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| Garmin nüvi 370 3.5-Inch Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator with Text-To-Speech, North American and European Maps | 
 enlarge | Brand: Garmin
Category: CE
List Price: $899.99
Buy New: $255.73
You Save: $644.26 (72%)
New (22)
Avg. Customer Rating:  222 reviews
Sales Rank: 373
Platform: Not Machine Specific
Media: Electronics
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: No
Native Resolution: 320 x 240
Display Size: 3.5
Includes MP3 Player: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 4.4
Dimensions (in): 1 x 3 x 2
Legal Disclaimer: Warranty does not cover misuse of product.
MPN: 0100053878
Model: 0100053878
UPC: 753759068011
EAN: 0753759068011
ASIN: B000MF7L5A
Release Date: January 8, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Fails Basic Test (+comparison with TomTom 930) July 27, 2008
31 out of 34 found this review helpful
There are 3 fatal flows with this product: (1) announcing too late and (2) giving confusing directions at complicated lane guidence situation and (3) taking too long to find satellite initially. I have been testing this product for a month in San Francisco and the Bay area.
(1) announcing too late
When your car is about to pass the intersection at which it is supposed to make a turn, then and only then it announces you to prepare for a turn. I missed so many turns because of the late announcements. It is also incredbly dangerous as you are tempted to attempt last-moment lane changes in order to make the turn. Also the distance to the turn is not that accurate -- when you are almost already at the intersection it shows you are 200 meters away (I changed the measurement setup to meters). SUGGESTION: Certain navigations have a bar-graph showing countdowns to the intersection, and perhaps that's what this navigation must have as well. Also certain navigations ask you to prepare well ahead. Make a customizable setting how long before to make the pre-announcement.
(2) giving confusing directions at complicated lane guidence situation
Time and time again, I missed the right exit on the highway. The map is absolutely no help. The multiple lanes look all overlapped!!! Red lines are cofusing as hell. Annoucement is in this fashion: "Keep to right and then keep to left." What is that supposed to mean and which lane are you supposed to be in? In a fast highway situation, this is incredibly dangerous. I almost got into accidents at many interchanges as I was trying to look both the road signs and my navigation and could not make any sense. SUGGESTION: the map needs major improvement on interchanges -- show us the way!!! Also get rid of "keep to right and then keep to left" style BS for a clearer direction.
(3) taking too long to find satellite initially
If you park your car outside, that would be fine but if you park it in a garage, woe to you. It will take at least 20 blocks to find the satellite and you will be either parking your car on the roadside waiting for godot or meandering down the street without knowing where you are going for very very long time. This is not acceptable. I used other product (magellan) before, and it found the satellite so much quicker. SUGGESTION: technological improvement or better processor.
[ADDED TO THIS AFTER I BOUGHT TOMTOM GO930 AND TESTING IT FOR A WEEK]
After my much frustration with Garmin NUVI 370, I purchased a Tomtom GO930 from local Best Buy. (The price of TomTom 930 at Best Buy was the same as the price at Amazon at USD 450, although I had to pay the tax.)
Wow, what a difference. That's all I can say. TomTom 930 is a bit more expensive than the street price of Garmin NUVI 370, but is so much better that the price difference is immaterial.
(1) prepare... prepare...
TomTom announces well before each turn and actually tells you on which side of the lane you should be in for the next turn. Incredibly friendly announcements. The arrow direction on the map display shows whether you should be making left or right turn as well. I never missed a single turn thanks to the ample announcements.
(2) guiding complicated lane situation with ease
the roads never appear overlapped like the NUVI 370. If there are five diverging roads, all are clearly shown, with the clear indication where you are and where you should go. Mind you, I haven't seen that many Advanced Lane Guidance screen yet as TomTom advertised (I hear that they don't have this on every intersection yet) but even without this, lane guidance is incredibly clear and easy (they show both on the map and on the status bar with muted arrows and one clear arrow). What a refreshing change from Garmin NUVI 370. The voice direction is a lot more clear and easier to understand as well -- it is as if somebody is actually speaking fine English to me. I never missed the right exit.
(3) lightening fast in finding satellites
It actually finds satellites when I am in my room with 4-5 bars. Need I say more?
(4) extras... extras...
TomTom has voice address input feature that is very useful. There are many situations that you hate to put in long characters (In California there are so many cities starting with San...). Simply pronounce it and the machine finds it for you, including the streets. I find this to be working well about 95% of the time. Also it gives you a few choices so that what you pronounced is almost always among the choices. SUGGESTION: This voice feature is not available for Place Name under Point of Interst (available only for the actual address).
Point of Interest feature in TomTom is incredibly extensive. I tested many restaurants listed in Zagat survey and found out that almost all (even obscure ones under "Best Value") restaurants have been registered in TomTom by names and phone numbers. I did not find that to be the case with Garmin NUVI 370 (I actually had to type in the exact address under my favorites). This makes inputing job so much easier. I typed in "Marshalls" under Point of Interest in Sunnyvale, and TomTom returned 7 results, some of them are as far away as San Jose, Mipitas, etc. Again, not so with Garmin.
