Sat Nav tips for your USA Fly Drive trip

You have just got your car rental sorted out on your Florida fly drive, Now to get the sat nav you purchased for the trip out of your luggage, And Oh my God, panic, how does it work?
Don't let this be you, Follow these tips and you will have a much smoother time.

First, Buy a Sat nav well before your trip.

This blog will help you with your fly drive sat nav choice
 USA Flydrive Sat Nav, What are my options?

Before you leave

Practice, Even if you already have a sat nav, same brand, even the same model there could be differences, use it a few times before your trip, maybe to travel to work (This is presuming you have local maps), This will also identify any problems with time to get them sorted.

Read the instructions Don't worry if you haven't got any just put your brand model and the word instructions into google and you will find them.

Learn to switch maps, On Tomtoms you need to switch maps when you move zones. This is normally done by going to preferences, maps them switch maps, This guide on the Tomtom site will give instructions by model if you can't find it.

how to switch maps on my Tomtom

On Garmins and other models you usually don't need to worry about this.

Set an itinerary, You could set a Clarke Griswold style 90 way-point itinerary covering your whole trip. But if you decide not to do this you should at least set your first destination, usually your motel, you can set it as a favourite or Home if you are staying in the same motel. It's a good idea to set a few others like Disney and other attractions. If there is a particular chain of Restaurants you want to go to you can usually download a POI overlay (Points of interest) to install on your device.
Update your device, Danger, If your unit is working fine I strongly recommend that you don't update your device just before you leave, As it is not unheard of for sat navs to crash during updates. Update well before your trip or after.
Don't forget to pack it, And it's accessories. Where you can easily grab it once you arrive.

When you arrive

Don't panic, You have just moved thousands of miles, it may take a little longer than usual to get the signal, but will be quicker as it learns the new satellite positions. 

Switch maps If you have a Tomtom and haven't already done so switch maps in the preferences.
Drive on the correct side
Easy to forget but you can set your Tomtom to remind you every time you set off.

Security Don't leave your sat nav or other valuables in the car on display, and don't leave the mount in the car when you return it.

Something else to think about

In some states it's illegal or restricted to have your GPS stuck to your screen, more information about this can be found in this link http://www.poi-factory.com/node/34521

who the hell am I
My name is Andrew Greaves and I am the owner of AllanteGPS, I have been in the Sat Nav business for over 10 years, specialising in units covering Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand, Africa and the Middle East. I also sell traffic chargers and other accessories. Click on this link to visit my GPS store