GPS units have come a long way from exotic, expensive, specialized units that only a few could afford, to units at all price and feature points. In this review we look at the Magellan RoadMate 5265T-LMB GPS and see what Magellan has packed into the new unit. With red light camera notice, driver alerts, landmark guidance and a polished new GUI, it is a clear updating of their classic RoadMate line. The GPS also signals an important change – native Macintosh compatibility.
Previously, Magellan units required a Windows machine for any firmware or map updates, which was unfortunate for those on the Mac platform. However, that quietly changed last fall when Magellan enabled Mac OSX compatibility on our older RoadMate 3065 through a firmware update, a welcome move. Happily for Mac users, the shipping versions of the RoadMate series are natively Mac OSX-compatible with Magellan’s Mac OSX version of Content Manager, the app that lets users control, update, and sync the GPS with a Mac.
Content Manager loads loads at startup, although it’s rare to update a GPS unit more than once or twice a year. It is nice, though, to see all your devices, options, and preferences in one place. Our firmware updates worked without a hitch, and the 5265 unit worked even better after we were done, with tweaks to accuracy of reporting that we noticed during testing. Content Manager notified us of a major update to the map set for the older unit that required a paid update, but the Magellan site doesn’t actually detail what users will gain in the update, leaving them a bit in the dark about the need to perform the update. This is also the case for the newer 5265 unit, which offers a new premium update, with an expanded database but at about one-third the cost of an entirely new GPS unit. A little more detail on why a consumer would invest in such an update would be helpful.
One challenge facing the industry in general is how to roll out firmware and software updates. With phones connecting to the internet via cell coverage, users are often immediately aware of updates, but this isn’t the case for the vast majority of devices we use including GPS units. We noticed definite improvements in our GPS units after updating, and Content Manager is one approach to keeping users in-the-loop about these important updates and hope that more users will take advantage of these improvements.
The Magellan RoadMate 5265T-LMB GPS features an enriched feature set; most notably it boasts red light camera alerts, driver alerts, landmark guidance, and a polished new GUI. It is a clear updating of their classic RoadMate line. These are crucial updates in our opinion, since the competition isn’t so much between differing GPS units from different manufacturers, as it is between smart phones and GPS units. Smart phones offer many of those same features for free, so GPS manufacturers need to be fast on their feet and offer compelling reasons for having yet another gadget in one’s car. However, as nice as a smart phone is, in our testing the GPS units really reinforced the beauty of a device designed for the single purpose of getting drivers from point A to point B quickly and safely. As we’re learning, multitasking isn’t as effective as we may think, and we discovered that we preferred the 5265 to our phones in GPS mode. (Note: one major advantage a GPS has over a smart phone is that it will usually have more consistent reception, staying in touch with its satellite in most geographic areas, compared to certain cell carriers that may not have coverage in a remote locations.)
With its large 5" touch-screen display, the 5265 is easy to read, quick, and responsive. The speed and fluidity of this model is a noticeable improvement over older units. When reviewing the earlier GPSs, we found that locating a respectable place to eat when traveling through the middle of nowhere was very useful, and it helped us with restaurant ratings as well as locations. The new and improved 5265 brings this feature to a new level, incorporating the AAA TourBook Guide, free lifetime map updates, free lifetime traffic alerts, a parking garage location feature, spoken street names, and more. When we were lost in New Jersey recently (easy to imagine for those who have navigated NJ roads) it handily found the spot we were looking for, and warned us of red light cameras. We liked the new spoken features, including the speed limit warning, a gentle reminder that the vehicle was traveling above the local speed limit with a preference setting for how many miles over the limit before it triggers. We did have strange map issues, and hopefully those will be ironed out as new map updates are released.
Until the U.S. government gets its act together and implements mandatory back-up cameras in larger vehicles, you can add that vital safety feature to your existing vehicle by way of the 5265’s compatibility with Magellan's optional back-up camera license frame system. The unit carries over their OneTouch™ favorites menu, allowing short cuts to your address book, or locations.
With the rise of many communities relying more and more on absolutely rigid speed limits reinforced by radar and laser guns, driving the posted limit isn’t just for the timid, it might save thousands of dollars in fines, insurance, and other expenses. We also liked the new spoken Landmark guidance feature, reminding us a bit of Laurie Anderson’s 1982 song, “Big Science:” “Hey pal, how do we get to town from here, and he said, take a right where they are going to build that new shopping mall, go straight past where they are going to put in the freeway, and take a left at what’s going to be the sports center, and keep going to the place where they are thinking of building that drive-in bank, you can’t miss it, and I said this must be the place.”
Magellan’s unit couldn’t predict the future as Anderson’s song did, but it did tell us to turn left at physical landmarks such as a gas station, bank or shopping center, or take a right at the light, and it was accurate with its recommendations. Traffic Camera Alerts by PhantomALERT are free for the first year, after which you need to pay a yearly subscription fee. There is also the option to purchase Premium content for an extra cost, which includes blackspots (high accident areas), school zones, and dangerous intersections. Why the extra costs for these features? Because PhantomALERT is a third-party company that develops the database, and you are essentially paying them for those development costs. The cost for the PhantomALERT service for smart phone users is $30 a year, to put things in perspective. Our prediction is that professional drivers would subscribe in a heartbeat, since it affects their livelihoods, as will savvy commuters who want to stay aware of traffic conditions, red-light cameras, speed traps, and problem spots. For those folks, the extra fee will be a bargain. We also liked the addition of Safe Texting which allows drivers to respond to texts at a later time by sending a preset response message.
We found the Magellan RoadMate 5265T-LMB GPS a first-rate unit - easy to use, well-designed, with a responsive GUI, and hosting an enriched feature set that makes it easier to get where you need to be safely and quickly. Its useful information is presented in a way that won’t distract you while driving. Highly recommended!
Harris Fogel and Nancy Burlan, posted 7/2/2013
For more information on the Magellan RoadMate 5265T-LMB GPS visit: www.magellangps.com
For more information on Laurie Anderson, visit: http://www.laurieanderson.com
