TUNE DIGITALLY

Review by Auto Buff Guy 2008:

I bought the GARMIN nüvi 260W to help with work and family travels. After extensive research with Magellan, Mio and Tom-Tom, I bought the Garmin for three reasons. 1) Ease of use. 2) Screen clarity. 3) Amazing accuracy. And no, despite where I live, I have no affiliation with Garmin. I don't even know anyone that works for them. I am in the architectural business.

I have tried several GPSs while traveling with business associates, friends or in rental cars. As such, I have seen them in real world action. All of the devices saved me time and most found the place I needed to be. I could used any of them and been somewhat satisfied.The problem: I am a perfectionist. As such, I want the unit to be the best. So, after using a text-to-speech Garmin GPS unit earlier this year, I knew that was one feature I could not live without when I pulled the trigger on a purchase. Text-to-speech is a must have on GPS. A MUST. If you have never used a GPS, trust me, you have to have text-to-speech. It eliminates the frustration of urban driving and having the non text-to-speech units tell you to turn right in 200 feet, only to find two roads that are 200 feet away and have to pick one and hope it is right.

I decided to wait until a wide screen GPS came out that didn't have so many bells and whistles and was priced fairly. The GARMIN nüvi 260W 4.3-Inch fit the bill. Pulled the trigger still knowing that GPS units drop in price every month it seems and I would knowingly be mad in 90 days when the unit was 20% cheaper (oh well).

Back to the GARMIN nüvi 260W...I am amazed how it can find the driveway of my house at the end of a cul-de-sac directly adjacent to a road that is named the same. It is so accurate that it lets me know if I pulled into the wrong driveway 15 feet away from mine (I know, I tried it). It is so easy to use; I didn't even use the manual - once. It is that user friendly. I even downloaded new voices via the Garmin site without a manual. I like the fact the screen is very clear and refreshes quickly. I can even use my polarized sunglasses with the Garmin 260W screen and it does not distort the screen colors or have numerous horizontal lines (if you use polarized glasses, make sure to try out any GPS screen before you buy. Many look blank when using polarized glasses).

The POI seem to be pretty good, but I really haven't used it long enough to evaluate POI depth. I do know that the maps seem to be fairly accurate in terms of new roads since I have yet to find a road that does not exist on the map.

Not everything is perfect with the Garmin 260W. The downside is the time to acquire a satellite. The 260W takes longer than I like...sometimes up to one minute. However, once it gets a hold of the satellites, it never looses them. Plus it gets such a strong signal (with no external antenna); I can use the device on my lap in the passenger seat (when I am not driving and after it finds a satellite). Another couple of downers are it has very few voices that work with the text-to-speech feature. I hope Garmin increases the choices via a web download in the future (I want celebrity voices...please). Plus, I would have liked a case, any case to be included for the price I paid.

Overall, the unit is amazing and the larger screen size of 4.3 inches really helps those with fat fingers and those that don't want to squint to read a map. I am just sorry I had to wait this long to own one. It is a must have for those that travel to unfamiliar areas.

Review by P. M. Gross:

I received the Garmin Nuvi 260W as a gift. I have subsequently read comments about many different GPS units and have concluded that:

-a hand held GPS is a complement to, not a substitute for a good road map and some common sense. All GPS units have positives and negatives; none are absolutely perfect. These are not toys, but they are not self sufficient navigational tools either. Given enough time, every owner of every unit will have a story about how he couldn't find a particular point of interest, or was directed down a dead end street or across a 4-lane divided highway!

-considering screen sharpness, ease of use and other features, the Garmin 260W is one of the best in its price class.

-Garmin also has the best customer service of any of the companies.

The purpose of this review is NOT to repeat what others have written but to discuss workarounds for the various limitations of this unit.

COMPUTER ACCESS: To download firmware, software upgrades and maps, access to garmin.com is a virtual necessity. Since a computer cable is unfortunately not included with the unit, the user will need to buy a USB 2.0 A / mini B cable. It can be found on Amazon.

At garmin.com, download the web updater and whatever updates it prompts and also, remember to download the updated TTS (Text to Speech) voices. We find that "British" English is sometimes easier to understand than the American counterpart and suggest that it be downloaded as well.

The USB cable will also charge the Garmin's battery but the unit does not operate when plugged into the computer. The optional AC converter is only required if the user wants to operate the unit on 110 volts.

SATELLITE ACQUISITION: Failure to reliably acquire satellite is the biggest single weakness of the Garmin 260W and the reason for the 3* rating. The user never knows in advance whether, after the 30 second boot up, it will take 15 seconds or 15 minutes to find a satellite.

Customer service suggests that the preferable satellite acquisition position is the top edge (NOT the face or back) pointed straight up to the open sky with the unit held still (which means you should not be driving).

When the unit is powered up out of the box and acquires a satellite for the first time, leave the power ON for an hour to download almanac data.

If the unit is moved to a new location with the power off, powering up the unit is similar to an initial power-on, and it can easily take 15 minutes to locate new satellites.

If all else fails, do a hard reset (see the instructions for "clearing user data"). Note that all user data (favorites) is in the gpx file in the gpx folder so save it to your computer and restore it after the reset. Again, leave the unit on for an hour after satellites are acquired.

POINTS OF INTEREST: Some of the data is not current. If a particular restaurant, etc., cannot be found, enter it by its street address and then change the name.

