Delorme Earthmate GPS LT-20

[12pack]

My sister is giving me her old laptop (3years old) and I was already thinking of purchasing a garmin 2620.

The Delorme would be a lot less expensive and I use their software at the house already.

Anyone have this LT-20 with some pros and cons.......

thanks

[96Cobra]

I've been using the Delorme software for a few years now and love it. About a year or so ago, I bought the Earthmate GPS unit and I love it also. It is slightly larger (from what I've read) than the LT-20 model, and the USB cable can be detatched, I don't know of any other differences. The one thing I didn't like about the Earthmate unit was the glare you get off of the windshield (its bright yellow), so I masked off the USB port and the LED's and sprayed it with some flat black Krylon. Painting it black also makes it harder for the thieves to see it! I also painted one for my father's buddy, and haven't had any probs. from either unit.

Before I bought the Earthmate, I used a Garmin handheld unit with the software. It worked great, but the handheld units would eat batteries on long trips. I finally got a data/power cable for the handhelds, but I never use them in the truck anymore.

Roger

[12pack]

yea i'm thinking this is the way to go for me right now.

I like the idea of painting the yellow black.... will check that out.

I have to do two trips from Miami to NY in the next three weeks and taking some side trips so I am going to order the Delorme.

[khitch710]

I am using the Streets and Trips 2005 with the gps...I love it...I think it is easier to use than the Delorme...the gps unit is clear and has alittle blue lite when it is on...if you are in a area you don't know the address all you have to do is type in the address that you want to go to and it will plot a route from where you are at to where you are going...the whole program and gps is about $130...speed is pretty accurate too....hope this helps.....Kevin

[96Cobra]

[ QUOTE ]
I am using the Streets and Trips 2005 with the gps...I love it...I think it is easier to use than the Delorme...the gps unit is clear and has alittle blue lite when it is on...if you are in a area you don't know the address all you have to do is type in the address that you want to go to and it will plot a route from where you are at to where you are going...the whole program and gps is about $130...speed is pretty accurate too....hope this helps.....Kevin

[/ QUOTE ]

I've also had 2 versions of the Streets & Trips software, and it can't comapre with the features of the Delorme software. The first version of the S&T software I had, the GPS "dot" on the map was only updated 1 time every couple of seconds, disclaimer on the box said this was because of a patent issue, the Delorme software was in realtime. The later version of S&T that I bought fixed this issue.

One of the best features of the Delorme software is the voice capabilities. The program will talk to you and tell you all sorts of info, like the newer stand-alone units. With the Delorme software and a microphone, you can ask the "computer" questions about the map/trip and it will "talk back" to you. I've compared both programs side by side and have stuck with the Delorme software.

The routing in both programs works pretty much the same, and if you go off route, the programs will re-route you back to where you need to go. You can't go wrong with either program, but I like the extra features of the Delorme software.

Just my $.02
Roger