I'm thinking about getting the Mio c520 for my wife. (http://www.miotech.org/en/gps-navigation-device-Mio-C520-overview.htm) Anyone have an experience with this unit? I'm liking the price point and reviews I've read. Looking for something with Bluetooth hands free calling and TTS.

11/26/2007 4:19:03 PM

When I was buying for my sister, I had it narrowed down to the C230 which has TTS and the C320 which is widescreen, but doesn't have TTS.

That C520 looks like it's the best of both worlds plus Bluetooth. She should be happy.

11/26/2007 4:31:54 PM

I just can't imagine finding something with those stats for any better price. Just wondering if there are any reliability issues, etc. I should be worried about.

11/26/2007 4:36:02 PM

Quote :

"I'm getting sick and tired of hearing me whine about how overpriced they are."

Just because it costs more doesn't mean it is overpriced. That's like complaining that filet mignon is overpriced just b/c you can get some other steak at a lower price.

11/26/2007 4:37:25 PM

Quote :

"Just because it costs more doesn't mean it is overpriced."

My whole point is that the opposite is true as well. Just because it costs more doesn't mean it's better.

But as Bobby and several others have pointed out, I've said my piece. This will be my last comment on the matter. Buy what you think is best, spend what you think you can afford, and be happy with what you buy.

11/26/2007 4:46:42 PM

Quote :

"This will be my last comment on the matter"

I agree with your basic point, but I'm glad you're gonna stop posting it over and over and over and over

11/26/2007 4:47:47 PM

Quote :

"Just because it costs more doesn't mean it's better."

True, but when it costs more AND gets high marks on various well known sites I don't see how you can continue to insist it is overpriced.

11/26/2007 5:36:46 PM

Back to the topic...
I just got a Garmin Nuvi 650, and I really like it. The only negative I can think of is that there is about a 1 second lag between where I am and where I appear to be on the map. My Fiance's tomtom 1 does not have any lag whatsoever.

11/26/2007 7:16:35 PM

I want the Lowrance Iway600 for personal use

11/26/2007 7:24:35 PM

to reply to the locked thread:

Quote :

"ScHpEnXeL:nuvi. el nacho will be here in a minute to tell you about the mio. i've now used a mio and while the "features list" may be comparable to that of the nuvi, it simply feels cheap, looks and doesn't work nearly as well. my brother got one for christmas and he let me use it a little. the screen looks like shit compared to a nuvi and the interface isn't anywhere close to comparable. to me it'd be worth the little extra for something of much higher quality"

No, I probably would have called the n00b with 10 posts that started the thread a moron for not using search AND for putting an apostrophe in GPS's.

I already said my piece on the whole nuvi being overpriced thing. But good try in trying to troll me into starting that argument again.

[Edited on January 16, 2008 at 2:35 PM. Reason : oh and then I would have called out that moron that said "tomtom > garmin". that's just retarded.]

1/16/2008 2:33:18 PM

Weeeeeeee, my thread got bumped.

I ended up getting the garmin nuvi 650. That was based on trying it out vs the tom tom vs magellan + user reviews + friends recommendations.

I got it right before I went on vacation to a bed and breakfast in Virginia. The GPS took me a back way the day after xmas which was very quick and had hardly any traffic. The scenery was nice as well. There were many times we were in bumfuck but the gps was also able to find a gas station or food place a few miles off our route. We also encountered a closed road the gps was easily able to nagivate around. Once we got there we used it a lot to look up fun stuff to do. The gps included the telephone numbers as well so we could call and ask about specials and hours. The large screen was nice too. I guess the other brands could probably do most of the stuff I mentioned but I found them a little less user friendly and the graphics weren't as easy on the eyes.

1/16/2008 2:42:32 PM

Yeah... ^^sorry, I really wasn't trying to "troll" you, just anticipating the argument we always have and saying that I now have first hand experience on the mio so I can actually comment on it. Before I didn't have much of an argument because I had never used one personally.

Anyways, enough of that argument.

^good call on that one. that's probably what i'll get next after i sell my 350. the wider screen looked great in a friends car a few days ago

1/16/2008 2:51:47 PM

Quote :

"I ended up getting the garmin nuvi 650"

So I guess you gave up on the whole

Quote :

"What's a good gps I can purchase for around $200?"

idea, huh?

1/16/2008 3:20:28 PM

How much did you pay for that one if you don't mind me asking?

1/16/2008 3:25:54 PM

Actually I ended up getting one as an xmas gift. I think my parents paid a little over 300 or at least that's what amazon was selling it for at the time.

1/16/2008 3:30:42 PM

my gf loves her streetpilot and if you buy a GPS, definitely pay the extra money to get TTS no matter what brand. saying the street name helps a ton if you don't want to be staring at the GPS every time you turn.

1/16/2008 3:47:16 PM

I bought the girlfriend a 700-series Nuvi (770 I think) for Christmas to keep in her car. It's great.

