After seeing a YouTube video in which the Jonas Brothers (teen sensations and objects of adoration for untold numbers of preteen girls), didn’t seem to know where they were going next, an entertainment website joked that the band of brothers needed a GPS device.

In the video, the directionally-challenged brothers disembark from a tour bus, unsure of not only where they were going next, but unsure of their current location.

You don’t have to find (or lose) yourself in similar circumstances. A GPS navigation device can not only point you in the right direction, they can also keep you from meltdown if you have a hectic schedule. Just think: the Jonas Brothers aren’t even driving themselves around and they’re confused. What about those of use who have to do our own work and take ourselves from place to place?

GPS devices like the Garmin Nuvi 650 GPS Automotive Navigation System accepts points of interest (POIs), so they can tell you where you’ve been. Or they can help you remind you of that place you’ve been before when you can’t quite remember. The POI database on many GPS devices also comes preloaded with information on scores of useful places like ATMs, hotels, restaurants and gas stations.

A GPS device can help plan your trips near and far in countless ways. For instance, the TomTom GO 720 GPS Bluetooth Automotive Navigation System with Mapshare allows you choose helpful optional services that will let you check road conditions  and get current weather or up to five day forecasts.

Another great summer weekend is approaching which means it’s time to load up your GPS and hit the trails in search of geocaching treasure. Started in 2000, geocaching is a relatively new sport/hobby that uses GPS equipment to find hidden caches — kind of a techno-treasure hunt. Similar to the orienteering you might have done in your younger days as a Boy Scout or Girl Scout, geocaching replaces that boring old compass with a cool electronic GPS unit.

Over the years people have gotten creative with geocaching. There’s the traditional cache that started the phenomenon: coordinates that lead you to a container with a log book and maybe a few trinkets. But geocaching has evolved and now reflects the unique creativity of its enthusiasts. Today you can track multi-caches where one cache provides clues for finding the next cache until you finally ferret out the final cache. There are mystery or puzzle caches that require you to solve a puzzle to gain access to the cache coordinates. Cipher caches allow you to channel your inner Bond as you decode clues that lead you to cache coordinates. Every year there are new and creative developments in the sport. Geocaching has become so popular that many areas have clubs where cachers meet regularly. Event caches organized by local and regional clubs draw geocachers for a day of discussion, training, sharing and caching. Mega-event caches can attract hundreds of geocachers from all over the world.

You’ll find a number of great websites that tell you how to get started, where to find caches, how to create a cache in your area, and more. Our favorite is Geocaching.com which is a great starting point for enthusiasts new to geocaching. You’ll find an easy to use cache-search feature and plenty of information about the hobby. On our website, you’ll find GPS units to fit every budget.  Right now you can get a great deal on a refurbished Garmin GPSMAP 60 CSx portable handheld outdoor color GPS (shown above). So click on, load up and get out there!

Have you always wanted an assistant? Maybe you have one at the office, but you are not allowed to get your assistant to organize your life outside of the office. Here’s good news: the Garmin Nuvi 680 GPS Bluetooth Automotive Navigation System will act as your own personal travel assistant and it will never ask for the day off.

The Nuvi 680 comes with preloaded maps, hands-free calling and an FM transmitter. Your Nuvi 680 also comes with a free trial of MSN Direct so you can avoid traffic, check the weather, find the cheapest gas and check movie times. You can take the MSN Direct receiver with you, so that way you can connect to your unit from various locations.

Like any good assistant, the Nuvi 680 does its best to anticipate your needs. Its preloaded City Navigator NT has a robust points of interest (POIs) database that will give you the skinny on the places you want to go. You can also input your own points of interest and set up alerts to remind you that you are approaching one of your POIs, be it a chic restaurant or safety camera.

It also knows how to keep you amused, as assistants sometimes have to do. The Nuvi 680 has an MP3 player, audio book player and JPEG picture viewer. And if you like to have highly educated assistants, you’ll appreciate the optional plugin SD cards let you add additional features like language translation and detailed travel guides.

Like a good assistant, the Garmin Nuvi 680 resists being wooed away by others who are looking for help. It has a Garmin Lock anti-theft feature.

