Garmin nüvi 370 3.5-Inch Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator with Text-To-Speech, North American and European Maps Reviews

• A Trip Report

  
  By A1RG4WKNMPYS4X on 2007-09-03
  Since this is my first GPS, I really have no way to compare whether this GPS is "better" than others. I can only describe my experiences with it.
  
  I first used the GPS locally (southeastern PA) to test it out since I had an upcoming trip to VT where I planned to really use it. I wanted to make sure I'd know how to use the controls. I used the GPS while taking public transit to see what it would say the best route was. I also used it while walking near my home and Philly to see if it knew small local streets. The GPS performed well (detouring whenever I went in unexpected directions) during these tests. There are settings to change your mode of transport to bike, bus, car/truck, foot, etc. and I used many of these modes. I never encountered any streets that weren't known and this surprised me since these maps are from 2006 and there is tons of construction. Speaking of which, that was one of my complaints: that 2006 maps are included with a late 2007 sold product. I think it should have the maps of the year it is sold in.
  
  Then came my trip to VT which I pre-mapped using Google on the way up thinking I'd see if the GPS agreed with the route I took. I had dragged my Google Map directions so that I could avoid the interstate routes that went through NJ. My route was PA->NY->VT on the way up. The Google map directions got me confused around the NY/VT border with some road names I couldn't find, but the GPS led me the rest of the way to Stowe, VT. I had absolutely no problems; I did not get lost once using the route the Nuvi 370 told me to take, even when I accidentally missed a turn and the route changed. Incidentally, it takes about 10-30 seconds to recalculate routes and I was pleased with that. In fact, the only slow point is when I first turned on the Nuvi and it took as long as 3 minutes to "acquire satellites."
  
  I then used the Nuvi around Stowe and found pretty much everything I punched in, including some not-so-run-of-mill places I wanted to visit. Some of the roads were dirt roads, but they were considered finished (just sort of backwoods, which seemed typical near some of the hiking spots I went to). The Nuvi did fail in finding Mt. Elsmore State Park since it took me to someone's house in the woods. It was definitely not a ranger station or park office. That was it's only failure.
  
  Coming home I allowed the GPS to completely figure my route. I had previously set the GPS for "shortest distance," but once I changed it to "fastest route" it put me back on interstates, which is where I wanted to be after all of those one-lane (in each direction) VT roads. Another small problem I had was the Nuvi's insistence on calling road name changes "turns", which sometimes caused me to wonder whether I missed something. I realized that all I really did was change roads so from then on I ignored the word "turn" if I saw I was not supposed to physically turn. Also, I never used the sound so I was going strictly by looking at the GPS. I prefer listening to music so I figured I might not hear the turns anyway. I used the mileage to each turn to remember to change directions or roads.
  
  If you click the bottom left of the screen (Expected Arrival Time when you're routing), you can get a view of the trip information like fastest and average speeds as well as mileage and total time. Clicking the top where the current routing info is (like the road you are on and the very next upcoming turn) lets you see quite a few more steps in the future, which I also found useful.
  
  All in all, I believe this GPS (which I bought here on Amazon) was well worth the money even though the maps are old-ish, the travel kit and languages come separately, the warm-up time is a little long, and I could not get it to stick to the dash (I placed it in the driver's cup holder instead since the dash of my car is too slanted to reach). I will be using my Nuvi 370 often.
  
  

• Used it in Europe, worked great! (UPDATE 2nd Trip to Europe)

  
  By A3S2TFZTFCQF33 on 2007-06-05
  SEE UPDATE BELOW ORIGINAL REVIEW
  I have just returned from a trip to Europe (London, Paris, Rome, and Florence) where I used the Nuvi 370 extensively and it worked great. First of all, I put a lot of the places I would be going to in the "Favorites" list before I left. The great thing about Nuvi is that it sorts this list based on distance from wherever you happen to be. So I didn't have to scroll through points for Paris or Rome when I was in England and vice versa. Very useful. I also found that the points of interest had all the sightseeing landmarks that I was going to visit and nearly every restaurant that I had earmarked for meals. I also got the translation guide which came in very useful (especially to explain "tap water" at European restaurants, they really want to sell you bottled water and pretend to not understand what tap water means, but showing them in their own language on Nuvi always got the point across). Now here is a report of actual real world use as a pedestrian in Europe.
  
  Pros - It had every street that I walked on without exception. It knew that I could walk the wrong way on one-way streets as a pedestrian (in pedestrian mode). Usually very fast lock on of satellites. Currency converter very useful. Language guide easy to use and very helpful with menus. Learned a few phrases by imitating the voice on the language guide which led to a lot of goodwill in France and Italy. Used it to show addresses to cab drivers which was always helpful. Tracked the taxi rides and could tell when cabbies were way off route and a little protesting got them back on track. Used it to make easy decisions between walking, metro, or cab by routing a destination and seeing how far the walk would be. Nuvi lets you scroll through the route and is pretty accurate as to how long it will take to walk.
  