Downloading updates and changes through computer seems painless and efficient as well. Works perfectly and took about 3 minutes to get the latest updates. Again, Garmin NUVI 370 does not have this feature. I don't know how actually useful the updates would be, but it is assuring that I am using the latest whatever.
Time estimation in TomTom is so much more accurate than Garmin. I found Garmin to be always a bit on the optimistic side (ie I never actually arrived as Garmin estimated especially in a city traffic). I don't know if it is because of the IQ Routes feature of TomTom but the timing estimate seems to be right on and there is little need for any traffic subscription service.
CONCLUSION: I will be updating this review to find any shortcoming of TomTom 930 (and I am sure there will be many) but so far it seems that TomTom is a very clear winner and fully justifies the extra USD 100. If you are looking for a navigation that includes both American and European maps, I guess your choices will be cleary limited: you would have to go for either the Garmin NUVI 370 or the TomTom GO 930, and my recommendation would be the latter -- not for the extra features but mainly for the basic abilities that I listed earlier in this review.
ADDED Later: I have been using TomTom for some time now, and again the fundamental qualities are excellent. In addition to reliable guidance, I find the voice address input feature truly useful and accurate. I use it all the time.
Another incredibly useful feature is the initial preview of the whole route (Garmin Nuvi 370 does not do this). When I used Garmin 370, I did not even know highway 280 existed since it almost always guided me through 101! However, with TomTom 930, at the outset I have the chance to view the entire route, pick and choose any alternative routes from it. This is just so convenient. 280 may be a tad bit longer route, but it has much less traffic than 101, with much better road conditions and scenic views, and just whole a lot better than 101 -- I can't believe Garmin simply never showed it to me!
However, here are a few suggestions to make TomTom better: (1) "Clear Address" is not immediate. If you want to clear the previous address input, you have to touch the screen a few times. This is not convenient. There must be an instant way to clear address. (2) Occasionally (bur very rarely) it misses U-turns. (3) When you turn off the ignition, it does not automatically turn off (unlike Garmin). You must push the button on top. This is not very convenient.
 Garmin GPS exceeds expectations July 26, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Having exhaustively researched GPSs of the portable, 'Personal Assistant type, and aware of Garmins reputation as both a market leader and innovator, my expectations were high for this new technology which I'd only read about, but never seen in use. After receiving the product, and using it for the first of many times, I was constantly amazed by its versatility, exceptionally user-friendly interface, features such as "lodging", "Food", etc. which were, when employed in my own neighborhood, spot on in accuracy and ease of use. It's ability to 'simulate' a route when satellite acquisition is not possible was truly amazing. It's most basic function, mapping s route from a given location to the trip destination was extraordinary, and the visual map, audio instructions, and ancillary data such as ETA, driving data including speed, mileage, and so on blew me away. All doubts I harbored regarding its ease of use, accuracy, etc. about this first GPS I bought and used for the first time vanished the instant I turned it on and began experimenting, and learning about how to use it. I can honestly say it is one of those uncommon products which not only meets but FAR exceeds one's expectations. I recommend it whole-heartedly and without resrvation.
 Garmin Nuvi 370 July 15, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I have found this product very easy to use, although I discovered a number of routes resulting in dead ends (roads not completed). Good to have maps covering USA and Europe - at a very good price. I recommend a hard case (as it is easy to damage the touch panel if pressed or dropped). Friction mount is more flexible than windscreen mount.
Worked great on foot in Europe July 13, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Just back from two weeks in London and Paris. I purchased this model because I wanted a pedestrian option and I needed Europe maps. It worked perfectly. Many times we came up from the Metro or Underground and were stumped on where we were. I just asked the Garmin to find our destination (she has all of the attractions listed) and she easily led the way every time. She was also excellent at finding the nearest Metro or Underground station. This model was really flawless and a great addition to our trip. It saved time and aggravation. When you're exploring on foot, you really don't want to get lost and use up precious energy. I would highly recommend this model for people who are travelling in London and Paris and exploring on foot.
Overall very good . . . but July 11, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Overall very good value for the money provided you get a discount from list, which is almost always possible on Amazon. Two faults, however: 1. On a bright day with the unit mounted on the dash in the sun it nearly impossible to see anything on the screen. Thanks for good verbal directions. Maybe Garmin should provide a shroud to clip on the front to provide some shade. 2. Mine came with updated maps for 2008 but I quickly learned they were not always accurate. Just like Google and MapQuest maps, they do make mistakes. Cape May NJ was a good example . . . old town, lots of little streets, avenues,lanes, etc, that confused our Garmin navigator. Hardcopy maps are still a good back-up. Sorry Garmin!
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