My neighbor is a marathon runner. She’s run locally and in neighboring states for years. Last year she took on the hills of San Francisco and is training for the pavement-pounding Chicago Marathon this fall. Of course, her dream is every runner’s ultimate ambition: the Boston Marathon. We live in an area of hills and ravines not far from the river, so she gets a good workout running in the neighborhood, but boredom was starting to kick in. Tired of the same old sights, she just bought a Garmin Forerunner 305 GPS Fitness Trainer with Heart Rate Monitor to help expand her practice route and track her performance. She said it was love at first sight!

The Garmin Forerunner 305 includes a high sensitivity GPS receiver, an easy to use new courses feature and a rugged wireless heart rate monitor that guarantees optimal performance. Its unique design wraps the GPS antenna around the wrist for improved reception under trees and near tall buildings. The Forerunner 305 ensures great reception whether you’re running in an urban cityscape, suburban neighborhoods or out in the country. The ANT wireless heart rate monitor has a soft, comfortable chest strap and superior battery life. With the Forerunner 305 you don’t have to worry about cross-talk with your MP3 or cell phone. The unit reliably measures and sends data to keep you training in your optimal heart rate zone.

What makes the Forerunner 305 so much fun for distance runners, bikers and cross trainers is the course feature that lets you compete against previous workouts. The Forerunner 305 allows you to transition easily between sports without resetting the unit to track your total workout. An optional Foot Pod accessory can track distance, pace and calories burned when you train indoors, even when GPS reception is unavailable. The Forerunner’s three main data screens can be customized to track 12 data fields, providing instant and continuous feedback during your workout. As with all Forerunners, workout data is stored in memory for review and analysis.

If you cringe every time you pull into the gas station, you should think about getting a GPS navigation device. Now wait, before you say that you want to spend more money, not less, consider how accurate directions can save you money. A GPS device will pay for itself in no time. You will get where you need to go faster and use less gas in the process.

A GPS navigation device can cut your fuel costs and the distance you travel. Whether you are in a new town or just travel a lot within your own area, you may be leaking out countless dollars every time you get lost on the way to a destination.

Are you still relying on internet mapping site to point you in the right direction? They do a find job, but they have their limitations. GPS mapping software has the latest developments and depending on the device you choose, you can get traffic alerts as well.
And, in the event that you still manage to get off course, a GPS device can re-route you. Your printout can’t do that.

In addition to this there is the stress factor to consider. If you get lost or confused often, you are putting yourself through added stress. You are also putting your car through unnecessary wear and tear.

Action GPS has a wide variety of GPS devices that you can choose from.  Stop taking years off of your life and off of the life of your car. Let a GPS navigation device be your guide.

Do you buy day-old bread at the supermarket? When you step into a store, do you bypass all of the new merchandise and head straight to the clearance rack?

If you do, there is absolutely no shame in that whatsoever. Bargain hunters are some of the savviest shoppers around. And like any other store, Action GPS knows that it has to cater to people looking for a good deal.

This is why you will find a “Clearance” section on the Action GPS website. If you are looking for a new GPS device, browse through all of the sections. If there something you like, but aren’t quite ready to buy just yet, keep checking back and peruse the Clearance section to see if something you want have been made available at a reduced price.

Right now there are some great items in Clearance, such as:

The Garmin StreetPilot C530 GPS Automotive Navigation System-this easy-to-use navigation device is in stock and will ship to you the same day you order it. It comes already loaded with maps and you have the option of adding traffic alerts.

Earlier in the week, we discussed GPS devices that can take you where you want to go by land or by sea. Well, you can find a great product that will do just that in Clearance. The Garmin Etrex Legend CX Hand Held Outdoor Color GPS can route you on roads or off, has a waterproof battery compartment and can withstand the rugged outdoors or being dropped in the water.

Not long ago, we left the cold grip of winter and headed for the warm, sunny shores of beautiful Hawaii. It was our first trip without the kids in some time, and we were looking forward to lazy days cruising the islands. We packed the sunscreen, beach towels and swimsuits, waved good-bye to the kids and took off. Unfortunately, we left our Garmin Nuvi 260W GPS with grandma so she could ferry the kids around while we were gone (see my May 20 post). Fatal mistake that.

