Keep Looking - This one has too many minuses
Pros:
Provides substandard functionality at a budget price
Might do where better models are not affordable..
Cons:
Underestimates nearby distances.
Cannot find/enter some addresses.
Variable outsourced tech support. Can't reach company.
The Bottom Line:
Watch out for hidden flaws!
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
One major shortcoming is that announced upcoming distances are in reality only a fraction of what the announcements state they are. So if this model says to turn on such and such a street 300 yards ahead, you better be ready to turn well before that, such as maybe 300 feet!
Likewise, another significant shortcoming is that the map which this model uses is missing thousands, if not millions, of real world addresses. Fact is, you cannot even enter an address that is in the following form: 17 W 609 14th St. (which happens to be a real address in Oak Brook, IL). The system is not even set up to permit you to enter an address that has that form. When I asked how it could be entered, the gal I spoke with in Customer Support said that this address was not on the map that was in my TomTom gps.
The quality of help you get in customer support varies greatly. Some of their reps are very knowledgable and helpful while others will frustrate you to no end. One rep instructed me to start a very long download even though I cautioned her on a Friday night that I needed to have the unit working for the weekend. It was working adequately when I reached her, but I was asking her help with a minor problem that did not interfere with its basic functionality. Instead she instructed me to start a download that turned out to take hours to load, which forced me to cancel my Friday night dinner plans with friends. And she said I could go to the library the next day and do another download that was necessary and it would not take very long. Well, that download ate up of 3 hours of my Saturday and forced me to cancel the plans I had cautioned the rep that I needed the unit to be working for. Folllowing her advice was a disaster.
The suction cup on the windshield mount doesn't hold unless you moisten it with water when you stick it on. Otherwise, it lets the gps drop down and bounce off your dashboard after a while.
Finally, the routes it plans are far from optimal. If you really want the best route, this unit is not the right one for you.
My next GPS will be a Garmin which is much better in all the above regards!
