GPSr Support Questions

[+vbastable]

Hello

I have an older Magellan GPS 315 that I have been using for years now. I have been lucky enough not to ever require support.

However I am considering upgrading and after reading a lot of the materials online I still don't know which company (Garmin, Magellan, etc) to trust, it seems everyone has a horror story! It seems I can find a GPS unit from most of the manufactures that meet my needs and within my price limit and most manufactures have a one year warranty and say they have great customer service but after reading some of the reviews Im spooked about everyone.

I would like to hear from some others on the quality of customer service and support.

[+ThePropers]

I've only contacted Garmin once about the problem with the last 5 custom waypoint symbols not working on the 60CSx. And they were very quick and helpful in identifying that it was an issue.

 

As far as actually fixing it or letting me know if it's going to be fixed though....well, that's another question, as I haven't heard squat or been able to get an update.

 

Everything I hear though is that Garmin's tech support is pretty good compared to Magellan's.

[+GeekBoy.from.Illinois]

Hello

I have an older Magellan GPS 315 that I have been using for years now. I have been lucky enough not to ever require support.

However I am considering upgrading and after reading a lot of the materials online I still don't know which company (Garmin, Magellan, etc) to trust, it seems everyone has a horror story! It seems I can find a GPS unit from most of the manufactures that meet my needs and within my price limit and most manufactures have a one year warranty and say they have great customer service but after reading some of the reviews Im spooked about everyone.

I would like to hear from some others on the quality of customer service and support.

 

I can tell your from personal experience that Magellan's support is difficult (at best) to work with. I have had to call them twice in the 3 months I have owned my eXplorist 600. The first time was a software issue with their mapping software not running on my PC, and they were less than supportive in fixing the problem. Their "resolution" was to disable all other software on my computer and reboot, run their mapping software, then reboot and re-enable my other software. I commented that this might be a temporary work around, but it is not a resolution to the problem. They seemed to think that this was an acceptable resolution to the problem. My second call was when one of the buttons on my device stopped working. The person on the phone acted friendly enough, but she didn't seem to listen to what I was saying, and it took 2 or 3 tries before she could repeat the serial number from my device back to me properly. She had not given me an RMA number yet and told me to make sure to include that number on the package when I sent it in, and seemed offended when I suggested it might be difficult to do that since she hadn't told me what it was yet. They still have not resolved the software problems, and I have just sent the GPSr out for repairs so I can't say how their repair services are (yet).

 

I also on a Garmin GPSmap 60CSx, but I have not had the need to call their support yet, so I can't speak on that. I can tell you that I have ready many many more complaints on Magellan's support than I have on Garmin's, and I have heard many, many more compliments on Garmin's support than I have on Magellan's.

[+vaetanone]

When my Explorist 600 developed major problems within 2 days of receipt I tried to call Magellan. It was a nightmare of waitng on the phone for 3 hours to get the response that I should send it in for repairs. No way was I going to have a "repaired" unit that failed in 2 days instead of being shipped a new one. It went back to the reseller in exchange for a 60 Csx that we liked so well my wife and I each have one. When I had a question on the Electronic Compass I got a quick answer. In my limited experience Garmin wins hands down, but of course your milage may vary.

[ossumguywill]

The magellan units are wonderful, but if there is a problem and you are out of your waranty, you are screwed. Magellan customer service sucks! The customer service is about a useful as a quick-start manual. If you want a great unit like explorist, do not order it from the magellan website. You will probably get extended warranty that way.

[+geognerd]

Garmin's support is American-based, which means communication shouldn't be a problem. My experience with Magellan's phone tech support has been acceptable. Never waited on hold more than 15 minutes (call at 8AM Central!) and I had no problem understanding the reps. When I had a charging problem, they wanted to replace the power adapter. That didn't fix it. I suspect Garmin would've replaced the whole thing off the bat. They then sent a replacement battery. Before I got the battery, my eX400's display was damaged in an incident. Magellan was quick to give me an RA# and told me to send it in. It was repaired in about 2 weeks.

 

As for the bad, Magellan's e-mail support is terrible. Don't bother. They'll take 2 weeks to get back to you and probably with an irrelevant answer. Fortunately, I only had a general inquiry and didn't need anything fixed.

 

I don't have a Garmin, but I have contacted them a few times. Once was an e-mail question about the technical specs of a product. The response took about 2 weeks. Another time I e-mailed Garmin with a concern about their rebate promotion. No reply for 3 weeks. Then a co-worker had a question about the software for his C320. Yeah, I called in the middle of the day, but you'd think Garmin could have answered in less than an hour. I gave up on the call.

 

Garmin's customer service seems to be more helpful, but from my experience, I think they could still do better. I'll give Garmin the nod over Magellan in terms of customer service.

Edited October 26, 2006 by geognerd

[+generok]

Oh my does Magellan customer support/service stink! I spent 45 minutes on the phone working through the RMA process after being on hold for 1 hour. That was over 2 months ago, and I haven't seen my GPS since. They shipped it to the wrong address twice, and now they "mailed it" (I'm military overseas) and it's been in the mail since 11 Oct 06.

 

I actually like the unit, and it's been ridden hard and put away wet many a time in Alaska. I wasn't mad the display went down, but Magellan's handling of the unit has been absolutely HORRIBLE! They charged me the $64.95 Out-Of-Warranty-Repair-Fee THREE TIMES now, and I still don't have the unit.

 

I've written the service center several time, and THALES headquarters three times, and have gotten NO RESPONSE.

 

Let's face it, if you GeoCahce, you WILL ultimately lose or bust a GPSr! If it is a Magellan, consider yourself out of the caching business for at least a month, or more! I STRONGLY URGE potential Magellan customers to consider Garmin or other brands. If your Magellan breaks, and is out of warranty, consider upgrading to a new non-Magellan unit, since you're into the repair for $65 anyway.

 

I have reached my wits end with Magellan, and I PROMISED them I would pass on my HORRIBLE experience with fellow GeoCachers. Magellan may make descent units, but they sure do not seem to care about timely repair and customer service.

 

Am I venting, sure, but the above story is factual. Two months is TWICE the time their own site states it will take to return the unit.

 

Generok

US Military in Germany

[Team Sidewinder]

My 2 cents worth. I have only good to say about Garmin tech support. They worked with me for months trying to figure out a problem with my 76CS which turned out be difficult to pin down. They sent me City Select software as a gift for helping them with this problem. I had a 12XL that the internal battery died and after sending it in out of warranty they sent me a totally refurbished unit. Garmin has problems like every company making a product out there but their customer support is excellent.

 

Team sidewinder

[+Firefighter Skippy]

I have an older Garmin Map76 and have had no problem with it. However, I did upgrade to a 76CSX a few months ago and recently sent it back for a power problem - it would shut off if bumped or when I set it down on a surface. Anyway, had good service from Customer Service for RMA and yesterday received a new unit from Garmin, 4 working days after they received my unit.