  Cons - 1. In pedestrian mode, I almost always started walking the wrong way because Nuvi isn't sure which way it is pointed when you are standing still. This is fixed by walking a few feet until you see if you are going the right way, rarely more than 10 feet. 2. It doesn't automatically reroute in pedestrian mode if you get off the selected route, you need to hit "detour" which sometimes leads to a much longer path. 3. Sometimes satellite signal would get lost in the narrow older streets, especially in Italy. Sometimes the display would suddenly indicate that I was walking the exact opposite way that I had been going due to lost or confused signal. But these are all nits and were easily handled.
  
  Overall - The Nuvi 370 worked exactly the way I was hoping it would. If you live in America and plan travel in Europe, I highly recommend the Nuvi 370 and Language Guide.
  
  UPDATE 2ND TRIP TO EUROPE
  I recently spent two weeks in Spain where I used the Nuvi in pedestrian mode and drove throughout Southern and Western Spain. The Nuvi worked perfectly except where maps were somewhat out of date. The scariest words in my life now are "Enter roundabout and take second exit to roundabout". At one point we did three consecutive roundabouts! If you are not used to driving in a foreign country, I highly recommend Nuvi 370. The POI's pointed out gas and food when we needed it, and in both pedestrian and driving mode, it got us through many medieval streets with no problems. I again used the language guide(very useful) and was able to figure out what was what on local menus. I find the estimated arrival times in both pedestrian mode and driving mode to be pretty accurate and helpful in decision making. I even used it on the AVE high speed train between Madrid and Cordoba to see how fast we were going (180+ mph). I have now had this for a couple of years and can't live without it.
  
  One of most useful features is the ability to find metro stations nearby when you are in pedestrian mode. Very helpful in Madrid and Barcelona.
  
  
  

• nice unit and Garmin if contacted can provide upcoming latest map

  
  By A1U2UQPFDE2QJT on 2007-07-27
  This unit is quite light, is not much thicker than a palm, and has nice features like remembering favorite locations, being able to enter the actual coordinates instead of an address, having blue tooth to connect to some phones, and playing mp3s. The 370 has Europe and North America maps but is not otherwise different physically than the 360 that I could tell.
  I purchased a new Nuvi 370 less than one week ago from Amazon and was astounded that Garmin is listing a more current map, City Navigator North America NT, than what came on it last week and Garmin seemed to want $70 for the update.
  
  I initially complained in this review however Garmin came through:
  
  "Thank you for contacting Garmin International,
  
  Thank you for sending all the requested information. I have placed the order for the map update, once they start shipping you will receive the update at no charge."
  
  
  

• Really worth the price?

  
  By A1CBA1N3TOXZ2S on 2007-05-08
  I have owned this product for several months. Initially, I was very attracted to a GPS system that promised to navigate through the most difficult combination of unmarked roads, street closures, and confusing road signs. Navigating uncommon routes here can be a difficult task, even for natives, as I discovered one time while trying to get a date back home. (Probably more than anything, driving around the countryside all night on unlit roads with my companion trying to find our way back to her house motivated me to buy this product.)
  
  The 370 has a number of problems. Initial acquisition of satellite signals takes several minutes and must be done in an area clear of tall, dense buildings (kind of difficult in an old European city). This usually means pulling off the road as soon as the trip begins. In my experience, acquisition while moving is virtually impossible.
  
  Once the signal locks on, the unit often has glaring glitches, like the time it told me the nearest TESCO was 254 miles away in Germany, when there is one half a mile down the street! Also irritating, the unit often mistakes winding, serpentine roads as a series of left and right turns, and will instruct you to make these phantom turns. If you continue without "turning," the unit will often "recalculate" the route for you; or, if you take the instructions literally, you may end up accidentally turning into someone's driveway! Then the unit will recalculate the route.
  
  The unit's pronunciation of non-English street names and landmarks is so garbled as to be unintelligible. This is a serious flaw and one the manufacturer needs to address. The guide does not pronounce any diacritical marks, for instance, rendering Slavic languages virtually unrecognizable. This makes following the route simply by listening to the instructions (a safety feature touted by the company) very difficult. On many occasions I found myself staring at the screen or trying to find a street sign instead of watching the road.
  
  The reason I did not give this product a one-star review is that there are some plusses, like the display quality and a feature that lets you "Go Home" by navigating you back to a preset location from anywhere in the covered area. However, this is subject to the limitations mentioned above. Also, the unit, when it works properly, can be useful, for instance getting you out of a city center and back on a major highway. After that, it is probably best to put it in the glove box and follow the highway signs.
  
  What this all means is that you spend far too much time being distracted by this gadget, which has safety implications as well as being an issue of dollars and cents. If you must have one of these gadgets, cheaper is probably better. Overall, I think you would do better if you just used common sense, paid attention to your surroundings, and spent a little more time with a map.
  
  
  
  

• excellent GPS for navigation

  
  By A2NIVKUBU9PL1K on 2007-04-03
  We purchased the Nuvi 370 (our 3rd GPS) for use on an upcoming bicycle tour in Europe. It has full detailed maps of all of North America and Europe pre loaded. It is very intuitive to program and use. The display is bright and very easy to read. Battery life isn't too bad (about 4-5 hours depending upon backlight use. I have built a little battery pack for use during bicycle touring. With a 10 pack of AA batteries,we have 20 hours of operating time. I would give the Nuvi 370 5 stars for navigation and ease of use. It isn't useful for hiking as it doesn't have waypoint or backtrack features. I also (my personal feeling only) awarded 4 stars because it has a lot of features that I don't need ,and would rather not have to pay for. Others may want the Blue Toorh capability, as well as the MP3 and the picture viewing features. We felt these features increased the cost for unwanted features. But, as a navigation device,the 370 is definitely a 5 star. If you wont be going to Europe ,the 350 has most of the same features just not the European detailed maps,and it is less expensive.
  
