GARMIN nüvi 650 4.3" GPS Navigation

Garmin 650

Reviewed By: Thanks newegg on 7/10/2007

Tech Level: somewhat high - Ownership: 1 week to 1 month

Pros: Very easy to use and navigate through menus, start up is about 30 seconds and it navigates flawlessly. Voice prompts occur at the perfect time, huge database of stored POI it’s surprising how much is in there. Not much space for music, when I got it there were only about 75MB of free space, I took the extra stored languages and sample stuff off which gave me about 320MB of space. 4GB SD Card on the way Garmin says the 650 will only work up to 4GB card, no Firmware updates for the 8GB yet.

Cons: Would be nice if you could change the key layout for entering addresses over to standard US Keyboard vs. alphabetical. Would also be nice if you could see names of POI when you zoom in on the map (it only shows icons for gas, food, bank etc.)

Other Thoughts: If you are in the market for a $430+/- GPS system you cant go wrong with this one. The best I’ve seen or used so far.

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Reviewed By: on 6/2/2008

Tech Level: somewhat high - Ownership: 1 month to 1 year

Pros: Good sized screen, bright, crisp. Really accurate, you can customize whether or not you want to avoid the interstate and toll roads, things like that. Voice prompts are spot on. It is quick to reroute. I like the favorite addresses feature, if I get lost somewhere, I can just bring up the favorites and tap "home". You can set favorites by your current location, which is what I did standing in my driveway.

I live in WV, a mountainous state. The signal is always really good here, even while going down winding roads with high hills on both sides. Never drops below 4/5 bars (that I've seen).

Takes about 15 seconds or less on average for me to get a good signal.

Cons: The speaker is kind of tinny at high volume, so I don't think you'd want to attempt to use this as your default mp3, unless you just want to carry it around for entertainment with headphones or you have like a speaker jack in your car stereo system.

In some of the subdivisions, the addresses are sometimes a little more than half a block off, but I think it's the map because it is really really accurate otherwise. Some newer roads don't appear on the map. Sometimes, I was floating over a field when I was crossing a new bridge. = )

I think with the newest update the new roads will show up.

Occasionally the hot temperatures in my car will make the adhesive soften on the base mount and it will fall, but it goes right back on.

Other Thoughts: I did a lot of research before I made a purchase. So far, I have found this GPS to lack the negative qualities of other GPS units. Since I purchased this, I do not worry about getting lost as much as I used to.

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All in all...

Reviewed By: on 11/7/2008

Tech Level: high - Ownership: 1 month to 1 year

This user purchased this item from Newegg

Pros: Works well - gets me from A to B one way or another. Kinda cool looking.

Cons: My biggest issue with it is that it does not have the ability to display GPS coordinates. Ok, I get it - it's a car navgation tool, but the device already know the lattitude/longitude info - DISPLAY IT! It's four hours of programming.
Second, it does not come with the MapSource yo upload and download locations and routes.

Other Thoughts: QWERTY keyboard would be nice. I have a hard time tunning it for the optimal route choice.
Just a thought for all GPS devices out there - it would be nice to give me an option to fine tune Dijkstra's algorithm by being able to input the amounts of stop signs and lights, speed limit, etc. Just a thought.

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Best deal for your buck

Reviewed By: Joseph Anterola on 10/26/2008

Tech Level: high - Ownership: 1 month to 1 year

This user purchased this item from Newegg

Pros: This product can only be truly appreciated and useful if you know how to use it and understands how it works and take advantage of the tools it offers. I work for a large computer company who resales Points of Sale Systems to restaurants, grocery stores, retail stores, etc. I drive a lot. Normally, I'll drive 1000 miles a week across 3 different states and rarely ever to the same place twice. This has been a very valuable tool. It is not perfect. There are rare occasions when new roads are built (less than a year old) or changed etc. and this unit will become slightly confused as to why you are going the way you want to go. But the extra features are really kewl. I love how I can plug my 3.5mm jack into this thing and play hundreds of MP3s while driving when a turn comes up it temporary pauses the music instructs me where to go then resumes playing.

Cons: The voice prompt is really annoying if you know where you are going, but you can turn it off easily. Doesn't always take you to your destination the fastest way or the quickest way. Not buying one sooner.

Other Thoughts: This unit pays for itself, I have saved hundreds of dollars by not getting lost (not wasting gas), arriving at my destinations on time, and discovering shorter and or quicker routes to places often visited (enjoyed more time at these places).

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So Relaxing

Reviewed By: flyboy68 on 10/16/2008

Tech Level: high - Ownership: 1 week to 1 month

Pros: Just returned from a trip to Tampa, Fl via Perry, Fl and the 650 was very good. It removes all of the tensions of trying to read a map and listen to the navigator(wife) tell you when to turn. The wife is very good but the GPS is better. It gives you .3-.5 miles warning before you make a turn. Only once did it have an error, it said keep right when it should have said turn right! It was well worth the price paid! I love it.

Cons: None

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