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There is a new map update available for it. I recall reading here that generally the first update is free, or if it comes out within the first year of buying the unit new.
Is that still the case? because I can't find anything on the myGarmin website about it (of course!)
If so, how do I go about getting it free?
Thanks!
No way you get a free update 11 months after you buy.
I was eligible for City Select v7, but they ran out of DVDs for that version.
They took care of me - they sent v8 and gave me an unlock code for free! :shades:
Doesn't hurt to ask. Call 'em up and be nice!
I just paid $350 for a c340 back in May, now I could get a Nuvi 250W for less and that has a 4.3" screen.
Look at those - the 250W, the W meaning Widescreen. You get a big screen at a low price. The 650 has even more features.
I'm jealous! I guess my timing was bad, but I didn't want to wait 6 months either.
I had been using the "Maps" application, which sort of works like Mapquest, offering simple text directions.
Then I found out the Google Maps does the same thing, but offers free traffic info. It looks the same, except they color the roads green for fast moving, yellow for medium, and red for traffic jams.
The information could be more current. It's definitely not live, but it can help you foresee a jam ahead, especially a bad one.
It's not integrated in to my GPS, but maybe eventually they will offer that.
Nice thing is - it's free. The application and the traffic info.
Then again maybe that's why it's not as current as it should be.
Any how, check it out if you have a BlackBerry. My service is with T-Mobile and they don't offer GPS services, so it doesn't know where I am. I think Verizon and other carriers do, so maybe you could do even better.
When I drive home I zoom to the roads I take, and view the traffic. That's what I use most of the time, so I leave it on that view. Hit one button and I get a traffic report.
The Satellite View is a neat gee-whiz features (for those who use Google Earth it looks the small except a smaller screen). I can see my Miata parked in front of my house, not bad!
The TTGO920 is too new to the US market for any user feedback or serious reviews.
http://www.gpspassion.com/forumsen/default.asp?CAT_ID=2 and http://www.gpsmagazine.com/ are good resources.
It's odd, in this area the google earth maps are old - they show my building under construction, and it was built in 2003.
I wonder when nav in cars will show satellite views.
http://www.zercustoms.com/photos/Garmin-Volvo-Navigation-System.html
It isn't as good as my idea of being better hidden when not in use.
Unless that bracket is standard on all the cars, it will giveaway that there may be a GPS hidden in the vehicle.
At least it is a start and all the messy wiring is hidden from view. OK first effort.
Now Hyundai can be next since they have an ongoing deal with Garmin.
http://collegehillshonda.com/honda_crv_accessories/07_08_crv_electronics.htm
The 2 choices are:
Magellan Maestro 3100 (in hand) = $130
TomTom One 3rd edition (on order) = $145
I have the tomtom unit as part of my HP pocket PC and I love it. So I'm kind of inclined to go that way. But, maybe the magellan is better or at least equal and I just don't know it.
Cnet rates the tomtom a 6.3 and the magellan a 6.0, while the users rate the magellan a 7 and the tomtom a 6.2, so kind of a split decision there.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
They need to make a mount that is recessed, flush mounted or hidden from view when not in use.
http://www.gpsmagazine.com/2007/11/dont_buy_the_wrong_gps_on_blac.php
Neither unit hasTTS (Text To Speech). That is, they don't speak street names, they just say turn right, turn left. I wouldn't recommend ANY navigation system that has that major deficit.
Don't worry, pricing will get better on everything within the next few weeks, now that the Black Friday hype is passed.
There's no large suction cup or other hardware mounts to advertise that you have a navigation system in your car.
Here's a link. See pages 23 and 24 of the .pdf document. (Printed page numbers 210 and 211)
http://www.ellsworth.com/display/displayFile.aspx?docid=213&filename=/Public/Ven- dor%20PDFs/Products/Tapes/3M_Tapes.pdf
I recently read that with the Garmin Nuvi 650 (I purchased one for my wife several months ago) (thanks to your advice) (that the black round windshield stick-on for the suction cup part to attach to) is NOT reuseable when you get your next vehicle and a new one has to be purchased.
Somewhere recently on the internet, I saw a dashboard mount for the Nuvi 650 that was like a three bottomed beanbag type that you could mount the 650 onto and it would stay secure and not slide around (and NO sticky type 3m had to be applied to the dash, as it looked like it had a rubber type botton attached to the three pronged beany type bags...however; I cannot find it again.
