More about being directionally impaired

Now I have a new thing to fear about GPS systems. What if they lie to you?
My niece recently went on a trip with her new GPS system and decided to rely solely on directions being given by said device. They ended up driving 50 miles out of their way and still had not arrived at the destination they thought they had programmed in. Okay, she said they think they know what they did wrong and she doesn't think it will happen again. But what if it does?
I can picture the conversation with my husband now. "Honey, I'm on my way to Reno, Nevada. I just passed a sign that said Anchorage 17 miles. Did I make a wrong turn?"
I mean why do thay make it so difficult to use? If you had a good sense of direction you wouldn't need a GPS, right???
Anyway, I have a friend who owns a Garmin. Hers is very polite and has a very pleasant voice. It doesn't berate you when you become too befuddled to proceed. It calmly says, "recalculating." That's a very polite way, right?? Plus It has these little encouraging dings when you do it right. You kind of feel like you're on a game show and doing well. "Ding, ding!" (I'm so proud of you! Good job!)
If you turn wrong, it merely gives a disappointed "dong." (Better luck next time!) It does not threaten you or sound threatening. Plus you can pick out a picture of a cool car you wish you were driving. (I think I would pick a picture of a fun sports car and pretend I'm driving that instead of the blue-hair Buick I actually drive around in. Then at least I could pretend to myself I am cool!)