Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)upd Mar 2011: Firmware update v2.6 released in Feb resolved issues with map scrolling and slow route calculation (so Garmin does listen to the customers). These improvements and the new price range makes it a much more reasonable purchase. Routing and estimated arrival time still remains an issue.
Most likely, Garmin silently disabled TrafficTrends feature with firmware update with firmware update in Feb. Traffic trends don't make any difference to routing, estimated arrival time or calculation time. This has been confirmed on GPS forums by some owners of 1695 and 3790. Garmin customer service rep did not think this is the case and I haven't pressed the issue further.
I lost the unit in March so this review might not reflect the most recent changes, let me know if this is the case.
The review below is as of Oct 2010 with minor edits as of March.
******
Bright side:
- Surprisingly stable for a device that have been released only recently. No major functional problems like freezing or lost satellites.
- NuLink traffic allows immediate traffic acquisition in most cases. Traffic data in reasonable. Coverage is decent. Garmin gets NuLink signal even in areas where my cellphone does not work.
- Lane assist works very well. There are occasionally junction views for those who think they are helpful.
- Google local POI search is sometimes helpful although I tend to use Garmin's categorized POI more often. Both Google search and Garmin's POI are much easier to use than POI search on TomTom.
- I really like local event search (sports, music, arts, etc). Flight status, gas prices and movie times, weather (including weather radar) are also interesting features. Not that I really use them, but they are nice.
- Safety camera information is available and you can report cameras on-the-fly by clicking on speed limit indicator. Reported cameras should become available to other users within minutes. However, according to Garmin customer service, you need to download safety camera updates manually from the website ( I checked twice). Their website suggests that camera updates should come from NuLink, so may be it was not done yet.
- The screen is big and bright, the voices are loud (I have volume and brightness set at 10%). Icons and menu items in many cases look better.
- There are map themes available. You can select one of the pre-defined themes, or you can copy and edit theme .xml files to create your own (you will need a couple of hours of time and at least mspaint to work with hexadecimal colors).
- Pedestrian mode is looks beautiful, was much easier to use on older units.
- Also route planner is very well done and you can drag-and-drop destinations to rearrange your route.******
Serious issues:
(note: I'm not familiar with 1xxx and 37xx series, so some of the things I'm complaining about can be common to these units. All comparison is again 2xx/7xx or TomTom 930 or 140)
- Traffic trends (historical travel speeds), advertised to provide better routes and estimated time of arrival, do not quite work (yet).
My driving experience so far:
In New Hampshire, Vermont, Western Maryland and Western Pennsylvania I don't see any significant difference compared to 255W. TomTom has slightly better ETA on mountain roads where it might be tough to drive at 55 mph.
In Florida (Orlando, Miami ) traffic trends worked surprisingly well. Have seen some meaningful detours and quite accurate ETAs on busy streets. Can see an improvement compared to non-traffic trend models.
On NYC streets a route estimated to take 25 minutes normally takes 35-40+ , mostly due to failure to account for traffic lights. As a result, the routes are often not optimal and in some cases worse than the routes with traffic trends disabled. If it's solely due to lack of historical traffic data, we might see an improvement as new map updates are released.
UPD: As I mentioned above, the feature seems to be disabled in firmware 2.6 and everything defaults to standard Garmin routing, which is not necessarily a bad think unless you're on busy streets. In NYC 60 minute actual travel time on estimated 25 is not uncommon, even without traffic jams. On highways the unit gives amazingly accurate arrival time. - Performance issues. Very long calculation times (UPD this is a non-issue since traffic trends are disabled. Without traffic trends route calculation is relatively fast. The times below are for firmware 2.4 where the TT was turned still enabled)
200-mile NYC to Boston used to take 2.5 minutes on my first device. I exchanged the unit and it normally takes about 50 seconds on the new one. It gets longer if you're driving or if traffic information is available (not yet sure what matters more). Last weekend it took it 2 minutes to recalculate a 30-mile route after I missed a turn. By that time I was 2 miles away, so it decided to recalculate again and took another 2 minutes. The problem is even more acute on city streets.
In part, longer calculation times are due to the overhead created by TrafficTrends. Garmin recognizes the problem in 37xx and 2xxx series (but not in 1695) and advises to turn off traffic trends. They advertise a feature, charge a hefty amount of cash for it and then advise to turn it off - this seems like a very weird marketing strategy to me.
