Garmin 1450LMT good value with a few hitches

I bought the Garmin 1450 LMT as an update to my older 255WT. I needed newer maps and was drawn to the lane assist/junction view feature of the 1450. The latter is especially good for big cities like Chicago where multiple freeway lanes with right and left exiting can become a challenge.

There are several things to note about the 1450. One is that it takes a bit longer to find satellites then the older version...about 30 seconds as it does not have the hotfix technology.

The other annoying thing is that if you have the free traffic enabled the ads that pop up can block your view of the street display requiring you to take the GPS out of safe mode, hit the back key and then the map icon to get rid of them OR pull over and do the same thing to knock the ad off your screen.

I find the on/off button much easier to accidentally turn on as it is a push down type rather then the slide type of earlier garmin 255.

Lastly, it comes with free lifetime map updates but after one map update the device's memory was full. I had to delete other items to make more space. For the next update I will have to purchase a microSD card and hope it integrates the newer maps without trouble.

Have said all that I do think the Garmin 1450's larger 5 inch display makes a huge difference and I love it compared to the 4.3. Also the price was right at around 130 bucks on sale. With that pricing I can simply buy the newest version in a couple years. I also like the updated "where am I?" feature. It now lists the coordinates of saved POI's. This is great to share with friends when we hike in out of the way forests and parks not listed in the current database.

If you've liked other garmins you will probably enjoy this one too. It is intuitive to use.

Lane Assist Traffic Updates 5" Touch Screen Portable=Awsome Product & Value

The Garmin nuvi 1450LMT Automotive GPS Receiver!
This is my second Garmin Product. The first was the GPSMAP 60CSx for Lakes & Streams. Fantastic! Because I was so impressed with the 60, it made sense to go with the same brand for Trails & Roads.
The Garmin 1450LMT, with a 5" screen makes it easier to see the information with only a glance.
The Touch screen pad is large enough even for my fat fingers.
The Since I live in a major metropolitan area, ST. Paul, Minnesota. Our Capital City, Road construction is ongoing. To keep up with all the changes, Garmin has Life Time Map Updates!
The Key feature for me, in this fast paced World & traffic, is the "Lane Assist" which directs me, in advance, which lane to be in for merging on multiple lane freeways. Awesome!
Then there is real time traffic up dates which are very helpful in avoiding major traffic melt-downs & rerouting quickly around them.
I will continue to buy Garmin products because they do not disappoint!

This is an excellent unit with great features for the money, can't go wrong

This is my second purchase and it is for my wife. She has a 255w. One day we had to trade cars and she got to use my 1450LMT, and when she came home her response was... "Why in the heck did you give me the crappy one?"... I love my Garmin, it has yet to fail me on directions, even in the hills of eastern Tennessee. I do a lot of travels off the beaten path and in some cases it will even point out brand new roads before they are paved.

The screen is a perfect size, and it has plenty of features to toy around with, or you can keep the screen plain and see more map. I never had any use for bluetooth so this unit with the lifetime maps and traffic does just fine. I also have family in areas that you would have to enter coordinates instead of an address and this until finds em every time. The traffic feature is nice too, although i don't live in an area where it is needed, but it does come in handy when i have work in major cities and suddenly find myself needing a detour.

The value is well worth it..

awesome product, Great value of the money

the product is very good, easy to use and the map is updated recently. lot of helpful features. I'm new to this area and i needed GPS to get familiar with locations here.my friends recommended Garmin to me so i bought it and i''m very satisfied with it. But I think that the price is a little bit high.

Good, but getting worse.

Garmin has been a great gps, they will get you to your location better than others. Its easy and fast. But they did a update and now almost none of the streets around you have names on them. I called Garmin and they stated they did this due to customer request? Who would want a gps that does not show the street names around you? This is extreamly helpful finding your way around! I am sorry Garmin, you have to change this back. I can no longer be happy to tell people how good you are! It doesnt even tell you what street you are on anymore!! This is going backwards in being better. Update 1-2013, after trying to do a update, not enough memory in unit. A call to Garmin says these are old units, either you have to add a memory card or delete some of the map data! So if you buy one of these, plan on buying a memory card to go with it.