Recommendation for Garmin Nuvi

[moonpup]

Hi All,

 

Looking to add another GPS to the collection, specifically an auto unit and for price and functionality I don't think the Nuvi 350 can be beat. Does anyone here have the Nuvi 350 and can you comment about what you like and don't like or would you have purchased a different model? I saw the Nuvi 350 at Walmart for $369 and thought it was a steal...

 

Thanks

[+Miragee]

A friend just got one of those and it is sure user friendly for driving. I think it received the best rating from Consumer Reports -- you could check out that recent article.

 

The voice was a bit annoying, however . . .

 

Check the online prices. I don't think she paid that much, but I could be wrong . . .

[+jotne]

What I do not like about Nüvi. I have a 660

 

1. No tracklog

2. No compass page

3. Not possible to see POI while drive (you need to zoom inn to highest zoom, and autozoom zooms back out)

4. Not possible to change any filed to display other information

5. No track log

6. No track log

 

What I do like

1. Big bright screen

2. Good voice navigation

3. Bluetooth

[jonavin]

What I do not like about Nüvi. I have a 660

 

1. No tracklog

2. No compass page

3. Not possible to see POI while drive (you need to zoom inn to highest zoom, and autozoom zooms back out)

4. Not possible to change any filed to display other information

5. No track log

6. No track log

 

What I do like

1. Big bright screen

2. Good voice navigation

3. Bluetooth

 

You forgot NO TRACK LOG. I use my Forerunner for that but really wish they would add track logging to the Nuvi line.

[Bos T]

I really like my Nuvi 350. I've had no experience of any other in-car sat navs, so I have nothing to compare it to.

 

What I like:

 

1. Clear voice navigation. With text-to-speech voices road names are announced - this is very useful. There are lots of voice choices.

2. Bright clear screen.

3. Quick to lock on to satellites, and keeps them locked on almost anywhere.

4. Lots of included POI and ability to add your own.

5. Excellent ETA data - which updates as you drive.

6. MP3 playback - I don't bother taking CDs in the car on long journeys any more - load up an SD card and you're away.

7. Sensitive and easy-to-use touchscreen.

8. Very intuitive interface (good job, since the full manual comes loaded on the device's memory, so there's no way of reading it until you've fiddled with a computer etc).

9. Seems to choose good routes 90% of the time.

10. Good battery life - 6 hours or so on a full charge.

11. Small, neat form factor. Easy to slip into a pocket or briefcase.

12. Full postcode search (in the UK), which makes it very easy to enter destination addresses.

 

What I would improve:

 

1. Ability to add more than one waypoint - but you can work around this.

2. Some turns are announced too early - 'turn left now', and you're on the wrong road... It seems to work better at faster speeds.

3. Speaker volume could go a little louder, but it's not bad.

4. Some choice of customisable data (e.g. add speed to main screen) would be useful.

 

It doesn't compare to a handheld GPS receiver, so no: no compass page, no track logs, it's not waterproof. But I doubt the Garmin marketing guys would allow that functionality - they really do want us to buy two products, not one!

 

BosT

[+Chuy!]

What I do not like about Nüvi. I have a 660

 

1. No tracklog

2. No compass page

3. Not possible to see POI while drive (you need to zoom inn to highest zoom, and autozoom zooms back out)

4. Not possible to change any filed to display other information

5. No track log

6. No track log

 

What I do like

1. Big bright screen

2. Good voice navigation

3. Bluetooth

 

You forgot NO TRACK LOG. I use my Forerunner for that but really wish they would add track logging to the Nuvi line.

Have you tried to delete caches en masse? YOU CAN'T!?? You can't - in normal mode; you can only delete en masse by doing a hard reset in maintenance mode.

 

I also don't like the waypoints not having descpription information. I think they figured you'd go by the POI's for info.

 

I also don't like you can't adjust brightness level - it's very bright at night.

 

Whah whah.

 

I'm not too worried about the compass page, I'm used to navigating by the satellite page once I'm near GZ.

 

I do like the FM transmitter to play the mp3 files; and that the GPS cuts in to announce turns.

 

It's also has a very fast processor for re-routing/re-calculating, etc...

[robertlipe]

Nuvi is a gruvi device for a business traveller. It's really not designed for geocaching.

 

The waypoints on this family are stored in a single file on the device, editable from the host computer in mass storage mode. It's true you can't delete in bulk from he touch panel, but it's trivial to do such edits from a host computer just by editing or replacing the data set on the device.

[+jotne]

I also don't like you can't adjust brightness level - it's very bright at night.

