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Magellan Is Losing It!

docdigit

By docdigit,
in GPS technology and devices

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docdigit

docdigit

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I got home today and there was a box waiting for me. I noticed that the address was the same as the one that I recently had to send my eXplorist 600 to (and received a new one back from) for repair. I opened the box and inside was a new soft case (in the original packaging), a wall charge unit, a magellan battery and two (2) 256 MB SD cards. Being somewhat confused and hopelessly honest, I called the number on the box and spoke with the young lady (they're all younger than me!) asking what this was all about. She informed me that when they sent my unit back they forgott to include my accessories. I explained that was interesting, but I never sent them my accessories, just the unit. She hesitated for a moment and explained that they have had a computer glitch and basically lost some of their information and didn't really know what they had sent to out already. I offered to return the items and she told me "HAPPY BIRTHDAY", please keep them. If I can't use them, give them to my wife or girlfriend (...hey don't tell my wife...on second thought...tell me who she is...) or throw them away! I thanked her and there we are. I now have THREE cases (I bought one with a clear plastic window), two wall charge units (one that is a split unit so I can hook to the computer), three SD cards (a 512 and two 256 MB) and THREE Magellan batteries! To top it off, they sent me an extra wrist strap with the little screw to put directly into the back of the unit if I want...

 

The service takes forever...but when they screwed up, at least I wound up on the PLUS side... ;)

 

Doc

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docdigit

docdigit

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Freebies from Magellan?

 

Well, there's free and there's free. If I have another problem how much is my aggravation of having to deal with one of the worst customer service systems in the world worth? On the other hand, if it keeps running smoothly for the next year or so, I may just SUPPLEMENT it with a Garmin... :P

 

Doc

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docdigit

docdigit

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Well, it wasn't supposed to be a "freebie", according the young lady...it was a mistake. Their computer 'glitched' she said. I would think that if they really meant it to be a "free gift" she wouldn't have had a problem telling me (after all, it has to be better than admitting that your company is even more screwed up than just in their service department.)

 

My unit went in because, first, it came WITHOUT a battery and then when I went and out bought one separately (because I didn't want to have to wait for THALES...HA!) it wouldn't charge (which they probably KNEW, which is why it CAME WITHOUT a battery in the FIRST PLACE!)

 

This one seems to be working okay (the speedometer thing seems to be about 5 mph off when I'm driving, but I think I'd rather trust the one in dash anyway!)

 

Doc

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jacques0

+jacques0

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"Computer Glitch" is usually someone's way of saying that they made a mistake in data entry.

 

Yes, occasionally computers STB (I am not going to explain that) but, more often than not, someone just makes makes a mistake.

 

Customer service often involves giving the customer more than they expected, in order to resolve a potentially negative situation. You were on the receiving end here, and it's because Magellan wanted to keep you happy.

 

Consider yourself a happy recipient of a "Birthday Present".

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Jamie Z

+Jamie Z

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This one seems to be working okay (the speedometer thing seems to be about 5 mph off when I'm driving, but I think I'd rather trust the one in dash anyway!)
It's your car speedometer that's off, not the 600.

 

The specs of your 600 probably say something like, +/-0.1mph accuracy, no adjustment necessary. Whereas the the speedometer in your car can fluctuate because of many things. I'm guessing you have the wrong size tires installed.

 

Jamie

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docdigit

docdigit

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"Computer Glitch" is usually someone's way of saying that they made a mistake in data entry.

Agree 100%

 

Yes, occasionally computers STB
Yes, but's it's pretty rare.

 

Customer service often involves giving the customer more than they expected, in order to resolve a potentially negative situation. You were on the receiving end here, and it's because Magellan wanted to keep you happy.
A month after I got a new unit back...with an extra battery already? Possible, not probable...I'd go with the data entry error...

 

I'm guessing you have the wrong size tires installed.

It's possible...but you'd think that OEM would be right. You'd also have to wonder why my wife's speedometer is off by the same amount...

 

Fish.
ABSOLUTELY! Better yet Fly Fish!

 

Doc

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robotneil

robotneil

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My unit went in because, first, it came WITHOUT a battery and then when I went and out bought one separately (because I didn't want to have to wait for THALES...HA!) it wouldn't charge (which they probably KNEW, which is why it CAME WITHOUT a battery in the FIRST PLACE!)

 

This one seems to be working okay (the speedometer thing seems to be about 5 mph off when I'm driving, but I think I'd rather trust the one in dash anyway!)

 

Doc

 

I like my explorist 300, I have had no problems with it yet, I hope I will not have any in the future.

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docdigit

docdigit

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Actually, from what I hear, when they are good, they are very, very good. But when they are bad...sheesh..you don't want to have to deal with the service issues. I actually LIKE the Magellan units. I like the size, the layout and the file structure...I just don't like their customer service. I know that there are people who will claim that Garmin is just as bad, but I don't see or hear that as a continuous theme like I do with THALES. My next one will be a Garmin and if I have the same kind of problems, the one after that will be someone else. When I find the company that is loyal to its customers, they will find that I am a loyal customer to them. I shop at some of the same stores that I have for over ten years because they are as loyal to me as I am to them (and I don't care if I can get for a few bucks cheaper elsewhere, it isn't cheaper if it costs me aggravation and time.) A 'geocoin store that shall remain nameless' has forever lost me as a customer recently because of the way they treat their customers (me specifically.) It may be insignificant to them but the day may also come when the 'fad begins to fade' and EVERY customer becomes significant.