None of the Hawaiian Islands are particularly large. Most have only a single 2-lane road that follows the coastline. Infrequently, a roadway bisects an island, but the volcanic interiors don’t lend themselves to road building. You’d think such a simplistic road system would be easy to navigate. You would be wrong. If there was ever a time we wished we had our GPS with us, it was in Hawaii.

Hawaii was a nightmare to navigate. The guidebooks are full of wonderful sights to see: pristine beaches, patriotic memorials, historic markers, eclectic shops and quaint eateries. Just try to find them! When we’ve traveled in the continental U.S., attractions are clearly marked. Highway signs advertise exits long before you reach them. A plethora of signs leads you right to the gate of whatever you came to see. Even the World’s Biggest Ball of String is well marked and easy to find. I’d have killed for such signs in Hawaii.

As we tracked back and forth across Oahu, we failed to find any sign pointing us to the Punchbowl Cemetery. On Hawaii, we followed the directions in the guidebook, but still couldn’t find the coffee plantation. Out of the corner of our eye we spied a tiny sign for a gift shop, so maybe that was it. Periodically, a roadway will lead into a beach or resort or subdivision area, branching into a confusing rabbit warren of unmarked roads. You have to wander these to find many of the beaches. Wander being the operative word. Most of the beaches we enjoyed we found by pure dumb luck.

We’d love to return to Hawaii. There’s much we didn’t see (or couldn’t find). But next time we’ll pack our Garmin GPS unit along with the sunscreen!

Maybe you fancy yourself to be a modern-day Pirate of the Caribbean. Or perhaps you are an adventurer, a la Indian Jones. Either way, you need to get where you are going and you may need a little help. No matter how wonderful your sense of direction may be, you really cannot do it all alone.

The Garmin GPSMAP 76CSx Portable Hand Held Outdoor Color GPS may be just the thing for those of you who travel by land and by sea. This device gets high marks from people who used GPS navigation devices for outdoor and marine use. The trip computer has an odometer and provides stopped time, moving average, overall average, maximum speed and more. (Useful information to have as you make notes for the travel diaries you plan to publish.)

Designed for travel in uncertain terrain, this device has a very sensitive GPS receiver. You will be able to track your location in thick forests or deep river canyons. Its electronic compass means you will not lose your bearings.  The built-in quad-helix receiving antenna has remote antenna capabilities.

This unit is not only water resistant, it also floats! It come with built-in celestial tables that will allow you to figures out the best times to fish, should you decide to go for “take-out.”
This sturdy product comes equipped with MapSource Topo and inland lake maps, BlueChart marine cartography waterlogged journeys. It also has City Navigator street maps for when you dock and decide to explore the land.

Visit Action GPS to learn about this and other GPS devices designed for outdoor and marine use.

Last time my mother-in-law came to babysit the kids, her visit  was a disaster of missed piano lessons and soccer practices. (Though I’m not sure the boys considered a few less piano lessons quite the tragedy their grandmother did.)

We live in a town of complicated geography carved from the rural landscape not all that long ago. Our little piece of heaven is more a vaguely connected series of subdivisions than a planned community. Roads wind around lakes and still undeveloped clumps of forest. They snake through newly constructed subdivisions, circle improbable roundabouts, skitter down unpaved farm tracks  and connect without any rhyme or reason. I suppose the county planning commission will but a stop to the chaos at some point in the future, but for now, getting from hither to yon takes Eagle Scout-level mapping skills, something sorely lacking in my directionally-challenged in-law.

This time we were determined to make mom’s visit more pleasant and less frustrating than last time. We left her our Garmin Nuvi 260W Widescreen Automotive GPS Navigation System with TTS. We figured the easy to view wide screen would be easy for mom to see, and the turn-by-turn voice directions and spoken street names would allow mom to concentrate on the road. (She’d be on her own dealing with the rumpus in the back seat.) We carefully programmed in all the places we trek to in a typical week with the kids: school, grocery, piano teacher’s house, four different soccer fields, karate studio, library, bank, McDonald’s, local parks, church and assorted friends’ homes. In case of disaster (not uncommon with our active crew), we added the doctor’s office, the dentist, local hospital and 24-hour pharmacy.