MODIFYING A ROUTE: This unit is less flexible than some. If a favorite place is selected and the GPS simulator mode activated, the proposed route will be highlighted. "Sliding" the screen with an appropriate magnification will allow the route to be compared with a computer or road map alternative. To force Garmin to select a particular road or direction, add a VIA point (gas station, motel, whatever). Because Garmin only allows one via point per route, several such points may be needed and the driver may have to skip stop between them.

ADD: June 26th. The Garmin 260W will NOT display routes downloaded from Mapquest. That feature is reserved for more expensive units.

ADD: June 26th. Failure to arrive at a specific house number may relate to mistakes on the part of developers, subdivision planners or mappers rather than the GPS. If necessary, give an address TWO favorite places - one labeled (per gps)that has the desired address; and one labeled (actual) determined by touching the car icon when standing in the driveway.

ADD: Aug. 4. Polarized sunglass lens fix: If you have the brightness set low (to conserve the battery when walking or biking, for example), polarized sun glasses may make it difficult to read the display which is also polarized. But, if you turn the display VERTICAL, the polarized settings will align and the display will immediately brighten up.

BATTERY LIFE: We've run two hours on battery without losing a green bar. Battery life can be extended by reducing the brightness level to the lowest acceptable.

In summary, the Garmin Nuvi 260W will do pretty much everything it is supposed to do EXCEPT acquire satellites quickly every time. If the company fixes this problem with a new firmware upgrade, the 260W deserves 4 stars. If the unit were also to allow multiple via points and route selections, then it would, in our opinion, earn 5 stars.

Review by Dodongo Dislikes Smoke:

This Nuvi does several things very well, and I've yet to discover any serious shortcomings. My thoughts:

Navigation: Excellent, as is typical with Garmin units. On a couple of occasions the voice (right now I'm using Australian Karen) told me my destination was on the wrong side of the street.

Map: The map is clear, the refresh rate is fast, and all of the right information is provided on-screen, including details for upcoming turns and junctions, speed limit, and traffic alerts. It's annoying that I can't choose to switch the display of my current speed to some other piece of info. I already have a speedometer. The 3D buildings feature seems pretty gimmicky, and is implemented sporadically, even in downtown Boston. When there is coverage, most buildings are monochromatic blocks, and not the photo-realistic buildings seen in screenshots.

Lane Assist: This feature has been spot-on so far. It's nice driving in a new area and not getting flustered about being in the wrong lane. I have yet to see the full-screen 3D Lane Assist Junction View shown in the many 765t screenshots -- however, I've done very little highway driving, and I believe this screen requires that the user press the top-left (upcoming turn icon).

>>>>>UPDATE: After some highway driving, it turns out that the full-screen 3D Lane Assist Junction View shows up automatically before potentially tricky highway junctions. Very nice.

Traffic: As far as I know, I have not been re-routed because of traffic. However, it's very easy to bring up a list of major roads and their current traffic conditions, and to avoid them at will. The pop-up advertising associated with the "free" traffic is pretty subtle, and never distracting.

Bluetooth: I'm impressed with this feature so far. It mated with my phone (old Motorola RAZR V3) easily, importing all of my contacts in the process. The ability to instantly dial any point of interest (e.g., to check on store hours) is brilliant. The volume from the speaker is reasonably loud. I also tried sending the audio to my car stereo using an audio cable, and the output seemed a bit low (I had to turn my car stereo way up). I have not yet tried sending the audio to my car stereo using the FM transmitter. I called my voicemail, and the built-in microphone picks up my voice reasonably well with the engine running. I'm not sure how well it would work with highway speeds. I'm told that the cheap Garmin microphone (which plugs into the cradle, not the unit) improves voice quality.

>>>>>UPDATE: This is true -- the microphone is an improvement, though it adds yet another long cord to your long cord collection. Also, I've tried the FM transmitter. It works, albeit with a certain amount of static. I imagine this feature would intolerable if you are driving a long way.

Other features: I haven't used the SD card slot for anything. I haven't tried the photo viewer or the mp3 player, and I probably won't.

Build Quality: Seems solid. The unit has a certain heft to it, and it's covered in a soft, rubbery coating. I've also dropped it already (because I'm an idiot) -- still working beautifully.

Suggested improvements: Garmin doesn't make it easy to look up the actual coordinates (latitude and longitude) for favorites or points of interest. This information should be available at the press of a button.

Needless to say, I'm pleased with my purchase. The 756t is not cheap right now, and if you can live without the new features, you might be better off with an older unit. That said, if you're looking for a gps device with all of the latest features and compatibility, this seems to be a solid pick.

Review by Donald Signorino:

I received my 765T a few days ago and love it so far. After reading some up and down reviews, I wasn't certain what to expect. I am pleasantly surprised.

To start, the unit's volume is plenty loud, even at highway speeds. The screen is readable at all times, and automatically changes to a darkened "night mode" at night - very easy on the eyes. You can force it to day or night mode, if desired.

The map's movement and fluidity is tremendous. It has a very natural looking motion at all times. Garmin claims the unit updates at 10fps, and it seems to be about that. I am still deciding if I prefer 3D or 2D mode yet, but both are great. I tested routing on a few trips and the navigation worked perfectly. Directions were given in plenty of time, and repeated at appropriate intervals. When just driving (not navigating) the green bar at the top displays your current road, and even displays the next exit when driving (not navigating) on major highways. This was unexpected for me and really cool! The voice on the unit is clear.

