Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)(Update posted on 5/17 at the bottom of this review, after 5 months of use)
I've written a rather long review, so this first paragraph a quick summary: The unit works as intended and is great with basic navigation, but there are some rough spots with some of the bonus features, and sparse documentation. Voice recognition works very well, but it's slow on the uptake and not perfect -- so expect to repeat yourself often. At each step it guides you with a voice prompt, or you can turn voice prompts off and follow prompts on the screen for faster entries. The touch screen is fine for entering letters and tapping the "OK" button, but the "drag" function when scrolling the map around with my fingertip is inconsistent and requires heavy finger pressure. The questionably-useful Junction View screen unpredictably takes over the navigation screen and hides all "remaining distance" and map data, though twist the display into portrait view and this problem is solved. Lane assist can be a help, but simultaneously may lead to confusion at complicated freeway junctions. Route recalcs could be faster, but processor speed and animation overall is fast and smooth. Display is adequately bright except in very bright sunlight, and the screen is just reflective enough to pose viewing issues unless adjusted precisely. Volume is more than adequate. The traffic feature seems to work OK, though not as good as Google traffic on my BlackBerry, and it doesn't make it clear when my route is being re-routed due to an accident or congestion.
So with that out of the way, on with my review...
I've used a narrow-screen Garmin 200 for the past few years, as well as Google Maps on my BlackBerry Storm. I hesitated purchasing a new GPS because between the two of those devices, I was pretty well covered to get anywhere I needed to go.
But the 2360LMT came along and I couldn't ignore the list of "extra" features it packed in for the price. And let's face it: A cell phone is great for finding stuff, but not actually navigating while driving, and the old nuvi 200 lacked voice recognition, which I considered a significant safety compromise as well as an input hassle.
Initial power-on / boot-up went smoothly with just a couple of "Accept" screens and reminders to register the product with Garmin. No additional setup steps were required, though it took a few minutes for my initial position fix to be calculated. After that, position fix occurs imperceptibly, even when I power the unit on in a city miles away from where I turned it off. However, boot-up takes about 25 seconds to where the device is ready to receive input, and that feels like an eternity when I want to get navigating.
Build Quality & Screen: the 2360LMT isn't "razor thin" like some of the recent, more expensive Garmin lineup. It's not much thinner than my old 200. The screen is reasonably bright, high resolution, and wide. Brightness can be adjusted with voice commands while driving. If I have sunlight shining on a light colored shirt, the screen tends to reflect that back at me, but can be minimized with very precisely adjusting the tilt of the unit. The animation is smooth, less jerky than my old unit, and the zoom level "flies in" and out depending on vehicle speed & location relative to upcoming turns. It's a very fluid presentation. The unit has an orientation sensor, so can be used in portrait mode, which is a nice change on long, straight stretches of freeway to "see" off in the distance. The unit takes advantage of portrait mode by automatically zooming back the display a notch, and adjusting the viewing angle at which it looks ahead, to maximize the view towards the horizon. However, for navigating around town, I prefer the standard landscape mode, where side streets are more visible.
The display colors darken automatically at dusk and, surprisingly, darken when I enter the long Caldecott tunnel near my home, even though the tunnel itself isn't depicted on the map. The daytime backlight brightness is stored independently of the nighttime brightness, so when I set it at 100% at noon and 10% at night, it stores both of those settings. One gig on the animation is in an instance when the unit expects me to turn left, but I choose to continue straight ahead, the map follows the predicted route through the turn, then recognizes I've continued straight, so quickly corrects back. If I were at a complex 6-way intersection or round-about in a residential neighborhood, this feature might mistakenly lead me to think that I had turned to the correct street, and I'd prefer it to not use this predictive positioning feature.
Touch Screen Sensitivity: not so hot. Finger taps register OK, but scrolling the map around, for instance on the "show traffic" overview map display, is frustratingly slow. It requires a unusually heavy finger press, not at all like my old nuvi 200. The map doesn't always move, or moves in the wrong direction, or "snaps back" to its previous location when I lift my finger.
Voice Recognition: pretty impressive, yet frustrating. Thankfully, this feature has prevented me from having to use the touch screen much. I say "Voice Commands" and the unit pops up a list of commands I can say, such as "find address" or "search by name." I say "Pegasus" and (on the second try; 1st try got me "Recruiters") it confirms, "1. Pegasus?" I say "yes" or "one" and it searches and quickly finds "Pegasus Cycle Works" in Danville. I say "Navigate!" and it plots a route. Very clean.
