Garmin n�vi 360 reviewed

If you're looking for a nav unit that has a dash of everything and no major digs (aside from the price), the Garmin nüvi 360 just might do the trick. Although the nüvi lineup has been a tad expensive from the get-go, it packs a lot of desirable traits into a portable package, and PC Mag has slapped their Editor's Choice tag on Garmin's latest unit. While not drastically different than the well-received nüvi 350, the 360 was given a pat on the back for the inclusion of Bluetooth and the ability to double as a speakerphone. While the built-in maps, excellent 3.5-inch LCD screen, intuitive GUI features, and pocket-sized design were briefly praised, the bulk of the critique was spent on the most noticeable upgrade. Reviewers raved over the ability to call a restaurant or landmark via Bluetooth with just the press of an on-screen button, and felt that the the only shortfall in the wireless integration was the slightly poor voice quality while speaking from a distance. Adding even more pizazz, the nüvi 360 switches from navigating to a caller ID screen when it detects an incoming call so you can see if potentially veering off course is worth burning those precious peak minutes. Aside from a few minor software nuisances, PC Mag couldn't find any reason to dislike the NAV, and although this isn't the cheapest tour guide on the block at about $900, the Bluetooth integration on an already solid unit could make for some pretty happy campers.

[Anthony N Evans @ Aug 2nd 2006 10:58AM]

I bought one of these the other week.
It's been great.
Someone on Amazon said it had issues picking up satelitte signal after emerging from a tunnel.
I had no such issue after leaving the Big Dig tunnels in Boston.

The interface couldn't be easier.
There is just about every feature you would need for travelling on the road.

I have yet to use the Bluetooth functionality.

As my first GPS device - I was surprised that the battery time was so low.
I'm not sure what other devices are like.
I estimate it at around 3 hours of use with GPS turned on with a full charge.
This shouldn't be an issue for most as it includes a cigarette lighter adapter/charger for the car.

It's a great little portable device.
I am very happy with my purchase.

[nimro @ Aug 2nd 2006 11:00AM]

TomTom has BT and speakerphone too? and syncs with your phone?

[rrogers @ Aug 2nd 2006 11:19AM]

And Tom Tom includes maps for both the US and for Europe. (An intelligent thing to do for a travel gadget) Garmin will gouge you another $495 to add coverage for Europe. The Nuvi pricing is ridiculous.

[rrogers @ Aug 2nd 2006 11:29AM]

Sorry $350 for the maps for Europe. Still too pricey

[NCTRNL @ Aug 2nd 2006 11:41AM]

I'm sorry, the Tom Tom might include the maps of Europe as well but they use a sub-par mapping vendor, TeleAtlas. Garmin uses Navteq which has long been the standard in vector mapping.

Also, the TomTom is fat. You can't and wouldn't carry it around with you. Also...have you ever USED a TomTom? Those things are ridiculously hard to use. The POI feature is basically worthless on those units and forget about hearing anything on the Bluetooth Speaker Phone. It's horrible.

I use a nüvi 360 every day. It does EVERYTHING.

[Vicki @ Aug 2nd 2006 12:12PM]

I have been using my Nuvi 360 Personal Travel Assistant for a couple of weeks now and other than the battery issue (I doubt I'll see anything like the 4 - 6 hours, more like 1 to 2, it's been all I could ask for. The size and usability are incredible and if it takes more than a moment to find a location it's because of my input (wrong spelling for example). I paid $750 for mine with overnight shipping. Considering this unit ships with the latest maps (July of 06 I believe) I didn't find the price to be out of line and my friends with Tom Tom's, after looking the Nuvi over, said they wished they had waited and bought the Nuvi instead.
I have yet to really test it PTA features but as a GPS it's first rate.

[Scoobydoo @ Aug 2nd 2006 12:15PM]

NCTRNL; whatever are you talking about? TomTom has the defacto interface that pretty much every other vendor has ripped off. Way before Garmin moved away from their Streetpilot devices TomTom had their Go series and Garmin was getting its ass kicked. The TomTom is indeed larger, but at $400 cheaper (or almost $900 if you add the European maps onto the Garmin) you really can't ignore how attractive the TomTom is.

