This sat nav is a tiny on the high priced facet, but you get very clear mapping, exact come across profile, memory purpose for your typically utilised destinations. It has site visitors updates and the greatest bit (which i didn't in fact realise it experienced) was that you can use your telephone arms-free by way of the bluetooth purpose -astounding and extremely helpful. The only down side (insignificant discomfort only) is that you have to absolutely demand it for twelve-24 hrs prior to working with it, normally it turns the contrast also reduced to be read (20%) in working day-gentle, this could have been clearer in the minimum instructionsotherwise recharge & use or plug in and use in the cigarette lighter. Observe: do not be tempted to use third social gathering prospects / double sockets with the device in the vehicle usually it does not operate.
The place would we be without the need of it. For an irish man driving by means of downtown miami for the very first time, the garmin nuvi2577lt was am remarkable support. The addition of a photo of the coming junction is a wonderful aid and the voice coupled with the image and map telling you which lane to be in as you approach the exit or junction is a great support. I do not know where by i would have been without it. I think the 2577 is the only model that will come ready loaded with europe and north the usa.
Pros
- Excellent and lightweight device
- Well worth the money!
- Slightly disappointed Garmin customer.
- I'm in love with my Gar!
- Unit OK but has some glitches
- Latest unit but not so hot software
Cons
- Maybe I was unlucky
- Chucked it out the window (really!)
- Not what I expect from Garmin.
- Navigation software can't be trusted & poor handsfree phone performance.
- Replacement Sat Nav
- Sadly, a huge disappointment
Negative Review of Garmin nuvi 2447LM 4.3" Sat Nav with UK and Western Europe Maps and Free Lifetime Map Updates
Not what i expect from garmin. . We have had garmins before and liked them, and the only reason to change was that we needed to update european maps on the old one and with lifetime updates this looked like a better option. None of us liked it though and it has now gone back to swap for a tom tom. Approaching roundabouts the lane guidance often wasn't helpful at all, it didn't even register some roundabouts on the london north orbital, insisted on calling it that rather than the a614 that all the road signs had on them, insisted i turn right while driving along a road in suffolk with no junction on the right, called a small farm access with grass growing on it a roundabout exit etc etc. The least useful satnav i have ever had, and incidentally the most expensive - disappointing since i loved the old garmin, which reliably guided us round paris, through madrid and down to cartagena on several occasions with no hiccups at all.
Update 08 may '14 i used it one last time today before returning it and it wanted me to turn off the a road i was on into a crescent-shaped access road in front of a row of houses then back out of it onto the a road again. I think garmin have got a serious problem with this one.
Features of Garmin nuvi 2447LM 4.3" Sat Nav with UK and Western Europe Maps and Free Lifetime Map Updates
- Easy to use bright 4.3" touchscreen sat nav includes preloaded street maps for 24 Western European countries including UK and Ireland
- Free Lifetime Map Updates for Western Europe - ensure you drive with the latest road and Points of Interest information
- PhotoReal and Bird's Eye Junction View and Active Lane Guidance clearly shows the lane you need to take
- Real Directions™ provide clear guidance using recognisable buildings and landmarks as reference
- Up Ahead displays points of interest along your route including restaurants, hotels and petrol stations
With Lifetime maps, Serious Instructions for additional natural recommendations, velocity camera alerts and a great deal far more, the 5-inch nüvi 2447LM is an innovative sat nav made to give you a safer, a lot quicker and pressure-free journey. Crisp, High Resolution Display, nüvi 2447LM has a 4.3' high resolution display with 'pinch and zoom' capacity, so you can speedily get a closer look at any onscreen facts. Twin-orientation abilities allow for you to use both horizontally or vertically.
Specific Maps with Free Updates, nüvi 2447LM arrives loaded with in-depth maps of Western Europe. With free lifetime map updates, your routes are sure to replicate the most up-to-day maps, POIs (details of fascination) and navigation info. New maps are available for down load up to four times for every year, for the existence of your machine, with no fees. It is also preloaded with Details of Fascination (POIs) these as organizations, stores, dining places and other destinations. There's no require for you to enter that handle info. Just find just one - or lots of - and navigate there, promptly and very easily. You also have the capability to add custom made POIs. Be knowledgeable of security cameras
Retain an eye on the newest speed cameras, nüvi 2447LM contains our special Cyclops Velocity Digicam method, for authentic-time, path-applicable and exact alerts. The total basic safety digital camera database is currently pre-loaded on your sat nav. Nonetheless, you can get regular or 1-off updates to make sure you've got normally got the newest digicam locations, so you can generate properly and legally.