  
• Excellent Product - A great value
  By A2L7T1T597PE64 on 2007-08-01
  I was looking at the 300 series and 600 series Nuvi units for some time. I did a LOT of research before finally making my decision to go with the Nuvi 370. I didn't realize just how hard it would be to find some really good comparisons on these products -- at least the type of comparisons I was looking for.
  
  The unit has worked extremely well for me. There are some things you need to get used to, such as not turning the GPS part of the unit on until you're outside (otherwise it can take some time to re-aquire the satellites) but things like this happen with any unit you purchase -- it's just something you learn about and it's never a problem once you do.
  
  The 370 has taken me to over a hundred locations successfully without a problem. There were a few cases where the unit got me close, but not to the exact location. I don't see this as the fault of the unit, rather it's just the way our address system works in the states. That's why Google maps, Yahoo maps, and MapQuest will often times only get you 'close' to a location. They can only take you to a location according to how it has been inputed by someone else (such as the government, or whomever is inputting the data). But, often times 'close enough' is exactly that -- when it gets me to a location I simply look around with my own eyes and can usually spot the exact address I need, or the sign of the company I was looking for, etc.
  
  The one area where the unit gave me the most problems was in the downtown Dallas, Texas area. Near W Hotel (which is not listed in the Nuvi) and the American Airlines Center (where the Mavericks play). The Nuvi didn't list the W Hotel, but that's probably because the W is brand new and map updates haven't been uploaded. Shoot -- W doesn't even appear on Google Maps, so I can't blame the Nuvi all that much. Also, the Nuvi kept referring to streets incorrectly. I found out later that the wonderful Dallas city engineers decided to change the names of all the roads in that area because of all the new construction (and because of marketing dollars by big corporations to get them to rename everything). I learned very quickly to TRUST the directions the Nuvi was giving me, but to be aware that the street names in that area were all screwed up. Once I learned what the problem was everything went smooth. I've only experienced that issue in Dallas, though.
  
  So... why didn't I get the Nuvi 350? or a bigger 600 series? Multiple reasons. The 370 comes preloaded with all the European Maps, and since I travel to the UK often it was a good thing for me. Purchasing the European Maps after the fact would have cost me $180.00 extra -- so you can see where the 370 is already coming close to the price of the 350. Not only that, but the 370 included a lot of extras -- such as the FM traffic antenna. If you use this service this will represent a great deal, as this antenna would have cost me another $130.00, or more, to purchase separately.
  
  The unit has a lot of built-in storage (for MP3s, photos, additional maps, etc.) but the best thing is the SD card reader. I purchased a 2GB SD card from Best Buy for about $20.00 and filled it with enough music to last for a complete road trip across the United States. I put the SD card from my digital camera into the Nuvi and it recognized all my photos automatically and was willing to play them all one at a time, in thumbnail view, or as a slide show. I had about a thousand photos, so I found the unit a bit on the slow side (my camera is faster) so I'll probably only load my favorite photos to the Nuvi to show off to friends. The Nuvi also recognized all the MP3s that I placed on the SD card automatically, so that was a great plug-and-play experience.
  
  The speakers on the Nuvis aren't as good as on the 300 and 500 StreetPilot series, but then again the StreetPilot series are very big units -- so it's a tradeoff. I'd rather have a Nuvi that I can slip in my pocket than a StreetPilot that I have to carry around in a bag... even if the speakers on the StreetPilot are superior.
  
  The screen is big, bright, responsive... the tools are easy to find, and the extras are really useable (at least for me). I synced my BlackBerry up to the Nuvi using Bluetooth and it synced up (paired up) without a hitch. Now, when I get a call my Nuvi notifies me, pauses my music automatically, and allows me to press one giant on-screen button to talk with someone. If someone else calls while I'm on the phone it also allows me to place the first caller on hold, or just ignore the second caller. Truth be told, people could actually hear me better on the Nuvi than they could on my BlackBerry. Odd. But that's cool with me. I could also hear them better through the Nuvi than I could at times on my BlackBerry... so that's a huge plus for me.
  
  Oh... one other thing. My BlackBerry is not listed as a phone that works with the Nuvi... but it did. I guess they just haven't tested my phone out, since it's older, so they didn't list it as a working model.
  
  The Nuvi 600 series are great units... and they have larger (wider) screens. I almost got one of them, but I figured the 370's screen was plenty big... and if I had purchased a 670, for example, it might have been too large to fit in a pocket (you even have to have big pockets if you want to 'pocket' the 370). So, the extra expense for the 600 model just for a wider screen didn't appeal to me. The MSN features of the 680 model seemed cool, but I've heard that they're not always up-to-the-hour accurate (such as gas station prices, or weather conditions) and you have to pay an extra fee to use that feature, so I thought I'd pass on that.
  
