Big Boy Toys and other stuff...
Rambling, bragging and complaining about my new (and old) Big Boy Toys
Monday, November 06, 2006
My Garmin Nuvi 350

A couple of weeks ago, I bought a Garmin Nuvi 350 GPS. This is one of my best toys. I had a Honda Odyssey with the Honda Nav system, but I got rid of that car, and couldn't see paying a fortune to the dealer to add a no-name GPS to my new SUV. After doing some research, I bought the Nuvi from Buy.com, and it was a great deal - I saved over $100 from the next lowest price I could find, got free shipping, and saved another $10 for using Google Checkout.
The Nuvi is amazing! It is small and light, and is fairly easy to program. You can bring it in the house and set your destinations, and if you leave the antenna down, it will simulate the drive for you. I'm not sure why you'd need that, but it's cool. It speaks the directions, and even reads off street names, something the Honda Nav system did not do. I set the Nuvi to a female voice, speaking Australian English, mate.
The screen is detailed and bright. The map display is pretty cool, too. It is a 3D display, which shows the upcoming turns, and ETA. There are alternate displays that show speed, distance, max speed (watch that one - I keep resetting it so my wife doesn't see), elapsed time, etc.
I can't say enough good things about the Nuvi. My only complaint, which is minor, is that I would like additional search categories, not just restaurants and lodging, and I would like to be able to input an intersection, instead of an address only. Since I didn't completely read the directions, that feature may indeed be there. If I find it, I'll update.
Highly recommended!