Garmin Actual Directions with Garmin Actual Voice, nüvi 2447LM will come with Garmin's unique Serious Navigation. This incorporates Serious Directions that information like a buddy, working with recognisable landmarks, properties and traffic lights. For case in point you might be advised to 'turn left around tower bridge' or to 'turn ideal soon after the cathedral'. Applying distinguished milestones even on unfamiliar streets suggests you are not continuously hoping to browse street names, making your journey much easier and ensures you might be never misled. Along with this you also get a extra normal sounding voice and reasonable visuals of street indications. Very clear assistance at junctions
Comprehensive Driving Direction You See and Hear, Active Lane Direction with voice prompts prepares you to push by an exit or junction with self confidence. As you technique, an animated design works by using brightly coloured arrows to reveal the proper lane needed for your route a pleasant voice offers more aid. photoReal junction check out realistically displays junctions and highway modifications along your route, like the encompassing landscape and highway signals. Again, arrows indicate the appropriate lane to be in. Get a bird's eye check out of your route For intricate junctions, Bird's Eye junction view features a in depth ariel image of the highway community, looking down as if from overhead.
More Information and facts at a Look, nüvi 2447LM retains your driving map onscreen at all times and added facts appears together with. For facts simply just contact the display. As you drive your route, the 'Up Ahead' characteristic continually informs you of close by services, which includes dining establishments, petrol stations, hospitals and retailers. nüvi 2447LM displays speed limit, present-day pace and precise time of arrival. With a brief glance, you can go through the identify of your recent avenue. Garmin Specific will make it easy to update maps and application, transfer favourites to and from gadgets, and put in free personalized automobiles and voices.
Compare Garmin Sat Navs,
Garmin nuvi 2447LMVehicle energy cablevehicle suction cup mountUSB cablequick start off manual
Perfectly Truly worth the Revenue!. We bought this to replace our aged garmin as we have been about to go to poland, by street, for the initial time. Astonishingly you can place in your location, which was throughout 5 international locations (england, france, belgium, holland, germany and poland) and it will just obtain the shortest route. It not only tells you, as do the others, to switch ideal or still left but presents you the title of the road far too. The only adverse is that it sees delays on the route (wherever on the 12 hour route) and asks you if you would like to take an choice route. At to start with we ended up using the option route until we realised that these delays were being normally two hundred or three hundred kilometers away and not very likely to influence us but that the diversions would possibly delay us more! wish it would say how far away the delays ended up!.
A bit Upset Garmin Shopper.. Pre purchased mine and extremely delighted that it get there on working day of launch. Owning formerly had several years of terrific assistance from a basic tomtom just one i was a reluctant change to garmin but so numerous negative reviews of most current tomtom products and solutions persuaded me to make the improve. I really only preferred to increase europe for a prolonged driving holiday getaway and the aged tomtom didn't have that. I have plenty of reservations nevertheless about this garmin not minimum of all was it failure to work properly right after a few of hours down the french motorway on day one of the two 7 days generate by way of europe for which i experienced specifically bought it (i experienced beforehand carried out a journey to scotland and the west region and it was fantastic then) ! the device froze on us whilst driving and then obtaining switched off would not restart it just saved cycling by way of a start out up display and then off once more, and no sum of button pushing would end it. Quite a few several hours of world-wide-web browsing that night and pushing bits of the display screen to try to do a learn reset appeared to sort it out in the conclusion but i experienced by then misplaced all the trip information for that aspect of the journey, and all my favourites all put in for the vacation we ended up on! i was not satisfied at all. If we experienced been on our have on the excursion with no world wide web obtain we would have had a significant concern, thankfully we had pals with us to help and get us back again on monitor on that working day. We experienced paper maps and so on, but not so easy finding inns in unusual town with individuals is it. !a few a lot more cons compared to my outdated and very fundamental tomtom. You are unable to get all the information you require on the principal screen. I want to see the existing time, the length and time to my location all at a look, tomtom does it, garmin demands much more presses of the screen to get all that. And i can not fully grasp why they will not make it possible for this, as you can customise the sidebar but you simply just can't include the details to that i consider you will need. Incredibly bad that. You should really not will need to touch the unit to get a thing as primary as the recent time