  I couldn't be happier with my 370. And for all the extras that came with it (such as European Maps and the traffic antenna) it was cheaper than the 350 (assuming I'd eventually buy those items after the fact).
  
  Great unit.
  
  
• a HUGE stress-reducer
  By A35UL4662BR1Y8 on 2007-09-16
  I love this thing - best gadget ever!!! I took it with me on a trip out to LA and it made navigating scary LA traffic and freeways a breeze! I couldn't believe how comfortable I was running around the city by myself in my little rental car, with the assistance of my GPS (who I named Mick after the male Australian accent voice I chose to boss me around as I drive) - and this was my first time in LA, well, outside the airport anyway. It made it easy to do everything, from finding parking or restaurants (listed by genre). And the text-to-speech function (which most GPS systems in the same price range don't seem to have right now) is very reassuring - I think if it hadn't told me the street names, I wouldn't have felt as confident making each turn. Plus it's fun when you enter and save a friend's address under their name to hear the GPS tell you "Now arriving at Alex L on Right". It allowed me to be much more spontaneous - if I'd been relying on MapQuest, or something similar for directions, I would have been stuck in traffic many times, whereas with my GPS assistant, I could just hit detour, or just leave the freeway (inevitably where I hit traffic) and it would say "recalculating" and find me another way to get there. I have not been disappointed by anything with this gadget so far - it's far exceeded my expectations. Fabulous little toy. Can't wait to try it out in Europe.
  
  
• Fails Basic Test (+comparison with TomTom 930)
  By AOPJPAIA7VCY4 on 2008-07-27
  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.
  
  
• More flash than substance
  By A2ILIEGE377FHH on 2007-04-26
  This is the 3rd GPS unit I have owned and I am a bit disappointed. First off, the "intergrated traffic monitoring" means that the unit is shipped with Garmins add-on GTM12 device. This device is not integrated and needs to be attached to the 370 for operation. The Bluetooth integration is useful, but the volume and quality of the built-in speaker is not great, making it difficult to hear callers. The units detour feature is also more limited than other units I have owned. For instance it does not allow the user to view the chosen route and exclude a road. You are only able to exclude the road that you are currently driving on.
  Other than that, the maps are fairly up to date, POI database has a lot of information and the screen is pretty decent in most light.
  Finally, like most other units I have used, it does have a tendancy to pick routes that are not optimal. For example it may route you through the middle of a city because it is the shortest distance (mileage wise)to a destination. This fails to take into account the multiple traffic lights and inherent congestion and can add a huge amount of time to a trip that could have been much quicker if another route had been chosen.
  If you must have a Nuvi, save your money and buy a 350...the added features of the 370 are not worth the added cost.
  
  
• Just ending a drive trip in France.. WOW!!
  By A3AN6WVQ1SCCEM on 2007-10-26
  We are flying home tomorrow. We just completed 12 days in Normandy, driving all over the place and in our car just about every day. I suppose this product isn't perfect, but my wife and I will tell you that going on a car trip in Europe without one of these babies is just totally retro and you'd have to be a complete fool to not take one. It took us down a lot of little country roads we would have never had the nerve to go down. What a great security blanket! I've driven all over Europe and this is the first time I've enjoyed it at this level. $475 is chump change for what you get. Not to mention the use we'll have for this in the U.S. GREAT product.. (No... I'm not a Garmin employee. This gadget isn't perfect. Forinstanct, the documentation is pretty sketchy. But who cares, it's so intuitive to use).
  
  
• Not Enough Memory to Work in France!!!
  By A28UOA78UA9NWP on 2007-10-24
  Do NOT BUY this product if you plan on using it in France! We charged the product and tested it in the U.S. and it seemed to work fine. We specifically got it for our trip to France. We get to Paris, turn it on, it loads up to 43% and then says it does not have enough memory to work. We tried it twice more and the same thing happened. I have no idea if the same thing would happen in other European countries since we only tried it in France. I hope this review helps those from making the same mistake we did.
  
  
• You won't get lost
  By A350HRB16YUX9P on 2007-09-06
  Always got me to my destination. It knows major and somewhat major roads very well. For local roads its 90% correct. Its not that it can't get you where you are going, its just that sometimes it takes awkward turns. Sometimes, however, this proves to be an advantage as you can often find new routes that you never thought of. A few times the directions have been dead wrong. For example the Garmin tried to send me down a 1-way street--the wrong way. You can always temporarily ignore those less then optimal directions and the Garmin will always recalculate new directions automatically.
  
  I'm not convinced the attachable FM Traffic receiver is worth the extra money--it's free for, I think 2 months. After that, there is a monthly fee. Traffic information reception is not available everywhere (especially outside of major cities) plus it did not seem to not attempt to route me around traffic anyway.
  
  I was worried about the size of the LCD screen, there being a larger, more expensive model out. I'm glad I got this size because: A. As a map, the Garmin is very awkward. You LISTEN to the directions, not look at the map B: A bigger unit takes up more space on my windshield and pocket.
  
  All in all a great piece of technology.
  