I disagree on your statement about Teleatlas maps, I've done side by side comparisons of a Navteq device and Teleatlas; and both are almost identitcal, it all comes down to how recent the map build is. Given all your incorrect statements about the TomTom I'd almost think you work for Garmin. The speakerphone is great, their POI database is amazing AND can be updated online and is IMHO easier to use than the Nuvi.

Then of course there is also the home dock, and an optional ipod interface. I also don't understand why everyone loves how small the Nuvi is; I install my nav and never take it along with me...

[Christopher D. Pesce @ Mar 26th 2007 4:38PM]

I carefully considered the tom tom 910 and the nuvi 360. I almost bought the 910. Then the reviews about the poor functioning, and the difficult to use interface disuaded me. Also, it is a lot fatter, You install your navs and dont carry them because you cant! It's nice to take the bride to a show in the city, and when you park your car-take the nav with you. first because the valet cant steal it, and second because you always know where the best place to get a cup of coffe is. I often use it not to nav but as a sort of yellow pages in my pocket.

[Jay @ Aug 2nd 2006 12:52PM]

I've used the Tom Tom w/BT and the Alpine Blackbird recently. Now I own the Nuvi 360. There is absolutely no comparission in terms of speed, route accuracy, and general usage. The Nuvi wins hands down. Tom Tom's TeleAtlas maps are horrible. It's not even worth owning a GPS when the maps are that bad. The Alpine Blackbird looked cool and had great controls but was worthless to use. It was the slowest GPS I've ever seen in terms of satellite lock-on and route calculation. If you missed a turn and it had to recalculate it would lock up half the time.

[Yaya @ Aug 2nd 2006 1:03PM]

Is this thing a PDA too?

[Whydrive @ Aug 2nd 2006 1:09PM]

While Navteq has more accurate U.S. maps than Teleatlas, the reverse is true in Europe. You can't say Teleatlas is a subpar vendor as both vendors have their strengths and weaknesses. This has been discussed in countless threads already.

I own a TT 910 and have compared it to a friend's Nuvi 350. The Nuvi definitely has a great form factor, though for most folks that leave a GPS in the car, size isn't much of an issue. I did find the Nuvi to have a faster interface than the TT. However, I found TT's trip/itinerary planning to be vastly superior than the Nuvi. When I used the TT in Europe, it worked flawlessly. If I just needed a GPS for just U.S., I would've considered the Nuvi. However, I needed European coverage and the Nuvi priced itself out of consideration.

[NCTRNL @ Aug 2nd 2006 1:19PM]

I'm sorry but NO ONE has ripped off TomTom's interface. That's the only part of the device that hasn't been ripped off. In the GO 700 that I have used, the Speakerphone was horrible as well. You couldn't hear the person you were talking to at all. TomTom has gotten by on their looks. That's fine. There's a lot to be said about that...

[Anthony N Evans @ Aug 2nd 2006 1:20PM]

Scoobydoo-
"I also don't understand why everyone loves how small the Nuvi is; I install my nav and never take it along with me..."

You just answered your own question-like statement.

I bought a Nuvi because I travel a lot and cannot guarantee a rental with a GPS system everywhere I go. I can bring the Nuvi with me by placing it in my shirt pocket with addresses and numbers pre-loaded. It makes life so much more simple.

[Gmoney @ Aug 2nd 2006 1:21PM]

Why do all you fanboys fight so hard for the device that you own. You act like these companies pay you money to defend their products. Here is the real deal on the Nuvi 360. I've owned many gps devices including Tom Tom on a Dell x51v. I wanted an all in one solution and I saw great reviews on the Nuvi. Everyone raved about it. I bought it and found out that is was the best $900 ever spent. It's overpriced for sure, but it's an awesome piece of hardware. The interface is a tad bit simpler than TOM TOM, but neither are hard to use by any means. I'd give the edge to Garmin there. There seems to be less quirks on the Garmin than on Tom Tom. I'd recommend the TOM TOM over the Nuvi as a better value, but if you have the cash, The Nuvi is superior. It's just very polished and just works. At the end of the day, the Tom Tom is a better value and the Nuvi is a better device.