up. Update, this product now has all the facts on the display screen you need to have, a application update place that ideal a couple months in the past. It helps make this a far much more welcoming device to use now. Tomtom warms about toll roadways and so on when it options a route, garmin doesn't. You can add them as 'avoidances' but it would be good to get a warning beforehand. Tomtom give you alternatives to customise the audio of alerts, no versatility at all with garmin, you get what you a provided. Pros. The means to browse and zoom in and out of the maps is a ton better than on my outdated tomtom. And the overview map that exhibits mountains etcetera is a terrific way to get a experience for your excursion and its then maybe to zoom ideal into the facts of the route. Routing. Dodgy in my viewpoint, but usually are not all sat navs! quite a few times garmin has experimented with to get me off motorways for no apparent motive, or lower corners in smaller villages to acquire you down bumpy slim back again roads wherever its way far better to have on through on the main highway. This garmin also has no option to established a route for strolling, my aged tomtom did, and so do more mature garmins so why not this 1? specific stupid as it will bear in mind exactly where you parked your automobile if you need to have to obtain it but it then provides you driving directions back to it !beware if setting up to use this someplace like the alps as we did. It will eliminate reception in the various tunnels and slender gorges. Okay i would count on it to do that but why then does it usually exhibit you miles away on the display ? it is aware you have been on the highway, it really should know you ended up in a tunnel so why can it not just presume you are traveling together at a established pace on the similar street. It can be really tricky when there is a junction just exterior the tunnel as all routing is misplaced as soon as it loses the sat sign and you just hope it gets it again promptly the other side. And why on earth does it nothave toll booths demonstrated on the maps ? a really vital feature in my viewpoint, and would be pretty practical to know kinds coming up so you can can get ready but nothing at all is shown. You can configure the facet bar to present what is actually forward. Its useful but why not by some means point out if the petrol station for examlpe up in advance is on your route or off it ? you consider just one is coming up in a mile or so but in then disappears off the display screen is it turns out its a couple of streets absent and not on your true route, not incredibly practical. Yet again tomtom does this much better with on route and off route seeking. Website traffic warningsthese seem to work but as is usually the scenario with such issues they are normally a bit guiding and maintain ups and absent in advance of you get there. Various dire warnings driving down through france of ninety min delays had been overlooked by me and traffic was hefty but transferring and any delay was negligible, nothing like that predicted. No question not the fault of garmin that, but just a general warning on taking advice on these route diversions. Bluetooth. A bit dissatisfied that it will sync with my outdated nokia cellular phone but not browse the phonebook, so not considerably use for dialing out. Its odd due to the fact my old cellular phone functions wonderful in my audi with its personal bluetooth it reads my mobile phone ebook with no problem. Screen and directions etcetera. I like the photograph authentic junctions, plenty of them on motorways across uk and europe, they do assistance. Lane assistance when you get it also allows. On occasions nevertheless primarily on some roundabouts the arrow on the display screen seems a little bit excess fat and you eliminate clarity on the precise direction you want to go. It would be excellent to get an overview map of your route and progress along it with just one touch, you can get it but it normally takes multiples display screen touches to do it. I can't comment a lot on the voice guidance as most of my use has been in an open up leading vehicle, and it not easy to listen to them with the wind noise, and in any case i have a tendency to rely on the screen by habitscreen attachment. Will work great for the most part but i have discovered you can get vibration by means of the vehicle that will make the unit vibrate as nicely for a handful of seconds, (and that is worse in a sports auto with rigid suspension) so mount not that strong, and if you are a little bit weighty handed when pressing the display the unit can transfer on the ball joint. Garmin basecamp. I have tried to use this to do routes on the personal computer but have uncovered it really discouraging and fiddly to use and gave up. Tyre was a lot greater and quick to set up waypoints to then build routes working with that. Garmin casebought the genuine scenario as perfectly. Nice and quick to use but does not totally enclose the device as aspect are elasticated so i dropped it, and unit even now got a dent on the corner, a different garmin disappointment. So there you go. I did approach to send it back again soon after it permit me down but its been rather good considering that then. But total i am a dissatisfied garmin purchaser and questioning if i should really have just forked out for new europe maps for my previous faithful tomtom and saved a bit of cash!.
