Nuvi 255W: Green Technology?

Nuvi 255W:  Green Technology?

by Steve Auger

I recently decided to pack up the family and go for a week-long car trip to visit long lost family and hit some beaches.  Starting from Ottawa my wife and I drove to Toronto the first night.  I must explain that my wife isn't much of a fan of long car trips.  In fact she gets quite grumpy if we drive more than a couple of hours at a time.  So I was pushing my luck the first day with a 4+ hour drive.  

As luck would have it I got lost in Toronto.  I'm not sure how - I've driven this route several times before. but not for the last few years.  Perhaps with age my memory is failing a little, who knows?   In any case I managed to forget the turn-off from the highway for the hotel.  Driving an extra half hour through Toronto I got off on the wrong interchange and ultimately found my way to the wrong hotel.  I'm one of those men who hates to ask for directions, but since my wife was in the process of breaking my ear drum, I begrudgingly went into the (wrong) hotel and asked for directions for the right hotel.  By this point in time my wife was livid, screaming at me for not bringing the map of Toronto and just about every other mistake I've made over the 6 years of our marriage. 

After another half hour of driving I managed to find the correct hotel.   By this time my wife had decided I was going to go out early next morning and buy every road map available for Ontario cities and then some.  I tried to calmly explain that we already had all those maps but I simply forgot to bring them along.  In fact I couldn't quite understand why they weren't in the car already.  There is no use for them outside the car.  But this was to no avail.  Maps I must have if I wanted to survive married life for the coming week. 

At this point in time a green light went off in my head.  Why not invest in a GPS?  You know, one of those street pilots!  I'd never get lost again.  In fact, I could probably use it driving around Ottawa since my night vision isn't what it used to be.  It could probably save me driving time (and embarrassment) driving around my home city as well as when travelling.

So I decided to call my brother.  Being a GPS fanatic, he basically told me to only consider Garmin and specifically the Nuvi 200 series.  Forget any other manufacturer.  The Nuvi 255W is currently selling for approximately $215 CDN.  SO I promptly went down to a local electronics shop and bought one.  I came back to the hotel and told my wife I had solved my driving problems.   No more getting lost!  In fact she would never again be able to blame me for getting lost or taking the wrong route!

Anyways, to make a long story short - I've been using the Nuvi for the last couple of weeks.  My marriage is still intact as my wife can't blame me for taking the wrong road!  Below are my thoughts on the Nuvi GPS:

• Works well navigating through established (older) neighborhoods;
• The supplied electronic maps are out of date for the last year or two.  New streets are not recognized.  Admittedly I have not taken Garmin up on one free map download yet so this may solve my problems;
• The directions provided may not be the most efficient;
• Sometimes directs the driver into construction zones;
• You will never get lost provided you entered the correct destination!

So how does the Nuvi 255W stack up as green technology?

In certain situations the Nuvi will prevent you from generating significant amounts of greenhouse gases i.e. you will never drive that extra hour while lost and trying to find your destination.  Additionally, there are fewer driving distractions such as trying to read street signs or interpret a map.  These distractions not only cause extra fuel use (i.e. due to erratic driving) but can lead to car accidents. 

On the flip side, if you know where you are going or have an experienced navigator at your side then you can generally do better than the Nuvi.  My advice is to use the Nuvi as a companion when in unfamiliar territory.  Otherwise turn it off.

There is a feature I haven't had a chance to use yet called "Eco-Route".  The Nuvi allows you to enter your car's urban and rural fuel economy.  The Nuvi will ultimately assess your driving habits (for fuel efficiency) and generate reports.  The idea is to train the driver to drive in a more fuel efficient manner.

Here are a few suggestions for Garmin if they should ever tune into Blog On Smog:

• Provide proper specifications:  i.e. power use (Watts),  I could not find any specs on their website or user's manual.
• Go into hibernation when the driver will be on the same road for a long period of time.  After all there is no need to keep the display running.
• Make it easier to turn off when not being used. 

Should the the Nuvi really be considered green technology?  I'm not sure but I'm keeping mine.   My marriage can't afford to be without it :)