Sunday, March 18, 2012

Garmin nuvi 255W review

Garmin_nuvi_255w_review

UPDATE: The nuvi 2×5 series has been officially discontinued. For current recommendations, see our auto GPS buyers guide.

The Garmin nüvi 255W is one of Garmin’s entry level navigators and, as part of the nuvi 2×5 series, it’s loaded with features previously unavailable in the nuvi line or found only in high-end models. More about that in a moment; first the basics.

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Garmin Oregon 300 review

Garmin_oregon_300_r

UPDATE: The Oregon 300 has been discontinued. For current recommendations, check out our handheld GPS buyers guide or our Garmin handheld GPS comparison chart.

The Garmin Oregon 300 is one of Garmin’s first touch-screen handhelds for backcountry use. The Oregon 300 comes with a built-in worldwide basemap with shaded relief. Unlike the Oregon 400 series, the 300 doesn’t come with pre-loaded detailed maps. Don’t let that dissuade you though – there are plenty of free maps available for Garmin units. Here’s how this model compares to other units in the Oregon series:

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Garmin nuvi 205 review

Garmin_nuvi_205

UPDATE: The nuvi 2×5 series has been officially discontinued. For current recommendations, see our auto GPS buyers guide.

The Garmin nuvi 205 is one of Garmin’s popular entry level navigators. Like the rest of the 2×5 series, it comes with features previously unavailable in the nuvi line or found only in high-end models. Before we get into the details, let’s look at the basics.

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Garmin discontinues older nuvi models

Discontinued_nuvi

With so many nuvis in the marketplace, it was bound to happen sooner or later. Garmin has now discontinued it’s earliest nuvi models, including all of the 300 series and most of the 600 series. The discontinued models are as follows:

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Garmin Oregon 400t review

Garmin_oregon_400t_review

UPDATE: The Oregon 400t has been discontinued; we recommend the Oregon 450t, which has a greatly improved screen, as an alternative.

The Garmin Oregon 400T is Garmin’s first foray into touch-screen handhelds for backcountry use. Before we get into the interface though, let’s look at the basics. The Oregon 400t comes with pre-loaded topo maps of the United States and a built-in worldwide basemap with shaded relief. Here’s how this model compares to other units in the Oregon series:

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DeLorme PN-40 and new low cost plan for aerial imagery

Delorme_pn40

We heard about the DeLorme PN-40 earlier this summer, so today’s announcement of its pending release this fall comes as no surprise. One new piece of info though — they’ve scheduled a September shipping date.

Low cost aerial imagery and USGS quads

The other new piece of information is that you’ll be able to download all the aerial imagery, USGS topo quads and NOAA charts that you want for an annual fee of $29.95. I’ve been merciless in my criticism of DeLorme pricing; prior to this thirty bucks would have only bought you two 7.5′ quads worth of imagery. So here’s a big thank you to DeLorme for giving us this deal. I can’t imagine owning a DeLorme handheld and not ponying up the extra bucks for imagery.

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Road Tech zumo for Harley-Davidson

Road_tech_zumo

Garmin and Harley sittin’ in a tree…

Ahem…Garmin and Harley-Davidson have announced the Road Tech zumo, a customized version of Garmin’s motorcycle-specific GPS device specially enhanced for Harley owners. The Road Tech z?mo will be on display and available for sale beginning the week of August 4th at the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally and around the world in Harley-Davidson authorized dealerships.

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Garmin nuvi 205W review

Garmin-nuvi-205W-review

Hands on with the Garmin nuvi 2×5 series — the best entry level GPS on the market

UPDATE: The nuvi 2×5 series has been officially discontinued. For current recommendations, see our auto GPS buyers guide.

The Garmin nuvi 205W is one of Garmin’s entry level navigators and, as part of the nuvi 2×5 series, it’s loaded with features previously unavailable in the nuvi line or found only in high-end models. More about that in a moment; first the basics. The 205W sports a 4.3" wide touch screen (hence the "W"), and includes pre-loaded maps of the entire U.S. except Alaska. It does not feature text-to-speech, so you’ll hear "drive one-half mile, then turn left" instead of "drive one-half mile, then turn left on Oak Street."

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Garmin nuvi 500 and 550 for driving, walking, cycling or boating

Garmin_nuvi_500

UPDATE: Read my hands-on Garmin nuvi 500 review. I’ve also posted a Garmin nuvi 550 page.

The rumors were true — Garmin announced today the introduction of the nuvi 500 series — multi-use navigators for driving, cycling, walking and boating. Ruggedized and waterproof, the nuvi 500 series sports a 3.5″ touchscreen and appears to share the feature set and much of the interface of the nuvi 2×5 series I wrote about this morning, including the ability to add MSN Direct or FM/TMC traffic.

The nuvi 500 comes with pre-loaded City Navigator and topo maps of the 48 contiguous United States, Hawaii and Puerto Rico. The 550 offers highway coverage of the entire U.S. and Canada but drops the topo maps.

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Garmin nuvi 2×5 series brings advanced features to the masses

Nuvi_2x5_features

I’ve been testing a Garmin nuvi 205W recently and have been surprised to find a couple of advanced features in this entry-level product that I wasn’t anticipating:

  • Speed limit icons display the speed limit for many roads
  • Tracklog display can show where you’ve been and can be downloaded to your computer (tracklogs can be cleared and the feature can be disabled for those of you with something to hide!)

You can see both these features in the screen shot above. The tracklog is the thin blue line trailing behind the current position icon. The speed limit being shown is for a two-lane road, albeit a relatively busy one.

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