you can spend the money on a gps if you really want, but new phones like Droids (all models) come with that ability built in.(for free I might add)  Whenever I go on trips, I just type in where I want to go and my droid does the whole gps thing turn by turn just like any gps would. I just set the unit beside my speedometer and it does its thing.  you might want to consider just upgrading your phone instead...  That may you still get bang for your buck in the ability to use it outside the car as well....

I have a garmin and a tom-tom. I like the garmin the best. I use it in the rat-rod because it has a built-in speedometer and a tripometer that I use instead of a fuel gauge. I bought it at Best-Buy. They run them on sell all the time.

We have a Magellan and a Garmin and they both do ok. I've used GPS apps on my phone in a pinch when I didn't have my GPS with me, but I don't think it's as good as having a dedicated GPS. If you're driving someplace where there's no cell signal, it won't load the maps.

Or you could just buy the latest AAA road atlas and look at the damn thing as you go. I had a friend that used a GPS to go somewhere that he had been to many times. The dang thing tried to take him on a scenic trip about 50 miles out of the way on at least 5 new roads.

I bought a Garman E trex vista to go camping with - love it!
Bought the maps for the streets, - love it!
Screen is small and it doesn't talk to me, but it will go off road and is water resistant to like 30' -Love it!
just my $0.02.
KC

Does it have Atlantis on it?!?!?!

I had an old handheld GPS thing to use for camping, but it wasn't very accurate. I ended up not using it much because it showed you which side of a stream you were on when you could clearly see it. I wish it were more like the GPS units of today...

We have hand-hand GPS units for geocaching, so we know what Nick meant.  They have their uses, but road way navigation is not great and the battery use from the GPS signal hitting the phone on a long road trip gets the phone almost too hot to touch.

I use the Google Maps option on my Droid X for navigation, but can't say I think it's the best and probably would not buy a smart phone specifically for this option, since you then have to pay an additional data package fee to enable the functionality of the phone.  The bonus is I never have to upgrade any maps and can also get live traffic and weather updates which can prove useful.  I also have unlimited Points of Interest (POI) and that can be an issue with GPS units.  Will it be helpful to find a specific restaurant or store when you're out of town?  If so, you need a large number of programmed POI's to be included in your map with a GPS unit.

The most comprehensive GPS units were $200 plus a year ago when I was looking.  These included a comprehensive map program that could be updated and a large POI database.  After I factored the cost of a separate unit with the fact that I was paying for a data package for my phone anyway, I decided to stick with my phone.  Besides the above issues, I've had pretty good luck with it and have never gotten lost.  That being said, it has taken me some really squirrelly routes to places.  It did get me there though.

Or you could just buy the latest AAA road atlas and look at the damn thing as you go.

I refer you back to my original post . . . I was familiar with the roads at one time (20 or 30 years ago) AND I had printed out a map AND had turn by turn directions . . . and I still missed 3 turns and went about 40 miles out of the way.     What is it Ron White says?  "You can't fix stupid." . . .  No, but if spend enough on a GPS, you blame the GPS unit instead of having to admit you can't follow a map!