Likewise, I say "find address" and it asks, "what city in California?" I say "Hayward" and after multiple tries getting that one right (kept wanting to send me to Orange and Onida), it asks for the house number. I don't have to draw out "Four... Two... Six... Eight" and wait for each digit; no, I say "forty-two sixty-eight" and it throws the whole address up on the screen pretty quickly. Again, very clean. Alternatively, I can say "spell city" and then spell it out, letter by letter. However, unlike with the typed-in entries, using voice commands I've found no way to skip the city and go straight to the street address.
The downsides? Besides having trouble recognizing some names, there are some other rough spots: When each prompt is spoken -- for instance, "*Boing* What city in California?" Then, as a user, I've got to wait a beat before I speak the city (there's a "lips" icon in the upper right corner; it's red when the unit is speaking to me, then turns green when it's ready to listen for my response or command, which takes about a second after it finishes its question). I'd prefer the *Boing* come at the end of the prompt, as soon as it's ready to listen. Alternatively, the volume can be muted to turn off voice prompts, or, as Amazon member maffeo pointed out in the comments to this review, there is an "expert mode" (Tools > Voice Commands > Wrench Icon) that turns off voice prompts (on-screen prompts only). Either method makes voice entry of addresses much faster, accurate and less frustrating.
I'm also finding that creating and using the Favorites list is not well integrated with the Voice Commands. Creating new Favorites from an address entered via voice requires me to back out to the menu, click on "Recently Found", select the location/address, navigate to it, click on the navigation screen to display the overhead map, then select the sidebar menu to bring up the Save prompt. Not intuitive at all, and requires me to begin navigation TWICE to a destination just in order to save it as a favorite. This process could be much more refined to make it easier to program favorites into the unit while killing time.
Also, as John Sellers points out in the comments to this review, selecting a Favorite from the list using voice commands requires me to scroll through the list, two Favorites at a time (unless I'm in portrait view, in which case six Favorites are displayed at a time), until the destination appears. The Favorites appear to be sorted in order of closest proximity, so when I want directions to Auntie Ginger's house 35 miles away in San Jose, it'll be at the bottom of the list, and I have to scroll down to her entry -- on screen at a time -- before I can select it. This is majorly annoying: if the GPS can find every Home Depot within the bay area with a simple voice command, it should be able to pick out "Ginger" from a list of 1000 favorites! Grrrr...
Lastly, Voice Command recognizes commands over steady background road noise, but doesn't seem to tolerate commands when I've got the radio louder than a whisper, or when I'm accelerating (presumably because of the changing pitch of the background noise?).
Lane Assist: Nice feature, but with problems. For instance, if two off-ramps are closely spaced, the lane assist arrows only take into account the exit I'm navigating towards. So if there's an extra exit-only lane for the first off-ramp, the Lane Assist may indicate that I could be in that lane. Need to pay attention to those overhead exit signs. Also, on city streets with double turn lanes, chances are Lane Assist won't know they're both there and only show a single arrow. Need to be aware that in situations where another turn, such as an on ramp, immediately follows that double lane turn. Lastly, when the GPS is mounted in portrait view, and there are more than 4 lanes on the freeway, the lane assist display gets squeezed down to just 3 lanes followed by dot-dot-dot -- not at all ideal on those big 6 and 8 lane interchanges.
Junction View: beginning anywhere from .8 to .5 miles from a freeway junction, this static pictogram is displayed to approximate what the freeway interchange looks like, providing assistance in choosing a lane. With the device oriented in traditional Landscape view, as reviewer John...Read more›
Click Here to see more reviews about: Garmin nüvi 2360LMT 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator Lifetime Map & Traffic Updates
The voice-activated widescreen nuvi 2360LMT comes with free lifetime traffic and maps for the U.S., Canada and Mexico. It has a dual-orientation screen that displays vertically or horizontally, a 3-axis electronic compass and 3-D building and terrain view. The 2360LMT includes hands-free calling, lane assist with junction view*, trafficTrends historical traffic, myTrends predictive routing, and ecoRoute. Pedestrian capabilities can be enhanced with optional cityXplorer maps for mass transit information.