The overall feel of the software is great. The menus move quickly and seem logically laid out. You can add categories to your favorites to better organize them. This helped a lot, since favorites are sorted by default via distance from your current location. Creating folders for your favorites works very well. You can even add a picture (and phone #) to your favorites. Very nice!

As for Bluetooth: I paired the 765 with my Blackberry Storm easily, and everything works flawlessly. My phone's contacts transferred immediately, and I can call Points of Interest and people from my contacts easily, with 1 touch. I do not have any of the bluetooth issues described in other places. No issues at all. So I'm either lucky or maybe there is some inconsistency in the hardware. More likely, different combinations of cell phones and GPS units lead to varying results. IMPORTANT: I did update the unit to it's latest firmware, which many say have helped their bluetooth connections.

I haven't been to an area with a traffic reception signal yet, so I can't comment on the traffic function.

All the other niceties work well for me also: The picture viewer, MP3 player, etc all work as advertised. I even put 1 of my pics as the startup image.

In conclusion, I am very pleased with the product so far. This is a great product that I would highly recommend.

Review by Schultzie:

I actually could not decide between the Garmin Nuvi 255w or the 750 model, so I decided to buy them both for comparison. I mounted them both to my car windshield and gave them various addresses to find together. I found that both models took the same routes and announced upcoming turns and street names at practically the same time. One thing I noticed about the 255w was that it was updating my position on the road more often, I'd say about 3 times as often as the 750. This made for smoother graphics on the 255w of the vehicle moving along displayed roads, where the 750's display was more of a "jerky" movement. I also found that the display on the 255w was a bit brighter, clearer, and more vivid than on the 750 in both daylight and at night. Another feature I like on the 255w is the graphic turn indicator in the upper left corner, which the 750 lacks. This is a small arrow which shows upcoming turns and the distance to that turn. It also show things like a fork in the road, (ie: a Y intersection), and which fork you will be taking. The 750 just displays text on the top line for upcoming turns without the arrow. It's just a little extra feature on the 255w which I happened to really like. The 255 also automatically adjusts the font size of displayed text so that even lengthy text will fit.

Another feature on the 255w is a display of the posted speed limit on the road which you are currently on right above your current displayed speed. I found myself not even looking at my car speedometer as I could easily see my current speed and the speed limit of my route at a glance. The 750 doesn't have this feature. I also like how they moved the zoom in (+) and zoom out (-) buttons on the 255w to the same side of the screen which makes it a bit easier. On the 750 the zoom buttons are on opposite sides of the screen.

Now there are some features on the 750 that the 255w does not have. The 750 can broadcast it's sound over your FM radio with the supplied cigarette lighter cable, and it has a headphone jack, which I found to be nice features. The 750 also has an MP3 player and an Audio-book player, which the 255w does not. Another really nice feature of the 750 is the car locater. This is a great feature if you are parking in a really big lot, such as at an amusement park or a fair. The 750 marks your location when you remove it from the car, then you take it with you and it remembers where you parked and takes you right back to your car. The 255w doesn't have the car locater.

I also thought the the voice prompts of the 750 where more pleasant sounding than the 255w's. The 750 sounds more like a real female voice, where the 255w sounds more robotic.

Another thing to consider was that I paid less for the 750 and it came with the FM transmitter cable and a USB cord to connect it to your computer for updates and downloads.

My final decision was to keep the 255w and return the 750 because I really liked the graphic turn indicator and the posted speed limit and current speed indicators. I didn't find a need for the 750's MP3 player and Audio book player, but that is up to personal preference. Since the USB cable was not included with the 255w, I purchased it on this site for . I also intend to purchase the MSN direct cable when it is available in August 2008.

Review by EmbeddedFlyer:

If you spend much time driving in unfamiliar territory, especially if you rent cars in big cities, a good portable GPS makes an amazing difference. And the Garmin 255W is the best one I could find in the 0 - 0 range.

First this thing just plain works. I haven't had any issues with mine. It was easy to set up and figure out right out of the box, and it's easy to use. It never has had trouble getting sufficient signal unlike earlier and cheaper models.

I chose the 255W for several reasons: It uses some of the newest and best maps available. It has one of the more usable touch screens for entering destinations. It's fast to acquire satellites. And Garmin almost always comes out on top in reviews--especially in routing.

Ultimately, you buy a car GPS to get you from Point A to Point B as easily and efficiently as possible. And that's what the 255W does best. If you've ever had a "Brand X" GPS take you on some strange route that adds 20 minutes to your trip, has you turn the wrong way down a one way road, tell you to turn AFTER you've passed the street, frequently loses the satellite signal, or has old maps missing streets, you know how important this stuff is.

The 255W has a really clear display that's easy to see in any light. It's small enough to use on foot. The windshield mount works great and it's easy to toss in the glovebox when you park. It even tells you the speed limit on most roads. The "points of interest" feature works very well to find places to eat by type of cuisine, gas stations, etc.

The difference between the 255W and 205W is the 255 speaks street names and includes Alaska and Canada. The 205 and 205W will tell you to "turn right in 500 feet" which isn't as helpful or obvious as "turn right on Ivy Street in 500 feet". The "W" models are widescreen which makes entering destinations easier due to having a bigger "keyboard" and also lets you see more map area while driving.

