The Best of Both Phone, and Tablet
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"Very nice GPS, has problems that Garmin needs to fix" on by jjcoppa
Pros: Well constructed unit and cradle, Well structured and refined user interface, Garmin customer support
Cons: Lot's of software bugs, bluetooth not stable
Summary: I have been using the StreetPilot c550 for the past year and just bought the Nuvi 765T. My main interest is the multi-point routing, which the c550 does not have. I have been using the two units next to each other on my daily commute, and this is what I have found:
The 765T is completely up-to-date using the webupdater as of 12/6/2008.
The free NAVTEC traffic is not even close to what I get for my paid subscription from Clear Channel on the c550. The paid Clear Channel is MUCH better. I find that the free NAVTEC traffic coverage is horrible, and not as accurate. There have been many times that the 765 is showing 2 min delay on my route and the c550 is showing 14 mins, etc. I discovered I can upgrade to Clear Channel on the 765T. Clear Channel now offers a lifetime subscription for the renewal price and will eliminate the pop-up ad's.
The 765 does not draw as fast as the c550. I notice the 765 going blank and redrawing the screen every couple of minutes on certain routes.
The 765 gives delayed navigation prompts telling you to turn when you are already into the turn. The c550 gives more time to react.
Bluetooth connection to my treo is horrible, always disconnecting my phone.
I have yet to see the lane assist feature. I traveled many highways in NJ, PA and NY. I even traveled to Newark Airport which is a maze, no lane assist. Very disappointing.
The speaker is not even close to the loudness or clarity of the c550. I can hear it okay, but is certainly a step down.
The 3D buildings along the steets are not at all accurate, and do not add anything to the navigation experience. I saw it while driving in NYC. It does show landmark buildings in 3D, and they are accurate.
The speed limit sign in the lower left is nice, but I have noticed it is sometimes wrong. I have seen it show 50 while I am looking out the window at a 45 MPH sign.
As with my c550, the arrival time on the 765 is usually at least 15 minutes off during my daily commute, regardless of which route I take. This unit was supposed to learn and become more accurate. It does not.
The screen color is better on the c550 than on the 765. The black is blacker, red is deeper, etc.
The 765 has shut-off a few times on me when navigating and using my phone. It takes hours to come back on. I have called Garmin and they continue to tell me to do a hard and soft reset then let it charge for 4 hours. If it happens again, it is going back to the store. BTW, this is my second unit, I returned the first one because it was doing the same thing.
The touch screen is a bit more difficult to use than the c550. Options are closer together making it easier to hit the wrong option.
With all of that said, I do really like the unit. I like the cradle design as it allows me to more easily take it with me when I am out of the car. It has a more refined look and feel to it than the c550. There are many interface improvements over the c550. I just need to decide if I beleive that all of these bugs will be fixed by Garmin with updates. I also know that many of these differences would not be very noticable if I were not using the two side-by-side.
I have a couple weeks to decide if I am going to keep it. This is going to be a tough decision. -
"Not a reliable GPS by any means" on by jkada001
Pros: The wide screen display (4.3 inches) was crystal clear, and the system provided an easy to use menu that is common among Garmin products. Free traffic alerts for life also a plus.
Cons: Inaccurate navigation. Example: In Maryland, the voice and text feature indicated wrong directions (i.e. saying 29-south when we were going on 29-north, saying 193-west when we were going east). Voice is also garbled and hard to understand.
Summary: Why pay $550-$600 on a navigation system that can't get the roads right? A system this expensive should not give two errors on one commute in a major metro area (DC-Baltimore). The garbled voice was also unexpected, since the Garmin nuvis outside of the 7x5 series (e.g. 660) have crystal clear voices. If you're a Garmin fan, avoid the 7x5 models (765t, 775t, 785t) and stick with the other nuvis which have been solid.
The on-off swich was also a nuisance, as it does not lock into place. Therefore, since it takes a while for the 765t to turn on, you don't know if you ACTUALLY turned it on or not, and you'll find yourself fiddling with it. -
"Great GPS! Highly Recommended... Garmin Rocks!" on by uneqstylez
Pros: Nice vibrant high quality screen. Fast acquisition of satillites = quick route calculation! Good quality sound. Easy to understand language options. Built-in Bluetooth and FM transmitter. Nice esthetics on this model.
Cons: A little pricey but well worth it if you can appreciate the extra features plus its a Garmin. Have to press a little harder on the screen to register a command compared to my older Garmin GPS (nuvi 350). Not a problem, just have to get used to it.
Summary: I don't usually write reviews but this site's star average rating was skewed negatively (IMHO) due to the sparse amount of quality reviewers. I have had a Garmin Nuvi GPS (nuvi 350) for a couple of years. I decided to upgrade to this unit in which I AM VERY PLEASED! Not only does this device acquire satillites faster than my old one, the screen resolution has also improved. This gives the unit a brighter and more vivid graphic display which enables the user to visualize the details better. The options are great and the points of interests are abundant. Further, I really like (as with my older GPS unit) the Text to Speech feature in that this unit says the street names and destinations. The bluetooth feature is great to pair up with your bluetooth enabled cell phone. I believe this unit has a lifetime FREE traffic updates (which I haven't used yet). Moreover, you can use the built-in transmitter to broadcast the directions over your car's FM stereo.
