Laptop Mag has a short but revealing review of the budget Nextar M3-MX navigator. The funny thing about this is at a suggested retail price of $199.99, the M3-MX isn’t what I’d call a budget navigator these days.
Featuring a 3.5-inch display and a little on the thick side measuring 0.9-inches front to back, the M3-MX uses a slightly newer version of the mapping software found on the Motorola MotoNav TN20. That should be a warning to you as I’ve heard absolutely nothing about the MotoNav units after they were released in October. From my perspective that equates to a poor review! I do know that the maps are blocky and unattractive and the reviewer seems to confirm my feelings here. On the upside, it does offer both 2D and 3D maps, not-to-shabby 5 second rerouting, and accurately pronounced spoken street names.
It’s POI database number 1.6 million provides better coverage than the MotoNav TN20 and it supports JPEG viewing and MP3 playback via its 2 GB SD card. Laptop Mag doesn’t outright say that the Nextar M3-MX is a poor buy, but I think for $200 you should be able to get something a little more capable.
The Nextar M3-MX is available from Amazon, or for more features at a similar price point try the TomTom ONE 130s or the Navigon 2000s.
