Magellan Maestro 3100
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Written by Kate on January 12, 2009 – 8:49 pm
Although the Magellan Maestro 3100
Now, at this price, what does this GPS offer you and what is this GPS missing that gives it this low price tag…compared to the low prices Nuvi and TomTom models? Basically, this GPS has no fancy features… but it has everything you need to get where you need to go, which is exactly what a GPS is supposed to do. This GPS is ready to use when you take it out of the box. Just plug it in to the cigarette lighter of your car and use the touch screen menu to get started. The simple design makes it easy to use and the touch screen butto
ns are easy to see.
Features The turn by turn voice guidance tells you where you need to go so that you do not ever need to look at the screen. Built in maps for the continental United States (other maps you can download off the website) allow you to drive any unfamiliar area and your Magellan Maestro 3100 knows exactly where you are to lead you in the right direction (and to get you home…)
The battery for your Magellan Maestro 3100 charges while your drive, so if you need the cigarette lighter back (to maybe plug your cell phone in?) you can do that and the Magellan Maestro 3100 will stay on for the life of its battery.
Don’t you hate it when you get stuck on a road with a lot of traffic but you don’t know another way to get where you are going? The Magellan Maestro 3100 has a SmartDetour feature that takes you on another route to avoid the traffic. And if you take a wrong turn, the Magellan Maestro 3100 has an Auto Re-rout feature that gets you back on the track of your route to your destination.
The lighting even changes on this GPS to adjust for the night to continue to make the screen easy to see. And one of my favorite features it the QuickSpell. When you begin to type something onto the screen, let’s say a street name, it will automatically finish it once the GPS knows what you are typing. Making it faster and easier for you to get to your destination with your Magellan Maestro 3100!You also do not have to worry about doing anything differently if you decide to take your GPS with you to someone else’s car. It will automatically work the same way as it does in your car!
The Magellan Maestro 3100 has over 750,000 POI (Points of Interest) stored so that wherever you need to go, you just need to search for it. (If it’s the movie theater, Chinese food, the airport…whatever!) A GREAT feature of these saved POIs is that they are interactive! If you see one coming up on your GPS map, you can click on it and it will give the phone number and other information that you may need. So, let’s say you have a hot date and you are going to Outback Steakhouse…except you forgot to make a reservation…and its 7:30PM… prime time for dining…rather than arriving to an hour long wait, you can click on the icon for Outback on your GPS, find the phone number, and call to get your name ahead in seating. And Voila! You arrive to an open table and impress your date. Pretty cool, huh?
The routes are also customizable, for example if you want to avoid highways and/or toll roads, you can do that. And an Address Book features makes it easy to store your friends and family’s addresses or anything else you would like to have easy access to.
Cons of the Magellan Maestro 3100 The battery life is shorter than a lot of other GPS models out there. Mounting is a little difficult, taking it off and putting it back on the windshield. The detour route function is not great. The Magellan Maestro wants you to Uturn and take the original route if you miss your exit or turn, rather than finding the best next route from your current position. There is no estimated time of arrival on your screen at any time. (This is annoying…and you can’t play the game, “Beat the arrival time!” Oh come on…you know you would so try to do that too.)
Pros of the Magellan Maestro 3100 CHEAP!!!All the basic features in order to get you where you need to go and find all the restaurants/gas stations/airports and other points of interests you may be looking for. Interactive POIs help you get the phone number and distance by just pressing them rather than having to type them in.
The Magellan Maestro 3100 has everything you need in a GPS and is a great bargain. Do you agree? Do you not agree? Got something else to say, leave a Comment!
| Magellan Maestro 3100 | |
| Physical & Performance | |
| Unit dimensions, WxHxD: | 4.29 (l) x 1.14 (w) x 3.48 (h) |
| Display size, WxH: | 3.5 inches |
| Weight: | 6.5 oz |
| Battery: | Rechargeable lithium-ion |
| Battery life: | up to 3 hours |
| Waterproof: | no |
| Maps & Memory | |
| Basemap: | yes |
| Preloaded maps: | yes |
| Ability to add maps: | yes |
| Built-in memory: | 1GB (internal) - Unlimited (SD card) |
| Accepts data cards: | SD™ card (not included) |
| Features | |
| Voice prompts (e.g.Turn right in 500 ft.): | yes (internal speaker) |
| Speaks street names (e.g.Turn right On Elm Street in 500 ft.) : | no |
| 3-D map view: | yes |
| 3-D building view (displays buildings in 3-D): | no |
| Auto re-route (fast off-route and detour recalculation): | yes |
| Choice of route setup (faster time, shorter distance, off road): | yes |
| Route avoidance (avoid highways, tolls etc.): | yes |
| Touchscreen: | yes |
| Qwerty or ABC keyboard (choose keyboard layout): | yes |
| Motorcycle-friendly: | no |