I went on eBay and there were plenty of the dash mount sticky type (for the dashboard), but, alas, that was evidently not where i saw same...can you direct me to the proper Net site ( if you know what I am referring to).
Thanks,
NORTSR
Well, I found it at Tiger!! They have it with the attachable arm for about $38.00 and it is transferrable to any car with no sticky stuff.
Have you also looked at the last few items at the Accessories tab at this link?
https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=134&pID=8671
Thanks for the link...Checked out same and after all the searching, etc., I decided to go with the cupholder type as sold on ebay for $19.95. I read in several posts that the 'bean bag type holder" has a tendency to move around with hard type turns and sudden types of hard brakeing. My cupholder is at a very good place for the Nuvi 650 to be accessable , easy to see and of course, with the "Claire the female" talking to me for directions, it fits the bill perfectly.
Again, thanks for your fast, accurate responses,
NORTSR
I think I've decided to go with the TomTom. From what I've read, it offers more features, one of which is an optional traffic warning system for an additional fee. So at least my father would have that choice.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
That would have been much smarter than having that mount sitting on the dashboard all the time looking ugly and advertising the fact that there might be a portable GPS hidden somewhere in the car.
I imagine at that price they're selling at a loss, or at least zero profit margin.
At this point, it may soon be cheaper to just buy a new GPS rather than paying for new maps ($75 now).
The TomTom ONE has been discontinued and replaced by the TomTom ONE 3rd Edition.
http://www.gpsmagazine.com/2006/09/review_tomtom_one.php
I could have gotten a cheaper deal if I chose to get up at 4 am and get out to a store, but I'm happy having paid $20-$25 more and ordered from the comfort of my office at 9 am.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
The very next day there were major traffic accidents on my normal route and it displayed all the info I needed. Routing seems reasonable. I haven't played with it enough to give a final judgment on that. The built-in map data seemed fairly up-to-date. It included some road changes that occurred here within the last 1.5 years. It has routing options of Fastest, Optimum, Shortest and Scenic. Optimum is apparently a cross between Fastest & Shortest but there is no decent explanation.
The TTS is good but has some quirks as if it was made in France or something. For "Sandlewood", it says "Sand Le Wood" and for "Middlebelt", it says "Midd Le Belt".
The main thing I don't like about it is that the power jack is a usb plug on the bottom so you can' t use the suction cup mount and set it so that the bottom sits on the dash unless you use it on battery only. Also the built-in speaker is fairly weak. I think it's lacking Canada maps and it's not clear if it's possible to upgrade maps and, if so, how much it costs. I don't go to Canada frequently so it wasn't an issue for me.
I wonder if it was further de-contented compared to the original One?
$120 is unreal, though. Sure it's a basic one, but if the map updates alone are worth $75, you're getting a color screen, speaker, charger, mount, and GPS antennae for $45.
I like the Australian voice that Garmin has because she'll say "BAT-tree Lane" instead of "Batter-ee Lane".
Plus I just like the accent.
Amazon has it for $169 and free shipping
It doesn't do the text to speech (where it reads out the street names "Turn right on Main Street." It only says something like "Turn right in 300 feet. Make the next right turn." etc., but it displays the street name on the screen.
No bluetooth, no mp3 playback, no audio output/headphone jack (it will only play the audio out of the built-in internal speaker).
For $169 you really can't expect more.
You can see from the video that it's easy enough for almost anyone to use.
http://www.expotv.com/videos/reviews/5/65/Garminnuvi2002CPortableGPSCarNav/19496- - - - - - - - - - - - 7
There are some imaginative ways you can mount it in your car if you don't want to use the windshield mount.
or
It fits in your pocket so you can carry it around with you and runs on batteries for up to 5 hours so you don't need to plug it in the car most of the time. You can buy an A/C adapter if you would rather recharge it at home.
At this price it's pretty much disposable. Don't even bother buying map updates, just get the new version in a couple years, give this one away or sell it for $50 if you can.
So an AC adaptor is sold seperately?
I ask because the Garmin c series came with both, though I tend to use the car charger anyway.
How do you charge it normally?
Best Buy had a Tom Tom One for $120 on black Friday, they now offer a One for $140. The maps were on sale for $70 for the update.