I am In Like with My Gar!. Effectively i was fearful it wouldn't do all the things i required it to, but it does and does so considerably extra moreover. Its simply just good at what it is and what it should do, in particular location up a multi prevent journey, so quick so swift. It even remembers your favorite queries and places and future time they're just there waiting to be selected, it queries really speedily, it improvements your route pretty speedily if you divert or skip a flip, and on the odd situation there was visitors trouble it arrived up on the display screen. The 7 inch display screen is incredibly apparent and simple to use, and utilizing the garmin universal dash mount (which is excellent as well) you can area it in just the optimum placement for un-obstructive nevertheless straightforward glancing viewing. Its powered by a thicj cable from the cigarette lighter socket that also doubles as the site visitors warning news aerial, so thats a small messy to sort out, but quickly got utilized to it, specially as the system operates so nicely and you start out to fall in really like with it. There is a minimal draw back to it however, i found when in city centres and you strategy very intricate junctions, the car image can go a little much too slowly and gradually and you think its pointing to a single highway when in truth it desires you on a further, so i did miss a street or two, but that could be my mistake, but it quickly re-calculates and receives you back again on observe again, in seconds. The other gripe was the website traffic assistance, which did not warn of a key snarl up all over a big roundabout in preston that was becoming 'improved', hah, the operates experienced clearly been heading on for weeks and the traffic was backed up all around the area (experienced two significant roadways and motorway junction to sort out there), and however it was not informed and so did not avoid the space, we drove straight in to the chaos. On the other hand, general its a excellent piece of kit and simply cannot recommend it really enough. My only other knowledge of a satnav by the way is the a person created into the dash of my honda cr-v, which is pretty fantastic, but this garmin simply just blows it absent. .
Product Info
- Product Dimensions: 1.9 x 12.2 x 7.6 cm ; 154 g
- Boxed-product Weight: 422 g
- Batteries 1 Lithium ion batteries required. (included)
- Item model number: 010-01124-12
- ASIN: B00C27EWJO
Conclusion of Garmin nuvi 2447LM 4
Obtained the week prior to going on holiday to the states, just in time to downloaded up to date us maps, which did get a several several hours but was nicely well worth it. Sat nav worked minutes immediately after arriving and obtained us everywhere you go we questioned it to, and even spherical a diverted route owing to a highway closure. The garmin was a substitution for a tom tom which we had ordered a couple of months prior but which would not permit us load up us maps. I've owned numerous garmin units in the past but never a focused vehicle 'satnav' - previously utilised an previous garmin oregon which will have to be about ten several years previous now (also individual treking/outdoor hand-held garmin equipment). This garmin (2597lmt) was a fantastic update: very clear display, 3d maps, voice directions and effortless place entry.
Although en route, the 'up ahead' element showed gasoline, bathrooms and refreshments on the journey and the targeted visitors delays had been updated as we went (with the solution to re-route to prevent). We purchased this to switch our outdated garmin as we were being about to go to poland, by street, for the 1st time. The only unfavorable is that it sees delays on the route (any place on the 12 hour route) and asks you if you would like to acquire an substitute route. I have heaps of reservations nonetheless about this garmin not least of all was it failure to operate adequately immediately after a pair of hours down the french motorway on working day one of the two week travel by way of europe for which i experienced exclusively acquired it (i experienced beforehand done a journey to scotland and the west country and it was wonderful then) .I want to see the present time, the distance and time to my destination all at a glance, tomtom does it, garmin desires more presses of the display to get all that.
You must not require to contact the device to get one thing as primary as the present time up. Update, this product now has all the facts on the display screen you have to have, a software package update put that proper a couple of months in the past. Tomtom warms about toll roads and so forth when it plans a route, garmin doesn't. And the overview map that reveals mountains etc is a wonderful way to get a feel for your journey and its then possibly to zoom ideal into the particulars of the route. Numerous times garmin has tried out to take me off motorways for no clear purpose, or reduce corners in tiny villages to choose you down bumpy narrow back again roads where by its way improved to have on by on the primary road.
This garmin also has no possibility to established a route for walking, my old tomtom did, and so do more mature garmins so why not this one particular?. It is aware you were being on the road, it must know you ended up in a tunnel so why can it not just presume you are traveling along at a established velocity on the exact road. Yet again tomtom does this greater with on route and off route looking. No doubt not the fault of garmin that, but just a general warning on getting advice on these route diversions. It would be good to get an overview map of your route and progress alongside it with a person contact, you can get it but it usually takes multiples screen touches to do it.
