In 2005 I started using GPS and my first GPS device was a Garmin StreetPilot i3 (I still have it and it still works!) After that I upgraded to the StreetPilot c340, then the StreetPilot c580 and then my current nüvi 270.

On a quick check of the Garmin automotive section of their site (I go by there every so often to see the newest offerings) there is not but a single StreetPilot series model left, that being the big-screen 7200 model. Other than that, all the rest of the models are nüvis.

The StreetPilot series is now one model away from the chopping block.

A few things to note about older "c" series StreetPilots (the most popular of the line):

Yes it can be upgraded to newer map sets, but there will inevitably come a point where you won’t be able to. The reason is because the map database will inevitably exceed the storage space inside a "c" series. (And it’s unknown whether or not you can use an SD card in the slot for future map database releases.)

The bright side is that current-gen nüvi 2xx and 2×5 models are pretty cheap these days. The nüvi 200 and 250 can be had for under 150 bucks easily. And with the nüMaps guarantee you can upgrade the map database free of charge.

Let’s say you’re a current "c" series owner and don’t feel like flipping out the cash for a nüvi or map upgrade. Is it still usable? Yes. And it will continue to be usable until a hardware failure (usually the touchscreen goes first) occurs. True, the maps will be a bit outdated but it will still get you where you need to go as it always has.

But let’s say you do think it’s time to switch over to a nuvi. Are there any utilities to copy your favorites from the "c"? YES. You can get the freely available Nüvi Editor. It connects up to StreetPilots via USB with no problems, downloads all your favorites, and then you can plug in a nüvi with USB and upload them all to the new unit, so you don’t lose a thing.

Either way you can still use GPS as you always have, but if you decided to upgrade to a nüvi, at least you now know you won’t have to re-save all your favorites all over again.

One thing you might not consider when making your backups are your Internet bookmarks. Odds are you probably have quite a bit of time invested in locating and organizing these backups, so having a backup is a good idea.

To accomplish this task in the most popular browsers, here is a handy reference. The process is pretty easy and is something which you should run occasionally. Since you probably do not add new bookmarks daily (maybe you do though), just a simple backup of your bookmarks and then copying the resulting file to a flash drive or emailing it to yourself is prudent.

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