Speak Commands nuvi 2360LMT not only tells you where to turn but listens to your spoken commands. With its innovative speech recognition, you can control nuvi with your voice--allowing you to keep both hands on the wheel. Simply wake up nuvi with a customizable voice command and begin speaking menu options that are clearly displayed on the screen. Tell nuvi "Find Address" and speak an address to start navigating.
Experience nuRoute Technology with trafficTrends and myTrends nuvi 2360LMT includes nuRoute technology with trafficTrends historical traffic and myTrends predictive routing. With trafficTrends, your nuvi 2360LMT 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 nuvi 2360LMT 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 nuvi 2360LMT will help you get there on time. No subscription or additional cost required.
Includes Free Lifetime Map and Traffic Updates With free Lifetime Map** and Traffic*** updates, you always have the most up-to-date maps, points of interest and navigation information available at your fingertips. Traffic information is updated constantly, and map updates are available for download up to 4 times a year. Both features are ready to go, right out of the box, with no subscription or update fees and no expiration dates.
Make Hands-free Calls For hands-free calling, nuvi 2360LMT 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 2360LMT while staying focused on the road. Simply dial numbers with its touchscreen keypad to make a call. To answer calls, just tap the screen and speak into its built-in microphone. Enjoy convenient one-touch dialing for contacts and points of interest.
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.
Select Fuel-efficient Routes nuvi 2360LMT saves you gas and money with ecoRoute--a green feature that calculates a more fuel-efficient route, tracks fuel usage and more. With ecoRoute, you have a "less fuel" option as a routing preference. When selected, nuvi will determine if a more fuel efficient route exists based upon road speed data and vehicle acceleration data for a given route.
Navigate City Transit With its enhanced pedestrian navigation capabilities, nuvi 2360LMT is the perfect travel companion for getting around town. It's dual-orientation display and compass help you navigate on foot. Download optional cityXplorer content to help you navigate city public transit. Know where to walk, where to catch the bus, subway, tram or other transportation and how long it will take to get there. cityXplorer maps are available for select cities throughout North America and Europe. And with prices as low as $9.99, you'll have money left over to spend in the big city.
See More With nuvi 2360LMT's widescreen display, you'll always get the big picture. View map detail, driving directions, photos and more in bright, brilliant color. Its sunlight-readable, 4.3" (10.92 cm) display is easy to read--from any direction.
Get Turn-by-Turn Directions nuvi 2360LMT has an intuitive interface that greets you with two simple questions: "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 with nearly 6 million points of interest (POIs) such as stores, restaurants, hotels, entertainment venues, gas stations, ATMs and more, and speed limits for most major roads. With 3-D Building and Terrain view, you'll see representations of prominent buildings in many cities and map contours at low zoom levels, giving you a realistic perspective of the terrain.
Go Beyond Navigation Navigation is just the beginning. The 2360LMT includes many travel tools, including JPEG picture viewer, world travel clock with time zones, currency converter, measurement converter, calculator and more. With photo navigation, you can download pictures from Garmin Connect Photos and navigate to them. With its "Where Am I?" emergency locator, you always know your location. Simply tap the screen to get your exact latitude and longitude coordinates, the nearest address and intersection, and the closest hospitals, police stations and fuel stations. The 2360LMT features Garmin Lock, an anti-theft feature, and is compatible with our free Garmin Garage where you can download custom custom voices and vehicles. Enhance your travel experience with optional plug-in microSD cards.
*Not available at all intersections/interchanges in all areas.
** Free Lifetime Map Updates entitle you to receive up to 4 map data updates per year, when and as such updates are made available on the Garmin website, for this specific Garmin product only until this product's useful life expires or Garmin no longer receives map data from its third party supplier, whichever is shorter. The updates you receive will be updates to the same geographic map data originally included with your Garmin product when originally purchased. Garmin may terminate your Lifetime Map Updates at any time if you violate any of the terms of the End User License Agreement accompanying your nuvi product.
***Lifetime traffic extends for the useful life of your Garmin traffic receiver (as long as you own a compatible Garmin GPS) or as long as Garmin receives traffic data from its traffic supplier, whichever is shorter. Traffic content not available for all areas. See www.navteq.com/rdstraffic for traffic coverage areas and www.garmin.com/traffic/fm/navteq.html for program License Agreement containing complete terms and conditions.
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