Because the Nuvi 260 accepts custom points of interest, our task was a breeze.  All mom would have to do was touch the color screen, enter the destination and a series of easy-to-follow 2D and 3D maps and turn-by-turn voice directions would take her right to each of the kids’ activities. We even set proximity alerts to give mom a head’s up as she approached each destination.

When we returned home, we were pleased to find that not a soccer practice nor nary a piano lesson was missed. Mom loved the Garmin Nuvi 260 so much we gave her one as a thank you gift.

If you’ve taken the time to select the GPS navigation device that suits your needs and fits your price range, you may want to consider doing a little bit more shopping. Action GPS has a great selection of accessories to help you make the most of your GPS device.

A leather carrying case can help protect your GPS device from the elements. You don’t want rain or debris to damage this all-important navigation tool. If you travel often, and especially if you travel overseas, you’ll want to pick up a charger that can be adapted for Europe and the UK.

One way to make your GPS work even harder for you is to connect with a device that allows you to get traffic updates. Action GPS has an accessory  that can help with this.

The Garmin GTM 10 FM TMC Traffic Receiver Module can connect with your car radio so you can get information on traffic construction. TMC stands for Traffic Message Channel, and you can get TMC data in more and more cities in North America and Europe. In many cities, you don’t have to wait for TMC data, it is available in real-time. In some situations this can make the difference between getting home in time and getting tied up in traffic.

This traffic receiver gets traffic updates that are broadcast over a “silent” FM station. This means that you can still spend your drive listening to your car radio. But thanks to the continuous traffic data, you’ll get to your destination in no time.

For years, Oprah Winfrey has done a Favorite Things show for Christmas. This year she decided to extend the favorite things fun into the summer and do a show featuring her favorite things for the warm weather.

Everyone knows that summer means road trips. And for some of us road trips mean getting lost. That doesn’t have to be an issue this year if you take along one of Oprah’s favorite things: the Garmin Nuvi 250.

This navigation device has it all: preloaded street maps, comprehensive database of important destinations, world travel clock, currency converter, calculator, anti-theft features and turn-by-turn voice directions.

The Garmin Nuvi 250 and the rest of the Nuvi 200 series are all portable and fit very well in a pocket or purse. So you don’t have to be in the driver’s seat and it doesn’t have to be your car for you to enjoy the navigation benefits of the Garmin Nuvi 250. In fact, you can put it your pocket for navigation help when you leave your vehicle and travel on foot. This is great for when you take trips to cities you haven’t visited before.

Oprah’s audience got to go home with their very own Garmin Nuvi 250 (in pink no less!). For those of you who weren’t in that audience (and that would be a great number of you) you can purchase your own Garmin Nuvi by visiting the Action GPS website. You can peruse several different models in the Garmin Nuvi family of products and pick the one that will work best for you.

Leading GPS manufacturer, TomTom Inc. recently announced four new models to its growing line of products. The models are an addition to the popular ONE and ONE XL series.

The new models include: TomTom ONE 130, TomTom ONE 130S, TomTom ONE XL 330, and TomTom ONE XL 330S.

These units will feature a slimmer, sleeker frame. The highlight is a new folding mount known as ‘EasyPort.’ This new mount folds flat into the unit, while remaining attached to the device, making both the GPS device and windshield mount more portable than ever.

TomTom has also upgraded its audio and speech functionality. This upgrade will provide louder and clearer instructions.

The ONE 130 will be the standard unit with a 3.5″ screen. The ONE 130S will include an additional text-to-speech feature. The ONE XL 330 will feature a wider 4.3″ screen. The ONE XL 330S will include text-to-speech in addition to having a wider screen.

The units are expected in stock late May.

With obesity reaching crisis proportions in America, I’m always looking for ways to drag my kids away from the video games and get the whole family out and moving. We recently discovered the fun of geocaching. Geocaching combines GPS technology with the fun of a treasure hunt. All I have to do is pick up our GPS unit, jingle the car keys and the kids dash for the car, eager to hunt down the next cache.

