Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Initially, I was pleased with my 5045 LM. Little quirks here and there that differed from my Garmins and from the GPS on my Android phone. Biggest thing at first was its unreliability in displaying traffic notices. This is my 6th GPS, in three different vehicles, and I have been using GPS's on the road and on the trail for about 6 years. I am well versed in their operation. But this last weekend my happiness with this Magellan was changed. Major POIs (Point of interests) like three different state parks in South Carolina are not even listed in its POI database. It also sent me down the wrong direction on a long mountain road that had no exit. Today, the last straw. It froze. The voice still worked and the addresses in memory were still there, but it would not fixate a position and the cursor stayed in position even though I was traveling 65 mph. The MPH on the display also remained at zero and the direction heading showed West when I was traveling due East. I tried every button on the utilities menu to reset. I reset to defaults 5-6 times without success. I came home and hooked it up to my computer and Magellan content manager, (what a piece of crud software) but nothing would work. When I unplugged from the car it did not give option to switch to battery , it just stayed on. Finally, after changing and manually entering a new GPS location three different times, it finally seems to start working again. I can't imagine this happening while on a road trip like I was 3 days ago. What would one do on an unfamiliar highway at 2 am on a long road trip especially if you were relying on the GPS to safely get you and your family where you wanted to go? I can no longer trust it to perform correctly or consistently. I will always bring a backup. Now I read the fine print.. If I send it in for warranty, at Magellan's digression, they can replace it with a reconditioned unit. When I went to buy this, a new GPS was a bit more expensive than a reconditioned unit. I did not want to get a reconditioned unit and spent more money for a new one. Thus I buy a new one, it breaks and it appears I will end up with a reconditioned unit. If I wanted a reconditioned unit, I would have bought a reconditioned unit. They only offer 90 day warranty on reconditioned units and a year on new units. If the company cannot stand behind a reconditioned unit, why should you accept less if you purchased a new unit? I consider this an expensive life lesson. I rarely express my advice against a product because everyone has different expectations and a product that does not work for me may be great for you. But when it comes to a GPS we all want the same results: reliability, accuracy and trust as no one wants to get stuck in a far away town or highway, with family in the car, and not know which way to go or where to turn. I advise that you turn away from Magellan and buy from a company that offers good support and products. I cannot, in good conscience, recommend this unit to anyone who wants to put their family's well being and lives in jeopardy just to save a few bucks. Buy a different unit from a different company.