The single largest and loudest complaint about Garmin automotive GPS devices was the fact people had to pay for map updates. Garmin tried to get around this by offering a Lifetime map update subscription, but that didn’t do very well because the cost of the subscription was more than the GPS device itself.
Now however, Garmin finally gets it right and offers certain GPS devices with free lifetime map updates out of the box with no extra subscription or cost required.
Garmin currently offers seven automotive models with the free lifetime map update option:
- nüvi 2360LMT
- nüvi 2350LMT
- nüvi 2300LM
- nüvi 1490LMT
- nüvi 1450LMT
- nüvi 1390LMT
- nüvi 1350LMT
All to the best of my knowledge speak street names, all are widescreen and the ones with "T" in the model name also have lifetime free traffic updates.
For those wondering which is the cheapest of the lot, that would be the 2300LM. It retails at $239, however bear in mind that’s full retail price, so you should be able to find it (much) cheaper elsewhere such as eBay.
If you want to examine each model more closely, go here and check the option "Includes lifetime maps" on the left sidebar.
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Good call, Garmin. I’ve become reliant on my Nuvi for directions, so when I’m road tripping through an unfamiliar area with inaccurate map data, it’s frustrating.
Garmin finally gets it right and offers certain GPS devices with free lifetime map updates out of the box with no extra subscription or cost required.