), so even when it was knocked, it didn't really concern me much. If I don't have to call them, then that means the product works and that is a better sign than if customers have to make lots of calls to get service in the first place. It really comes down to pesonal preference and this was my preference. I am a computer geek (I have owned my owned IT company for 10 years) and this unit works for me. Hope this review helps!
[+]
6.0
Basically good, but with 2 major flaws
I won't repeat what the other reviewers have said. I thought that this GPS unit was basically pretty good. But, I took a long motorcycle trip with it last fall (Oct 2008), during which 2 major design flaws surfaced which drove me crazy.
Flaw #1: The AAA information is not integrated with the regular POI information.
For me, the AAA trip guide data was the deciding factor in purchasing the Magellan. Unfortunately, it is implemented as a completely separate, standalone feature. For example, suppose that you use the freeway "what's ahead" feature to find a motel near Exit 100. The Magellan will show you a list of motels near exit 100, but the Magellan's native POI data just gives you the name, address and phone number of the motels. Now, if you want to get the AAA info for those motels so that you can decide which one to stay at, you have to exit the Magellan POI database, go back out to the main menu (back, back, back...), select the AAA Tourbook menu option, and do a completely separate search for those motels based on the city and motel name and/or address...which I hope you remembered or wrote down.
The good thing is that the user interface for both POI database is the same. The bad thing is that the two database use different categories in some cases, so it isn't always easy to find a particular POI in one database or the other.
It would be MUCH better if the two databases were integrated, and the AAA information was available as an adjunct to the native POI data.
Flaw #2: The unit's POI features are heavily biased towards freeway driving.
When you are cursing down the freeway with the route-tracking feature turned on, the top-level "What's Ahead" button will show you a list of upcoming freeway exits, ordered by distance, and for each exit, it shows the travel service POI's (gas, food, lodging, etc) available at those exits. Great!
But, if you are traveling cross-country on the "back roads," that feature isn't available, and getting at the equivalent information is a major pain in the rear. For example, on my motorcycle tour of the West, I had a relatively small gas tank so I was always interested/concerned about how far it was to the next gas station. When you are route-tracking but off the freeways, that information is essentially impossible to find.
What you have to do is to cancel out of route-tracking--losing your time and distance to your destination--then pull out a paper map, figure out where you are, locate some likely towns on the map that are ahead of you, then search for those towns on the Magellan to find out if they have a gas station. You could in theory just search for gas stations that are nearest to your current position, but that just shows you all gas stations in a radius from your location, including those behind you or off in different directions. If you in unfamiliar territory, you have no idea which one is the one in front of you on your current route.
What Magellan SHOULD DO is to implement the "What's Ahead" feature for all roads, not just freeways, making use of your route information to decide where you are and where you are going. Instead of a list of freeway exits, it could be a list of upcoming towns and other locales. All the data is there in the unit, but they way it is currently implemented makes it all but useless for off-freeway travel.
[+]
8.0
Magellan Maestro 4250
PRO'S Excellent choice for someone who can't read maps and needs to be
lead by the hand.
CON'S Only one voice to select from.
Maps are out dated, but they all are.
[+]
2.0
screen frozen, very poor quality
I bought a refurbished one 5 months ago and only used for a few times.
It happened many times, the screen was just frozen up and couldn't do anything. Recently, the power switch didn't work either. Unfortunately, the 90 days warrenty was expired. I guess I need to throw it to electronic waste center. This is the first time I bought an electronic
product with so short life time. Magellan should recall this product if
it is a known issue.
[+]
8.0
Magellan Maestro 4250
Magellan Maestro 4250 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator
This is my 2nd 4250 - the first one was stolen from my car. Great product that's why i bought it a second time. Only neg feedback is that the voice recognition isn't great sometimes - but overall I love it.
[+]
10.0
EVERYTHING I WANTED IN A GPS...
EXCELLENT product! Clear "voice" instructions; almost instant re-routing feature; more POI than I could use in a lifetime! Wonderful, easy to learn and use for this techno-illiterate user.
I recently took a trip to unknown (to me) territory and was able to navigate to the addresses I needed to with ease. I programmed in the destinations I needed to go to and used the voice commands during the trip to find places to eat, sleep and shop. The hands-off feature is a must for all travelers.
[+]
8.0
Overall excellent value in GPS
I recently purchased this as it was on sale and had most of the features I was looking for. After several uses, I am very satisfied with the overall performance of the Maestro. The only negative I've found so far is the unit is a little slow in recalculating a route if you run into construction or otherwise deviate from the original route. Otherwise, a nice value for the $.
[+]
6.0
a little disapointed
The price point is amazing and I think I have a lemon, because I already own it's little brother which is awesome. This unit just seems really finicky. It jumps around modes and changes screens without cause.
Magellan Maestro 4250 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator Fine except I have trouble every now and then with an error message (connecting to short message service) except for this it"s fine.
Great product at a great price. It got here within the time they said it would.
[+]
10.0
Magellan Maestro 4250
I've never owned a GPS but when I saw the sale price on the Magellan Maestro 4250 and read about its many features I thought it was time to try a GPS. I read the somewhat mixed reviews with interest. While it's overall review score was favorable the serious problems people had who'd written negative reviews certainly concerned me. Still, I decided to order a 4250 knowing I could return it to Amazon within 30 days if I had any serious problems during that time.