  
• Glaring Limitations
  By A6MV0V1SYSIJF on 2007-09-08
  Some things work fairly well - it doesn't do as good a job as my Toyota GPS, but it's ok in a pinch in a car that doesn't have a GPS to start with. I bought it for a trip to Italy, both driving and walking. The first thing I wanted to do with it was "go" to Rome and look around the streets where I would be walking to and from my hotel. It doesn't do that. Oh, it could, but the designers never thought of it. I can enter "Rome", but it tries to make a driving route to there from California. After a long while it bombs and says "out of memory", then takes me back to California. It's so stupidly single minded it is unable to just go view an area for a while. My Toyota in-car GPS is pretty darn limited, and unimaginative, but it will at least do that!
  
  Other things on this little device are similarly restricted. Perhaps if the developers spent less time putting extra junk on these things, like Bluetooth stereo music, and actually tried using the device as a map for a while, they would go "duh, oh, yeah" and finish the software.
  
  I hate products that don't fulfill their promise. This is one.
  
  
• eliminates stress
  By A2497S3EYGS4CO on 2007-06-05
  Bought the 370 in April prior to a trip south to visit friends.We went for the 370 for use on our frequent trips to Uk and Europe. We have not used it there yet but if the USA performance is typical it will be fine.It is a great system; easy to use [manual not great] and never failed to get me where we wanted to go.Eliminated the MRS. getting abuse when she didn't read the map quickly enough.We challenged it by visiting friends in some very rural areas but it never failed. Display bright,and large enough. Sound is a little distorted.Being able to find local restaurants and gas stations also was an unexpected pleasure.Would strongly recommend it.
  Have not used the blue tooth option. Tried the traffic alert AND NEVER GOT A MESSAGE.On return trip Washington D.C I 95 backed up for hours but no traffic alert which was disappointing. Will not renew that option when 6 Months trial runs out.
  I had not used another system but used my fathers when with him in Fla.It was a Sears unit and poor in comparison in numerous areas.Also much simpler then my sons BMW built in in the Uk and a friends built in Mercedes system.
  JIM
  
  
• Good system, but software could be better
  By A89JPE21CJANI on 2007-08-24
  I bought this item about 2 weeks ago. Used it last week when I was travelling in the US.
  
  Nice product, easy to use. But the database of places is quite out of date. For example, it could not pick out the Target store location in Ithaca, or the Wholefoods store at the Time Warner Building in New York.
  
  What worked well: bluetooth worked well. No problems synching - I was using a non-US based 3G Nokia with bluetooth and it synched on first attempt. Satellite acquisition - also worked well. I was in Manhattan as well as upstate New York, and the system worked well always except on one morning when it was raining and under foliaige.
  
  A few improvements would make this an even better product:
  
  (1) show visually the next turn coming up on the main screen. I often had to touch the bottom right of the screen to remind myself whether the next turn was right or left so that I know which side of the road to stay on. I think the Magellen, which I used when I rented Hertz cars, has this feature, which I found very useful.
  
  (2) show the current time on the sub screen on trip data. Currently, it shows only the estimated arrival time, and not current time - this assumes that you know the current time, and that it is the same as that the system is using, which may not be the case. To get current time on the existing system, you have to go back to the main menu.
  
  (3) on the main menu, have a "resume" button. Currently, to resume, you have to press "view maps". It is not immediately intuitive that this gets you back to the nagivation screen, because "view maps" is too generic. It could be labelled "view maps / resume" and that would help.
  
  (4) on the "where to" screen, "intersections" and "address" should be on the same line. For a while, I thought the system was not able to find a location based on intersections, as the option is not available under "address", but is available as a separate option if you scroll down on the "where to" sub screens.
  
  (5) I noticed that the system "lag" when you reach an intersection is quite severe. That is, when the system says you are 100 metres from the intersection, you could only be 70 metres or 50 metres away. So at first I tended to overshoot my turns, but after a while I compensated, and it was OK. If you stop at an intersection, the system "catches" up, so this problem goes away. So if you are new to the system, drive slowly as you approach your turning intersection, and you should be alright.
  
  Other than these wrinkles, it is a good system, and I found it useful and worth the money spent (but wished it had more maps of other countries, especially Asia).
  
  David
  
  
• Never worked properly
  By ASCFOP5CHEB8V on 2007-05-09
  Had a TomTom before and really loved it, but went with the Garmin after reading some stellar reviews for it (although there were some scary reviews, too). Should have paid attention to the scary. The Garmin couldn't locate our house from the airport, and we're only 15 minutes away. The Garmin never really could lock onto our house in the New Orleans, LA area. Our Tom Tom never had a problem. I got a Tom Tom after Katrina (my sister and I ordered specifically for me to get around and do rescue/relief work in the months following Katrina) and it worked like a charm. No streets signs--no problem. Routing around water or debris--not a problem.
  
  We were going to Europe for 3 months. Garmin had the system that seemed to have the best built in Europe program, and with a 3-month stay we thought our best bet would be the Garmin. After 3 weeks of problems stateside, we just couldn't chance it and returned the Garmin to get 2 Tom Tom Europe loaded versions and we couldn't be happier. Worked right out of the box, in US and in Germany.
  
  
• GARMIN IS GREAT!!!
  By A18NPUB5CNXZOE on 2007-05-14
  I have the Garmin C530 that I bought earlier this year for about $450. Then, I paid another $300 for European Maps. That's a total of $750. Here's this one that has US and European maps and also has "verbal recognition of streets" and it only costs $588 I think. So, it's a very good deal.
  
