| | |  | GPS Navigation | Home » » Magellan Maestro 3100 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator | | | | | | | Description: | | Magellan Maestro 3100 delivers the best navigation experience at the most affordable price | | | Features: | |
• Precision turn-by-turn voice guidance lets you keep your eyes on the road
• 3.5-inch WQVGA full-color, anti-glare touch screen
• Equipped with SiRFstarIII, the fastest GPS position accuracy in the industry
• Built-in maps and destinations for the continental U.S.
• 750,000 Searchable points of interest
| | | Product Details: | | | Product Length:
| 4.0 inches | | Product Width:
| 1.0 inches | | Product Height:
| 3.0 inches | | Product Weight:
| 0.41 pounds | | Package Length:
| 9.69 inches | | Package Width:
| 5.59 inches | | Package Height:
| 3.86 inches | | Package Weight:
| 1.85 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 334 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
 ( 334 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
499 of 506 found the following review helpful:
 Great GPS for the price!May 18, 2007
By Jim Tykal
"scm consultant"
I'm a long time TomTom user, and I bought this GPS for my wife because it is small, simple, and inexpensive. We've been very pleased! The SIRF star III GPS chipset is incredible! It was able to lock onto 8 satellites from INDOORS! My TomTom GPS receiver is lucky to find 4 signals in the backyard with a clear sky. The NAVTEQ maps used by Magellan are much more accurate in the U.S. than the outdated TeleAtlas maps in my TomTom. I used both devices to search for 5 random addresses from my address book -- all of which are at least 5 years old. The Magellan found them all flawlessly -- even those with re-mapped zip codes in mid-2006! The TomTom found 1 of the 5, got me close to a second, and didn't have a clue about the street names in the other three. (Incidentally, TomTom won't provide me with a map update because they dropped support for my device, which is only 3 years old!)
The Magellan Maestro 3100 doesn't have all of the bells and whistles that the more expensive devices have, but it does GPS navigation as well as anything I've tried -- and I've tried most of them out there. I didn't buy a GPS to be an MP3 player and a picture viewer -- I already have an iPod for that. Any my car stereo has Bluetooth, so I didn't need hands-free phone capability. Why pay for features if you don't want/need them?
The only disappointment in the 3100 is the Points of Interest database. It only has 750,000 entries, whereas other competing (albeit more expensive) devices have several million. Still, it was able to find gas stations, ATMs, restaurants, hotels, grocery stores -- all the important stuff -- with no trouble. So I can't find campgrounds and beaches -- big deal! I usually don't get a spontaneous urge to go camping while I'm driving around anyway...
A previous reviewer mentioned the SD slot. Currently, it is used only to backup and restore your Address Book, Favorites, etc. Maybe a future firmware release will provide additional functionality...
Other nice features include trip planning with multiple stops; an address book where you can enter custom names,addresses, AND phone numbers; a Favorites list; a dedicated "home" button; detour planning; etc, etc.
There is also a great "where am I?" feature that with a single button push will display your precise location -- street, nearest intersections, lat/long coordinates, etc. This could be very useful if you need to summon emergency help.
All in all, this newly released (April 2007) GPS device should definitely be on your shopping list if you're looking for basic, low cost navigation.
227 of 228 found the following review helpful:
Great value for the priceMay 29, 2007
By KKN
I have used it only for a week , Once for a long trip spanning 3 states, otherwise local routes.
Pros
---- Nice interface, very easy to use,works right out of the box, minimal setup. very friendly & intuitive user interface.
---- Price, as low as $200 if you look around, a great bargain
---- Decent maps/updated NAVTEQ mapping data (I think as of April 2007)
---- fast re-routing/detour calculations
---- Fast satellite acquisition even indoors
---- Nice features like Current location finder
---- Decent size for portability
---- So far no crashes or freezes
Cons
---- No AC adapter included in the box, need to charge in car
---- No provision for Map updates in future
---- No text to speech/Bluetooth
(No other GPS at this price range has these features anyway)
---- Uses Windows CE, no wonder it is sluggish (but once route is prepared it is quick to reroute or detour calculations)
---- Terrible battery life
Overall, For price around $200, it is a great bargain. I initially bought Mio C220 but returned it next day. I think in budget GPS category, there are very few if any who can give you so many features & performance as 3100 gives.