[NCTRNL @ Aug 2nd 2006 1:22PM]

Another thing...why would you EVER leave your GPS in your car? That's ridiculous unless it's an in-dash system...

http://redtape.msnbc.com/2006/07/theives_leave_t.html

[Jay @ Aug 2nd 2006 1:43PM]

Gmoney - I don't think there are any "fanboys" posting. The comments have been from people owning multiple GPS's. The fanboys are people who buy their first GPS and then argue about it being the best when they haven't even used a different one. The reason the inferior GPS units continue to sell is because people assume that's just how GPS's are and deal with it. When you use something like the NUVI you realize how much better they can be. I've used several Tom Tom GPS's and NONE of them have compared to the NUVI in overall operation.

[Gmoney @ Aug 2nd 2006 2:00PM]

Jay, fanboys are everywhere. It's hard to tell who they are by your definition because we are on the net and you don't know who truly owns a device. So my definition is a person who fights so vigorously hard to prove that one product is superior to another. I prefer the Nuvi but the Tom Tom will get you from point A to point B relatively easy. Not everyone can afford the best gps, there are some that need a device to get them where they need to go and that's it. The Tom Tom fits the bill there. There are devices that can do this for half the cost of the Nuvi. It's all about what it's worth for you. For me, I have the cash and the better experience was worth it for me to purchase the Nuvi. I've had devices in the past that did the job just fine.

[David @ Aug 2nd 2006 2:28PM]

Wonder how this thing compares to the Pioneer Avic-S1. Virtually same specs (down to the Navteq), but the S1 is available from discount retailers for $450-ish. Thoughts? Considering the purchase of a GPS unit, and BlueTooth is a critical decision point, so all three (S1, TT910, and Nuvi 360) are all in the running.

So far what I'm hearing is the Nuvi 360 trumps with form factor, interface and speed (can only assume the S1 would be similar), which the TT910 is better for those of us who cross the pond regularly. Hmmm.

[Bob @ Aug 2nd 2006 2:43PM]

I have the 350 and I bought it because it is truly portable and can run off the battery, unlike many other units that are tied to your cigarette lighter. Additionally, what did it for me was that it also shows actual coordinates, so it can be used very easily for geo-caching in addition to its standard function for road trip planning. I found no other portable that could provide full voice mapping and long. and lat. coords. I presume the 360 still includes this feature.

[RB @ Aug 2nd 2006 2:53PM]

Jay - As the manager for one of the 5 largest online vendors of GPS units, I've probably used every GPS unit in existence (that includes handhelds, fixed-mount marine, automotive units, etc...)In regards to automotive units, the NUVI is hands-down the best unit (U.S.) I've ever used. It has the correct balance of utility, ease-of-use, and map accuracy perfect for automotive use.

It also vastly outsells Tom Tom for us. Although that may only be an indication of how effective Garmin's marketing may be, the TELLING indicator is how many returns we get (because of quality control issues as well as just overall satisfaction): Tom Toms are returned every day (the returns department is littered with them); the day a NUVI is returned is rare and one of significance (I have to determine which of our employees gets the golden ticket and can purchase the return for the open-box price plus employee discount).

I still have to qualify what I've said by saying the Tom Tom is a great value for people who can't afford the NUVI as the "perfect" product is still a function of both quality and price. But if money is not an issue, the NUVI is the best unit out there.

[rm @ Aug 2nd 2006 4:11PM]

I've been looking at GPS units for my car, and one thing that I find lacking in units with a screen, is that they dont allow you to connect the receiver to another device via USB or Bluetooth or whatever and send out NMEA sentences
If I'm wrong, please correct me. That is a feature I would like and I can't seem to find it mentioned anywhere

[o rly @ Aug 2nd 2006 4:32PM]

NCTRNL : "I use a nüvi 360 every day. It does EVERYTHING."

Does it let you watch divx, xvid, mpg, wmv files? How about wav or ogg support?
Does it drive you to your destination by reading your thoughts? I didn't think so, so it DOES NOT DO EVERYTHING.