Operates wonderful for the most component but i have noticed you can get vibration by way of the car that will make the device vibrate as nicely for a couple of seconds, (and which is worse in a sporting activities auto with rigid suspension) so mount not that reliable, and if you are a little bit heavy handed when pressing the screen the unit can go on the ball joint. Wonderful and quick to use but does not entirely enclose the device as side are elasticated so i dropped it, and device even now acquired a dent on the corner, an additional garmin disappointment. But all round i am a unhappy garmin purchaser and questioning if i ought to have just forked out for new europe maps for my aged devoted tomtom and saved a bit of income. Perfectly i was fearful it would not do all the issues i wished it to, but it does and does so considerably more other than. It even remembers your favourite searches and locations and subsequent time they're just there waiting to be chosen, it lookups very rapidly, it variations your route pretty immediately if you divert or overlook a transform, and on the odd situation there was visitors difficulty it arrived up on the show. The 7 inch exhibit is incredibly very clear and effortless to use, and employing the garmin universal sprint mount (which is wonderful also) you can spot it in just the ideal place for un-obstructive nevertheless effortless glancing viewing.
Its run by a thicj cable from the cigarette lighter socket that also doubles as the site visitors warning news aerial, so thats a minor messy to form out, but soon acquired employed to it, particularly as the unit works so effectively and you commence to slide in adore with it. There is a tiny draw back to it even though, i observed when in town centres and you method really complicated junctions, the vehicle symbol can shift a minimal as well gradually and you consider its pointing to a person highway when in simple fact it wishes you on one more, so i did overlook a road or two, but that could be my mistake, but it before long re-calculates and gets you back on monitor once more, in seconds. The other gripe was the site visitors support, which did not alert of a big snarl up close to a big roundabout in preston that was remaining 'improved', hah, the performs experienced clearly been going on for weeks and the targeted traffic was backed up all more than the area (had two major streets and motorway junction to type out there), and nevertheless it was not knowledgeable and so did not stay clear of the location, we drove straight in to the chaos. Good sat nav, quite rapidly, immediate re-routes, obvious exhibit and excellent mapping. My sat nav came with maps pre-put in, but i did refresh them with a free update shortly soon after invest in, this possibly was not necessary but did it as it was a free update.
The sat nav also needed its firmware updating, all extremely straight forward to do the moment computer software was mounted on computer system. The complete procedure together with updating all maps took underneath an hour, and could be remaining unattended although it updated. Telephone loud, velocity alerts quieter, and lots of other practical personalisation characteristics. Stay targeted traffic connects ok with ability guide supplied, but has not proven any website traffic warning details all through 1st a few months of use, but maybe this is just blessed for the reason that i reside in the countryside and have not been on any incredibly greatly congested roads not long ago. Velocity digital camera alerts are great, there are very crystal clear visual and audible warnings for most of the probable destinations, but be warned just a couple set up spots are lacking.
I subscribed to digital camera updates (only an annual subscription available for uk at about �16), now desire i had not bothered as so far it has designed no variance, just as properly have stayed with the pre-set up digicam alerts. I set up the free garmin android app, this gave a very good connection to my sat nav and was simple to put in. I was disapopointed that some of the potentially extremely practical application feature on the cell phone these as parking, security cameras, dwell site visitors all needed additional subscriptions even nevertheless my satnav came with lifetime map updates and visitors. All round this is a fantastic sat nav and i propose it and selling price is extremely excellent benefit with lifetime updates. I purchased this device (garmin 2567lm) to exchange my ageing road angel navigator 9000 (which was a great unit but at times was unreliable and subscriptions high priced and expired).
I have only experienced the garmin unit for about a week but have lined above 400 miles with it. The routes picked are commonly more reasonable than the street angel whilst some faults do occur this kind of as stating the incorrect lane at junctions (the map (so considerably) reveals the suitable route). The garmin speed camera subscriptions (cyclops databases) for the uk is only £17/yr (nevertheless to be bought). Positives:- rapid to sign up on the garmin express internet site, nonetheless the initial map/program update did choose about two-2. five hrs but was straightforward to do (home windows 7 with ie ten + 13mbps broadband), just followed on display directions and did not use the computer for just about anything else for the duration of the update system.