I think I'll skip one update, then maybe replace the wife's older c320 next year, if prices are better. I have give the c320 to a friend or something.
The 2x0 series are charged via a user-provided USB cable from a computer or with the 12 volt Vehicle Power cable that comes in the box.
Even though the 2x0 series units are supposed to perform pretty well, it's the same old story... you get what you pay for.
I'd be fine with just the car adaptor.
Maybe they can cut the USB cord and drop the price another $5!
http://www.expotv.com/videos/reviews/5/65/Garminnuvi2002CPortableGPSCarNav/19496- - - - - - 7
$70 every other year or so for map an POI update isn't a big deal, but I wouldn't bother buying the update because in 2 years, you should be able to get new hardware for under $100. They might even include TTS and bluetooth speakerphone functionality at that price point in 2010.
Let's see, they had v6 when I got my c320. v7 came right after that, then v8, now they're using 2008.
So since August 2005, there have been 3 updates.
It's almost one per year. Maybe 16 months.
http://www8.garmin.com/manuals/Nuvi350_OwnersManual.pdf
To me, that's much more useful than the 16 page Set up and go guide.
http://www8.garmin.com/manuals/1512_SetupandGo!.pdf
Jim
Jim
The nuvi is a lot smaller (with the same screen size) and more portable.
I JUST BOUGHT AN 08 PRIUS WITH THE $6500-PACKAGE #6 WHICH INCLUDED THEIR GPS-IT HAS 100 VOICE COMMANDS-AS OPPOSED TO HONDAS ALPINE SYSTEM THAT HAS 600 VOICE COMMANDS.
MY QUESTION TO ALL OF YOU IS:
IS THERE ANYTHING ON LINE OR WHEREVER THAT CAN BE DOWNLOADED OR INSTALLED IN THIS GPS SYSTEM THAT WOULD GIVE ME MORE COMMANDS AND ADD MORE LANGUAGES TO THE VOICE AND CHANGE THE VOICE.? WHO MAKES THE PRIUS GPS?
I WAS TOLD BY THE TOYOTA FLEET MANGER THAT HE HAD A CUSTOMER
WHOSE SON DOWNLOADED EXTRA COMMANDS THAT WERE NOT INCLUDED IN THIS SYSTEM. IS THIS TRUE?-THANKS 4 HELP-JAMES
I doubt what you want is possible.
BEDFORD HILLS - A 32-year-old Californian whose rental car got smashed by a Metro-North train last night was issued a minor summons for causing the fiery crash that stranded railroad commuters for hours.
Bo Bai, a computer technician from Sunnyvale who said he was merely trusting his car's global positioning system when he steered onto the tracks, was cited for obstructing a railroad crossing, officials said this afternoon.
The railroad's Harlem Division trains were back on schedule this morning after crews spent hours repairing more than 200 feet of the electrified "third" rail damaged by the crash, said Dan Brucker, Metro-North spokesman.
Bai, who has been working in Fishkill, was driving west on Green Lane around 7 p.m., and told Metropolitan Transportation Authority police the GPS system instructed him to turn right as he was crossing the tracks. He was headed for the Saw Mill River Parkway, just past the tracks.
He got stuck, tried unsuccessfully to reverse and finally abandoned the 2006 Ford Focus minutes before it was slammed by a northbound Metro-North Harlem Line train, MTA police said.
"As the car is driving over the tracks, the GPS system tells him to turn right, and he turns right onto the railroad tracks," said Brucker. "That's how it happened."
Brucker added, "He tried to stop the train by waving his arms, which apparently was not totally effective in slowing the train."
No one was injured, but about 500 passengers were stranded for more than two hours. Three trains out of Grand Central Terminal were canceled and 10 others delayed by up to 90 minutes. The damage was repaired by 2:30 a.m..
Bai, who works for a Silicon Valley computer tech company, had rented the car from U-Save Car & Truck Rental in New Windsor, N.Y. He was not familiar with the area, and was therefore relying on the GPS device's navigation instructions, officials said.
"One computer brain listening to another," Brucker said, chuckling, this morning.
Bai will be held liable for the damage to the train and track, as well as other costs and loss of revenue, Brucker said.
Wrong turn
A GPS is an excellent tool when used properly, and with current maps.