GPS is everywhere. It聮s in the air you breathe, the water you drink, the sun you enjoy. Someday we聮ll all have a microchip implanted at birth (or during painful dental procedures when we聮re partially sedated) and our movements will be tracked constantly by government agents interested in fighting terrorism聟or finding the hot new tapas joint everyone is going to.
Magellan Triton 2000 GPS
Triton 2000 GPSSo GPS is even in Europe. And any standard GPS unit will work just fine. What you get will depend on your preference聴whether you want a GPS unit for use in the car, or one that聮s more for walking around. For a car, you could purchase a TomTom One XL ($299; tomtom.com), a wide-screen GPS navigation system that is easily installed in any auto. So if you聮re renting a car you just plug it in and go. Add to it the TomTom Euromap for navigation in 18 European countries ($199). Garmin聮s nüvi 650 ($590; garmin.com) offers similar features. Garmin City Navigator for Europe is another $300. Or, you could simply buy a unit in Europe that comes pre-loaded with European software, which would be cheaper in the short run, although you聮d then need to buy U.S./Canadian software.
If you prefer more of a hand-held GPS unit, Garmin聮s eTrex Vista HCx ($250) has a color screen, runs off two AA batteries, and can take any MapSource SD card, including for European destinations. Magellan聮s very spiffy Triton 2000 ($500; magellangps.com) adds a two-megapixel camera and a color touch-screen surface. Like the Garmin, you can use an SD card in it and load European maps.
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