All in all this isn't the cheapest GPS in its class but it's one of the best. My only gripe is you need an expensive add-on to get live traffic data--something that's included with the Magellan Roadmate 1430 which is close to the same price. But the Garmin 255W is a better GPS in every other way.

Review by S. Harrison:

The Garmin nuvi 285WT is a winner.

The case for the Garmin 285WT is sleek shiny black plastic. The case seems very sturdy - in fact all the pieces appear to be made of quality plastic. It comes with the power adapter for the car, and a USB cable to hook up to your computer. (Some of the less expensive Garmins do not come with the USB cable, which is a problem because you need a USB cable to register the unit.)

Pros:

The unit was extremely easy to set up. Upon first use, it guides you through set-up, which is simple. The icons on the screen are simple and intuitive. I started using it without even reading the directions.

After the initial settings are entered, it sets about finding the local satellites. I told it to skip that step, since I was just hooking it up to a wall charger (sold separately) to charge the batteries. Not only did it go ahead and find the satellites, it found them while sitting on my kitchen table. I don't know how it did that, but it did. There are green bars in the corner of the display showing you how many satellites have been acquired. There it was, displaying all four green bars after just a few minutes. That was impressive.

In the car, it locks onto the satellites extremely fast. It is much faster to find the signals than my friend's TomTom 910. To be fair, the TomTom is an older unit, but it was a much more expensive unit than the Garmin 285WT to begin with.

I am using the default voice. It is extremely clear and easy to understand. It has only messed up on one street name, as it assumed that N Street was the same as North Street. I am not in an area where there are street names in Spanish or other languages, so I have not had the chance to find out how well it deals with those. The voice is much more understandable than the voice in the TomTom 910 (I hope my friend doesn't read this...). (The TomTom also consistently mangled Spanish street names when we took a road trip to San Jose.)

If one drives past a turn that it has selected, the device instantly says "Recalculating," and immediately updates the directions. I missed a turn at night in a very dark area, (I would have had a hard time finding the alternative route) and it didn't miss a beat.

The display is extremely legible both in bright sunlight and at night. I had to turn the brightness down to the minimum because it was a bit too bright at night for my taste.

The plastic suction cup holds extremely well. Be sure to take the transparent protective film off of it before using. I have it mounted on a Gilsson UBM Portable Car Non-Skid Friction Beanbag Dashboard Mount for Garmin, TomTom, Magellan and more that has worked out quite well.

The 285WT comes with a feature that I really like called "Where Am I?" It's an emergency location feature - you can tap the screen to get your latitude and longitude. So if you get a flat tire out in the middle of the Mohave Desert, the tow truck from Trona will be able to find you. Assuming, of course, that tow trucks from Trona also have GPS devices.

Cons:

It gave me bad directions one time. It was a good thing I knew the area. Since I just got this unit, I don't know how often this sort of thing will happen. I am willing to forgive in this instance, because it seems to perform so well overall. (I don't know how forgiving I'd be if I had driven miles out of my way...)

Neutral:

This model is Bluetooth. I don't have a Bluetooth phone (I know, I know, I am using archaic technology...) so I couldn't test that feature.

The device also comes the MSN Direct (9 months free) which I found to be of very limited usefulness because I live in a rural area. I mean, c'mon, around here the 4H Club pancake breakfast at the volunteer fire department is a Big Deal, and MSN Direct is hardly going to tell me about things like that. I also don't have traffic concerns of the type that one would have in Los Angeles or San Francisco, for example. I also don't know why one needs a Doppler weather display on one's GPS, unless one is driving through Oklahoma in a thunderstorm during tornado season. It might be great for that, who knows?

If you live in an urban area, don't get too excited about MSN Direct, because Microsoft has already announced that they are killing it in 2012. It was originally developed for a device called a Smart Watch, which obviously hit the market with a big belly flop, or we'd all have one. More information can be found on MSN Direct and the planned demise thereof in an October 28, 2009 article at the PC World website.

All in all, I am extremely happy with this device, and recommend it without reservation. In fact, I am buying one for my son for Christmas.

Review by Timothy B. Riley:

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R33QA95VFJHMJ7 Over the years I have purchased over a dozen GPS receivers for myself and even more as gifts for family and friends. When I got a chance to use this new Garmin nuvi I jumped at it. Garmin is known for their ease of use and the 285WT is no exception. With the addition of MSN Direct, traffic and BlueTooth this is a real value in an entry to mid-level GPS.

Garmin makes a lot of different nuvi models and understanding the difference between them can be quite daunting. Essentially the nuvi 285WT and the 265WT are the same unit. They are both MSN compatible and NAVTEQ FM Traffic compatible. The difference is that the 285WT comes with the MSN receiver (with some free months, then a monthly charge util Jan. 2012 when the service will be discontinued) and the 265WT comes with the NAVTEQ receiver and free lifetime traffic (complete with pop-up ads when you use it). You can buy the NAVTEQ receiver for your 285WT at any time as well as buying the MSN receiver for a 265WT.

If you are a professional driver (limo, taxi, truck, delivery or route salesman) you might be better off with a higher end unit such as the Garmin 1690 (it will auto-sort multiple destinations and then provides the most direct route, lane guidance with junction view, the nuLink service and more) or the TomTom version, the 740 Live. If this is your first GPS, a gift for a new user or if you are upgrading from an older model, I think that this is an excellent choice.