I've had friends say that the TomTom's don't have the best route algorithms in there and they can throw you on a slightly off-beat path. Plus, with it pronouncing the street names is priceless. She's not the best driver in the world, so I need to make sure she can get where she needs to go while keeping her eyes on the road and not having to look at the GPS unit to see what road is coming up next.

1/16/2008 3:59:27 PM

the nuvi 650 is $299.

the nuvi 200W is $200.

i love my nuvi.

you can even input coodinates and geocache if that's your thing.

remembers the last couple of destinations and lets you add places to your journey.

the only thing it doesn't do is correct spelling, which is something i would appreciate.

1/16/2008 4:22:46 PM

mios (especially the 310) from what i've seen can be hacked. you can add maps from other vendors.

I dont have a gps though so don't take my word for it.

1/16/2008 6:18:12 PM

Does anyone actaully use the bluetooth feature that comes with some of these?

Okay, so maps are upgradeable but do some cost $ while other are free to download? It looks like the Magellan has a slot for SD map upgrades that look to be texa$.

Traffic features charges a subscrpition fee, WTF.

I looked at the MIO and it does look very cheap, but then again I'm looking to spend less than $250. I don't need to spend $250, since I'm not all that interested in bluetooth and MP3 capabilities I may very well be happy with $150 model.

So does Garmin PWNT Magellan or are they all pretty much close?

1/26/2008 11:23:39 PM

Just go to Best Buy and try them out for yourself.

1/27/2008 11:30:13 AM

^^ I tried bluetooth on one a year or so ago but it really didn't work that well. It was suppose to be like a speaker phone basically but I couldn't ever get it loud enough to be usable

1/27/2008 11:36:19 AM

I bought a Mio C220 on BF for $100 and though it was a great deal, the GPS application MioMap froze the first day I used it. I couldn't force it to turn off, so I had to wait for the battery to die. A few days later, I was using it again and then I got a "Fatal Exception Error" similar to something you get on Windows and I was like "WTF??"

I returned it and bought the C230. In the parking lot, I set it up in my car, and when I was one mile away from my home, the piece of shit froze. I have since been using a Nuvi 350 and have been pretty happy with it.

Go with a Garmin. You might pay a little more, but at least you're getting a quality product.

1/27/2008 11:58:28 AM

Quote :

"does anyone actaully use the bluetooth feature that comes with some of these?"

people in places like DC do - where it's illegal to talk on your phone while driving - they don't want to have a bluetooth headset and their car doesn't have bluetooth - so with the gps unit they can abide by the law

1/27/2008 2:02:26 PM

I have the Mio C230 and have had no issues. I like having it near the window on a plane and seeing the speed, progression over land, etc (the map function zooms out to the "world" level). Only one route calculation has been strange, but still wasn't too much longer in distance compared to the route I knew (I was testing out the unit).

1/28/2008 7:58:52 AM

if anyone is looking for a TomTom One (3rd edition), I'll have a couple for sale in a few days, brand new and sealed in box.

1/29/2008 2:02:05 AM

bump

2/20/2008 9:56:25 AM

^^ how much?

2/20/2008 11:24:34 AM

my order fell through (they ran out)

was gonna try to sell 'em for $150 each.

2/20/2008 5:50:24 PM

Aw man, I missed the New Nuvi. I was going to return the one I purchased at costco.

HSN was selling them for $295 shipped. Fixed internal antenna and multi destination routing.

Pretty much the only things that I wanted improved in the model I have now.

I've had nothing but good things to say about my Nuvi.

[Edited on February 20, 2008 at 11:21 PM. Reason : I use it almost everyday. It's paid for itself already.]

2/20/2008 11:20:00 PM

^ i picked up the Nuvi 750 from that $299 deal from HSN, and again, nothing but great things to say about it

2/21/2008 9:24:28 AM

Yeah I'm gonna sell my 350 and get a different model soon... Does that one have bluetooth? If so, how does it perform?

2/21/2008 9:32:33 AM

I've got a Garmin 60CSx and am looking for mapping software with it.

I've heard mixed reviews about MapSource. Has anyone used the National Geographic topo maps and can they be downloaded onto the GPS receiver itself or are you limited to mapping on the computer and simply downloading waypoints?

3/9/2008 3:08:15 PM

I just noticed my Garmin didn't info for a restaurant thats been around a few years. I thought I had downloaded an update, but maybe it was just a firmware update. Can I get upgraded map info for free anywhere?

3/9/2008 3:39:14 PM

the 750 doesn't have bluetooth. i really wanted to get in on that hsn deal.

3/9/2008 5:55:02 PM

if anyone really cares i can probably get you a visitor pass and you can play tag along with jackleg. if you really really really wanna dive into the world of gps and bluetooth and price points.

3/9/2008 6:41:30 PM

I went with the no frills Nuvi 200. I'm quite pleased with it. Purcased a seperate bluetooth headset and I haven't got an MP3 play yet. I guess I'm kinda old school. But here's a thumbs up for the Nuvi 200.

3/9/2008 8:49:47 PM