Whistler WGPX-550 GPS Navigator Review
October 21st, 2009
Whistler WGPX-550 GPS Navigator Review from Michi. I ran this thing through the Gauntlet, I was a little suspicious at first, with very few reviews around and Whistler not exactly being a known GPS maker.
However, I am glad to say that I am very happy with this purchase. It comes with a 1GB SD card which is filled with all of USA Navteq maps (Canada is on a included DVD if needed).
The receiver is very good, it locks on inside my house where other units have not. It does however take on the longish side to lock-on at cold start.
Routing is good, and re-routes are instantaneous. It’s pretty easy to select an address or POI’s. It has the usual route customizations like include/exclude ferries, highways, toll roads, and you can select shortest, quickest, major, local etc… routings. You can select to avoid certain roads or make intermediate stops.
The display is bright and easy to read (and cutomizable with different colors), however it is not non-glare.
The touch screen works very well, including touch panning and such.
I wish the actual display screen was more customizable, like expensive Garmin units, I would like to see altitude at all times for example, but you can’t ask for everything I suppose. The altitude is visible on the GPS Status screen though.
It has a built in battery which seems to last for a few hours, so you don’t need to always plug it in or you can take it “for a walk”.
The fact that it plays MP3’s and displays pictures is nice, but I will not use that function.
In order to turn the unit off you need to exit the GPS function rather than just shutting it down, sort of like Windows (I believe it runs Windows CE or a version thereof) and that’s a little annoying.
I sort of surprised myself by buying this since I have always had Garmin units before, but I have to say that I am very happy and would buy this again.
And commenting on the other reviewer, my unit does not seem to be off by a certain amount of feet, however, if you are in a driveway, it does want to lock on a road until you are about 20 feet away, but I believe this is normal for automotive GPS units.
And about the speed issue, mot cars show a slightly faster than actual speed, so I would say your GPS is the one that is accurate, not your car speedometer.
Just heard back from Whistler customer support. They say they will have map updates about every year. I also asked if they would have European maps, and they said most likely not…
Click here to see full story, check price or purchase Whistler WGPX-550 GPS Navigator.
Related posts with Whistler WGPX-550 GPS Navigator Review
Posted in Portable Vehicle GPS
Leave a Reply
