GPS review by Ron (1 Viewer)

[Len Cheong]

Just got a roadmate 700 but I cant seem to get it to locate my position. Whenever I boot up it keeps showing a position in san francisco regardless of where i am.

I thought these units were easy to operate and it was a matter of turning it on and pressing locate. What am i doing wrong?

 

[Mitul_Patel]

Hi,

I'm new to the forums, and just wanted to post something somewhere

Those portable units from Magellan look cool, but I have no personal experience with them, although it seems like they would be great for hikers or people that off road.

I personally have an Eclipse AVN5435. Its an in dash unit, so there is no ease of installation like with the Magellan, but its a great unit that does everything (plays CD's, MP3 CD's, DVD's, Sirius satelite radio).

It's worth a look if you are in need of something more than a NAV unit.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Make sure the antenna at the top of the
display is pointed up.

The initial turn-on will take up to 7 minutes
until the unit connects with the satellite.

Let us know how you are doing with this.

 

[George_W_K]

Is there a possibility of the unit being in some kind of "demo" mode? The unit I played around with at the local Best Buy had its location in California in demo mode. I'm not sure if it was San Francisco though.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

If you took it home brand new boxed
it should not be in DEMO mode.

I am certain the manual states that you may
have to initially wait up to 7 minutes for a
signal to be received.

 

[Len Cheong]

Ron, do you have to wait 7 minutes each time it powers up?
I switched my roadmate for another one and this one works but whenever I press locate it does not seem to be doing anything. Any way to totally restart this thing? I must be the dumbest roadmate 700 user.

I also got a garmin quest and while this one you have to load up the map, it seems to be a little more sophisticated than the roadmate. People have mentioned that it loses its lock on the satellite signal frequently and while i did find that to be the case it was momentary.
Has anybody tried the garmins (versus the Magellan roadmates)?

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Hi, Len!

I don't know if the problems you are experiencing
have anything to do with your location or not.

No, you should not have to wait 7 minutes each
time you power it up, though sometimes when you
turn on the unit in a different location than you
turned it off, it seems to take longer to search for
a satellite signal.

For instance, when I fly to another area of the
country and plug my unit in the rental car, it takes
up to 7 minutes for the unit to locate the satellite.

 

[Len Cheong]

It must be my location as both gps units have difficulty locking. What luck.

 

[George_W_K]

Maybe you're in need of an external antennae. Or you might try different positions around your car. Do you have a heated windshield?

 

[Mark Leiter]

Hey. I thought I’d revive this thread instead of staring a new one.

I remember back a few months when the Magellan 700 first came out and how impressed most people on the forum were with it. At the time though it was a little too expensive for me to get. Last night on a whim I decided to check the prices again. I found that the prices have come way down. I found it on one site for a little over $600.

I also found that Magellan has released more advanced versions as well. A 760 and a 800 model though I haven’t yet researched into what the differences are between these model numbers.

Now that these things are price in a range I can afford I’ve started to put some thought into getting one again. However now my needs have changed somewhat. I have recently gotten into doing long distance motorcycle riding. Next summer I plan on riding to Sturgis SD from Orlando, FL. A round trip of about 4000-4500 miles. I thought it would be cool to have a GPS system installed on my bike when I go.

The question I have is; How well will these GPS systems such as the Magellan 700 hold up when they are exposed to the elements? Do they make auto navigation units specifically for motorcycles? Has anyone used or tried them out??

Thanks all.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Mark,

Something tells me that any electronic device
designed for automobile use being exposed to
outside elements including rain and direct
sunlight isn't going to fare very well.

...then again, I'm not a professional on this
sort of thing.

Go have a look at this page. Looks like it may be
what you need, but perhaps too costly.

 

[Andres Munoz]

Hi Ron. Have you gotten a chance to compare the new models (760 and 800) to yours? I'm curious to know what new features they include and if they'd be worth the extra money.

 

[George_W_K]

The TomTom Rider (Ron's link) is the only GPS I know of that is marketed for bikes. I haven't read too much into it since I don't have a bike, but it's supposed to use map data from Nav Teq (same supplier for Magellan) as opposed to Tele Atlas, (which the other TomTom units use) which seem to have more errors in the US than Nav Teq.

 

[Mark Leiter]

Hmm. Very nice. Thanks for the link Ron. Pricey though. Looks like im back up in the $1,100 range again. Sigh.....

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Hey Andres!

The bad news is that I rarely use my Magellan unit
anymore. I recently bought an Acura RL that has a
built-in navigation system which puts the Magellan
(or any other consumer model) to shame.

However....

The good news is that I still use my Magellan when
traveling in a rental car. It still comes in handy.

Last I checked early this Summer, you could update
the model I had to include all the features of the
newer models. Many of the map updates were free, but
there was a $100 upgrade charge to download additional
features including European maps.

I still read reviews on these models in computer
magazines and the Magellan still generally ranks
as the best of them all.

 

[Mark Leiter]

Dont even use it anymore huh?? Well if your ever inclined to sell it i'd make you a fair offer.

 

[Andres Munoz]

Acura RL huh? Very cool car. Congrats Ron.

 

[BobbyPerry]

I found a great deal for both the TomTom products that I thought I'd share:

GO 300 - $499 and a free yr. of traffic
GO 700 - $639 and a free yr. of traffic

 

[Daniel Kikin]

A little late jumping in here but my Honda lease is expiring soon and I'm looking at a new one in a few weeks, is it worth splurging and getting the EX-L with Nav, I probably wouldn't need it more than a couple of times a month but it looks too good to resist.

 

[Andres Munoz]

My father in law got the Magellan Roadmate 360 for x-mas and I got a chance to use it a couple of weeks ago. Very cool unit. Sturdy mount, bright visible screen, easy to follow voice directions and the it has all the US maps built-in already. Not like the previous model 300 which you had to download.

I haven't gotten a chance to compare but I wonder what the differences are between the 360 and the 700 (or 760).

I might decide to purchase the 360. The price doesn't seem too bad.