GPS reviews, news, tips, tricks and deals
UPDATE: I’ve posted a Garmin Forerunner 110 review
The Garmin Forerunner 110 was announced this morning, updating the popular line of fitness watches with a sleek new entry level product. The Forerunner 110 will have a simplified menu system and will be available with or without a heart-rate monitor. One interesting note is the use of the SiRFstar IV chipset; I believe this is Garmin’s first use of this product. read more
UPDATE: Check out our Garmin zumo 220 page for links to reviews, etc.
Garmin has announced the zumo 220, a somewhat less expensive unit in their motorcycle-friendly zumo product line. I say somewhat because the list price is still $599.99, although that’s $400 less than the recently announced zumo 665. read more
The BirdsEye aerial / satellite imagery subscription program for the Garmin Colorado, Dakota and Oregon series is now official. EDIT: I’ve learned that Garmin decided not to support BirdsEye imagery on the Dakota 10, due to its lack of an expansion card slot. I have a few tidbits to add to my post from last week:
EDIT: I’ve learned that Garmin decided not to support BirdsEye imagery on the Dakota 10, due to its lack of an expansion card slot.
It looks like Garmin is getting ready to announce a BirdsEye satellite imagery subscription program for owners of the Colorado, Dakota and Oregon handheld series. Similar to DeLorme’s Map Library, the BirdsEye program will let you transfer an unlimited amount of satellite imagery and aerial photos to a compatible Garmin handheld for $29.99 per year. Imagery will be locked to one device per subscription; you’ll need Garmin’s free BaseCamp software (version 3.0.0+, yet to be released) and a myGarmin account. I hope to update this post soon with details on when the program will be up and running.
Garmin has apparently already made all their CES announcements. Lets see, we have a new golf GPS, a motorcycle GPS, a tool for high-tech grease monkeys and an app to make your nuvi curse like a sailor. The country’s biggest electronics show and this is all they have? WTF?
Well, actually, that’s a rhetorical question. I have some answers…
We first reported on Garmin ecoRoute hd back in November, when it was called ecoRoute ESP. Basically, this tool allows you to use your nuvi to monitor onboard vehicle diagnostics and performance data via a wireless connection with the car’s standardized onboard diagnostics port (OBD II). ecoRoute hd will be compatible with many current and future nüvi models, including the nuvi 1260, 1370, 1390, 1490 and 1690. This is a paid app (MSRP of $149.99), unlike the free, but more basic, ecoRoute feature included in many recent nuvis. It is expected to be available in March.
UPDATE: Check out our Garmin zumo 665 page for links to reviews, etc.
The motorcycle-friendly Garmin zumo 665 was announced today, adding to the zumo 660’s feature set with an antenna for XM Satellite Radio®, real-time XM NavWeather® and real-time XM NavTraffic®. Otherwise, the unit appears nearly identical to the zumo 660.
Can you do a killer impersonation? Have kids? Want your GPS to curse like a sailor? Well hang on, because the boys in Olathe have released Garmin Voice Studio, a free Windows application that will let you add your own voice prompts to most nuvis and a few other products.
Basically, you record a few dozen phrases and use Voice Studio to edit and load them to your device. The entire process is supposed to take less than 30 minutes for most folks. Sorry, no text-to-speech though, so you’ll have to give up on hearing street names, at least until the novelty of having your six-year old call out directions wears off.
UPDATE: Two new models, the the zumo 220 and zumo 665, have brought even more offerings to the zumo line.
The Garmin zumo 660
UPDATE: I’ve posted a hands on review of the Garmin Oregon 450
Garmin just couldn’t wait until the Consumer Electronics Show to start releasing new models. In a blog post this morning, they announced the touchscreen Oregon 450 and 450t handhelds. The only significant difference between them is that the 450t adds preloaded 1:100,000 scale topo maps for the entire US, rather than just the basemap found on the 450. These new units add a tri-axial compass to the feature set found on the Oregon 400t, so you don’t have to hold it level while navigating the wilds. The 450 series lacks the geotagging digital camera found in the 550 and 550t. At this point, those appear to be the major differentiators. The 450 series includes the recent firmware improvements that brought custom map capabilities to other Oregon models. I’ll update this post with product links once those are available. DONE! Thanks to @doc_nl:
