Nextar X4B 4.3-Inch Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator Review

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(More customer reviews)This is my first GPS. I wanted a unit with TTS and a 4.3" screen. I was looking at the TomTom 720 and the Garmin nuvi 750 when I saw the great price on this unit. I decided to take a chance on a unit costing much less than what I was planning to spend. (In fairness, the TomTom and Garmin have a few additional features like an FM transmitter.) So far, I have not regretted it.
The unit powers up and locks on to the satellites fairly quickly if you have a clear view of the sky. Setup and navigation are fairly straightforward. The onboard stylus is useful but you can use your finger as well. Nextar does not show as much info on the main navigation screen as some others (e.g. signal strength) but I haven't found that to be a problem. It does have a volume control on the side, which some more expensive units don't seem to provide. It comes with the usual complement of chargers and mounts.
The TTS feature works well and the voice is clear and unaccented. I do not have a Bluetooth phone so I am unable to comment on that capability. I will say that both the Nextar and Garmin manuals spend many pages on Bluetooth setup, so it certainly seems to be a technology that isn't plug-n-play yet.
I initially set up an itinerary for a trip from Austin to Pittsburgh. The Nextar came up with a better route than MS Streets & Trips. I was able to easily add stopovers and it recomputed the route fairly quickly. Although having "only" 1.6M POIs, I was able to find most of the hotels and restaurants I was interested in for the trip. I used it around town over the weekend and it responded well to real-time course changes when I took streets that weren't on the route. No lockups or reboots. The unit successfully navigated in and around Memphis and other cities and stops on the route. There were some mistakes, mostly in whether connecting roads were right or left turns. I'm sure this is due to mistakes in the Navteq maps and not anything peculiar to the Nextar.
On a trip to Long Beach the unit also worked well in navigating from the airport to the hotel and then to other POIs. It did have our hotel on the wrong side of the street but I'm sure that's an error in the map.
I loaded some MP3s onto a 1GB SD card and the MP3 player played them just fine. One glitch is that it doesn't have a shuffle mode. I hope that will be added in a later upgrade. I did not try to load/view pictures. A USB cable is provided but has no function yet as there is nothing on the Nextar website to update. The unit was built in July so there is probably little need as yet.
The manual could be better, especially for GPS newbies like me. It has taken some experimentation to figure out how the various features work.
All in all, I am very satisfied. It doesn't have all of the features of more expensive units, but it is a great value for a 4.3" unit with TTS. I lost the slip case and tried to contact Nextar support. After a week I have not had any response.

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The Nextar GPS X4B mobile navigation system assures that your days of getting lost are over!Finding an address or any of 1.6 million points of interest such as the nearest gas station or restaurant is a snap anywhere in the U.S. or Canada.Just enter information in the X4B's 4.3 inch touch screen and let the voice prompt and detailed map guide you to the destination. With the latest TTS (Text to Speech) function, street names are clrearly pronounced in English.The X4B's built in MP3 player will entertain you with your favorite tunes while en route. Just copy your favorite play list onto an SD card and insert into the slot.The X4B moves easily from car to car using the convenient vent mount.A recharageable lithium ion battery assures that the unit stays active. Other features of the X4B include built-in maps of the 50 United States and Canada, 1GB built in Flash Memory, built in Bluetooth for handsfree calling, 2D or 3D map viewing mode, day and night mode, small case design with rear speaker, Navteq Map on board, Intel processor, and a built in SIRF III receiver. With all these capabilities, the Nextar X3 will provide you with worry free navigation on even the most complex routes!

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Nextar ME 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator Review

