- Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 41 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
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8 out of 9 people found this review helpful
2.5 stars
"Mio C520 - Nice but..."
Pros: Excellent Price, very readable display, accurate where I am in Central FL,
Cons: Bluetooth does not work. No accessories to be found easily beware, Support line has a nice vmail:) that you end up in, email support so far is more responsive. Battery is not swappable,
Summary: I purchased the Mio C520 as it seemed the best price/value on the market. Garmin's seemed much more costly and the others less reliable. So I settled in between.
My opinion is while it seems to be a nice neat package it has flaws that you have to decide whether it is important or not.
Suction cup mount...Right out of the box, I tried to use the suction cup mount and discovered it will not hold on flat surfaces other than a windshield? It loosens and falls over if you attempt to use it on say a table top. They include a funny little black plastic coaster which you are supposedly to stick to your dashboard (not my car thank you). Regardless I tested it and it will not hold to that either. However I stuck it to the windshield at it holds! Go figure??
The power switch...is quirky, you have to hold it down to get a screen that indicates shutdown or reset...I tap the shutdown but it seems to reset as the date and time are always wrong after you do it. If you tap the on-off switch, it just goes into sleep mode. What the true issue is I am not sure but I did report this odd behavior as maybe it is just my unit.
Bluetooth...Tried to bond with my brand new Motorola RAZRv3 and it goes off into some Mio never-neverland. The phone indicates it bonded, but the Mio just has this cryptic "..waiting for device.." message that you cannot get out of unless you shutdown...and of course it resets! I have asked their tech support but I am sure it will be my phone that they will claim is the problem or "atmospherics". Not a big deal to me since it seems a lot more work to set up than to just flip open the phone and use it. Did not try using it with headphones (don't have any) so perhaps that works better.
Accuracy...It was very accurate as far as I could tell locally. The speaking voice was ok for the most part. The display was crisp and relatively uncluttered. But the menus and logic I am struggling with. Trying to enter a destination seems to be a chore and not straightforward and confusing. But in fairness I have had it less than a week so we shall see. SImplicity it is not as others have indicated.
The manuals...come in two parts, 1 for the hardware and 2nd for the software Mio Map. Both are on the CD so you have to print them or read them on a PC. The Hardware is better but both are obviously translations that sometimes make no sense. You'd think by now that someone who is more fluent in the particular language would proof it as this is clearly a European product.
Accessories...if you are looking for a case or another mount, forget it. Nobody seems to carry anything for Mio's. I asked (tech support) about this and they directed me to a couple web sites and Mio has one but be prepared for sticker shock. I had to calculate from Euro's but it seemed that the cheapest, case they had amounted to $43 whereas you could get one for a Garmin or Tom-Tom for $10..everything was very pricey and mostly out of stock on there own web site. Something tells me that it is a work in process but why anyone would put a product out there and no aftermarket support escapes me.
Overall in some areas this could be a terrific product, but in others it seems lacking. I'll see how the tech support deals with the bluetooth and power switch rest issue. Price is aggressive but the aftermarket support is not there at all. So I put this on the borderline. If Garmin meets them in price you are probably better off with the Garmin but it is good to have some competition. Perhaps the next generation will solve the problems but usually if you have less good experience, you are not likely to try it again.Updated
After a couple of weeks with the unit my basic opinion remains unchanged. This could be a terrific product but it needs some work. Tech Support was not very helpful and no follow up even when asking for additional info. I am not sure why, but they really do not seem to interested. They also like to refer issues to some other department (aka sounds a little like the run around) to evaluate your problem but again, no follow up so I submitted the same complaint again. Perhaps the big issue is no N America support.Updated
After several calls to the customer support center and explaining in detail the issues I encountered (battery life 60 minutes, cannot be used when the car charger is plugged in, bluetooth inoperable, Mio agreed to give me an RMA...but the catch was you had to get it in an email and of course they never sent it. Called back a couple of times, but it was obvious that it was a game..So I went back to the retailer who gladly accepted the return and credited my purchase towards a Garmin nuvi 350. Not as many features, but hopefully a better experience. BUY THIS PRODUCT AT YOUR OWN RISK. IF YOU NEED SUPPORT YOU WILL FIND IT A FRUSTRATING, UNPRODUCTIVE EXPERIENCE!
- 4 replies to this review
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do you know how can ? calculate between 2 points,but not present point,different points in city.thanks a lot
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If you are surrounded by a swirling vortex of wifi when you try to pair the device it wont work...Also very very important! if you have another blue tooth device that was connected to your phone previously - you need to disable that blue tooth device or power it down and even clear the history.- Trust me I am an electronic tech and work in I.T. THis Mio is a solid unit.
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I connected both my razor phone and jarba blue tooth headphones to the device with no trouble. your phone may have a problem with its blue tooth....
Also I love this unit. I does everthing the pos tomtom one xl cant -
I couldn't have said it better myself. Everything lazyoaks identified is what I ran into..I'm returning my Mio today ! By the way, I too purchased my Mio C520 from Circuit City, they have a 14 day return policy that includes a 10% restock fee...Just an FYI.
PS I'm a super super newbie for GPS products and I've owned my Mio for approx 9 days. And too this day I don't have a clue on how to set my destination from point A to point B. Manual is super super confusing.
Where to buy
Mio C520 Navigation Receiver:
$340.00 - $349.99
| store | price | in stock? | rating |
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Amazon.com Marketplace
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$349.99 | Yes |
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$340.00 | Yes |
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