No GPS is perfect and even the best is dependent on third party maps which are bound to contain some errors. Also, businesses open and close frequently so you need to use your own common sense (and even your sense of humor) at times. Having said this I find that having and using one is much better than not. I seldom get lost don't need to print out directions.

The only negatives that I found for the 285 WT is that I wish that the screen was bigger and that the body was thinner. Magellen has these features at this price point (and even lower). Also, I think that Lane Assist should be standard on all newer GPS receivers. All in all though most users would not miss these features and I recommend it for new users and up-graders. I hope that this short video review is helpful to you.

Garmin 010-11280-00 Portable Friction Dashboard Mount for nüvi Portable GPS

Review by Robert Mattes:

This is my first automobile GPS, and I did a lot of research before settling on the Garmin 780. I live in the Washington DC Metro area, so all of the extra features work here. Upon its arrival, I downloaded and installed the latest Garmin WebUpdater v.2.41 and then updated my 780 from software version 2.50 to 2.90. I also updated the Bluetooth and other firmware, along with the languages that I use. This all worked flawlessly in a Windows XP virtual machine on a Linux host. FWIW, the 780 will charge off of the supplied USB cable.

The 780 acquired the necessary satellites in just a few minutes when first activated, and does so in less than a minute for subsequent activations. I found the screen brightness to be fine for both day and night. I'm using the 780 with the Garmin Portable Friction Mount. Smashing windows and stealing GPS devices is the sport of choice in the DC Metro area, so I wanted no evidence of a GPS extant when I left the car. The friction mount works perfectly on my Honda Accord dashboard and stores easily in the center console, leaving no trace of a GPS behind. Very cool. The 780 easily fits in a shirt pocket, so it's not necessary to leave it in the car.

I tested the 780 immediately by driving during rush hour to a residence across the river in a tangle of park roads off of the beaten track, then returning at night. The Garmin had no trouble creating a very fast route to the destination that bypassed most of the heavy traffic during rush hour. On my return, I bypassed a turn on its preferred routing. It recalculated a new route in less than a second which was the exact right answer. The new route wasn't a recapture of the original route, which wasn't possible from that location, but an entirely new route. The routes it picked were appropriate for the times of day traveled, which can be a daunting task here if you don't know which roads go which direction during the appropriate rush hour. DC is a notoriously difficult area to navigate, but so far the Garmin seems up to the challenge.

I found the volume of the internal speaker to be more than adequate even with the radio, air conditioning, and windshield wipers going. Voice notifications led upcoming turns by an adequate amount, and the voice prompts always helped me get into the correct lanes in plenty of time for upcoming turns. During a particularly tricky section where several major roads converge on a bridge, then diverge on the other side, the Garmin gave almost constant appropriate guidance to ensure that I took the correct forks and turns. I was quite impressed.

The Bluetooth paired quickly with my Motorola Razr V3. It even provided its PIN code at the appropriate time. The phone functions work great and it's easy to hear over the 780 speaker. The party on the other side of the phone said that I sounded like I was in a tunnel, which is typical for remote devices for autos. I have another BT hands-free device and it garnered the same comments. The Garmin's on-screen phone cues make hands-free easy.

Activation of the MSN Direct service was simple over the Net. On initial activation of your free 3 month trial, they offer a 6-month extension for .95 which gets you to 9 months of service total for less than --a very good deal. MSN Direct information took a while to load the initial information, but then it said that in the Quick Start pamphlet. Once loaded, the traffic, weather, and news worked great. Gas prices were behind by several days, which is an eternity these days. My favorite (and cheapest) station wasn't listed.

Overall, I'm very happy with the 780. I'll be working it out heavily in the coming weeks, including on a road trip to another city with MSN Direct service. I can't believe that I waited this long to take the plunge to a GPS device for my car. Even though I'm a master with maps, the Garmin suggested a clever routing that I did not previously discover on my own. From what I've seen so far, the 780 will be a highly valued addition to my road warrior kit bag. I can recommend the 780 without reservation.

Review by D. Furlong:

I purchased a Sony NAVU-83T, a Garmin 680, and a Garmin 780 to compare their features and routing capability. I kept the 780 and returned the others, but it was a very difficult decision.

The Sony unit [...] at Costco, and has a 4.8" screen (1/2" larger!). It has one of the best user interfaces on the market, primarily due to a few things: 1) you can always get back to the map by pressing one button, regardless of where you are, 2) you can always get to the main menu by pressing one button, regardless of where you are in the menus, 3) it has a split screen function that gives you lane guidance visually so that you know which lane to get into, well before the turn, 4) it has shortcuts, for instance to GO HOME you make a V shape on the screen and it takes you home...no menu navigation required!

On the down side, the Sony took FOREVER to calculate or re-calculate routes, and in many cases I missed the newly recalculated turn because it took too long to figure it out. It also took longer routes than the Garmin, would avoid commonly used roads for no apparent reason, and would not take me down roads that were shown on the map and clearly the shortest route. Last of all, the Sony took forever to gain a satellite fix once turned on. And the Sony mount was soooo very cool and useful! For 9 you got the cool mount and a nice carrying case. I did not get a chance to use the TMC traffic service.

The Garmin 680 (9 at Costco) was a fine device, with very fast and accurate routing. It found points of interest quickly and accurately (the Sony often could not find them). However, I really liked the thin size of the 780 and the fact that the antennae was built in, so I kept the 780 in spite of the extra cost.

