11/04/2012

Garmin is the good stuff, I would buy it again or recommend it

This review is for an actual Garmin nuvi 50LM, not a smaller or older unit like some reviews here.

I have a much older Garmin "Street Pilot" 2720 that mounts on my BMW motorcycle. It also has a bean bag mount and I have used it in the car... but it has an old incomplete database. So I wanted a bigger (for my old eyes) screen and lifetime map updates.

This is a new 2011 model, looks good, comes with a solid suction cup mount, a 12v car recharge / power cord and a short (18") p.c. cable, it uses a standard mini usb plug so my Blackberry cords work just fine too.

The garmin web updater I already have on my computer added the unit to my account easily, it updated the firmware too. (I have 2 Garmin aviation units 195 / 196) the "garmin lifetime updater" installed onto my p.c. automatically. I did not have to enter a serial number. It found a newer map and loaded it in about 20 minutes. Seamless, kudos to Garmin.

Driving with this unit in default 3D settings is fantastic. The pictures it has loaded of actual freeway signs is amazing.. the "lane control" is great, at a glance I can see my speed, distance to the next turn / offramp and e.t.a. I did find if you "-" or pan out you lose street names / detail.

One tweak I made was at night I turned it down to 10% brightness, if you tap the power switch like you want to turn it off it has the brightness right there, adjust and tap the power switch again.

I needed to meet a friend at a Mexican place for lunch, I knew the name and about where it was. So while driving on the 405 I hit the "food" button, scrolled down to "mexican" scrolled down like 8 pages to find it and BAM I was on my way... exactly why I bought a new gps with current updates.

Garmin is the good stuff, I would buy it again or recommend it to anyone.I bought this after my $50 Magellan 1340 broke down. The most dissapointing feature is that the voice is very muddy when announcing street names. There are two voice options. One is a voice that does not announce street names (e.g turn left 300 feet) which has a very clear voice. The second voice which announces street names is poor. It sounds very muffled and artifical. This is important since if you making a turn and you cannot understand the street name then you have to take your eye off the road and look at the garmin. I did not have this issue with my $50 Magllan 1340 which has a much clearer voice in announcing street names. In the Magellan there is also a chime that sounds when you enter the turn which is extremely helpful reminder. The garmin gives you a muffled voice with the street name that is very hard to hear even with the volume turned up to 70%. Please work on the voice quality Garmin. You would think companies would figure out a way to locate the speaker in front instead of the back of the unit which would help with clarity.
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