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(More customer reviews)To be honest, the name Nexstar does not mean anything to me. The only reason I bought this GPS, because it runs iGO 8 navigation software. Anybody who is familiar with that piece of marvel knows what I am talking about. IGO 8 have won the second time the Vision Mobility Award of Excellence. They hold the "Best Navigation Software" title for two years in a row in Europe. That means something. So, what is this Nexstar ME do? Knowing iGO 8, I took a gamble. There is very little information about this "black sheep" GPS on the Internet. Even on the Nexstar homepage say almost nothing useful. The package came with all the necessary hardware pieces that are standard for today's GPS package. After turning the unit on, it scrolled through a very long fine print. Using my finger I touched to accept the agreement button and I found myself in a menu where I had a choice to go navigation, music, photos or to a setup area where you can fine-tune your unit, like time and date, brightness, volume, alignment etc. I picked navigation and the unit vent into loading mode. It took a long time to load up the navigation software. That indicated that the hardware must equipped with slower CPU. It runs CE 5.0 by the way, which is no surprise. The plus side was however, and I was a little bit surprised, when the application finally loaded up, the unit already hooked up with the navigation satellites. My previous experience with Mio P550, which was a PDA with navigation build in, - separate SiRF III chip, and also was running iGO 8, left me regularly waiting five or more minutes to find the satellites. So, this was good. Later, I found out that hooking up with the satellites is no problem for this unit and it is always full strength. As far as navigation goes, it is very stable, accurate and no sign of slow CPU. The interface is fantastic and joy to use the finger touch. There are two modes to pick, simple and advanced. The default is simple. Simple mode is OK, but want to learn and get into advance mode is better. The GPS voice is clear and loud, came as default. I have no problem to hear it even in my old noisy car. It does TTS (Text-To-Speech), but you need to pick that option in the voice setup. For those who wish to push the limit of this GPS, I am happy to announce it is also a "geeg heaven". Matter of hours I was able to add different languages and voices to the unit, and I am sure adding other maps, like countries of Europe are no problem either. Although on the Nexstar's website says, no other maps are available. Right. Interesting to know for example that iGO 8 has single-handedly the most accurate and detailed maps of Eastern Europe. Anyway, I think I will like this GPS. The fast satellite hookup, the marvelous interface, loud and clear voice, stable navigation are all good ones. There are really no negatives about this unit yet. Sure it is missing bluetooth and other fancy features like FM radio and transmission, but you always have to compromise performance, quality and price. For example this GPS have MP3 capabilities, but do I care? No. So, the question always is, what is important to you. Good luck.

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At only 0.7� thickness, the slim Nextar ME unit can be easily moved for use in multiple vehicles. The system comes pre-loaded with maps for the 50 United States as well as extras like MP3 playing and JPEG image viewing capabilities.
The entry-level Nextar ME navigation system is easy to use, easy to move, and easy on the budget. With a sleek design it rides well and looks great in any make or class of vehicle. Whether for personal or professional use, it is an outstanding value.
Maps from the 50 United states are pre-loaded and shown on the unit�s 3.5� touch-screen display. Text-to-speech technology distinctly pronounces road names in English. Voice-guided directions with turn-by-turn voice prompts are clearly audible through a built-in stereo speaker.
The unit includes 1.6 millions of points of interest to make finding hotels, shopping centers, gas stations, and restaurants a snap. Planning trips, vacations, or cross town jaunts with the Nextar ME points of interest feature is easy and fun. A new route is recalculated instantly any time the driver misses a turn. Digital map data is supplied by Tele Atlas, a leading global provider of digital maps and dynamic content that power many of the world�s most essential navigation and location-based services.
For entertaining while en route, the ME can play MP3 files and display JPEG images. Addresses for up to 300 favorite destinations can be stored. Other features include a built-in antenna that ensures signal reception. A lightweight, built-in rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery supplies power.
The Nextar ME measures 3.5-inch x 2.9-inch x 0.7-inch and weighs 2.2 pounds.
Features Found in the Nextar ME GPS Navigation System
Touch-screen display: Provides interfacing capability while map is being viewed
Built-in stereo speaker: Delivers navigational voice prompts as well as MP3 music in stereo; no extra wires or speaker to remember to connect
Text-to-Speech: Safety feature that allows driver to keep eyes on the road while getting directions; clearly pronounces names of streets encountered during drive
Points of Interest: Name or description of a specific location that user may find useful or interesting; generally indicated by an icon on the map
Lithium-Ion Battery: Lighter weight, holds charge longer, and does not suffer from memory effect compared to similar batteries; recharging feature assures system stays active
MP3 playing: Allows driver and/or passengers to listen to favorite MP3 files while in vehicle
JPEG viewing: View photos and other graphics while in vehicle
Route recalculation: Instantly changes route if driver misses turn
Built in antenna: Ensures reception of signal without running additional wires
Stylus: Allows user to point more accurately than using a finger to small areas on the display screen

What's in the Box Nextar ME, AC/DC adapter, car adapter, USB cable, protection pouch, unique magnetic suction cup, and a stylus/touch pen.
About Nextar Nextar in the categories it chooses to enter, the products that it develops and in the manner in which it goes to market desires and strives to be nothing short of Bold and New. Bold--the categories, products and retail avenues that are the most salient and relevant of the day. New--utilizing the newest technologies in dynamic, salient, relevant and yet affordable products and placing these products in the highest volume traditional and, as or more importantly, non-traditional consumer electronic retail.

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