[Model 62 @ Aug 2nd 2006 4:37PM]

... on an already solid unit could make for some pretty happy campers.

Some pretty lost campers, perhaps. The Nuvi doesn't work with Garmin's Topographic Maps. Don't wander too far from the highway!

[Andy @ Aug 2nd 2006 5:01PM]

I bought my Nuvi 350 about 6 weeks ago. I loved it until this past weekend, when it suddenly shuts off while I was using it. Since then, I've been able to turn it on maybe half the time and it only stays on for a few seconds.

I tried calling Garmin Monday morning, busy signal. Emailed them instead, still waiting for a reply more than 48 hours later.

If you get one, better hope it doesn't break. Lousy support so far.

[Erik @ Aug 2nd 2006 5:18PM]

nimro:
Garmin 360 also has Bluetooth you can use with your phone. Specs and info on the site here: http://www.garmin.com/products/nuvi360/

[John Sununu @ Aug 2nd 2006 7:47PM]

I live in Chicago and have the Nuvi 350. The maps are often wrong (tries to take me the wrong way on one-way streets), and I can't count the number of times it's taken me to closed businesses and restaurants. Clearly both the maps and the POI database is outdated.

[rrogers @ Aug 2nd 2006 7:51PM]

Wow. I stirred up quite a debate with the Tom Tom comparison. A very informative one I might add. Thanks for the feedback from you Nuvi owners. What annoyed me most about the Garmin's price was forgetting implementation, looking purely at a cost of goods of what is in the device, the Garmin is a total rip off. Its guts are essentially the same as the TomTom, LESS A 20GB HDD. But we live in a capitalist society and the rule is, "charge what the market will pay". Don't get me wrong.... I love the form factor of the Nuvi its just for the price they are charging they could of added European maps and had a totally awesome product and still made a ton of profit.

[John Sununu @ Aug 2nd 2006 7:52PM]

Let me add that the ETA timing is way too optimistic. It doesn't consider lights or stop signs, but appears to assume you are going constantly at the maximum allowed speed. I used to have a Navman that was much more predictable.

[opcode @ Aug 2nd 2006 7:58PM]

I bought this Nuvi 360 a week back. My friend works for Garmin and I was lucky to get a good discount. Before buying it I tried it for 3 weeks. I also tried street pilot c330/c340. Nuvi 360 is just supurb. I was also helped by my well informed friend. Whoever is buying GPS navigation make sure of the following.

1. Buy with latest Sirf III high sensitive GPS receiver. C330 was losing sattelite even when mounted on wind shield. But Nuvi catches signal even if I hide it near my leg.

2. Buy a unit which has text to speech capabality. Intesad of listening to turn right in 200 meters an estimating the distance, " In 200 mts turn right on North Oak street" makes a huge difference. Its a must have.

3. Buy a unit with latest map. No matter how good the unit is, if map data is bad, it is useless. Nuvi ships with latest version 8 of city navigator. It has enough memory to hold full US and canada map. Never buy something which you have to download maps.

4. I can just put this inside my pocket and walk. I can sore my car park location in a hugh parking lot and go back. Two of my frinds lost (stolen) their GPS when the left it in the car.

5. Sun light readable bright screen. Try looking at the screen in bright sun.

6. It has 800 mb free space and an SD card slot. You can store your MP3s. Hook up an FM tranmitter and now it works with car speakers. I have an iPod but it will not stop playing music while I have to heaar turn sigmnals. Nuvi does....

7.I gave my not so tech savvy uncle to enter an address. He finds it difficult to even send an email from his computer. He had never ever heard of GPS thing before. Guess what??? He entered address without any problem. UI is awesome.

8. Not to forget wow...cuuuutteee..things you get from people when you show off..

Hope this helps..

[wade @ Aug 2nd 2006 8:06PM]

Sununu-
It's interesting that Chicago maps are buggy -- Navteq is based in Chicago. I would guess they have above-average maps there.

I used my nuvi on a recent trip to San Francisco and I couldn't have made it around town without it. It worked flawlessly downtown (one way streets tall buildings and all).

