Looked around a long time and settled in the TomTom. Haven't regreted it. Great liitle unit and far and away cheaper than anything comprable. I have the 300, but I'm sure the 700 does just as well. They both have bluetooth connectivity for an array of services, but the 700 allows for calling in/out. Go with the TomTom. Looks great in the car to.

 

I've been comparing different NAV models and had pretty much decided on the Tom Tom Go 300. I was checking their website to see how much maps of europe were gonna cost me and whatta ya know. The car they show in their accesory section is a Mini! Well now i'm definitely getting the Tom Tom!:smile:

 

Be sure to check out Overstock.com! They have a good deal on a Garmin 2610, which I bought last year (from getfeetwet.com). Here's the link:

http://www.overstock.com/?page=proframe&prod_id=1654467

I love my Garmin!

 

on the drive home from the inlaws, i picked up a garmin nuvi c350.
i was torn between that and the more tweaky garmin streetpilot 2720
or the tomtom go 700.

since i travel a lot, the form factor and internal battery of the nuvi
was really appealing. i was able to find and mark several locations
that i needed to travel to while riding on the airplane. the c350
automatically turns off the gps reciever when the antenna is folded
down. this turned out to be great since i got sent to honolulu
for a TDY assignment and was able to attach the nuvi to the windshield
and proceed directly to the hotel without hooking any additional power cables.

also since the nuvi is so small, i could easily attach the suction mount
to the face of the central speedo in my mini. it hasn't fallen off yet!!

the SIRF III gps chip acquires satellites quickly even from this non-optimal
location in my mini. (it's minutes faster getting a lock than my old gps III+)


the nuvi has other useful pda-like features like the mp3 player, picture viewer,
bilingual translator, etc. it's neat that it can provide voice directions,
play an mp3 and do a slideshow simultaneously!!

(i've got it plumbed via the headphone jack into the aux input for the mini
and it automatically pauses the mp3 player when ever it gives directions.)

the Text To Speech (TTS) feature is great since it actually will speak
the street names for all the turns.

the maps seem to be quite good (better than the current ttg 700 maps
for my home area, although judging by the teleatlas maps currently
used by mapquest, tomtom's maps will be quite improved for the
next map update).

if they only provided better mac support for the firmware updates, it would
be a slam dunk. (all the mp3, audible audio books, jpegs are directly supported on the mac.
it's just the firmware update program is very pc-centric, which is bad since
it appears to be a zip archive with the update files and a minor program
which copies them to the right location on the nuvi)

 

I just bought the wife Tom Tom 300 for her hoopty. I did a bit of research, and while I can't recall it off the top of my head, I do believe the ONLY thing different between the $550 300, and $700 700, is the CPU. It looks as if the 700 will crunch numbers twice as fast.

I know for a fact that you can still download traffic through your phone/bluetooth connection on the 300... But I'm not sure about the ability to 'call in and out' through the 300.

Newegg.com has the 300 for $549 w/ $50 rebate & a year of free traffic.

 

Don't know if this helps anyone as well, but Amazon is having a sale on the Garmin x320 for $399

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...onics&v=glance

 

Dooood! I want one of those! Do you think Bea will mind if we open the box and "test" it out?

 

She already opened it and played with it a bit, though she's not installed it.

Don't see why not.

 

fluff?

Like announcing the street name?

IE "turn right on south washington avenue" instead of simply "turn right"

This is a HUGE help if you drive in cities where streets are right after one another. I have a 760, and have used a 700, there is no comparison.

 

Just wanted to mention that I picked up the Nuvi 350 around Xmas & have been very happy with it. I chose it over the TomTom given that the maps are supposedly better (which may or may not be the case in the future -- think I read that TomTom signed some new agreement with another map provider?); the screen is brighter & more legible; & it's got the SirfIII chipset.

I'm also using it attached to the center speedo, it's possible to position it so that pretty much all the speedo is visible, except for maybe the turn signal light & speeds over 160+ etc...! I like this location much better than the windshield.

Anyway, it's worked as advertised. Brain-dead simple UI, great features that allow you to search for many different categories of stuff (i.e. search for closest gas station, restuaurant (by type of cuisine), shopping mall, landmark, park, amusement park, bar, computer store, etc. etc.!) and also search by name -- so you could search for "home depot" & it'll tell you where the nearest one is.

Text to speech works well, voice and visual indicators are easy to follow... aside for the steep price, I've got no complaints at all.

 

When will the TomTom One be available in the US? I really want to get one asap.

 

I purchased a Garmin 2610 on the web for $600 new (i'll try and find the site and post it).

