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| Pharos 150 Drive 3.5-Inch Touchscreen TTS Portable GPS Unit, Blue | 
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| Brand: Pharos
Category: CE
Buy New: $149.99
Avg. Customer Rating:  50 reviews
Sales Rank: 21680
Color: Blue
Media: Electronics
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: Yes
Native Resolution: 320 x 240
Display Size: 3.5
Includes MP3 Player: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.6
Dimensions (in): 6.5 x 6.5 x 3.5
MPN: PDR150BLU
Model: PDR150BLU
UPC: 818948002808
EAN: 0818948002808
ASIN: B00151HBA0
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Promotion: Save $10.00 when you spend $50.00 or more on Qualifying Items offered by Amazon.com. Enter code BMLSAVES at checkout. Terms and Conditions
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 OK but with problems August 31, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
My summary is that it is OK for the price but don't expect too much. Don't read on if you don't want a lot of details.
Pros: 3D Graphics and low cost text to speech
Cons: Very poor routing, very old maps, no way to easily upgrade maps or customize look and feel
Details:
I have had a number of GPS devices from PC based to Cell Phone based to stand alone. The first one of these PDR150s I received took up to 30 minues to acquire a satellite and then dropped them frequently (while driving). I returned that for a replacement and the new one acquires satellites quite quickly. So it is up to current technology as far as I can tell.
Quality: Seems OK except for their initial quality control that resulted in a bad one initially. Feels solid. The downside is it is based on Windows CE so it has the standard Windows CE instability problems. For example, one of the most exasperating problems with GPS devices is waiting for them to lock in on the satellites. This unit does that reasonably quickly but, for some reason, this information frequently does not get passed to the mapping program. For example, currently the unit has locked onto 5 satellites but the mapping program is still "waiting for GPS signal". I suspect this is a WinCE problem but that isn't clear.
Maps: Very old maps and mine has US only - not even Canada. When I contacted Pharos they told me that they just buy map data from someone else (Navteq I think) so they seem to have no concern about the fact that they are way out of date.
Routing: Very poor. It will probably get you there but in a very peculiar path. OK for out of town maybe. I was less then a mile from my home and it was directing me to go 5-10 miles out of my way to get there. Worst I have ever seen in GPS devices
Graphics: Very good 3D graphics and autozoom for driving guidance. One of the better graphics for describing complex intersections that I have found.
Text to speech: Surprisingly good function for the price.
Route calculation: Very fast but not very good routing. Maybe the 2 are connected.
Charger: Standard mini-USB so it can use Motorola and Blackberry chargers - cuts down on the number of chargers required for travel.
Mounting hardware: Very poor mounting hardware included - it comes with a window suction mount with extremely limited flexibility. Usable if you aren't too concerned about visibility or where the display actually ends up.
Usability: Aside from the typical user unfriendliness of most GPS devices (for example you have to go through 3 menu choices just to cancel the route), this has the added complication of not providing any good way to create favorites on a simpler to use device (PC for example) and transferring them to the device. It does sync through active sync so if you use Outlook address book, that might work OK. I don't so haven't evaulated it. Also backing up your addresses is not straight forward and the user manual (that is all that comes on the CD with the device) is of no value. If you are used to Windows CE and ActiveSync, then you can quickly figure this out. If not, it is non-obvious. You have to connect to the PC using ActiveSync and then explore to the SD card, find the user data folder, then back that up to your PC.
Strange quirks: It has one really odd quirk. I set my measurements to US (miles/tenths of a mile). So on the driving display, it displays everything in those units - including altitude. Altitude in miles is basically useless. On the screen that shows the satellite data, however, altitude is displayed in feet.
Other: Since it is Windows CE it is hackable and there are lots of instructions by very smart folks in various forums to help you do this. I've tried some that include various viewers (movie/picture/pdf) and they work. Of course there is no I/O capability so some of these functions have limited value. The unit also comes with a sticker across the SD card slot informing you that if you break the seal, the warranty is void so that also limits interest in some cases.
 Great GPS!!! August 21, 2008
The Pharos 150 is simple and inexpensive unit. It is easy to use and get to where I want to go.
 Very Disappointing August 15, 2008
I guess you get what you pay for. The map database is quite outdated for central Texas Pharos doesn't plan an update until late 08' or early 09. The stored points of interest don't contain the most common or prevalent retail, commercial or recreational destinations. It is intuitive and easy to use, but that's because the destination options are limited. It will get you to an exact address or you can point on the map for an approx location. But often the quickest or shortest routes selected are not practical, quite often ignoring freeways altogether. Can't imagine where all the good reviews came from but I am sincerely disappointed.
 5 tumbs down August 13, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I bought it because of the good reviews on amazone.
( probably left by manufacturer agents)
First one arived DOA, Could not find gps signal. Recived the replacement rather quick from amazon but replacement was not much better. Unit have difficult time finding satelite. If I needed this machine to find a hospital in case of emergancy I would be dead before it would take me anywhere. G A R B A G E .
too slow to pickup GPS signals August 5, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
The one I ordered from Amazon takes 6 to 15 minutes to acquire the GPS signal.
Called the tech-support and was told to take the unit to an open field. Went to the open backyard, it still took 10 minutes to pickup the signal.
This means that the unit needs to be turned on 10-minute before each trip; or if in a hurry, you need to start the trip without the GPS; and then setting it up 10 minutes later while driving. In case of navigating in an unfamiliar city, 10-minute would go through many streets/blocks.
Once acquires signals, it work fine. but the slow start is a major blow.
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