I also took a trip to Florida a while back and did notice a few out of date items -- but they were getting over a hurricane, so I gave the GPS the benefit of the doubt.

I also just upgraded to a bluetooth cellphone (goodbye Sprint) -- I *really* like using my phone with my nuvi. Voicedialing even works pretty well.

[obiwongkenobi @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:29PM]

I find the price-value argument in support of the Tom-Tom amusing. I'm happy to pay the Nuvi perceived price premium to not have an over-turned jello mold sticking up from my dashboard.

All kidding aside, the Nuvi 360 is one of the best tech-toys I've ever owned and I rate it high on many dimensions any one of which kills most other gadgets: utility, ease-of-use, cool form factor, great out-of-the-box experience. And I dig the Aussie chick's voice!

Measuring price-value really depends on what each individual user values. As an veteran road-warrior, I value highly anything "thin and light" and will pay a premium for shirt-pocket portability because I'm apt to take it with me when I travel. My Nuvi 360, MacBook Pro, video iPod, and Blackberry 8700 are the only things in my briefcase these days. I'm not a fanboy...I have a graveyard of GPS', notebook PCs, and cellphones.

What I like about the Nuvi: 1) it worked right out of the box, 2) the maps in the ten cities I've used it in were accurate, 3) the UI is one of the easiest to navigate, 4) the bluetooth is a godsend in rental cars (I have integrated bluetooth in my X5 and it's great to have hands-free capability in any car now...it paired in a flash and the voice quality is good enough), 5)when I stop for a caffeine fix, it's nice to jam the unit in my pocket, 6)the screen is bright and easy to read for a such a small package and as such it's a great unit for my convertible when I ride with the top down, 7)oh, did I mention the Aussie chick?

For the two principal uses important to me (getting me where I'm going and talking hands-free), the Nuvi is well-worth the price for its portability and convenience. Incidentally, I found mine for $750 tax and shipping included.

[Erik @ Aug 2nd 2006 9:44PM]

Okay, I guess it's gotta be a "Fanboy" contest.

Garmin v.s. TomTom.

I feel like writing a novel here but, I'll try and keep it short and sweet. Garmin ripped off TomTom? What about the nuvi is ripped from TomTom? TomTom's form factor is completely different. The UI is different (much better on the Garmin I think), screens are better, etc. etc. One thing I might add, TomTom doesn't do much in the way of producing their own stuff. Almost everything TomTom does is outsource. The only thing they do (and do well) in-house is advertise. Clever advertising doesn't make a good product.

If you read the earlier post about all the returns v.s. the Garmin units, you'd understand what good advertising gets you. It gets you to buy the product. But, if you don't have the quality to back it up, it's going to get returned.

Another thing to consider, TomTom makes only a handful of units in what, two markets? Last time I checked, Garmin covers everything from mobile to aviation. Alot of experience going into those units don't ya think?

Okay, so why the supposed "Fanboy" post about all this? Why would I take the time to write it? From what I've seen and heard from others, the TomTom looks like a great buy at first glance. Once they start using it they run into problems and end up returning it only to buy a Garmin. Why go through all the hassle? Go with the Garmin instead. Costs a little more but, you get what you pay for.

[NCTRNL @ Aug 2nd 2006 11:22PM]

Honestly, there isn't any argument that you can make for a TomTom here. They make nothing that even competes with the nüvi product line. They make a one-dimensional automotive product. They try the smoke and mirror approach by putting a wide aspect ratio screen and a big HDD in it. Congratulations, you win the novelty war. Last time I checked, products aren't bought for novelty, they're bought for function. The nüvi line wins in every category of function. The only category that anyone can argue about is the HDD and seriously...who is going to really use the mp3 player in their GPS? Everyone now has some sort of mp3 player already. Please...I would love to hear an argument...

[Chris @ Aug 3rd 2006 9:35AM]

I'll take my Cobra NAvOne 4500 any day over these pieces of junk.

Better user interface, many many many options. Appears to recalculate faster than the Garmin and TomTom units I tried out previously as well.