This thing is perfect. No cd's or monthly fee's, it's all via sat. The only issue is when you are driving through a built up area with tall buildings on either side (like philly, or NY) you do lose signal, but it still has the road mapped out on the screen, so you just have to follow by looking at the screen rather than listening to the thing tell you were to go.

I mounted mine to the left of the wheel on the dash (see pics), and it's ALWAYS picks up the sats without any problems.

PICS:

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...0&ppuser=17773

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...0&d=1122241072

 

Did you stick it right to the dash, muppetmandan?

I picked up an external antenna and put it where the dash and windscreen meet, right in the middle, and it definitely helps reception, but I've got mine mounted down next to the radio. I've actually had some problems with the external antenna, and I'll probably send the GPS and antenna in to Garmin next week. Two weeks ago, I lost all satellites as soon as I got into Chicago (not exactly an opportune time); worked again (with the usual diminished reception) once I unplugged it. It's working again with the antenna attached, now. Maybe my GPS doesn't like Chicago?

 

Yes i stuck it right to the dash, It's out of the way and doesn't cause any blind spots. I have never even thought about getting an external antena, as i never have sat issues.

This GPS is the best that money can buy. Not as big or funky shaped as the Magelin (i think thats how you spell it...lol), and it's cheaper if you look around.

Plus i'm from england and moved to the states a few years ago, so having it talk to me in the english accent is a reminder of home

 

I've got mine speaking in the British accent; adds a touch of authenticity to the experience. Too bad they don't have English with a German accent, however. ;-)

I haven't played with any of the newer StreetPilot models, like the 2720; the displays look nicer, but I think they got dumbed-down some from the 2610.

 

I have to admit, that i have looked at other models since i have had my 2610 but it's been because of curiosity and nothing else. I wouldn't change this unit for anything. The newer ones have 3D graphics and a few other features, but in my eyes that's just more things to distract you or more things to go wrong on the unit.

The 2610 is simple to use with easy non distracting/confusing graphics. But the thing i like the most is the size. It's not to big, and not to small. Some of the other ones i have seen are really big, and then it makes me laugh when i see people using the window mount and put it right in the middle of the wind shield. How do these people see!!!!!!:impatient

 

Does anyone have V Command voice navigation,wondered how you liked it.

 

I just picked up a Axim x51v and got the Tom Tom PDA software for it. My next step is figuring out which mount to get. Does anyone have any pics of the Pro Clip mounts on the passenger downtube or either of the two Kuda mounts?

Both solutions seem to be about the same price, I'd just like to go with the one that is less bulky (they made be the same size wise).

 

A guy here in Indy took the Factory Big Gulp holder (05-06) and modified it to fit his PDA/phone. Supposedly his passengers don't complain about hitting their legs on it.

 

Have used many, currently have the OEM on my 03 MCS, but am not ordering OEM on my 06 MCSC.
Here is what I am hoping to find on aftermarket units.
Am considering Lowrance, Garmin, TomTom...
1. Smart address entry - as you enter a name, letters that cannot come next are greyed out.
2. Change route preference on the fly - you've entered a route and are driving, but now you want to change from fastest to shortest or to no highway, etc. without having to re-enter the route.
3. No external antenna needed.
4. Super bright screen for use in a ragtop on a sunny day!
5. SHows the street you are on as part of the normal display. (In Connecticut, there are no street signs!! It's hard to know where you are! In fact, the great new feature people rave about - the voice telling you the name of the street - might as well disable in in CT - you won't know which street that is!! ;-)

I have read very good reviews about Lowrance, and their origins in marine navigation make me think the screen will be readable in the sun.

Please provide any up-to-date info you can.
(BTW - don't need mp3, bluetooth, photos, etc...just damn good nav!)

Thanks all.

P.S. don't like Magellan based on the units I've used in Hert cars.)

 

zz, my Garmin StreetPilot 2610 fits the bill perfectly. You may need an external antenna, however. I've got mine mounted down by the river -- I mean, down by the radio -- like so:


It works pretty well there, but I stuck an external antenna on the roof a couple of weeks ago, and the difference in reception is night and day. Best $25 I've spent in a while.

Display's nice and bright, you can recalculate the route on the fly, add via points, search a pretty massive POI database, all that. The name entries (such as street, POI, &c) are "smart", as you call them, and you can choose to display your current address as one of the data fields. I bought mine refurbished for about $500, but there are newer versions with this form factor (SP 27xx) with a higher-resolution display, traffic integration, yadda yadda. I use mine daily and love it.