5gb of 7gb) this is for uk and w europe with a single map update (completed on order), not absolutely sure if it adds tomemory usage each time you update or replaces it so it may well not take quite a few updates before you will need an external micro sd card (slot in bottom of device) to develop the memory, will need to see if this is the scenario - particularly as this is a lifetime map updates merchandise. - routes are normally wise which include use of superior speed (60/70 mph) a streets where by applicable as opposed to just sticking to motorways with long detours as my aged unit often insisted on. - mapping is pretty clear with vehicle zoom en route, you can also choose uk highway colours (motorways blue, a streets eco-friendly, secondary a roads red and so on. - you can display screen 'total distance to go' in navigation map display manner. - above velocity warning - a pair of beeps and the exhibited latest velocity goes red, speed restrict is also displayed (not 100% accurate even though)- velocity digital camera warning - you can choose audio warring in the stet up menu, if done so it beeps when you are near the safety digicam/zone (~.
A Great Sat Nav. This sat nav is a little on the expensive side, but you get clear mapping, accurate find profile, memory function for your commonly used locations. It has traffic updates and the best bit (which i didn't actually realise it had) was that you can use your phone hands-free through the bluetooth function -amazing and very useful. The only down side (minor irritation only) is that you have to fully charge it for 12-24 hours before using it, otherwise it turns the contrast too low to be read (20%) in day-light, this could have been clearer in the minimal instructionsotherwise recharge & use or plug in and use in the cigarette lighter. Note: do not be tempted to use 3rd party leads / double sockets with the unit in the car otherwise it doesn't work!.
Latest Unit But Not So Hot Software. Unit and menusthe unit is strong and light - nice to hold, good quality. Bracket and charger well designed, no problems. The menu layout is very clear and easy to use, but remember the `three-bar' menu button is a context button that gives options depending on what is being displayed. That is the go-to button if you can't find an option. Although the big `where to' button seems simple enough and conventional for all satnavs, if you plan trips these do not appear under `where to', but `apps'. It may just be me, but the memory of items (places you went to before) on the device - aka favourites - is very haphazard. You need to house-keep the memory on the device via basecamp regularly to avoid chaos. I did not opt for a model with voice control but this might have been useful. We did not go for this due to the laughable results we seem to get from phones. The pitch and reality are woefully different. Zooming in and out is easy but should not be done on the move for safety reasons. Driving navigationsorry to be negative to garmin - who i guess are the same as rivals navman and tomtom, so these issues could apply to them too. Except that i had a navman i bought 2 or 3 years ago and had no problems with navigation at all. In that time no progress seems to have been made!all the hype about `real talk' where the device says `turn right at the bakery' is pointless distraction and only marginally useful compared to all the issues i list below. Where you can see the junction and know the road, you don't really need a satnav do you? but it lets you down continually when you are tired and in a strange town. The motorway junctions are good guidance - a picture is shown and the lanes are clearly called out/shown. But often it waits to the last minute to tell you which lane to get in, and even driving below the speed limit you often have only seconds to take the right road. Says nothing at the junction you are approaching but tells you what to do in 0. 5 km. You need to pay close attention to the type of junction it describes, and get good at judging distance. A glance at the unit will tell you the type of junction and how far to go - but be warned that you may pass many junctions and signs before that (that you are meant to take no action at). In a city it is easy to panic and take a turning too soon. In the modern world there are often roads at freeway speeds and yet complex city junctions with fly-overs tunnels and so on. These have existed for decades but the human interface of satnav does not seem to be able to handle these (do the software designers actually drive cars?)says 'enter roundabout' - which does not give you a clue what lane to be in. After my first few weeks i am still regularly being mis-directed because directions on roundabouts /junctions are not clear/timely. The map does not help as it is too confusing to match what you see on the road in the split-second you have to decide what to do. You need the 'map' of the roundabout before you get to it, but the `birds eye' view is too `wide' and the road representation is too thick on screen relative to reality. This may be simply a reflection of the price-point to encourage you to buy a premium service. The destination (waypoint) is all that matters to the unit (whereas planning on basecamp allows you to choice the exact roads you drive down). But it is still hard to make it choose a route you want - a route selector is available if there are multiple possibilities but often there is only one option. You cannot modify a route on the unit (in terms of the roads used). You can only select /create waypoints. This means that following scenic routes is best planned on basecamp. Voices - irritating preppy english voices, based on a kind of computer algorithm that makes up words from the letters it contains. Laughable french pronunciation in fact is impossible to understand even well-known