I tried the old NavOne 3000, which was older, but that was amazing because it had a gyro inside of it for when I lost the GPS signal in the city. Using the gyro it kept on guiding me without a hiccup.

[rrogers @ Aug 3rd 2006 9:50AM]

The argument was that Garmin is making a HUGE/Borderline obscene profit off the sale of each Nuvi. For whats in the thing (parts cost only) the thing is pure money for Garmin. But.... being the pathetic gadget junkie I am and after reading the TomTom Go910 teardown review over at PocketGPSWorld.
http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/insidetomtomgo910.php as well as the comments from folks here. I sucked it up and ordered a Nuvi. My only regret is I didn't by stock in Garmin two years ago.

[Erik @ Aug 3rd 2006 2:34PM]

rrogers:
Ha! Exactly. Found this:
http://garmin.blogs.com/my_weblog/2006/08/grmn_reports_re.html

[NCTRNL @ Aug 3rd 2006 6:06PM]

Seriously...if you think Cobra is a good nav unit then you're pretty far off...

[o rly @ Aug 3rd 2006 7:02PM]

NCTRNL, you have yet to prove how your nüvi does "EVERYTHING," what you have done is offer excuses to why it doesn't do X or Y and make yourself seem to have the "fanboy" complex mentioned above.

[Politik @ Aug 4th 2006 3:08PM]

In addition, NCTRNL, I think from reading some of the previous posts above, there is plenty of room for an argument for TomTom here. I happen to prefer a wider screen and appreciate the fact that the memory is 20MB and comes fully loaded with maps of Europe and the States. While the UI's may be different, I've found TomTom's a lot more straightforward and customizable to boot (and yes I've used Garmin's products before). It's also more affordable and I'm not sure why price doesn't come into play for the majority of consumers - ie - It certainly does for me. Not trying to gang up on anyone here, just thought it was important to keep this conversation balanced. Not everyone prefers a Garmin as you want to make others believe.

[rrogers @ Aug 5th 2006 9:24PM]

I received my Nuvi yesterday. Since I kicked off some of the comparisons to the marketing bullets of the Nuvi vs the TomTom GO910 I'll throw out some first impressions here. Price-wise from a purely cost of goods standpoint yes the Nuvi is a little over priced. However it should be noted that prices of the product are dropping rapidly into a more reasonable zone. The Garmin website lists the product for $964. Amazon will knock off 27% and sell it for $699. A savings of $265 and they are still making money... so going by parts alone, over priced. But we all know that the sum of the parts does not necessarily make for a good product. In the case of the Nuvi, thus far I'd say I'm pleased with it. The GPS functions great. The "Travel Kit" is pretty much worthless. Most everything is a demo requiring more tribute to be paid to Garmin to make the features worthwhile. Am I pleased with my purchase? Yep. First....its really small and cool. A sad weakness of mine, make it small and cool and I'll probably buy it. But my neuroses aside I can see it being quite handy when traveling. Its extremely easy to use. And very portable. I haven't yet had the opportunity to try the pedestrian routing mode, but I've read it actually works quite well. I can also see the product appealing to a lot of folks who would have liked a navigation system in their car, but were not willing to pay the dealer $3000 for the pleasure. From a pure navigation standpoint the product blows away the Nav system in my Toyota. Compared to $3000, the Nuvi is cheap. Yes it doesn't have a 20GB HDD but like others above, I have an iPod which I love and frankly wouldn't use the MP3 functionality on the TomTom. I'm pretty sure I'll never use the MP3 function on the Nuvi either. Time will tell. I did compare it to my PDA/BT GPS combo which resulted in a bit of an impasse. My PDA/BT GPS combo has some features I'd love to see in the Nuvi. For example..... my contact lists. It would be nice to have them in the Nuvi so I could route to them easily. It would also have been nice if the Nuvi came with some software to update the currency conversion database. The one on the unit hasn't been updated since 2005. Am I still disappointed about the European maps not being included? Yeah I am. They give you a world clock (with a ridiculously small city database) and a currency converter which defaults to US $ to Euro conversion, but they don't give you the maps. It does leave one feeling kind of like they are dealing with a cell phone company. You get a cool phone, with lots of features, all of which won't work without another up charge. Does it annoy me enough to say, "what a rip off"? Nope, for the navigation features alone (albeit U.S. only) I'm thrilled with the unit.