  PLUS, I want you to know that I used my Garmin C530 with the same Sirf receiver and same maps as this one in April 2007 ON MANHATTAN ISLAND, NYC! I was expecting the worst due to the "concrete canyons" of Manhattan. BUT THE GARMIN WITH THE SIRF RECEIVER WORKED ALMOST PERFECTLY EVERY TIME. (I mean, NOTHING man made is "perfect", is it?) I was really impressed. But, the buyer should know that, no "it's not perfect". As long as you don't expect perfection from it and keep this motto in your mind, "the glass is half full....not half empty" you'll be very happy with this product. This is a very great invention for those of us who like to drive places.
  
  The only "trouble" I had with the Garmin in NYC was when I came to one of those THREE OR FOUR WAY FORKS in NYC and Jersey----the unit does get confused with those 4 way forks--but who or what wouldn't---that's why they have these 4 way forks---to confuse the tourists, right!
  
  If you have any questions or comments, write boland7214@aol.
  
  
• Fantastic!
  By AH940Q0BZN5DD on 2007-11-12
  I absolutely love this GPS. This is my 3rd Garmin GPS, but my first Nuvi. The portable size is great - I took it with me to London and Prague, and it worked like a charm (except that the attractions in Prague were written in Czech, which I don't understand - though there may have been a way to change that which I didn't know!!) The built in Europe maps are a lifesaver for a frequent traveler, and the multi-country adapter is very handy.
  The screen is very easy to see. The window mount is great - and the Nuvi is easy to take off of the mount to take it with you.
  The only thing I do wish is that Garmin would put an instruction booklet in the box, since I really find that I never take the time or energy to load the disc and read it on the computer - but I guess that's jsut a preference and an old fashioned opinion!!
  Really, even if it's not this model, Garmin is the way to go!!
  
  
• Garmin Service - 5 Stars
  By AHQMCEFT6POHP on 2007-11-27
  I'm sure other reviewers have covered the functions and features. I put this out there as a separate review for prospective buyers curious about Garmin's service. I've had two occasions to ask for their help and in both cases they get my highest ratings.
  
  My suction cup mount was not sticking properly to the windshield. I travel a lot and the thought to call the service department always hits me at night or on the weekends. So last weekend I sent an e-mail about the problem. I came home today and there was a box on the kitchen table with a replacement mount. No canned e-mail reply, no red tape; they just took the initiative to send me a new one based on my e-mail.
  
  I can tell you that something so simple, makes me a loyal Garmin customer.
  
  
• OK, but limited
  By A1V93R0A0C3XWZ on 2007-12-22
  Like another reviewer, I purchased my 370 for a trip to Italy. The Venice area specifically.
  
  I tried it around home for 1 day before I went, and found that it was generally ok, but sometimes gives you exit names that are not on the signs. This was ok when I was playing with it at home, but once I got to Venice, it was a nightmare.
  I tried to go from the airport to my hotel, and the first problem I had was trying to enter Italian addresses. It did not recognize the address, but it at least found the road I needed. Ok, so I now had a rough idea of where to go, but no specifics. Not much better than I would have had with a paper map.
  It missed my turn, and I ended up on a toll road. I finally turned around, and it again missed the exit I needed. It was apparently taking me out into the middle of nowhere, so I finally resorted to paper maps and found my hotel.
  
  The next day I used it to find the company I was visiting. It got me in the general area again, but did not exactly put me right at the address. On the way, the voice told me to turn right at one point, but the route on the map showed left. I turned right without looking at the screen, and then figured out the mistake. A couple miles later, it tried to get me to turn left, then right, which would have put me into oncoming traffic. As someone else said, it frequently uses the term "turn" when it is really only a road name change. In another case, it wanted me to exit the freeway I was on, go through a roundabout and get back on the same freeway. Overall, I did not trust it in Italy, so it was a stress raiser rather than a stress reducer.
  
  I have run into similar problems using it here in the US now too. Overall, I am not thrilled for $500. If it were $150-200, I wouldn't be so bothered having it sit there but for $500, it is too much money for the inaccuracies and for the amount that you actually are traveling in unknown territory. I think GPS is like a lot of things. If people actually evaluated how much they will use it vs the cost a lot less would be sold. I think I will return mine if I can.
  
  
• Incredibly Happy (so far)
  By A3FZRH4G7B2BD6 on 2007-05-08
  I have had this unit for about a week and will be happy to amend this review if my opinion changes but in the meantime....
  
  I LOVE THIS DEVICE. I have had no problems locking into a satellite. It takes marginally longer to "boot up" then it does to pick up a satellite.
  
  The bluetooth functionality is great. The sound quality is great on both ends. Granted I have not tried to use this with the windows down cruising down the Autostrade at 100 clicks but in regular traffic with windows down it works great. As an added bonus being able to search your phonebook and call by touching someones name on the device is pretty awesome.
  
  I used it today to go to a park (Parco Virgilliano) in Napoli, Italy which I've been to a dozen or so times and it lead me a completely new way which saved me probably half an hour. I also found it to be incredibly accurate. A friend who has a TomTom says that his device will very often confuse a parallel surface street with the highway and tell him to turn when flying down the highway. In my experience with surface streets on both sides of the highway the Nuvi accurately pinpointed my location even in "urban canyons."
  
