Most helpful client reviews
1231 of 1248 people found the following review helpful.
Very good but . . . .
By mitch53
I have this unit for 10 days now and overall I am very happy with it. For it is mainstream feature, navigation, it is excellent. I had a Garmin 350 before this which I loved but it was stolen from my car. I had a Magellan after that which was crap. The price on this unit was great ($247 - Amazon).
446 of 449 persons found the following review helpful.
Mostly Impressive - But Some Quibbles
By R. Anderson
Overall, I am very satisfied with the Garmin nuvi 1350 but I do have a couple of minor complaints.
First of all, I do commend that owners/potential buyers visit the Garmin web internetsite to read through all of the product selective information and to review the FAQs. Some folks have made an issue of Garmin not including the USB cable with the device but this did not matter to me. The required cable is a ordinary type "A" to mini "B" USB cable. Many other appliances use this same cable and I already own a couple of them. (I also heard that if you contact Garmin client service, they may send you a cable at no charge.) Other reasons to visit the Garmin site: to register the product, to download the full PDF manual and to install the "my Garmin Agent Plugin" for web updates.
Next, my quibbles:
When the 1350 is plugged into a charging device (PC or vehicle), there is no way to determine when the unit is wholly charged. This is very inconvenient. To view the charge level, you have to unplug the device and turn it on. Only then may you see the battery level. According to the Garmin FAQs, charge time is regarding 4 hours using the vehicle cable and 8 hours using the PC cable.
One of the features of the 1350 is the speed limit display. However, I find this to be of fixed value. The speed display is many times 5 to 10 mph too high equated with the actual posted speeds on the roads being traveled. As a result, this throws off the approximated destination arrival time.
Finally, why I am impressed:
When driving with the 1350, I never had any doubt where I was at any given time and I never had any doubt what my next maneuver would be (and isn't this the bottom line of any GPS?). The voice commands have a great deal of volume, are easy to perceive and they likewise give you adequate lead time for upcoming turns. The commands will likewise repeat but the voice is not annoying. Several times, I purposely missed a turn to test how the 1350 would respond. It quickly calculated a revised route based on my current location.
I likewise found the screen to be clear and easy to see while driving (in bright sun, shade and at night).
The full manual states that a PDA type stylus may be employed for the touch screen. I found this to be commodious (I'm actually using a stylus from a Nintendo DS.) While you may surely use your finger on the screen, this will leave fingerprints and smudges on the screen.
Other notes:
I have the 1350 sitting on my dash with the Garmin "Portable Friction Mount" - highly recommended.
My 1350 came with a free case - the Caselogic MGPS-2. This case adequately protects the 1350 when it's not being used.
Overall, this has been a great buy for my business travels and I would rate the unit as four and a half stars.
1088 of 1105 people found the following review helpful.
charging issues
By mark goresky
I've used this GPS for assorted weeks now and when it is completely charged it is perfectly great. The voice is earsplitting and clear, the maps are precise and detailed. It acquires satellites quickly, even in less than optimal circumstances with trees overhead or tall buildings nearby. It is easy to program and the onscreen menus are convenient. It is thin and reasonably light and portable and the screen is big. But it has one major problem: the cigarette-lighter charging system does not supply sufficient current to charge the GPS while it is turned on. It is unbelievable that Garmin would grant their unit to be sold under these conditions.
When I received the unit I totally charged the battery (by connecting it to my computer using a USB cable which Garmin does not supply, but I happened to have one anyway). Then I applied it in my car, always plugged into the cigarette lighter. It turns on mechanically whenever you get started the car, and it turns off mechanically when the ignition switch is turned off. However, over this two week amount of time the battery tardily discharged (without my knowledge) until it reached a point where the unit would no longer turn on, even when plugged in to the car charger. Assuming the unit was defective, I called Garmin and (after 20 minutes on hold) learned that the car charger is not up to the task, and that the GPS will tardily lose it is charge when it is turned on, even if you have it connected to the cigarette lighter adapter. I believe this means that if you have a long drive, perhaps 8 hours or more, then the unit may not even stay operational allround the full trip. Other persons have made similar complaints regarding a lot of of the other Garmin GPS units.
The tech aid people explained how to recover from the low battery situation: you do a "soft reset" which plainly involves keeping down the on/off button for 10 seconds. Then the unit will turn on, but the battery will need recharging. I was told to do this by connecting it to my computer using a USB cable, which Garmin does not supply with the GPS (fortunately I already had one), but I assume you could do the same by connecting it to the car charger and making sure that the unit is turned off while it is charging.
What a shame that Garmin has devised a superior product with a fatal defect. I will keep mine for now, but I'm going to investigate other charging solutions. Perhaps after reading this review, the wizards at Garmin will redesign the charging scheme for this GPS.
Update (Aug 1/09): I came upon the reason for these charging issues: In the User's Manual, beneath "Troubleshooting", Garmin states that the Nuvi will not charge if it is in direct sunlight or if the temperature is more than 113 degrees F (45 deg C). Since I had my unit attached to the windshield, and since I only drive for the duration of midday, it is always in sunlight. This charging rule applies to a lot of other models as well; for any given model you may download the manual from Garmin, turn to the Troubleshooting section, and see whether or not they describe a similar charging rule. (The rule is meant to keep away from overheating the battery: lithium batteries may occasionally catch fire if they are gravely overcharged or overheated.) I think this explains why some humans have ran into charging troubles and others have not: it depends on whether or not the unit is always in direct sunlight while you are driving. Some people use the friction mount and their Garmin sits on the console. Others drive later in the day or at night.
See all 1671 client reviews...
