Magellan Maestro 4040 Review

Magellan’s Maestro 4040 may be the best on in the Maestro series yet. It measures only 5.1 inches by 3.4 inches by 1 inch, and weighs only 8.5 ounces, which makes it convenient to move and program from inside your home before a trip. The battery, a Li-Ion rechargeable, boasts over 2 hours of life, but realistically give you at least 3. So taking indoors for programming works great. Additionally, you can purchase a 12 V AC adapter or 12 V DC vehicle charger. It is a little disappointing that at least one of these adapters doesn’t come with the device.

The display screen is 4.3 inches and nonreflective QVGA display that is very viewable in bright sunlight. Satellite locking is quick and reliable. With 20 channels, and a WAAS/EGNOS enabled SiRFstarIII receiver, you won’t have many problems getting a signal. In fact, testing showed that the 4040 will even pick up a signal indoors, or under heavy clouding by trees, buildings, etc.

Magellan made a clean design in the Maestro 4040, also. There are no buttons, save for the power button, on the unit. There is an SD card slot and USB connector for upgrades, but still, a very clean, neat design. And small enough for personal use. Taking it with you from vehicle to vehicle is easy given the size and light weight of the device. The power is through the side of the device, rather than the bracket, so you will have to unplug and replug it when moving it from the dashboard mount.

It is Bluetooth enabled, and it works with many different Bluetooth phones. It also has many Points of Interest, and allows you to program customs points. There’s a spell checker, also.

The maps, preloaded for all 50 US states, as well as Canada, and Puerto Rico, are very accurate. AAA points (if subscribed to AAA) are all accurate and easy to find. It automatically prompts a detour icon if you stop moving for just a small amount of time. So if you take a wrong turn, or end up in a traffic jam, it will re-route you to save time from your original route. It also supports multiple destination routing, up to 20 different destinations. That’s something that you don’t get in some of the competitors GPS devices.

Overall, for the features that it has, and the accurate directions, clear voice prompts, and many different AAA POI’s, the Magellan Maestro 4040 is a good device. It’s easy to learn, and easy to use. Good technology, and really lives up to Magellan’s reputation.

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Elegance, simplicity and advanced features designed to save you time and effort on the road. Magellan® Maestro™ 4040 makes driving more pleasurable and less stressful.

Enter virtually any address on the freshly-designed graphical touch screen, or select from 4.5 million preprogrammed points of interest to get turn-by-turn voice guidance to anywhere in the United States , Canada, and Puerto Rico. SayWhere™ text-to-speech tells you the street name for each maneuver, so you can focus on driving. Smart buttons and Magellan’s unique QuickSpell™ function enables error free spelling to minimize steps so you get a customized route to your destination with just a few touches of the screen.

Touch the tow truck icon to quickly connect to AAA member Roadside Assistance¹ using your compatible Bluetooth® phone. The screen tells you where you are to quickly direct reliable AAA help to your location.

Bluetooth wireless technology enables hands-free phone calls with your Bluetooth-enabled phone. Store or sync numbers and contact information for clear communication through the integrated microphone and speakers. Easily add LIVE traffic incident reports² and Voice Command³ control.

Years of experience providing the best in GPS navigation and feedback from among the over 400,000 users of the Magellan RoadMate and Hertz NeverLost systems enables Maestro to deliver the most satisfying navigation experience. From Magellan; the first name in navigation™.

¹Requires AAA Membership. Click here to join today.

²Available Spring 2007, Additional fee required

³Available Summer 2007

Features

• Sophisticated and simple -Streamlined, large 4.3 inch touch-screen and icons minimize steps to locate a destination for stress-free navigation
• Sleek Design – Integrated GPS antenna can’t break off and provides excellent satellite reception in a slim and compact design
• Turn-by-turn voice and visual guidance – Enter virtually any address or point of interest to BE THERE^™ quickly and safely
• Precision navigation – SiRFstar III chipset and integrated multidirectional antennae offer superior GPS accuracy using the Wide Area Augmentation System
• Graphical interactive maps – Maps and destinations for the entire continental U.S. are built-in so you can travel the country and always know where you are and where you’re going
• AAA TourBook® guide travel information – Integrated travel information from AAA TourBook makes it easy to locate AAA approved and rated lodgings and restaurants, recommended attractions, and places to save money.
• AAA member Roadside Assistance details – Touch the tow truck icon to quickly connect to AAA Roadside Assistance¹ using your compatible Bluetooth® phone. The screen tells you where you are to quickly direct reliable AAA help to your location.
• SayWhere^™ text-to-speech – Hear when to make each turn, including the street name
• Hands-free phone calls – Bluetooth^® wireless technology and built-in microphone let you make hands-free phone calls using your compatible Bluetooth-enabled phone
• Traffic-enabled – Add the Magellan TrafficKit™ to your Maestro 4040 to get live traffic incident reports Activation and subscription fees apply. Available Spring 2007
• Voice Command-enabled – Add Voice Command control for hand’s-free operation with a simple upgrade from www.MagellanGPS.com (Activation fee applies). Available Summer 2007
• Birds eye 3D view – Clearly see your surroundings in 2D or 3D
• Rechargeable battery – Navigate when you don’t have access to power
• Multi-destination Routing – Select up to 20 destinations and choose the order that best fits your needs
• SmartDetour – Automatically prompts you to route around sudden slow freeway traffic (no fee or subscription required)
• Auto Re-route – Never miss a turn and quickly get back on track whenever you take a detour
• Auto night view – Adjusts color and contrast for easy night viewing
• QuickSpell^™ – Easily enter addresses with unique auto-complete feature that even corrects spelling
• Complete mobility – Transfer to any vehicle with no installation
• 5 million points of interest (POI) – Optimized database of gas stations, restaurants, ATMs, and more with smart location search by name, category and region. We even added a Coffee category so you can quickly find caffeine whenever you need it.
• Interactive POI icons – Touch an onscreen icon for a nearby destination; see name and address and get an instant route
• Customizable route method – Fastest time, shortest distance, least use or most use of freeways, avoid toll roads
• Route exclusion – Select streets and freeways to avoid so you can BE THERE™ your way
• 4 easy views – Map View, 3D map, TrueView^™ 3D split screen and Maneuver List
• Address Book – Create and store personal points of interest for easy reoccurring trips
• Instant locate – One touch shows your location; quickly advise roadside assistance or emergency services

Specifications

Product Number: 980920-01A

PHYSICAL

PERFORMANCE

POWER