need help with tomtom and garmin

[18LLC]

i want to know your opinion for those products. which one is better, if price is not matter. tomtom go 920 or garmin nuvi 650? thanks.

[18LLC]

anyone?

[Nyulak]

I have a Garmin Nuvi 660 and I like it a lot. I haven't used either of the devices you used, though. I can say that I don't use any of hte Bluetooth or MP3 features. The picture display feature is also garbage, you should be driving, not staring at a GPS unit showing dumb pictures.

If I had my way, I would get a wide-screen GPS that did nothing but GPS stuff. I believe Garmin now has wide-screen GPS units without all of the fluff.

[18LLC]

what about the signal? have u ever loss signal with garmin? thanks.

[Nyulak]

Lose signal? Nope. Actually, if I have it inside in my living room, it still has signal. The thing is a champ. I used it in Baltimore earlier this year and I had no problems with the signal strength. I only drove near the inner harbor area, so I don't know how well it would have worked in the thick of the buildings, but I was surrounded by several tall structures without any problems.

[Hawker 800XP]

I like them both.

[staticten]

Originally Posted by Nyulak

I have a Garmin Nuvi 660 and I like it a lot. I haven't used either of the devices you used, though. I can say that I don't use any of hte Bluetooth or MP3 features. The picture display feature is also garbage, you should be driving, not staring at a GPS unit showing dumb pictures.

If I had my way, I would get a wide-screen GPS that did nothing but GPS stuff. I believe Garmin now has wide-screen GPS units without all of the fluff.

i believe that's the 650.

although i just bought my 660 for $399 at best buy (black friday), costco.com still has the 650 for $299, i'm actually thinking about returning the 660 and getting the 650 instead.

you're right, i don't see myself using the bluetooth nor the mp3 and FM transmitter.


anyway, i must say i'm glad i went Garmin!

[SES_D]

Just bought the Garmin Nuvi350 at Circuit City for $300.00 and it's GREAT! Includes Mp3 & FM transmitter as well.

Calculates & re-calculates locations & routes pretty damn fast.

[Maestro]

I got a TomTom, primary reason for getting it was they had software that ran on the Mac, Garmin has said for years they were going to support the mac and have not as of yet.

I also find putting MP3 or pictures on a GPS unit useless, however the Bluetooth is useful, you can have have it dial your cell phone for a Point of Interest you found on the unit like a restaurant, also you can use it for handsfree phone calls, however, with the BMW and its own bluetooth you an not use both at the same time.

I use my TomTom in another care which does not have bluetooth so it nice having there.

TomTom uses the latest GPS chip sets so it works great even indoors.

[jtecnik]

garmin 660 ....works great and no problems.....highly recmd.

[darkcloud]

I have a TomTom Go 700 and really enjoy it. I use it daily for work and it never fails me. I only lose a signal if I sit under a bridge or in parking garages, I have never lost signal due to tall building or anything like that.

I don't use the BT feature either. It doesn't get loud enough for my liking and I always had to lean towards the unit for the caller to hear me which was annoying. I haven't even bothered messing with the MP3/picture/ipod features either. Too much useless garbage that shouldn't be on the unit.

I prolly should have paid less for the 500 but I liked the fact that the 700 had a internal HD that could hold maps for close to every country(not that I really need it but it's nice to know it's possible) and doesn't use a SD card or anything like that which you have to buy from TomTom and only holds 1-2 countries per card.

[staticten]

Originally Posted by SES_D

Just bought the Garmin Nuvi350 at Circuit City for $300.00 and it's GREAT! Includes Mp3 & FM transmitter as well.

Calculates & re-calculates locations & routes pretty damn fast.

man, $99 more you could've bought the 660 at bestbuy on black friday yesterday...

oh well..

[Nyulak]

Yeah, the extra features are okay for those that need/want them. For me, my car has BT and I own an iPod. The BMW BT system works well with my cell phone and I am not about to spend a ton of time encoding music to MP3 format to play it via its built-in FM transmitter.

As for Mac support, there is software by Garmin that enables Mac support. I haven't used it, since I have no real need for the software. Besides, I also have a WinXP box that does a pretty decent job of collecting dust, so I guess I could use that instead.

[Bimmer335i]

I'm thinking gettin a garmin 650 for $300 from costco.com after rebates...good decision?

[Sam Da Man]

i dont have much of a review..but go with GARMIN lol

[18LLC]

thanks, everyone. looks like garmin win the game. but i didn't get to check this thread again b4 i click check out the tomtom go 920 from costco today. oh well, the garmin 650 was out of stock from costco anyway... I will put some feedback when i get the unit.

[Bama335]

BestBuy had the GO720 for $399 last weekend - not sure if that price is still avail or not.

I've been pretty pleased with my 720 so far - I wanted the wider screen for my old eyes, but now that the Tom Tom One XL is avail, you may want to check it out for less $$. Depends on how many bells and whistles you're after.

[Neil]

I have 3 friends who have a garmin nuvi and one with the tomtom one. The tomtom on our way to Boston lost signal a couple times and the suction cup really sucked. It kept falling off the kid's window. While in the car with the other friends and their garmins theirs seemed to be faster loading, have a faster interface, and catch the signal better.

I decided to go with the nuvi 350 the other day for $299 even though it cost more than the tomtom. I saw the costco nuvi 650 but I didn't need the wide screen, the 350 has better battery life, fits in a pocket, and has the accessories that the 650 is missing. Gonna test it out late december on a road trip to GA. I'll be passing 7 states so it will be a good test of the satellite strength and the routing.

[18LLC]

Originally Posted by Neil

I have 3 friends who have a garmin nuvi and one with the tomtom one. The tomtom on our way to Boston lost signal a couple times and the suction cup really sucked. It kept falling off the kid's window. While in the car with the other friends and their garmins theirs seemed to be faster loading, have a faster interface, and catch the signal better.

is that mean garmin also lost signal, but just picking back up faster?

[HyperM3]

Ive had 2 Garmins and bought one for my parents and convinced my sister and her husband to get one. I just bought another one for my best friend for the holidays. They are far and beyond the most user friendly out there with the best customer support.

I had a friend bring me her tomtom to help her set it up. I almost asked for the instruction manual. It was hardly as intuitive to use as the garmin. One of the most annoying things about it was that once you were on a route and on the main screen, you couldnt easily adjust settings without getting out of the route.

Another thing I didnt like about the tomtom was it didnt automatically switch from day to night brightness settings as the garmin did.

It really made me happier about getting the garmin. I really want that sexy piano black nuvi 760 they have now. Im such an upgrade whore.

[18LLC]

Originally Posted by HyperM3

Ive had 2 Garmins and bought one for my parents and convinced my sister and her husband to get one. I just bought another one for my best friend for the holidays. They are far and beyond the most user friendly out there with the best customer support.

I had a friend bring me her tomtom to help her set it up. I almost asked for the instruction manual. It was hardly as intuitive to use as the garmin. One of the most annoying things about it was that once you were on a route and on the main screen, you couldnt easily adjust settings without getting out of the route.

Another thing I didnt like about the tomtom was it didnt automatically switch from day to night brightness settings as the garmin did.

It really made me happier about getting the garmin. I really want that sexy piano black nuvi 760 they have now. Im such an upgrade whore.

i think the one i order (tomtom go 920) have day/night auto switch, still don't know about the user friendly part yet...

[Neil]

Originally Posted by 18LLC

is that mean garmin also lost signal, but just picking back up faster?

I meant the initial pickup from the startup. When I was with my friends they didn't lose signal at all. That isn't to say they ever lose signal, I'm sure they do but they seemed to have a better signal lock than my other friend's TomTom.