DON'T BELIEVE THE GARMIN HATERS ON THIS SITE... THIS UNIT IS AWESOME!
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!
IF YOU WANT TO GET A GREAT GARMIN AT A LOWER PRICE, BUY THE GARIN 265. I BOUGHT IT FOR MY GIRLFRIEND AND IT ROCKS TOO! Low price + Text to Speech = GREAT BUY! -
"Best GPS I've used so far." on by 827-SLH-TC-P
Pros: Seems to be dead on accurate so far. Turns on and aquires a signal much faster than my old Garmin (680). POI data base seems very complete and up to date.
Cons: Now takes about 3 screen taps to get to the mp3 player. On my 680 there was a dedicated button on the main screen. No easy way to get out of the POI database if you decide not to press "Go". You have to keep pressing "Back".
Summary: The 765t seems sturdy and well made with it's rubbery coating. No antenae to break off. I walked out of Best Buy, installed it to my windshield with the suction cup and tapped "Home". I entered my home address and it almost instantly had the route to go home. Right out of the box it had a signal within seconds. My old 680 would often take several minutes to lock in the signal. Since I was hungry and to test the unit out I used the POI data base to search for a resturant near my destination in this case near my home. It found the Bob Evans that had been missing from the data base of my 680.
On the way I got to see the lane assist feature. This is only a static image of the interchange or what ever but it is very accurate and even shows the exact signs that you will see. If you tap the screen to see it again it seems to stay there till you dismiss it even though you are long past the area.
Does not have a Truck route Preference like the 680 had but the 680 did not give usable truck routes anyway. Not sure what they were thinking with that one. The Garmin 680 would have been the Trucker's GPS Holy Grail if the Truck Preference actually gave a usable truck route but it did not.
But the 765t in my opinion has the best feature set for the price of all the Garmin products for Users in the USA. Get the 775t if you plan to use it in Europe but it's $200.00 more. The 880 gives you voice recognition but personally I would rather just tap the screen. If you position it right you only take your eyes off the road for a second. Probably safer than fiddling with the radio on the dash. Plus I plan to to use it a lot in a noisy truck. Not sure the voice thing would work well there.
A new feature that I think would be particularly usefull to truckers is the ability to customize your route though I haven't had a chance to try it out yet. I hope to be able put in a route like normal and then use a Trucker's Atlas to make sure none of the roads are truck restricted. For example if it routes me on the Garden State Parkway in NJ that's a no no for trucks. I can customize the route to stay on the Turnpike or whatever works.
Not as nice as having a real Trucker's GPS but better than my old 680. On that device I would just make a mental or sometimes paper note not to take a certain exit then let it recalculate. Sometimes I would have to ignore it for a while because I knew it was trying to turn me around and put me back on the no no route. Eventually it would get the hint.
With the new 765t I can alter the route on the device so I can just relax and turn when it tells me to.
While sitting at the table in Bob Evan's I pulled the 765t out of my jacket pocket along with my Treo 755p phone and with no manual or instructions of any kind I easily made the Bluetooth pairing of the two devices. The hands free works great in the car. Not sure how well it will work in the noisy truck though.
I pulled the SD card full of mp3 music out of my 680 and poped it into the 765t. It did not recognize it right away. After some trial and error I think I found the trick. Make sure the 765t is off, then insert the card and turn it on. Once I could browse and select songs I found I had no music audio on either the line out jack or the FM transmitter. I had navigation audio but no music. Went to the mixer and boosted the music to 100% but still no music audio except through the internal speaker when I switched to that output but on FM output no music, only Nav voice. A reset done by holding the power switch to the left for 8 seconds solved this problem. Worked fine after that.
Is it my imagination or does the FM transmitter work much better than the 680 and way better than the Tom Tom Go 910 I had a long time ago. On my Garmin 680 I had to constantly change the frequency even around different parts of my home area (Pittsburgh, PA) but with the 765t I tuned my radio to the frequency it was already set to (87.3 I think.) and it worked all the way to Bob Evan's and then home with only one tiny static pop that quickly went away.
In my opinion you can't go wrong with any Garmin product but the 765t rocks!
See you on the road. -
"This is my 3rd Garmin & I'd recommend you try b4 u buy." on by ibarton65
Pros: When it works, you are able to locate your parked car. When lane assist works, it's great. The buttons on the screen are large enough for anyone to see and use.
Cons: The screen gives off a big glare in sunlight and shows all fingerprints, unlike my other Garmins. The voice directions are not the same as what is on the screen. The traffic information is not accurate, giving false information.
Summary: I would not be without a Garmin. I'd like the product to give accurate the same information via voice and screen. I'd also like the traffic information to be accurate. Please make a sun screen - the fingerprints I can handle, but not the glare of the sun. I miss the free weather information from my previous Garmin. I'd recommend people view comments from others before choosing which model they purchase.
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