town names - considering the unit covers the whole of europe this would make it a serious problem if you were covering a lot of different countries. You literally have no clue what they are saying. (it may be better to select the local voice and learn the phrases in the local language that mean `keep right' etc). This is inefficient and dangerous for you as you then have to look at the unit to read the road/junction name. Road options - i switched 'unpaved ' option off but it still took us down this type of road ! it takes you down impossibly small roads, through villages and housing estates instead of the main road, and tries to take you down tiny lanes that are dead ends or private/residential. The mapping is comprehensive but the people who code the algorithms for driving seem to have very small 4x4s and no regard for the privacy of land - and expect you to drive your shiny hire car (for instance) down a narrow lane with thorn bushes either side - just to save 30 seconds on the route. Even if you set the `motorway' preference to maximum. Rerouting - a major problem in the real world is also that the unit doesn't tell you when you are going wrong but simply recalculates - this is good for wandering around where you don't care what road you are on - but in many cases you simply want to turn round and regain the route that you planned - not an alternative. But psychologically it is very un-nerving to be going in the opposite direction to your destination and not be told to turn round. (a problem with all satnavs is that coming out of an underground carpark it takes a while for the satellites to be regained - by which time you may be obliged to simply go in any direction - in a town with a one way system this is a recipe for misery). On the other hand when you encounter a real blockage there does not seem to be a way to indicate which road is blocked. It seems to infer this from the fact you took another road. But due to the lack of feedback i'm not sure. If you look at the unit it says `recalculating' briefly but that is all. Long story short you still need to study a map and know your route by heart if you want to stay on the most efficient route (i. E. Get there on time!). Speed warning - it would be very useful to have an audible signal for speed limit change but this doesn't seem to be available. Also i can't see the speed limit display clearly - the icon/ font too small. While there is a separate `virtual dashboard' display this does not show the speed limit (!) but items of data that are only useful when stationary. Another major beef is that it doesn't help you start a journey from where you are exactly but simply says 'go to marked route'! - as if it can't be bothered to help you drive down a track/small road /car park at this stage - but happy to send you into the boondocks at any point thereafter! this is the whole point of a satnav - when you are in a strange place, maybe tired and don't have a mental map of the roads around you - the icon of your car on the device is meant to point in the same direction you are actually pointing, but in fact you really have to think `where am i' to make this small step to `the marked route'. (my 3 year old navman started me off from anywhere without a problem - even off the highway). Other users have commented that the unit is too slow to update in towns and gives conflicting and confusing instructions. I agree - and in particular it gives street names which is pointless as you can't know what the name of the street is in a strange town. (even a pedestrian would struggle with this!). This is not a unit problem but the understanding of the premium navigation company in the world not apparently knowing what it is like to drive in a strange town alone - perhaps at night. Absolutely ridiculous. Maybe you simply can't get a good system without spending £250? i. E. Maybe my expectations are unrealistic. Or maybe the science is not advanced enough yet. But there may be a simpler explanation - that if you pay ford prices you won't get a jaguar. Maps - others have commented on the map updating, but i purposely chose a recent unit so i did not have to submit myself to the trauma of downloading a new map; i haven't had a problem with mapping. You can't expect the device to magically know if a road-works is in progress or when a new roundabout has been built. Which brings me to `user map updates'. Personally when i am driving to a meeting i do not stop and write down a mapping error so that i can help garmin. But there is no button on the device to help me do this either - you cannot press on the screen and say `there is something here' to remind you later (although you can press the screen to navigate to a specific point). This is an oversight if they expect the users to be their unpaid `updating workforce'. Otherwise i expect the map updates to be the result of a team of professionals. I don't think garmin or their competitors can rely on users to fill the gap where google has such a head-start in terms of data accuracy and integration. Secondary features - pois. A generic problem with no quality information about restaurants (all satnavs are the same in this regard) - so relying on a poi without doing prior research is a big gamble. And unlike mapping (which is good and up to date) pois suffer from poor reliability - i. E. Restaurants don't exist!hands-free phone (bluetooth) - i paired my phone easily but have not used it yet. I think the unit will use the phone contact list but i have not tried this either. Traffic - not tested. Other types of journey (e. G. Walking ,cycling) - not tested. Planning on basecampbasecamp (bc) is excellent software functionally - lots of good features and does what you want and what you would expect. But it has issues in terms of user experience that really should be addressed with a re-coding