What do I like about the 780 (and the 680):

1. The MSN Direct is VERY handy and I use it every day for weather, news, fuel costs, and movie listings.

2. Very fast route calculations.

3. I have never looked for a POI that was not present.

4. The tour routes that you can download (for about each) are cool. You can take car tours of a few hours that are laid out for you, telling you where to visit along the route.

5. The ability to sort points along a route is handy. If you have 10 places to go in one day, enter them all in and it puts them in the most efficient order.

6. It can find rest areas on interstates. The Sony could NOT do this, which is annoying when you are trying to figure out if you should stop at a gas station or wait for a rest area when you have three kids in the car on long trip.

What would I change on the 780? Many things, and most of them would cost Garmin no money to implement. These are simple fixes that they should consider!

Bad Points of the Garmin 780:

1. If I go into the menu system, I can go 7 or 8 layers deep to get to what I want to do. To get back to the map, I have to keep pushing the "BACK" button, up to 8 times in a row, to get back to the map. Stupid!

2. If I go into a menu item and decide I'm done, but don't want to push "BACK" over and over, the unit stays on the menu or submenu screen forever.

3. It would seem that on a unit this expensive it could give you lane guidance. The Sony does. The Tom Tom does. Why can't this unit, at almost double the cost?

4. When you turn off the car the unit asks if it should stay on or turn off. If you don't answer, it turns off in 30 seconds. For people who are making deliveries, or running errands, this is a real pain. It would be nice to allow you to configure this once to set how long it should wait before turning the unit off (options like 1 minute, 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 20 minutes, for instance). This would allow you to run into Kinkos and back out again without having to wait for the unit to turn back on, get a satellite bearing, and then finally get to its map to tell you where to go next. Simple software change!

5. It would be nice to have the unit start up on the same screen where you left off. If you were on the map screen, then it should return to the map screen. If on the weather screen, then return to the weather. I like to keep it on the weather, but I have to hit about 6 different buttons every time I turn the unit on to get to the weather! Simple software change!

6. Most GPS units even at half this cost allow you to SEE your speed, direction, and target's relative direction while on the main map screen. This unit requires you to go to a dashboard screen to show you this information....so you have to choose the map or the dashboard to view. Since some people may not like this feature, it could be configurable. Simple software change!

7. I can't seem to figure out how to show the satellite signals/connectivity. ALL units have this, even though it is just for fun.

8. For 0 the Garmin should include a carry case for the unit. They sell it small size, light weight, and its "ability to know where you were when you take it out of the cradle, to help you find your car later", and yet don't give you way to carry it around safely. Just about every unit on the market, starting at the 9 units, include a case!

9. The 780 does NOT include an owners manual. You have to go online to view the manual, at garmin.com. Garmin may be surprised to know that not everyone has the internet (50% of homes don't). Although not perfect, the Sony included a fairly comprehensive start up guide and a CD based owners manual.

10. The display looks like a cartoon movie, and that causes a lack of detail. The Sony displayed a very concise map where you could actually identify road splits, acceleration lanes, etc.

11. There is no ability to show POIs on the map. You can route to one, but you can't just show them. The Sony allowed you to pick which POIs to show, and it actually showed you little BP, Shell, Cracker Barrel, etc. logos on the map so that you could know well ahead of time which POIs were near you.

12. Many units tell you how far to your next turn AND the direction you will be turning in. The Garmin tells you how far to the next turn, but it does not tell you which way to turn until you get within about 2/10 of a mile. So on most multi-lane roads I find myself staying in the middle lane as I get close so that I can go either way. It should warn you which way you will be turning at least a few miles in advance! As soon as you get onto any road the Sony tells you that your next turn is "LEFT 123 MILES", and it is always displayed on the main map. Handy. Simple software change!

I like the unit, but I only give it 3 stars because of its price, its lack of common sense features, and lack of "in the box" support. It's strong points are fast, accurate routing and MSN direct.

Review by mitch53:

I have this unit for 10 days now and overall I am very happy with it. For its mainstream feature, navigation, it is excellent. I had a Garmin 350 before this which I loved but it was stolen from my car. I had a Magellan after that which was crap. The price on this unit was great (7 - Amazon).

I chose it over the 1390T because I opted to not get bluetooth. It is the only difference between the units. I felt the bluetooth quality would be poor based on other reviews of bluetooth in general on GPS units. The main reason was in the way most people use bluetooth. In a typical day I am in and out of my car often. I always need my bluetooth immediately in case I get a call. I don't always need my GPS. And since my previous unit was stolen, and theft of these units is a big problem everywhere, I keep the unit hidden or sometimes remove it from the car. So if you are like me but you get this unit for bluetooth, you will need to stop and mount your gps everytime you get in the car whether you need it or not, just to have blue tooth capability. If you forget and the cell phone rings, you have no bluetooth. So I purchased a separate bluetooth speaker phone from Jabra (very good unit# which is always attached to my visor, pretty good quality, and always there when I need it. I saved about by opting for the 1350T over the 1390T.