 

Just press power button, and you can adjust the brightness and volume.

[moonpup]

Hi all,

 

Thanks for the replies about what you like and don't like. It's a bummer that there is no track log feature, but that's not a big deal for me. Other than that, sounds like this device is a winner. I could always use my 60CSx in the vehicle, (as I've done before) but I would really like to get a dedicated auto unit.

 

Anyone have thoughts on the new Nuvi 200/50/70 series?

 

Thanks

[Yellermanx]

I have had mine for a month or so. I like it for the most part. However, it's a good idea to look at the route it gives you on a map before you take off. If I had trusted it on our last trip we would have gone 30-50 miles out of our way on a 150 mile trip. I changed the modes, car, truck, bike etc. and it never changed it's route.

 

When I bought mine Walmart had it on line for $369. They would not match that in the store. I went to Best Buy and told them and they matched the price only because it was Walmart.

[imaroon]

You are correct here is a list of the top 10 gps systems

[rabidog!]

i love my nuvi 350 - but for me, i use it 99% for business/vacation - not geocaching.

 

one problem i'm running into... and this might be user-caused... i want to download multiple caches but every time i download one to my GPS, it seems to erase the previously downloaded so i can only have one at a time. i must be doing something wrong???

 

also, i am traveling to iceland on thursday and i want to find a cache suitable for a travel bug i picked up. i can't find maps of iceland/reykjavik for the garmin nuvi 350 ANYwhere! any ideas?

[Osprey71]

I bought my Father the nuvi 350 and he loves it, though he doesn't use it for geo-caching, and I didn't even know this existed when I bought it for him.

 

I decided to get one for myself but I bought the Zumo 550, Garmans motorcycle GPS. It is great and seems to address some of the concerns of other posters on this topic.

 

It has a Compass mode, and tracking, is weatherproof (they claim it can be immersed in 3 feet of water for up to 30 mins) and comes with both car and motorcycle mounts. You can view POI's in a non-tracking map mode when zoomed in but they are really small icons. Your custom way points are always visible though. It does a fairly good job of switching from vehicle (snaps position to nearby roads) to off-road mode when pulled from it's cradle, though I've had a few cases where it wouldn't switch and I had to manually put it in off-road and re-enter my destination (I wish it would re-calculate automatically).

 

It's a bit bigger than the nuvi and heavier, but it feels solid (built well), like it could survive a drop on the pavement or two. It doesn't have a speaker so you either have to put it in one of the powered mounts or use a bluetooth headset to hear the audio.

 

I'm new to geocaching (only 7 finds), but it has been extremely accurate so far, getting me within a few feet of the target even when others claim they have had bad reception. It is pricey though, I got it for around $700 on amazon.

 

To me it seems like the ultimate multi-purpose GPS, small enough to carry (most people mistake it for a camera even without a lens), and big enough to navigate the roads. Weatherproof, and comes with a protective case so it won't get damaged when thrown in a bag. It even has replaceable top & bottom caps that come in many styles so if those get damaged you can spruce it up again for a few bucks.

 

I would give it a 9 out of 10, as there are a few minor annoyances, but hopefully they could fix those with firmware updates.

[+spofahl]

I just wanted to mention that I use my NUVI 360 in conjunction with my Explorist for geocaching. What's really cool is that you can store your entire database on the NUVI under CUstom POIs. This way you can see which caches are closest to your current position (or search by name) and then click on one for driving directions to it. Of course this only gets you to the nearest point on a road but I have found it very helpful. Also it can display way more information than a handheld.. somewhere around 250 characters from my experience.

[Neo_Geo]

Another con of the Nüvi is that it has an internal, rechargeable battery. If the battery goes down while you're away from power, you're screwed. I prefer using AA rechargeables in my devices.

 

Also, my 60Cx has something of a variable routing quality setting - something like "good", "better" and "best". I could not find any such setting on the Nüvi, so between my 60Cx and my brother's Nüvi, we often get different routing to the same destination.

 

The voice on the Nüvi is funny when you miss your turn - it sounds truly annoyed when it says "recalculating".

[+sejtam]

I bought my Father the nuvi 350 and he loves it, though he doesn't use it for geo-caching, and I didn't even know this existed when I bought it for him.

 

I decided to get one for myself but I bought the Zumo 550, Garmans motorcycle GPS.

...

I would give it a 9 out of 10, as there are a few minor annoyances, but hopefully they could fix those with firmware updates.

 

What are these minor annoyances you speak of? I am also considering a Zumo..