Archive for November, 2008

Garmin Nuvi – Your Trusted Companion

A new trend in the world’s most developed countries is the use of GPS navigators. So whether you are driving in a car or you are walking around on foot, the Garmin Nuvi 350 pocket GPS navigator is a very useful device to have. It is ranked highly among GPS navigators and it is loaded with many features which makes your travel experience much easier.

The Garmin Nuvi 350 pocket GPS navigator has many features that enhance usage and portability. Its small size is comfortable in the palm of your hand while its light weight makes it easy to carry in a jacket or pant pocket. The high quality resolution and display clearly shows easy to read directions and maps. Finally, the Garmin Nuvi 350 provides the option of storing large quantities of navigated data in its high capacity memory card for future usage.

The battery time is 8 hours for this GPS navigator and it comes with an energy adaptor for charging it in the vehicles. The previous model for this GPS device was Garmin Nuvi 250 GPS which had the same theme functions but was not as loaded as this GSP 350 is. Previously the battery time was lesser and the GPS 250 also was low in display features as compared to the latest ones.

Though the 250 GPS navigator lacked in some of the features but for basic navigation purposes it served very well and proved to be the great technology success. \”Technology has made life very easy\” and these GPS navigators have proved the statement very true to many who never agreed on the advantages of advancement in technology.

With the advancement of technology Garmin produced another great product very similar to the first one. This product included a greater array of features, providing greater help in navigation. This new model, the Garmin Nuvi 660 GPS Navigation System, was produced primarily for use in automobiles. It comes with a wider screen and the display features are enhanced, making it easier to both find and to browse maps. Above all of this the Nuvi 650 comes with preloaded navigators offering even greater convenience.

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) developed by the United States Department of Defense. It is the only fully functional GNSS in the world. It uses a constellation of between 24 and 32 Medium Earth Orbit satellites that transmit precise microwave signals, that enable GPS receivers to determine their current location, the time, and their velocity (including direction). Its official name is NAVSTAR-GPS. Although NAVSTAR-GPS is not an acronym.

Gps Naviation Store

The Garmin Forerunner 305 is very similar to the Forerunner 205 in fact; it is identical in size, shape, performance and features with only a coupe of exceptions. The primary difference is the 305 includes a heart rate monitor and may include a cycling cadence counter. These options make the 305 a good choice for even the most serious athletes. Notable Features; Unit Size (W x H x D) – 2.1 x 2.7 x .7 inches Screen Size (W x H) – 1.3 x .8 inches Weight – 2.7 oz. Battery type – Rechargeable Lithium- Ion Battery Life – approx. 10 hours Water resistant – Yes (IPX7) Heart rate monitor – Yes Lap memory – Yes, 1000 laps Waypoint memory – Yes, 100 Routes feature – Yes, 50 max Warranty – One year If you are interested in getting the most out of your training efforts, we feel the heart rate monitor is a must. It works well and there is no other accurate substitute for measuring your heart rate and adjusting the intensity of the work out, to maintain the desired cardio targets. When training on varying terrain the effect on heart rate is very pronounced, it would probably surprise anyone who has not used a monitor previously. In use, we found the readings to be fairly steady enough so that we had confidence that they were accurate.

This consistency is not to be taken lightly, if the readings varied constantly you would end up checking them more often which could become tiresome. Our take is that a quick glance would give a good reading and that very frequent checking was unnecessary. The Garmin Forerunner 305 is one step up from the Forerunner 205 so it might be helpful to read our product review for that model. The key differences are the 305 includes the heart rate monitor, a feature the 205 lacks. Another optional feature available with the gps navigation devices is a cycling cadence counter but we did not test that option. It should be mentioned that the heart monitor and cycling sensors will work indoors since they do not rely on the GPS signal to function.

Accuracy is to be expected and required for this type of product to be truly useful. In our use we checked the readings with several other gps navigation devices and also checked with a measured mile. Moderate tree cover did not adversely affect the unit’s performance which is important since that could be encountered frequently. The overall accuracy was excellent, given the presence of a strong signal, and should be enough to satisfy literally everyone. One area where great strides have been made is the ease of use. The unit itself is not bulky to wear while training, it’s similar to wearing a regular watch, just a little bigger. Overall the design and functionality is excellent. The buttons become intuitive fairly quickly so you shouldn’t be long in getting up to speed. Establishing a regular charging routine will be needed, the average life of a charge is about 8 to 10 hours. We would opt for the 305 over the 205 since the difference in cost is only about $100, and the benefits are great. Garmin has made this generation of GPS tracking watches better than ever, you should not be disappointed.

Does anyone know the differences between the Garmin gps models?

Garmin Nuvi 250 Review

Garmin Nuvi 250 Review

• Pros: Easy to use, solid and compact enough to put in your pocket.
• Cons: Slightly confusing maps.

The garmin nuvi 250 follows the newly implemented Garmin trend of trying to be more than just a sat-nav.

To achieve this task, Garmin set up the Nuvis as travel companions, with useful extras such as city guides available on SD card, as well as currency converters and foreign phrasebooks. These can be useful functions if you don’t mind been seen out in public with your nuvi 250.

The Nuvi 250 is a small and compact unit and with its integrated GPS aerial and simplistic design, it is easily one of the most unassuming satellite navigation devices on the market.

The Garmin Nuvi 250 has proven itself as capable of being more than just a sat-nav so I suppose the question remains; How well does it function as a Sat Nav? Well its size and simplicity are a good start.

It starts up very quickly, and as with all sat-navs kitted out with the SirfStar III GPS chipset, speedy in establishing its position. You are presented with just two options on start up, ‘Where to’ or ‘View map’. This ease of use is reflected throughout the rest of the menus and during navigation.
During navigation your route is very clearly marked out with a bold line that is very easy to see – even on the Nuvi 250s compact screen. However, more complex junctions and roundabouts can sometimes be a little confusing.

Despite this flaw most confusion is cleared up by the clear verbal instructions provided by the Nuvi 250 and the navigation provided on one-way gyratory road systems is as good as any of the sat-navs I’ve seen on the market.

There’s not much auxiliary information on-screen while you drive though: no information about nearby petrol stations or other POIs, other than on-map icons. Plus, apart from the travel tools, the bells and whistles have been omitted, there’s no Bluetooth, no TMC traffic updates, and MP3 playback is absent.

Still, at around ?90, these features aren’t expected. The Garmin Nuvi 250 is a small, but capable sat-nav that handles the basics well, and its optional travel guide features are justified better than any of the other models in the range. Great Buy if you want to keep it functional and simple.