[Bob Ormerod @ Jun 20th 2007 8:21AM]

Having never used/had a Garmin gps, only a TomTom 500. I've just upgraded to a Tomtom 910 purchase price £269 (US$ 538)-prices for these units coming down now if you buy online, especially as tomtom are about to launch a x20 series, the x20 series has extra features, but not ones I really need/want, so the x10 series is good enough for what I want. I also bought the FM Transmitter Base & a ipod Cable. So I've connected the tomtom to my car radio stereo (via the FM transmitter), connected my ipod to the tomtom as well (agree I wouldn't use the mp3 or 12GB free space on the HDD, as I'd rather use my ipod where I have "All" my music organised in the way I want. It all works fine, the sound clarity coming through the car speakers is very good and clear, Hand free phone through blue tooth works good too. I use an external microphone hard wired to the microphone "in" socket on the Tomtom base, which I clip to my sun visor, (hiding the cable behind the door frame trim). So I get good speech quality also, the external mic ensures people hear me clearly on the phone (even when travelling at speed with background road/wind noise)
When I'm listening to music, it'll automaticaly suspend the ipod music when giving directions and then resume ipod music again after, similarly when recieving/making a call, the ipod music is suspended temporarily and resumes on completion of the call. All in all, the package works really well, the only downside is that if you are travelling any distance, you may need to change your chosen "free" FM frequency, as it may be free/clear in one area, but down the road the frequency might be close to a radio station and so you get interference. Not too much of a problem though as you just change to another preselected frequency that is free. All of the above, phone, ipod, route planning etc is controlled by a remote control, which is good when your driving along and don't want to keep leaning over to touch the screen, less distracting and safer. As I live in the UK, the US Maps aren't so important, unless I make a trip, but at least I have both European and US/Canada installed as standard. I also subscribe to the "speed" camera locations database (UK), Speed cameras have proliferated beyond belief in the UK, not only fixed locations, but in road works as well, so you can at least adjust your speed as required, before you get clocked for speeding even a few miles over the limit, with the ultimate points on your license and a fine ! Another useful feature I find is that at times, your not quite sure what the speed limit is on a particular section of road. I'm sure that its the same with the garmin's, but a useful feature I find is that it not only tells you your speed, but beside it, it shows what the speed limit is for that section of road and turns red if you are exceeding the limit. All in all pleased with my tomtom 910 package, I have everything in a neat little bundle, the all cost was £405 (US668)

[tammy @ Nov 26th 2006 2:01PM]

I just have a question
now and then do you recieve from customers a question as to why the tom tom was incorrect on its directions ? and if so how often and why does this happen ? Because the other day we were going to a restraunt and needed to find its location and by the directions of the tom tom we were taken through a residentually neighborhood , to a no outlet road , which you can guess no restraunt existed. Although on the main road there is a restraunt there , which would have been through the woods and swamp in the same area . But how did this error happen

[Weebit @ Jul 19th 2007 10:02PM]

I am in the market for a GPS and a friend of mine has the streetpilot 2720 and loves it. I know that it is discontinued, however it can still be bought from some suppliers. My question is: Has anyone USED the 2720 and the Nuvi 360? If so, which one would you recommend? I can't decide.

[Frank Sirianni @ Feb 6th 2008 8:46PM]

I am not going to get into all the details but let me say that Garmin is superious. I know Tomtom is supposed to be the best selling but that is marketing. They sell this map guarantee that they do not keep up to day and they take forever to add your own changes. I tried to add my street, which is three years old and they have yet to add it. I ended up buying a Garmin this week with the new maps including my street. Tomtom's new map will not come out until late summer (according to Tomtom). If you shop around, Garmin is not that much more and you get what you pay for. Even a little item such as a case is free and Tomtom's after market is $30 - $60. Free maps, who cares if they are always out of date....