  The screen quality is fantastic, even in bright sunlight but looks that much better in the shade or even in night mode.
  
  I have not used the MP3 player and really could care less about it. The only thing that would be cool is if it had iPod integration so you could "touch" your music as Steve Jobs would say.
  
  My only gripe is that I should be able to lock into TMC FM traffic, which would be a GODSEND in Napoli, but for some reason I am not able to search for additional TMC providers in Italy. I believe this is because I have a north american unit. I have an email into Garmin about this issue and I am awaiting their response.
  
  I look forward to using this device locally and abroad. I am headed to Scotland at the end of this month and plan on using it when walking around Glasgow.
  
  Personally I couldn't be happier with this device and feel satisfied with this being my first GPS purchase.
  
  
• Don't know I lived without it.
  By A1X1VWTAVSUSG6 on 2007-05-12
  Had been waiting for a device with both North America and Europe preloaded. Was partial to the Garmin interface as I had become used to it through a number of Avis rentals. When Garmin released the -x70 models, I moved out quickly. The 370 had all the features I was looking for - and is very portable. That last feature was very important since twice over the past few years, I parked our rental on some back street in Europe and then spent hours trying to find it.
  Am I happy with the 370? Absolutely! Mounting is straightforward and strong. Audio and video are both great. Alerts are timely and succinct. Very accurate. Was visiting a firm in Florida a few weeks back. Followed one of their reps to the plant, but since I had to return there the next day, I saved the plant's location - just used the 'save current location' feature. The next day the 370 got me back to the same parking space! The user interface is intuitive - and eventhough the manual is rather thick, I have yet to open it. The traffic monitor has already gotten me around a number of major snarls.
  Will be vacationing in Germany and Austria in the fall. Programmed our hotels, etc into the 370 - no problems whatever. Now the wife can enjoy the scenery while we blast along the Autobahn rather than constantly having to stay glued to the roadmap. And, yes, I've used it on long walks. Works great there, too. Very light and long battery life.
  As I said, I don't know how I lived without it.
  
  
• Garmin Nuvi 370
  By A25X6R8LUDQU74 on 2007-08-21
  Got this unit to replace my Garmin 360 that was stolen. Same look and feel as the 360 but it comes with a traffic receiver and the european maps preloaded.
  PROs
  Easy to use, very compact. Touch Screen is very crisp and clear. Fast and very sensitive satelite receiver. I cand pick-up a fix even inside my house or in an airplane (close by the window).
  It is more of what Garmin got us used to getting which is close to perfection.
  I started to appreciate and use the Garmin-Lock feature since my other Garmin unit was stolen from my car (unfortunately not locked). People do not realize that when a GPS is stolen the thief gets access to your favorite and home locations. The garmin lock prevents them to use the unit.
  Hands free feature is very nice. It'll download your contacts from from your phone and dial them at the touch of the screen
  
  CONs Inability to insert more than one via point when you plan a trip.
  Traffic receiver not very useful unless you live in a supported area (big city). Also the trafiic receiver is an external unit you need to plug in to the Nuvi and it doesn't work if the Nuvi is not in the cradle Would have made more sense to have it integrated
  Hands free lacks voice recognition and it doesn't support "Voice Commander" from MS that I use on my ATT 8525. Also if you listen to an audio book and a call comes in the audio book does not stop so you have to go back afterwards to catch up what you missed.
  Unit came with outdated maps but Garmin will send you an update for free if you register the unit and call them up. Overall I'm very happy with this baby and would recommend it strongly. My 4 stars is because the CONs I mentioned above and actualy I would give it a 4 and 1/2
  
  
  
• Garmin
  By A18BX7HMYDZ7IP on 2007-12-12
  The Garmin Nuvi 370 would be awesome if you needed the European maps as well as North American maps. It costs more than the Nuvi 350/360 but worth it for the two map packages. European software package would be $250 if purchased separately with the Nuvi 350 or 360. Worked flawlessly for me while in Europe. I even tracked my flight path while onboard the plane. I used unit on my river cruise down the Danube and located every town we passed in Germany and Austria. Small size of unit and battery life of 8 hours makes this unit very portable.
  
  
• Nuvi 370
  By AJTC00Q3FZ0U8 on 2007-04-02
  Product is compact and convenient to use. Display and voice are clear and precise. Works well placed on shelf in dash providing some level of security without having to mount to windshield.
  Very pleased.
  
  
• Works Great
  By A1FYY8BBZZ2DCX on 2007-05-19
  I took the Garmin 370 with me on a recent trip to Germany, Holland and Belgium and the unit worked great, even in small towns and the German country-side no more getting lost. Definitely 5 star..
  
  
• Great device...but
  By AZRDS5AP3IIEK on 2007-06-18
  I love the nuvi 370 so far. It's got a clear display and I can hear the directions just fine, as long as I'm not blasting my radio. May try plugging the nuvi into the radio via cassette adapter to see whether playing it through the speakers is a viable option for listening to audiobooks and MP3s.
  