Switching between different map displays can also take a while (up to 10 seconds). I understand that it might be difficult to squeeze high-performance hardware into some compact-size unit, but 1695 is relatively big and heavy, so it's not clear why it doesn't match performance of smaller gps units.
Again, TomTom used to have similar problems with slow route calculation when they introduced IQRoutes a couple of years ago. They were later resolved by firmware updates.
Another note is that when the unit is used in the area where road network is not very dense, slow route calculation is no longer a problem. However in those areas, you don't really need 1695 and can get the same performance from a much simpler unit.
- Avoidances.
(upd: Feb 2011. This feature was announced to show up in Garmin 24xx serites. Most likely 1695 will not be retro-fitted)
It's not a surprise, but it's still not possible to avoid specific part of route. Something that was(!) available on older Nuvis and is available on every TomTom (starting $70). For example, I have a toll tunnel nearby that costs $5 and takes about 3 minutes to avoid. It takes a couple of clicks on TomTom, but becomes a difficult task on Garmin. There are standard workarounds, like avoiding all toll roads or adding a dummy via point to force Garmin to route through a different road. If necessary, I can go into details and give examples why this is not always an option. Again, given the price tag, one might hope to be spared the necessity of creating dummy via points and have basic functionality available.
- Map scrolling (Resolved in Feb. Thanks, Garmin!)
Without exaggeration, scrolling a map in 2D mode is by far the worst touch screen experience I ever had in my life. They tried to introduce some iPhone-like "inertia" in map movement while scrolling and failed miserably. I often use "browse map" mode to select a point on map as a destination. On this unit it becomes a very painful exercise. The map would occasionally overshoot, jump in the opposite direction or, occasionally, select a new destination when you simply tried to browse the map.
This only concerns map scrolling. In all other modes the touchscreen works like magic.
Screen calibration helps a little bit, but touch screen behaviour is irritating to the extreme (press and hold in upper-left corner of the screen when switching the unit on, keep holding for ~20-30sec, the calibration screen will show up). Before buying this thing, go to a local store, try to browse the map and decide if you can commit not to smash the unit against the wall one day after trying to select a point on map.
upd: after a month of suffering I figured that touchscreen is a bit more predictable if I scroll with the back of my nail with minimal pressure (although at $400 per unit it is kind of weird and there is a risk to scratch the screen)
- Ergonomics
For quite some time now I've seen TomTom doing much better job at routing but nevertheless preferred Garmin because of amazing ergonomics, beautiful map display and ease of use. With this unit (and I understand this is also related to other new models) most of it is gone. I'll give more examples below not to overload with details here.*****
To buy or not to buy:
- Cost
If you decide to own this unit, here is a simple cost breakdown:
>=$80 to purchase lifetime map updates. TrafficTrends are only updated with map updates, so you'll have to buy it if you want a hope that TrafficTrends will have a decent performance. TomTom similarly requires map updates to update IQRoutes data, but the big difference is that their IQRoutes data is mature and does not require much updating, while Garmin's TrafficTrends are in their infancy.
$50 per year to keep NuLink traffic subscription. Over 3 weeks that I own this unit I've never seen a real traffic jam on the road that would be reflected in NuLink trafic but would not show up through ClearChannel FM traffic subscription on my older Nuvi. NuLink reports more traffic events, but many of them don't seem to be real. I appreciate the potential of connected traffic, but don't see a clear benefit yet.
$2.99/months (~$40 per year) to keep safety camera subscription. The design of their traffic cameras is cool, no argument here, but...Read more›
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Garmin nüvi 1695 5-Inch Portable Bluetooth Navigator with Google Local Search & Real-Time TrafficEnjoy the convenience of receiving certain real-time online content on the go with nuLink! 1695. From fuel prices to Google Local Search, you'll be the first to know with Garmin nuLink! services*. The 1695 also includes preloaded maps, lane assist with junction view**, hands-free calling and ecoRoute. Plus it has nuRoute technology with trafficTrends historical traffic and myTrends predictive routing to make daily driving even easier.