update: the logic of use is sometimes compromised by perhaps programming limitations, making it slightly less intuitive than one might expect. It appears bc is designed to satisfy all gps users not just drivers but cyclists and walkers etc. You must connect the device to your pc to use basecamp as it uses the device maps and the device navigation computer algorithms to plan routes. The map has a graphic quality of 10 years ago compared (say) to google maps, which was shocking initially but you get used to zooming in and out constantly to figure out where you are - and using google maps at the same time to get some clarity. I guess this is due to the limit of data space on the device (and in fact matches the mapping on the device. )(note i do not use bing as life is too short, but there are alternatives to google maps. Michelin, mappy etc. )following guidance online you can choose and modify the roads you go down - directly on the map - and you can import and export routes/tracks from/to google maps. (i have not done this but i have imported kml files with waypoints no problem). Baffling menu with 'trip' planner unable to be modified in terms of the order of waypoints/items in the main screen. Then you must create a route (in alphabetical order) and then you open the route and then are allowed to re-order the items to create a logical trip. What programmer thought this up??the primary concept in bc is the use of lists. This allows you to have an item of data (say a waypoint) in one folder and yet refer to it - copy it - as an item in other folders/lists. This is a useful concept but it's difficult to understand what is the original and what is the copy. Unless you know which the original is, you can't move it (you end up making more and more copies). In fact my use of the word `copy' is wrong - these duplicate items are more like windows shortcuts, which you can safely remove without deleting the original. The system tries to recalculate routes if you change something - irritating since it uses the device to do the route calculation and is thus very slow. (you can cancel this to save time, but still seems like programming at beta stage). The unit itself has a magic `optimise route' feature which i have not tried but will apparently take a number of waypoints and determine the most efficient route between them. This is bizarrely not apparently available on basecamp (unless i missed it). A waypoint and a searched item can be used interchangeably - a bit messy. (it makes you wonder what the point of the term waypoint is). If you mistakenly select an item (called `place') on the map as a waypoint after already having it saved elsewhere (perhaps in a previous trip), it will create a new waypoint called place1. So you must manage your waypoints carefully, naming them and selecting them. . Or could end up with 10 copies of the same place. Because:. When searching, bc will search all the public data before your data - and searching on the device takes a long time. (in fact i have never seen a personal item selected since the amount of public data is so huge). It does not seem possible to change the order of search, but you can opt to search only a subset of the data - for instance private data only - but that implies you need to search twice - once to see if you already have that `thing' and then again if you don't already have it. Post-trip on basescampbc has to be synced with the device manually - and creates confusing folders related to the date of sync (so you seem to end up with multiple copies of what's on the device - except that tracks you have created are not duplicated?). In short, it's a mess - a mess that the user has to spend time and effort to sort out. Its hard to tell what is an original item or a `shortcut'. But at least you know have a complete backup of your stuff - and you can see where you have been in terms of both waypoints (places) and trips - aka tracks. I love data and intend to fully use the ability to document tracks (tracking works whenever the device is on, and you don't have to plan a route to track any journey). You can easily export tracks to excel, say. Last little glitch - bc scans your pc for devices so if you pop in a camera card it appears in the bc menu list. Slightly worrying. There are other features i have not explored - adventures, and photo integration. Summaryit works same as a 3 year old navman at a similar price, but is a slicker faster unit. Pc software basecamp has good functionality for both planning routes and saving tracks. Note the reason i had to upgrade is that my old navman could not get map upgrades (even if i paid money), so i had to have a new unit. But whether this one is better than navman or tomtom or whether this unit is better than others in the range remains to be seen. Scores high on a nice gadget to own, but pretty low on its function - getting me somewhere without literally going round the houses. Personally i love satnavs and gps but the only reason they still exist is that smartphones went on a little design detour of their own when they went to touchscreen. In a couple of years the shear power of google maps will kill off all but the most specialised satnavs as your phone will be powerful enough to give you turn by turn navigation and hands-free phone and so on. But the crucial failure of standalone satnav is that it can't know what standard a restaurant is, what time it opens, whether the petrol station is selling cheap fuel, etc. It is this integration and richness of data that people consider routine on their phones, that is missing on a satnav unit. So i give the unit 9/10, basecamp 7/10 for messy design (needs a major update), and the navigation mapping `system' gets 5/10 for working just about but requiring a lot of user effort and stress. .
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