A few minor disappointments. The Lane Assist feature works great but is not available everywhere. I used it around NYC and it was helpful. I drove through Pennsylvania and upstate NY and it was not available. Marketing material hypes this feature but they neglect to tell you this one point. But when it is available, it is a great feature. That brings me to traffic. Same story here. I was driving through PA and hit a 1 hour traffic jam. No warnings from the traffic feature because it was not available in that area. When I got to the Scranton, PA area the traffic alerts started working. It alerted me of a major traffic jam ahead and it even rerouted my trip automatically. The reroute would have been a significant addition in miles but would be worth it to avoid the traffic, right? I decided to ignore the re-route just to test the unit to see if the alert was accurate and I was willing to endure the traffic. As I drove my original route, no traffic anywhere. So had I listened to the traffic alert, I would have driven 50 miles out of my way for nothing. Bottom line is, don't let the traffic feature be a deal breaker for the unit you choose. But then again, I got the 1350T for about the same price as the 1350 #same unit without traffic). Updating the map was more difficult than it should have been. I consider myself a very technical person with computers and gadgets but the map update did not go smoothly and took me several tries. I could see where many people will have difficulty with this if they attempt to update the map.

Review by Charles E. Sherwood:

Let me be perfectly clear...I really like my new Garmin 1350T GPS.

The only difficulty I had after taking it out of the box and charging it for the first time was a problem in having the GPS "easily "recognize" exactly what available screen (option/letter/number, etc.) that I was "pointing" to on the touchscreen. I thought I had a defective unit so I contacted Garmin's free Tech Support. The technician took me through an easy, yet undocumented (to me at least) calibration procedure that only took a minute or so. Since then the unit has performed as advertised.

Also...You NEED to have a cable with a standard USB connection on one end & a Mini-USB connection on the other end. Garmin DOES NOT automatically include this cable in the box along with the 1350T. Without this cable, you can't connect this GPS to your computer in order to register it online or receive your free updated (if available) mapping or operational software.

Be advised also that not ALL USB/Mini-USB cables are alike. These cables may all LOOK the same but there really are TWO different types. One will only let electric current through in order to charge your internal GPS battery, while the other will not only charge the battery, BUT WILL ALSO carry data back and forth between your computer and the 1350T. Be sure to obtain the kind of cable that can perform BOTH functions.

Review by Derek:

Was exactly what I was looking for. Widescreen unit that spoke the actual street name at a budget price. Was originally shopping on auction websites but Garmin's 1 year warranty doesn't support refurbished units sold on auction websites. Was also scared about it being a refurbished unit, but so far no issues. I've updated the software and downloaded the latest maps, all without issue. Doesn't come in a fancy retail box, but does include the mount and suction cup. Based on my experience, I would recommend the unit to a friend.

Review by sassytexasgirl:

I expected this unit to be able to help me find the best routes, points of interest, etc. It's relatively intuitive to use, and, unlike a competing brand (which I sent back) was able to find it's initial location immediately, with great ease. I'm having a lot of fun with it as I'm learning how to use it. Some of the reviews I had read thought the voice on the text-speech feature irritating. I LIKE it. The tone and pitch are right on for my ears. Also, it's able to pronounce what I consider to be difficult street names with ease and precision. The nicest surprise about it is that this little navigator is able to tell you the speed limit for EVERY street or highway you're on, as well as show you how fast you are going relative to the speed limit. That's more valuable to me than a radar detector would be. It also tells you your anticipated arrival time, which it adjusts for traffic slow downs. The 255W has a 4.3 inch screen, which is quite easy to see from my dashboard as I'm driving. Don't try to change menus or find points of interest while you are driving!! This is more distracting than texting while driving. You will need to pull over to find these things, unless you have a passenger who can help you with this. This limitation would disappear if it could accept voice commands. All things considered, this unit is perfect for my needs at this time. It's also portable and can slip into my purse with ease when I am walking in an unfamiliar area. My only wish would be that it had bluetooth connectivity, but that's an easy work-around with a bluetooth earpiece.

Review by R. Toro:

I have had this unit for about 8 months. It has given me no problems what so ever. The bad thing about it for me is how basic it is. If you want bluetooth compatibility, traffic updates, movie times, etc on your GPS, then this is not the device for you. But if all you want is to get around and find places, then this unit will work well.

The price seems a little high right now for what it does (0). For that price I would expect bluetooth compatibility. This unit does not say the road names, it just says turn left or turn right in 200 feet(not a big deal). When you look places up, it has their phone number and address (usually) which is nice because if its late at night, you can call first to see if they are still open.

This GPS has an SD card reader on the side, which can be used to view pictures in slideshow mode when you don't need the unit for navigation.

The screen is very bright during the day, so you can easily see the screen. And a nice feature is that when it gets dark, the screen automatically changes colors to 'night' mode, which helps when driving at night (the screen dims and the bright white background colors change to dark blues and blacks).

The trip features are nice. It keeps track of your average speed, how long you spent moving, how long you spent stopped, total travel time, how many miles you've gone, etc.

It takes about a minute to a minute and a half to find your location from a cold start, but if you leave it powered all the time (with a car in which the cig lighter stays on when you turn the car off) it never loses the location (not sure if that is bad for it).

The battery life is very good (about 4-5 hours).

There are many add-ons that a technologically advanced person can add to it. Such as custom points of interest (you can download them or even make your own, and you can set alerts so that it warns you when you are close to a certain place or when you are speeding in a school zone). You can add different vehicle icons to use as the car on the screen.

Overall, it is a decent, but very basic navigation device. Not many bells or whistles, but it gets you from point A to point B well.