Geocaching has added a fresh element of fun and excitement to our weekends. The whole gang races through Saturday chores so we can seek out a few caches before dinner. Sometimes we take a picnic and make a day of exploring a new area. Even on hectic days, there are plenty of quick-find caches right in our neighborhood. We’ve discovered all manner of interesting places geocaching. Who knew there was a pre-Civil War cemetery just steps from our local K-Mart or a gushing waterfall tucked into a quiet glen under the freeway? We’ve come upon a gaggle of fuzzy goslings as we geocached along a previously unknown river trail. Burping bullfrogs surprised us as we walked through a wetlands just minutes from our home. For our family, the fun of geocaching is as much the discovery of new places as it is the thrill of the hunt.

Geocaching is a great hobby for anyone. You don’t have to be a rugged hiker. People hide caches along public pathways and in many community parks where the terrain is easily navigated. All you need to get started is a portable GPS unit and a computer. We started with an easy-to-use, inexpensive, refurbished GPS unit, the Garmin Etrex Legend CX Handheld Outdoor Color GPS. Rugged and water-resistant (essentials with our active kid crew), the Garmin Etrex is lightweight and slips easily into a pants pocket. The 256-color display is sunlight-readable, and it didn’t take long for our kids to get the hang of using the unit. With a 10,000-point automatic track log that allows for 20 saved tracks, you can trace your path in both directions. To date we haven’t gone on that extensive a geocache hunt, but summer is coming and the kids are itching to give it a try!

GPS devices are now doing more than simply pointing you in the right direction. Some of the newest GPS navigation devices also have features to help keep you safe on the road. The people who make GPS devices saw that they needed to do more to optimize your driving experience.

As you know, many states are passing laws that make it illegal to drive while talking on a cell phone using a handset. GPS manufacturers recognize this so they are now making product that make use of Bluetooth technology. In addition to this, some models, such as the TomTom GO 720 GPS Bluetooth Automotive Navigation System with Mapshare also have innovative features like automatic all pick-up. This way you do not have to be distracted by a phone call while you are driving. This is very important because as you drive along any highway today, you can see someone engaged in an intense conversation that is likely driving too slow or swerving to miss something because their attention was divided.

The TomTom GO 720 GPS Bluetooth Automotive Navigation System with Mapshare has a speeding alert that you can preset. This speeding alert looks out for you when you are not looking out for yourself. it lets you know that you are in danger of breaking the speed limit. So in some ways, a GPS device can save you money by helping you avoid speeding tickets and points on your license.
In addition, this product has a “Help Me!” menu that provides vital information on the closest locations where you can get assistance in times of need. It will tell you where to find the closest hospital or police station so you can get to these places quickly.

As I explained how to use the Garmin Rino 110 GPS FRS/GMRS two-way radio, the boys exhibited an intensity usually reserved for captured toads and hook-nosed beetles. Moments later, they were off, absorbed in the 10-year-old version of Indiana Jones, James Bond, cops and robbers, soldier or whatever game had currently captured their imagination. As we walked along we could see them up ahead, lurking behind trees and crouching behind rocks, chattering away on the radios to plan their next ambush. We had never had so much fun on a family outing. The boys were industriously occupied, and we were able to amble along and enjoy the peaceful scenery without a cacophony of questions and complaints.

We’ve found a lot of uses for our Rino 110 which combines the features of a two-way radio and GPS unit. It’s a fun way to keep track of the kids when we hike or camp. We can let the boys check out the nearby trails without worrying about where they are or how to contact them. With one unit at home base and the other out on the trail, it’s easy to round everyone up when it’s time to hit the road.

The Rino 110 has become part of our family’s standard gear. Outside of slimy things that slither, our sons have markedly different interests. Now it’s easy to find each other when we split up the family at museums, zoos, amusement parks and even Costco and Home Depot. The rugged, waterproof Rino 110 can stand up to the slippery fingers of excitable little boys, unlike our more delicate cell phones. And the search and find GPS feature is invaluable in unfamiliar surroundings. Every outing becomes a treasure hunt when we take along the Rino 110 GPS two-way radio.

The Rino 110 can save up to 500 of your favorite places in memory as waypoints so you can visit them again. It has a built-in city point data base, and its 1 MB internal memory allows you to load other points of interest from MapSource-compatible products.