Travel Like a Local with Garmin nuLink! Services With Garmin nuLink! services, accurate real-time online information is delivered wirelessly to your nuLink! 1695. In the U.S., each nuLink! 1695 comes with a free 1-year nuLink! subscription. After the 1-year period ends, service costs $60 a year--that's only $5 a month! With nuLink! services, you'll get Google Local Search to find local points of interest (POIs) and traffic services that deliver alerts for delays and road construction then automatically guide you around them in the shortest time. Need fuel? Find up-to-date fuel prices near your location for regular, mid-grade, premium or diesel. Other convenient services included in the subscription: Ciao! friend finder, weather, movie times, local events, Send to GPS, flight status, currency converter, White Pages and myGarmin.
See Even More It's easy to see where you're going on nuLink! 1695's 5" (12.7 cm) touchscreen display. View map detail, driving directions, photos and more in bright, brilliant color. With its big, bold display, you won't miss a thing.
Get Turn-by-turn Directions nuLink! 1695's intuitive interface greets you with 2 simple options: "Where To?" and "View Map." Touch the color screen to easily look up addresses and services and get voice-prompted, turn-by-turn directions that speak street names to your destination. It comes preloaded with detailed City Navigator NT street maps for the U.S, Canada and Mexico, nearly 6 million POIs, 2-D or 3-D maps and speed limits for most major roads. Its digital elevation maps show you shaded contours at higher zoom levels, giving you a big picture of the surrounding terrain. And with HotFix satellite prediction, nuvi calculates your position faster to get you there quicker.
Experience nuRoute Technology with trafficTrends and myTrends Smart and good-looking, this uniquely personal navigator comes with advanced routing capabilities that include trafficTrends and myTrends. There's no subscription necessary, no added costs, your nuLink! 1695 just does it.
With trafficTrends, your nuLink! 1695 automatically learns daytime trends for traffic flow to improve your routes and better predict your estimated time of arrival based on time of day and day of week. With myTrends, when you save your regular destinations in your "Favorites," your nuLink! 1695 will, over time, begin to figure out where you're going even without your telling it! It provides time of arrival and relevant traffic information. So whether you're driving to and from work or a regularly scheduled weekly event, your nuLink! 1695 will help you get there on time.
Know the Lane Before It's Too Late No more guessing which lane you need to be in to make an upcoming turn. Lane assist with junction view guides you to the correct lane for an approaching turn or exit, making unfamiliar intersections and exits easy to navigate. It realistically displays road signs and junctions on your route along with arrows that indicate the proper lane for navigation for most metro areas.
Select Fuel-efficient Routes nuLink! 1695 saves you gas and money with ecoRoute--a green feature that calculates the most fuel-efficient route, tracks fuel usage and more. With ecoRoute, you have a "less fuel" option as a routing preference. When selected, the 1695 will determine if a more fuel efficient route exists based upon road speed data and vehicle acceleration data for a given route.
Route Planning nuLink! 1695 includes advanced navigation features to take the worry out of traveling. With route planning you can save 10 routes, specify via points and preview simulated turns on the 1695's wide screen. In addition, nuLink! 1695 automatically sorts multiple destinations to provide an efficient route for errands, deliveries or sales calls. It also displays speed limits for highways and Interstates. A trip log provides an electronic breadcrumb trail of up to 10,000 points, so you can see where you've been on the map.
Make Hands-free Calls For hands-free calling, nuLink! 1695 integrates Bluetooth wireless technology with a built-in microphone and speaker. Just pair it with your compatible Bluetooth phone and talk hands-free through the 1695 while staying focused on the road. Simply dial numbers with nuvi's touchscreen keypad to make a call. To answer calls, just tap the screen and speak. Enjoy convenient 1-touch dialing for contacts and POIs.
Go Beyond Navigation Navigation is just the beginning. "Where Am I?" emergency locator finds the closest hospitals, police stations, fuel stations, nearest address and intersections. nuLink! 1695 helps you remember where you parked by automatically marking your position when you remove it from your car. It also includes travel tools, such as JPEG picture viewer, world travel clock with time zones, currency converter, measurement converter and calculator. Photo navigation lets you download pictures from Garmin Connect Photos. The 1695 features Garmin Lock, an anti-theft feature, and is compatible with Garmin Garage where you can download free vehicles and voices. Enhance your travel experience with optional plug-in microSD cards.
*One-year data subscription to nuLink! services included with purchase of nuLink! 1695 while offer lasts. nuLink! services only available in select coverage areas. See the nuLink! coverage map for coverage details. nuLink! Traffic services are available in select areas. See the nuLink! traffic coverage map for included areas.
**Not available at all intersections/interchanges in all areas.
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