Review by Brian Morris:

I have owned a Garmin c320 for a few years now and was looking for some new features, like coordinates and altitude. I first bought the TomTom 330 XL, which was a disaster. After lots of research, I bought this and kept it. Here is my long list of pros and cons:

PROS:

1. Best routes. (See my cons) This may be one of the main reasons Garmin dominates in the US -- good routing. Of course, I wish it had more a brain and could think about traffic lights and general traffic in certain areas at certain times (not actual traffic reporting), but I guess needing brains is good.

2. Where Am I? (See my cons) This will list your nearest street address. In this screen it also shows altitude and your coordinates.

3. Easier broad map access. On my c320, you had to dig in the menus to find a broad map view, so you could touch areas on the map and go to it. On the 205w, you can just touch the map while driving and it will take you to the broad map. You can then touch an area that you want to make a Via Point and change your route that way.

4. Speed Limit sign. You can set it up to show the current speed limit on the screen. It has been super accurate to the instant of a speed limit change in real driving. If the sign is missing on the screen, you also then know that it doesn't really know how to calculate arrival time from the road. You may want to use that information to take or avoid that road on your next trip.

5. Very compact. My c320 was much bigger, so this is super small.

CONS:

1. Touchscreen. This may change as I use it, but the touchscreen is no where near as sensitive as my c320. It requires some hard touching. It also shows fingerprints much worse than my old GPS unit.

2. Ball mount. This gives a better range of motion than the mount on my c320, but it feels like I need to push really hard on my GPS unit to get it to snap in. This may change in age, too.

3. Keyboard speed. When I'm typing in a city, street, etc., the keyboard is a full QWERY keyboard, which is an improvement over my c320 (I think you can choose ABC keyboard), but there are two things I don't like: 1) there is a delay from when you type to when it shows, so if you type fast, you can't see what you're typing, if you make a mistake, you don't see if very fast; 2)the spacebar is tiny and way off to the right, while dumb menus are in the bottom middle -- very annoying!!

4. Charging cord. On my c320, the charging cord would plug into the mount and there wasn't a charge jack in the GPS unit itself. This was nice because you could leave the power cord in the mount all the time and take the GPS with you - you never had to plug in, just clip the GPS in and out. Now, the power cord won't stay put and it falls out the door, etc. because it must be plugged into the back of the GPS. I suppose with the mount the way it is, it's not possible to have a jack in the mount and GPS, but I think they should work on that.

5. Current road. The TomTom XL 330 did show what road you are currently on and what the next road to turn onto was. Garmin only shows the next road name.

6. Routing pet peeve. Sometimes I won't want to take its routing because I know of a better way. Let's say I turn off of the normal route -- it will recalculate and have a shorter time than before I turned. What's up with that? Why didn't it take me that way to begin with?

6. Routing choices. I don't like the fact that I can choose either Fastest Time or Shortest Route. I would imagine that some of the time, the best route would be in between those to extremes.

7. Missing POIs. There are just so many cases where I'll be looking for something and it's not in the Garmin -- even for stores and restaurants open for years. I know you'll have this will all GPS units, but for the #1 seller in the US, can't they figure out a way to get the users involved? How about incentives for users to fix problems online and give them discounts on map updates? If you have the best maps and POIs by far, why would anyone buy any other company?

8. Tinny speaker. I'm not impressed with the speaker, it is much worse sounding than the deep c320, but you can hear it. It's just not pleasant.

9. Voice choices. It would be nice to choose your voice, but I don't see that option, unless you choose another language.

10. Nearest intersection. This is within the "Where Am I" place in the menu. It could be very useful in an emergency to have the nearest intersection in addition to the nearest address. However, I've found that they should have labeled it, "random intersection within a few miles." It will generally show me a major intersection, and sometimes ignore dozens of closer small intersections that would be much more beneficial to the police, fire, ambulance, etc.

11. Volume. I hate how they have the volume setup. On the c320 there was a wheel on the side of the unit -- that's best. On the TomTom, there was a place on the main driving screen that you touched and then moved the volume slider. On this 205W, you must hit Menu, Volume, move it, then back, then View Map. This is just awful. I want a Mute button on the driving screen and a separate volume button there, too. This is widescreen after all. I hope this doesn't cause accidents, because I think it will. When I answer my phone, I want fast access to mute!

12. Need customization! Let me choose 3 shortcut buttons for the driving map view. That way I can put Where Am I, Volume, and POI on the main screen. Please!! I also want to change my route color to red instead of light purple.

13. POI choices. This is something I've never found a GPS that does this how I want it. If I'm looking for gas or food, it is usually on a long trip. If I want to go to fast food, let's say (that wouldn't happen!), I would choose Restaurant, Fast Food. It will show me all the restaurants by how far they are from me now. That's not what I want, so I choose Near...My Current Route. That's closer to what I want, but it still shows how far it is from where I am now. I want it to show me that, but also how far I'd have to deviate from my route.

[UPDATE 6/5/09] 14. Battery life. The battery life is just awful in my unit. It might last a few hours, and if it is sitting idle for a couple weeks, it's almost dead. My c320's battery was far superior. It has been this way since it was new. I suppose mine could be defective..

Overall, this is an excellent unit and I would buy it again because I believe the Pros outweigh the Cons and no competitor has yet beat it.

[UPDATE 3/18/10] I'm still using this and it's working well, except for the battery life. I did find that you can add the EcoRoute features if you upgrade your firmware from Garmin's website. Sorry, I can't post instructions, but the feature is very cool. You add your car's miles per gallon and the current gas price and it tells you how much it will cost to get to your destination, along with other features.