  The one "flaw" I've found thus far is in the traffic adapter. This isn't really a flaw, but something to watch for. While routing me around traffic the other day, it took me off of an expressway a couple of times to avoid jams by busy on/off ramps and then routed me back to the expressway. This worked very well and as designed. The problem is that the nuvi does not know a safe neighborhood from a dangerous neighborhood. While I followed the nuvi's directions in my hometown of Chicago, I was laughing to myself and saying "Nuvi, you're going to get me killed." For someone not familiar with the different areas of a major city and the various neighborhoods, you might consider NOT using the traffic adapter and just wait patiently on the highway when it backs up. It may be safer for you.
  
  
• Lifesaver...
  By A2VUYT280CKSEZ on 2007-09-20
  Recently spent two weeks vacationing in London and throughout Italy. The Nuvi 370 was invaluable, worth every penny we spent. Not only did it let us find gas stations, stores, restaurants, hotels, and most of our destinations fairly easily, the built-in MP3 player, calculator, and unit conversion utility came in very handy as well. For example, since it is portable, we were able to download "walking tours" of Venice and other locations and listen without having to worry about checking paper maps every 10 minutes.
  
  Putting in destinations wasn't that difficult, but there were several times when it took several tries before we could successfully lock in a destination. Apparently, there are several naming discrepancies that the Nuvi couldn't resolve on its own. For example, according to our travel agency, our hotel in Rome was located on a street called "Piazza Di Montecitorio"; however, the Nuvi had the hotel listed under "Monte Citorio," which we eventually discovered after trying for 10-15 minutes. It would be nice if the Nuvi could have suggested other street names instead of giving up. The Nuvi 370 also attempts to pronounce the street names, but it does a poor job of pronouncing names, especially in Italian. I ended up looking at the display anyway because I couldn't understand it most times. I guess this is a minor thing. I recommend saving all of your planned destinations ahead of time (under your Favorites) so that you don't have to waste time putting in new locations when driving or walking.
  
  Italian cities have many narrow alleys between 3-5 story buildings that pass as streets. In the older areas, most streets aren't laid out in an organized way, e.g. few streets follow modern grid patterns with a parallel/perpendicular layout. Moreover, in Italy we didn't see any street signs mounted on poles (at the corner) as we have in the US. Instead, street names are chiseled in hard-to-read print on stone wall markers. After a while, these streets start to look the same, so having a portable GPS can save you from walking/driving around in circles. Note: When you power up the GPS, it takes 1-2 minutes to establish contact with the satellites. If you are in a narrow alley, it can get confused - just walk toward an intersection to re-orient the unit.
  
  Also, signage in Italy was poor in some places, especially outside the city. With the GPS, we were never afraid of getting lost. Asking for directions when you don't speak Italian can be very frustrating; On one occasion, we ended up walking back to the hotel to get the 370 instead of asking random folks on the street. The maps in the 370 are getting dated, but it wasn't really a problem. I highly recommend this unit if you plan to travel extensively in Europe and the States!!!
  
  
• Problems with satellites reception on Garmin Nuvi 370
  By A1DO39X24ZFCM6 on 2008-01-02
  Bought this Nuvi 370 March 2007. Worked fine just out of the box for 3 months. Then it started to malfunction and not receive satellites. Garmin replaced it with a reconditoned one. Out of the box the keybord of the second one was not working. Sent it back at my expenses and received a third one. Worked fine for 4 months and AGAIN stopped receiveing signal from satellites. I think they have a problemwith the receiving unit and Garmin is not admitting it. Hopefully my 4th will be OK. I am close to the end of my warranty. If it goes bad I will not buy an other Garmin.
  
  
• Nice Little GPS
  By A2DGD05JXICN5Q on 2007-08-24
  I'm having a lot of fun checking out this unit.
  The pros:
  1. size and portability
  2. battery life pretty good
  The cons:
  1. It announces street names by numeric designations, not by alpha names. When you're used to driving and turning on named streets througout your city (which also have a numeric designation) this unit opts for the numeric designation which throws you. In that way, it's not helpful when your'e looking at a street sign and you see a name in large print and then you see the numbered name (i.e. 15th ave) in very small print.
  2. The screen is not visible is you're wearing polarized sunglasses. That's definitely a drawback.
  
  I haven't had a chance to check out this unit in Europe to see how it works, since I bought the 370 model which includes European maps.
  
  Overall, I'm very happy with the unit...it's still new. Also this is my first GPS and have not had a chance to compare it to other models out there like Tom Tom units.
  
  

• Garmin Vehicle DC Power Adapter for eTrex and Geko (010-10203-00)
• NAVGEAR ME201133 Universal Dash Mount
• Garmin Beanbag for Portable Friction Mount for Garmin GPS Units (Beanbag Only - Mount not Included)
• Garmin MapSource City Navigator Europe CD-ROM
• Software, Metroguide Canada

• Garmin Portable Friction Dashboard Mount for nüvi Series and StreetPilot C5XX Series GPS Navigators (C530, C550, and C580)
• Garmin Vehicle Power Cable for nüvi Portable GPS Navigators (010-10723-06)
• GARMIN 010-10723-02 Carrying Case For Nuvi Series Travel Assistant
• Garmin Language Guide (010-10672-00)
• Garmin nüvi 360 3.5-Inch Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator with Text-To-Speech