172 of 175 found the following review helpful:
Everything you need in an auto GPSMay 25, 2007
By Charles Marsh
I borrowed the Magellan Maestro 3100 and found it to be a great auto GPS. It has all the features you need in an auto navigation system. Because it has none of the extraneous features unnecessary in an auto GPS, the price is a deal. Magellan got it right with the Maestro.
Favorite Features:
Entering locations turned out to be easy with the predictive input system.
Setup was super easy. I had it up and going in less than a minute in my car. As I was borrowing it, I didn't have a manual or anything, but all the screens were so intuitive, that was never a problem.
The screen was so easy to read. I was expecting problems in sunlight, etc. Not a chance.
Routes were calculated quickly. I intentionally missed a few turns to see how it would handle re-routing. It did so quickly.
Touchscreen was perfectly responsive.
I'd recommend this to anyone who wants an entry-level auto GPS. It has all the features you'll want while driving.
73 of 73 found the following review helpful:
Thin, Light, and CheapMay 16, 2007
By Louie Lou
I've been testing this little guy out for week and I can't find much to complain about. It is my first GPS unit and I like it because it has a simple, easy-to-use interface. The instructions are loud and clear. There is an empty SD Memory slot that must be for something. It has 48 preloaded US state maps on it and a 750,000 points-of-interest database that is pretty good (8 out of 10 times it will find fairly small resturants that I quiz it for and it hasn't missed any gas stations yet). One thing it doesn't have is the Text-Speech function which extends the simple turn by turn voice to also read out loud individual street names or businesses. Then again, is it worth spending more money on a more sophisticated unit capable of constantly reading stuff out loud to you? Dunno--I'm happy with machines not doing so much talking myself.
62 of 62 found the following review helpful:
Works Great in Every Way!Jul 06, 2007
By temp_cowboy
"cookmj"
I bought this unit on July 6th from a local electronics store, and paid $199 on sale. Normal price was $299. I took it out of the box, mounted it to the windshield, and it quickly found about 7 or 8 satellites with a strong signal. I'm currently on a business trip in an unfamiliar city, and I'd used map printouts to get me to the store. Well, this unit quickly and efficiently got me back to my hotel with ease. Calculations were fast, and the graphics are clean and crisp. The voice prompts are clear and loud...and this is where my original "Except" post title comes in. On the System Settings screen, none of the changes get saved. For example, it's stuck on the Int'l Date Line - West time zone. When I change the Time Zone to Eastern U.S., it doesn't "remember" it. The save button changes color, and it clicks at me, but (unlike the other settings screens) it doesn't announce nicely "Saved!" It also is stuck on the highest volume.
I contacted Tech Support, first via the web (no response) and then via telephone. The call does get routed overseas (India is my guess, from the conversation). The gentlemen walked me through several rounds of hitting the Reset button on the side of the unit. Then he told me that this model doesn't say "Saved!" verbally on the Systems Setting screen, but changes indeed get saved. No dice, I said. Anyway, after about a 1/2 hour conversation, Magellan is sending me a brand-new unit in the mail, with a shipping label for me to send in my faulty unit.
As I indicated, everything "except" the settings screen works great! I would actually keep the unit as-is, because having the time be wrong is no big deal. I have a car radio for that, and a watch. Having the volume at its loudest isn't too bad, although at night it might be a problem. So, here's hoping "7 business days" pass by quickly, and that my replacement unit does not have this issue. I'll post an update when the new unit arrives.
***UPDATE***
Magellan sent the new unit via FedEx and it arrived in 5 days. It included a pre-paid UPS label to return the old unit. Although I was given 30 days to do so, I sent it out immediately. The replacement unit works great, and I've had absolutely zero issues with it. It has already paid for itself. I am someone who gets very frustrated in unfamiliar cities when I don't know where I'm going or what turn to take. The Magellan Maestro 3100 is inexpensive ($199), small, well-designed, and portable--in short, everything I wanted in a navigation unit.
See all 334 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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