 

End of rant...

 

Doc

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robotneil

robotneil

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Actually, from what I hear, when they are good, they are very, very good. But when they are bad...sheesh..you don't want to have to deal with the service issues. I actually LIKE the Magellan units. I like the size, the layout and the file structure...I just don't like their customer service. I know that there are people who will claim that Garmin is just as bad, but I don't see or hear that as a continuous theme like I do with THALES. My next one will be a Garmin and if I have the same kind of problems, the one after that will be someone else. When I find the company that is loyal to its customers, they will find that I am a loyal customer to them. I shop at some of the same stores that I have for over ten years because they are as loyal to me as I am to them (and I don't care if I can get for a few bucks cheaper elsewhere, it isn't cheaper if it costs me aggravation and time.) A 'geocoin store that shall remain nameless' has forever lost me as a customer recently because of the way they treat their customers (me specifically.) It may be insignificant to them but the day may also come when the 'fad begins to fade' and EVERY customer becomes significant.

 

End of rant...

 

Doc

 

You should name the geocoin store. I also have a Garmin Rhino 110 and there was one thing that was driving me crazy about it. I did not think that I could enter notes or comments in it. I knew I could do that with the Magellan. Well today I found out that I could enter notes in the Garmin and now I think it will be my GPSr or choice. I will use the Magellan as a back-up.

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Mopar

+Mopar

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I'm guessing you have the wrong size tires installed.

It's possible...but you'd think that OEM would be right. You'd also have to wonder why my wife's speedometer is off by the same amount...

 

Normal car speedometers* are not very accurate. They can't be, because automobile tire sizes aren't. Different brands of the same size vary in height, plus the tire diameter changes as the tread wears down.

 

Because of these variations, the manufacturer always sets the speedometer so at the max possible tire tolerance the speedo reads right (or a little fast). This means the avg car speedo is going to read at least a few mph faster at 65mph then the car is really going. Speedo reads a little fast; no big deal. Speedo reads 5mph slow? HUGE problem! People would sue if they got a speeding ticket, or in a car accident because they were traveling too fast.

 

Bottom line, your GPS is most likely way more accurate then the speedo in your car.

 

*police cars have "certified" speedometers where it's been specially calibrated to be accurate.

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docdigit

docdigit

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Because of these variations, the manufacturer always sets the speedometer so at the max possible tire tolerance the speedo reads right (or a little fast). This means the avg car speedo is going to read at least a few mph faster at 65mph then the car is really going. Speedo reads a little fast;

 

Wow then I'm in big trouble...according to my ex 600 I'm going about 5 mph faster than what my speedo is saying (and I don't exactly drive slow.) Now, here's a curious thing, I noticed today that at slower speeds (down below 20 mph) they begin to come together...and at 0 mph they are exactly the same!

 

Doc

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GOT GPS?

+GOT GPS?

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Because of these variations, the manufacturer always sets the speedometer so at the max possible tire tolerance the speedo reads right (or a little fast). This means the avg car speedo is going to read at least a few mph faster at 65mph then the car is really going. Speedo reads a little fast;

 

Wow then I'm in big trouble...according to my ex 600 I'm going about 5 mph faster than what my speedo is saying (and I don't exactly drive slow.) Now, here's a curious thing, I noticed today that at slower speeds (down below 20 mph) they begin to come together...and at 0 mph they are exactly the same!

 

Doc

 

My Garmins, indicate that at freeway speeds, that my real speed is 5 mph faster than what the speedo in the Ford Escort is saying. The Magellan SporTrak Color is fairly accurate too, but I trust the Garmin 60Cx a bit more.

 

As far as Magellan Customer Service and quality of the GPS units, I am pretty much stuck with the 60Cx having fewer features, but I am still looking at the eXplorist XL versus Lowrance Expedition C GPS, with both of those having 240x320 pixel screens.

 

I believe that Lowrance may beat out Magellan, and possibly Garmin on the Customer Service, and the capability of the Expedition C, which sounds like a more mature GPS than their earlier models, that I did not care for, being B&W models. I like a real mapping GPS at a resolution of 240x320 pixels.

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docdigit

docdigit

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Well, as I said, I do like the unit itself. I think that at some point in time even THALES may get their customer service issues fixed (hey, anything is possible.) The 600 is still a new product by my standards and probably will have to go through several generations of firmware upgrades before all of the bugs are worked out (I'm hearing a lot lately about low temperature problems, don't know if that is hardware or software, but it needs to be checked.) I will probably go with Garmin next, simply because of the service issues (when I called them as a test, they responded very quickly on the phone) but that day is still a ways off. I don't want this to be a 'bashing' thread for Magellan and would close it on a positive note (if I could find the "Close Thread" button.) The Magellan eXplorist 600 is fits my semi-functional hand very well, the buttons are very easy for me to use and the joystick is probably one of the nicest features for me. I picked it because of these factors and it's memory capabilities and (sans service problems) probably would again.

 

Doc

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