Magellan Maestro 4250

Magellan Maestro 4250:
The number of portable navigation systems coming out these days is pretty astonishing, but the thing is, we're finding that when it comes to the core navigation functions, they pretty much all offer the same thing--text- and voice-guided directions, extensive POI databases, automatic route recalculation, and so forth. So in order to differentiate itself from the competition, GPS manufacturers are adding more distinct and advanced features, and in the case of the Magellan Maestro 4250, this comes in the form of voice commands. With this function, you can operate the in-car GPS device with the sound of your voice. For the most part, it worked well during our test period, and we think it's a great safety feature. However, the functionality is a bit limited at this time, (e.g., you can't enter addresses via voice) and you have to create a pretty quiet environment in your car for optimal results. Voice commands aside, the Maestro 4250 is a solid mid-level portable navigation system that also offers text-to-speech functionality, integrated Bluetooth, and accurate directions.

The good:
The Magellan Maestro 4250 allows you to operate the portable navigation system with voice commands. It also features text-to-speech functionality, integrated Bluetooth, and traffic capabilities. The system provided accurate directions.

The bad:
The Maestro 4250's points-of-interest database is a bit outdated, and we encountered some general performance delays and glitches. Voice control does not include address entry. The system does not automatically synchronize your cell phone's address book to the device, and call volume is a bit low.

Performance:
As we stated earlier in the Design section, we experienced some performance glitches and delays with the Magellan Maestro 4250. There was some lag between triggering a task to the time it was actually executed. The first couple of times this happened, we thought the touch screen simply didn't recognize our tap so we pressed the icons again. This ultimately led to the system freezing, so we had to power on/off, and it got pretty frustrating.