Colin Charles Agenda

Car, GPS recommendations

I bit the bullet, and picked up a Hyundai Getz today. Its the 5-door hatchback, that I’ve been mulling over for a few days. Maiden voyage from Nunawading to Doncaster, to Nunawading, then to Clayton, which was pretty good. I obviously have to watch the speedometer a lot closer, as the numerous speed cameras are probably going to cause me grief.

Of the useful things to note, is that you are advised to buy insurance, before you actually own the car. Then you get a cover note, which is valid for 2 weeks, and it means your car is insured and ready to go. Because I’m under-25, and male, insurance tends to cost a lot of money – I’ve found that AAMI seem to offer just about the cheapest rates, in comparison to Commonwealth Bank or RACV. Roadside assistance is probably important, and that isn’t covered by insurance (duh!), so a RACV memebership seems to be something that’s required.

Maps just don’t give me the confidence to get to a location, so I’m looking for a cheap, yet reliable GPS unit, with mapping support (i.e. my handheld Garmin eTrex is kind of useless). If anyone has any idea what’s sensible, in terms of GPS units, I’d be willing to hear suggestions. Is TomTom or Garmin better? Or are the HP PDA’s any good (with the TomTom software)? What are sync options for Linux users?

Okay, I think its time to pore over the material in the manual, and burn a CD with MP3 music (I bet there are no car audio systems that play OGG).