Does anybody own a US (or UK) GPS like the Nuvi or TomTom and uses it in Suisse with a map upgrade? I was wondering if a US bought GPS would be upgradable with EU maps. The units are cheaper to buy over there...

I can't comment on the road GPS, but the airborne GPS sure works when you do that. I suspect the road version should as well.

We purchased a Garmin GPS in the US prior to coming to Basel and it looks perfectly. We have used it in the US and here. Just make sure that the model you purchase comes with Europe maps or you will have to pay extra to buy them. It has been a lifesaver here though even the traffic reports work.

I have TomTom Mobile I use on a SPV 600 handy and Navigator 5 I use on an ETEN GPS equiped mobile phone.

Both work with US and European maps. you have only to put the right maps on the SD card.

Of course you can buy and use EU maps on a US or UK TomTom.

We bought our Tom Tom Go 910 in the states a year and a half ago. It came loaded with North America and Europe maps.
Also, we had to sent it in for repair here in Switzerland and had no problems with warranty issues due to the fact that it was not purchased here.

The Europe maps seem to be very expensive to buy "a la carte." I was thinking of buying a Garmin Nuvi 360 last week at Costco in the US (US$250.00), but the European maps sold on the Garmin site are going for US$300.00. You can buy the Garmin 370 and it comes with both maps pre-installed for US$460.00. Better deal, but more than I am willing to pay for a GPS device right now.

So, to answer your question, you can buy Europe and/or Asia maps for all of the GPS brands that I am familiar with (Garmin/TomTom/Magellan), but they seem to be quite expensive.

fduvall