I've been considering a Garmin/TomTom Nav Guide box for awhile. For Homecoming I borrowed a neighbors and it was a godsend. I don't need much in terms of bells & whistles, in fact, all I need is the street guide (voice). The prices have gone to that I should be thinking on getting one, getting a cheap one. All I want is it to be the thin enclosure, no external antenna, easy mountable type box. Nothing fancy at all. A down right basic nav guide. Is there one in particular I should look at? Is there one that I should stay away from? Suggestions please.
Cheapie Nav Guide?
- Thread starter 20ducks
- Start date
I had a Garmin Nuvi in the US in the rental, and it was hopeless compared to the TomTom which I use for routes in the UK (besides my normal BMW system of course).
Comparison between Garmin and TomTom: Garmin got lost on the motorways frequently. It also would freeze without reason often. It also did not display the maximum allowable speed on the road, nor did it display the current speed (you had to press a button to display that). TomTom has all of that on there.
At complicated junctions, the Garmin would not make it really clear where you needed to go. The arrow would cover all junctions, the TomTom shows it more clearly (enlarged and with a clear line in a different colour).
The mounting of the Garmin was not great either - if you adjust it, you would hold it in your hand as it would come off the swivvel point Never happened to me with the TomTom.
Just a point to note - all of the above is just my experience of "living" with a Garmin Nuvi for a week.
But - as srhutch mentioned, retrofit the OEM is really the best option as it just works + all the other extra functions you get.
Comparison between Garmin and TomTom: Garmin got lost on the motorways frequently. It also would freeze without reason often. It also did not display the maximum allowable speed on the road, nor did it display the current speed (you had to press a button to display that). TomTom has all of that on there.
At complicated junctions, the Garmin would not make it really clear where you needed to go. The arrow would cover all junctions, the TomTom shows it more clearly (enlarged and with a clear line in a different colour).
The mounting of the Garmin was not great either - if you adjust it, you would hold it in your hand as it would come off the swivvel point Never happened to me with the TomTom.
Just a point to note - all of the above is just my experience of "living" with a Garmin Nuvi for a week.
But - as srhutch mentioned, retrofit the OEM is really the best option as it just works + all the other extra functions you get.
20ducks said:TomTom is in the lead so far. Does everyone get my logic regarding buying a less fancy nav system?
srhutch, of course I would prefer the OEM system but the price is way over the top.
Even my lowly version 1 TomTom One is able to do Traffic alerts and re-routing and cost more than the current TomTom ONE does now - so yeah I get your logic
Shipkiller
Lifer
I have two Garmin Nuvi (650,760) units, and my son has one(760). All three work flawlessly. They never lock up or ever have a problem finding their way, but I DO update the maps every year....
As for displaying the max speed on the road you are on, I have never heard of that, or seen that on any U.S. GPS unit. Not that it does not exist, just never seen it. Could be a UK thing....
There is the TomTom map issue though. TomTom uses a different mapping company than Garmin, and up until this year, TomToms maps were way inferior to Garmins. I know TomTom was working to fix this issue, but do not know if it has happened yet.
The issue PVR had with junctions.. I think it comes down to resolution. The default zoom level on the Garmin is further out. So you MAY have to press the + (zoom in) button to zoom your display in to get a better feel for your area. eg, differentiate your streets better.
I do like the BlueTooth feature on my Gamins. I don't have pull my phone out to make or answer a phone call....
It really all comes down to user preferences. If you are use to a TomTom, you will find all kinds of faults with the Garmin units and vice versa....
I have owned a Cobra, TomTom, Magellan and of course a Garmin GPS units. I like the Garmin best....
Just my 2Cents....
As for displaying the max speed on the road you are on, I have never heard of that, or seen that on any U.S. GPS unit. Not that it does not exist, just never seen it. Could be a UK thing....
There is the TomTom map issue though. TomTom uses a different mapping company than Garmin, and up until this year, TomToms maps were way inferior to Garmins. I know TomTom was working to fix this issue, but do not know if it has happened yet.
The issue PVR had with junctions.. I think it comes down to resolution. The default zoom level on the Garmin is further out. So you MAY have to press the + (zoom in) button to zoom your display in to get a better feel for your area. eg, differentiate your streets better.
I do like the BlueTooth feature on my Gamins. I don't have pull my phone out to make or answer a phone call....
It really all comes down to user preferences. If you are use to a TomTom, you will find all kinds of faults with the Garmin units and vice versa....
I have owned a Cobra, TomTom, Magellan and of course a Garmin GPS units. I like the Garmin best....
Just my 2Cents....
Tomtom one is cheap and does everything that you need. I use one for work and it is great. You can get some great voices on it too including Mr T from the A-Team. The only problem was that it wouldnt go to the airport!!! I AIN'T GETTIN ON NO PLANE!!!!!! CRAZY FOOL!!! :x
rabman5 said:I have a TomTom One XL. It was $200 and works fine for me. I like that I can connect it to my laptop and update whenever I want. Mine is very basic without bluetooth. The voices are loud and clear also.
Amazon now selling TomTom ONE XL 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator for $139 shipped.
I have the garmin nuvi 750 and it's great. I think I purchased mine for $230. As far as what Shipkiller said about max speed, mine when I'm on an insterstate will post what the speed limit supposedly is. That part of it is rarely correct (or we just speed more than I thought here) and I wish there was a way to turn it off.
I have 2 Garmin 660. One for my Zed and the other for my wife’s PT-Cruiser. Both are outstanding never had a problems and they keep the software updated at no change. The power cord has a FM transmitter in it and picks up local traffic congestion, real handy so you can by pass the mess on the freeway if you choose. I use the Bluetooth feature so that all I have to do is press the little phone icon on the screen to receive calls via the device which plays via my CD-Business radio in the Zed. I can hear that way even with the top down. The Bluetooth feature keeps your address/phone book updated automatically. When you want to make a call, you just press the number on the screen and the phone calls and the connection is made. Hands free is the law in our state and one ticket would pay for this feature. It has a SD memory port so I can transport music, and photos out of my camera and see what they look like as I drive down the road. There are just a bunch of other features but I will not bore you all with them here. I have never had another brand so I can not compare. But the Bluetooth features is worth the price of the device. I got mine both as factory reconditioned with full warranty for about the same price as a new cheap model in the stores. I have had one for a year and the other for 4 months. Neither has ever locked up, or failed to get me to exactly where I wanted it to take me. My wife uses hers every day. Like I said I have never had another brand, but if it is better than the Garmin, it would have to go into the realm of teleportation, that is about all that is left to do. Don’t just get any old thing our you are buying old technology and will wish you had spent just a few cents more for a good one. Isn’t that why we had BMWs? 
WaZZZZman, how does the bluetooth play through your car speakers? Do you connect it to the AUX or use an FM transmitter? Either way, are you limited in what you can listen to if you want the bluetooth accessible? I also own another GPS nav device (Harmon Kardon GPS-810) that has all the bells and whistles. I found that the pictures, SD card I personally didn't use. I will say that the HK has the best screen resolution I've ever seen, which is why I bought it. I also like the way maps are displayed. I never use the bluetooth because I have it in my car.
