gunner69's Full Review: Garmin nuvi 660 Car GPS Receiver
We have never owned nor utilized an auto-type GPS unit. I NEVER get lost and have a keen sense of direction. My son, however, seems to get lost everytime he drives back to college--over the same route! He has no sense of direction, so we decided as a gift to give him the latest Garmin GPS in the Nuvi 660.
He wasn't too hip about it at first, now he loves it.
A quick look at technical points of interest-
Hands free calling thru Bluetooth technology.
Free three month subscription for traffic alerts of selected major cities.
FM transmitter capable,so you can enjoy MP3 and audio books wirelessly transmitted from the Nuvi to your FM stereo.
3-D or 2D mapping.
Custom loadable points of interest.
Pre-loaded North America.
Quick reference guide.
A/C Charger, 12 volt adapter, dashboard disk, window cup, USB interface cable, and owner's manual on a disk is all included.
Region specific SD cards available from Garmin for various countries.
4.3 inch diagonal screen.
480X272 pixels.
High sensitivity WAAS capable GPS Receiver.
Streets announced by name.
Trip history and speed indications.
Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA).
The touchscreen on this unit is perfect. Not too sensitive, not to "numb". The only thing not controlled thru the touchscreen is the on/off button and extending the tiny GPS antennae.
Looking for somewhere to eat and you are booking down the interstate wondering when can I get that Big Mac? Touch the screen and bring up restaurants and the Nuvi will tell you how far away it is and how to get there. Just touch the place you want and the Nuvi calculates where you are and how to get there in the shortest possible time. Wow.
I have tried to get this unit lost by not following the route it wants me to use. The Nuvi speaks! "Re-configuring" and starts giving instructions as to when to turn to continue to your original destination. It doesn't get lost. It does not lose signal under bridges or near tall buildings. Great GPS reception.
There is a onscreen keyboard option if you prefer to type in the address of your destination. Easy to do, but not recommended while driving. In fact, once programmed, one should never have to touch the unit while driving. It just works.
We downloaded a red truck from Garmin to show our red truck as the vehicle on the screen. Cute.
One minor complaint, I was on a service road right next to a main artery the other day, and for some reason the Nuvi showed me on the main artery. However, it did tell me to turn right onto the apropriate road when the time came. HHmm.
This unit works so well that I have caught my son using it to drive to his local favorite eatery. Just to see the thing work.
An important note concerns storage of this unit. Extended storage temperature limits are 32F to 77F. So don't leave this unit in your glovebox. Limited storage time temperature limits are -4F to 140F. Garmin does not differentiate the difference between extended and limited storage time. One last temperature limitation to note is the normal operating temperature limits are -4F and 131F. Basically if it is really cold one is not supposed to operate the unit.
When I first got this unit, I tried using it without the 12 volt adapter. I charged the unit with the AC adapter over night, and then left on a one hour trip to a school, same time for the return with an hour between driving times. Admittedly I did alot of fooling around with the unit which probably ate a significant amount of battery juice. By the time I returned home, the unit was still functioning perfectly, but the batteries were a little lower than I expected, given the battery life is listed on the Garmin website as 3 to 7 hours. As a result, we almost always use the 12 volt adapter.
Suggested list from Garmin is $926. However, it can be had for as low as $600 . I got mine using Marriott points for free. A little pricey, but this Garmin 660 is simple to use, loaded with available features, and reliable.
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