All in all I've found the Magellan 4250 to be an exceptional product. My wife and I have been house hunting for some time in a moderately-sized metropolitan area and the new GPS is saving us a lot of time. We used to pour over maps to plan efficient routes between suburban and city addresses when doing "drive bys" of homes for sale. With the 4250 we can enter a series of street addresses and press "Optimize route" (or words to that effect) and it will quickly find a good, sensible route from one address to another to another. In addition, you can also specify least or most use of freeways or select the fastest route to a destination.
Nearly all routes I've seen in use with our 4250 have made sense, though they're not always the routes I'd have chosen. And I haven't seen any that were out and out wrong or even "round about" or out of the way except for two erroneous routes, which were easily corrected, and which I discuss below. In addition, see below for the 4250's ability to automatically adjust to "wrong turns" taken by the driver without any user intervention needed.
I found the 4250 quite easy to use. Initially I was able to find and use the basic functions without even reading the instructions (though I had read a good deal of info and reviews online before purchase). The touch screen is quite responsive and easy to use. After skimming through the user manual I found I was able to use nearly all the features without needing to refer back more than once or twice over the month or so I've been using the device.
The voice commands work surprisingly well even with the car windows down and in moderately heavy traffic. Another feature I like very much is that if I deviate from the 4250's suggested route, the GPS quickly adjusts and gives me a new route continuing on from the "wrong" turn I've made rather than trying to get me to turn around and go back as, according to what I've read, some GPS units do. And it does this over and over if I continue to choose a different street or road at any point along the way and without any intervention needed on my part. I just decide not to turn where it tells me (or take a turn off the suggested route) and it recalculates and displays the new route from my current location within a few seconds.
I was concerned about reviews of the 4250 I'd read saying the display was too bright at night. It does not seem so to me. There are five brightness levels and there is an option the user can turn on so that the 4250 automatically changes to a "night" display in the evening. This changes the background from white to black and, combined with an adjustment to the display brightness, seems to be quite satisfactory to me even with the GPS suction-mounted at the top of the windshield.
I registered my Magellan Maestro through AAA and obtained a second year of warranty coverage at no additional charge. And as my wife and I often use AAA guidebooks when we're traveling to find restaurants, lodging and points of interest, we like the fact that the AAA guidebook entries are incorporated into the devices database. We don't currently have a compatible bluetooth-enabled cell phone so I can't comment on the cell phone/bluetooth/GPS interface functions and performance (for GPS/cell phone integrated voice dialing of phone numbers of motels, restaurants and points of interest displayed by the 4250).
Overall I must say I've found the Magellan Maestro 4250 has more than lived up to my expectations. It's quite easy to use, very flexible and adaptable (adjusting to changes in the route choices made by the driver without any needed intervention) and my wife and I have found it quite useful. I'd rate it a very good buy, especially at the sale price we paid for it. It came with an easy to use quick attach/detach windshield suction mount, an attractive padded fabric storage sleeve, and was easy to update the firmware (no map update was needed).
I've had only a few minor problems with the Magellan Maestro 4250 in approximately a month of moderate use. On two occasions the 4250 has apparently been confused about its location and offered an incorrect route (because it had an incorrect starting location). I simply turned the unit off and then immediately pressed the power button again to start it up. It then oriented itself properly and provided the correct route as requested.
I do have a couple of criticisms/suggestions. 1) It would be nice if Magellan would include one free map update (for the next update to come out following purchase, however long that might be) or, alternatively, offer the first update after purchase at half-price; or at least extend the free map update period to, say, 90 days rather than just 30. 2) In addition, I don't like the fact that the battery isn't user replaceable. What happens if it fails on a long trip? You send it in to get the battery replaced and have no GPS unless you purchase another one in the meantime.
Still, I'm quite pleased with this purchase based on my experience so far (about one month of moderately heavy use) am glad I bought it.
[+]
8.0
Hard to Beat Deal
The Magellan Maestro has come in very handy for my wife who travels around Chicagoland a great deal. She has nothing but praise for the thing. Occasionally she says it will try to get her to turn where there is no turn but we as humans must be smarter than the machines and not vear off overpasses like lemmings!
Anyway, she likes it and so do I. She's "directionally challenged" so it makes me feel better knowing she's not getting lost in some bad areas. I give it an "A" for ease of use.
The different mounting options that come with it are nice as well. You can mount to the windshield with a little suction cup so you don't need to get adhesive on the window. You can also mount it to any flat surface in the car and the mount articulates nearly any direction you need for best view.
The bluetooth function is great for answering calls. It works with more phones then shown on the list for compatibility (See Magellan website).
Good unit for the price. Magellan Maestro 4250 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator (Factory Refurbished)My only complaint is that you cannot enter lat and long coordinates.Magellan Maestro 4250 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator (Factory Refurbished)
[+]
10.0
Great portable GPS
Great product,but a little hard to distinguish words when spoken.Compact enough and lightweight.All in all,a great product.
