Gilsson UBM Portable Car Non-Skid Friction Beanbag Dashboard Mount Reviews

• BEST mount for my Garmin, TomTom and Magellan GPS Receivers !

  
  By ABOLZHOAQ7EN8 on 2008-01-13
  My husband and I absolutely love this Gilsson portable mount !!! We own a Garmin Nuvi 350, Magellan Maestro and a TomTom One and this mount works well with all of them, even with our aggressive driving style in a Lotus Elise sports car ! We have tried both the Garmin Friction Mount as well as the Bracketron Nav-Mat beanbag mounts and found this Gilsson mount to be most stable for several reasons: (1) This Gilsson Mount is heavier than Nav-Mat and Garmin Mounts, (2) Gilsson Mount is square-shape, allowing one to point the corners of the mount toward the windshield and the driver, thereby creating a longer "moment arm", effectively making the mount to be more stable and less likely to tilt or fall off the dashboard (3) The non-skid material surface area on the Gilsson mount is larger than Garmin and Nav-Mat mounts, thereby making it even more resistant to skidding and sliding. One of our friends has a Toyota Prius with slanted dashboard and have had no problems with this Gilsson mount staying at the same spot. This mount is made of high quality and durable neoprene / wet-suit material, I am sure you will be very happy with it !
  
  

• Excellent stability even for 4.3" GPS

  
  By A2A0P78HSEFC05 on 2008-01-05
  This mount is quite large and measures about 7.5" square. It can accomodate suction cups up to 3.25" in diameter. I chose this over the round Bracketron Nav-Mat mount because this has a diamond shape that fits (wedges in) perfectly between the 2 humps on my Toyota Highlander's dash. It also fits very well in my Toyota Prius which has a flat dashboard.
  The mount is absolutely stable under all driving conditions. The non-skid material is so good that I think nothing short of a collision will make it slide. I am using it with a Mio C520 which has a 4.3" screen.
  Before buying this, you should make sure your dashboard is big enough to take this 7.5" square (or diamond shape) mount. If not, you should consider the smaller Bracketron Nav-Mat.
  
  

• Substantial support for TomTom 720

  
  By A32L7JKNZ80130 on 2008-01-04
  This beanbag offers a stable platform to hold the standard TomTom support's suction cup. However, the standard TomTom mounting arm is pretty short and doesn't leave much room to access the USB connector while on the bag. So, if you want to keep your TomTom plugged in to the car's power outlet while it is attached to the bag, you may want to consider TomTom's alternative mounting kit (approx $30), which has a longer arm, making it easier to attach and detach the USB connector.
  The beanbag looks well made - the metal plate is held in place by four set screws, which presumably means you could remove/replace it (though I'm not sure why you'd want to!)
  The manufacturer recommends mounting the beanbag diagonally (with a corner facing travel direction) for optimal stability. Presumably that maximizes how much of the bag's friction is available to counteract forward motion. That's worth bearing in mind depending on the depth of your dash.
  
  

• Works well with my Tomtom 720

  
  By A1HE958ID6LX4A on 2008-01-16
  This is a well designed mount that is quite stable on the dashboard when used as directed. It allows for easy transfer between vehicles and avoids leaving the tell tale circular mark on the windscreen which encourages thieves looking for GPS units.
  
  
  

• Does the Job

  
  By A1IJ31ZYU3MQ4Z on 2008-02-16
  I selected this over the round Nav-Mat unit due to some concerns that the TomTom GPS might sit rather deep inside the Nav-Mat, impeding access to the USB/power connector on the bottom of the TomTom. This device positions the mounting plate high enough so that I did not have a problem using the mount that came with my TomTom One 3rd edition. It appears to be a high quality product, and the non-skid material does a nice job holding the unit in place. Be aware of the shipping cost, which is higher than the cost of the unit itself. The total, though, is competitive with other choices, and you might pay nearly twice as much for the Nav-Mat in a local store.
  
  
• Excellent Beanbag Mount for GPS
  By A1F9RYSSTKCIF4 on 2008-05-04
  I have been using the Gilsson friction beanbag dashboard mount for one week, and am very pleased with the result.
  
  The non-skid material on the bottom side of the beanbag provides excellent friction on dashboard surface. The beanbag, as well as my Garmin 660, does not slide even in hard acceleration and quick cornering situations. Although the instruction recommends placing the beanbag with one of the corners pointing front (thus making it diamond shape) for maximum stability, I found a regular square placement orientation (with one edge facing front) still provides sufficient stability.
  
  Measured at 7" x 7", it is about 55% in size compared with Garmin model, which is 11" x 8". In addition, its square shape makes it look clean and nice on the dashboard. Originally, I was considering another model by Gilsson, the UBM-2 which measures 8" x 8, for the wide-screen Garmin 660 GPS. After one week's of testing, I concluded that it is not necessary.
  
  Another thing I should mention is that the color in the pictures on Amazon looks burgundy, but the units I received are in black, which matches perfectly with the black interior of my car. A nice bonus to me.
  
  For the price and performance, I think this is the best beanbag mount currently available on the market.
  
  
  
• A great non-skid beanbag friction dashboard mount!
  By A3HPF39NNV4HVG on 2008-08-05
  This is my second attempt at getting a non-skid beanbag friction dashboard mount (or NoSkiBeFriDashMo as we call them in the GPS scene) that plays nice with my TomTom 920's stubby little suction-cup mount. The Bracketron UFM-100BL Nav-Mat GPS Friction Dash Pad does NOT work with the TomTom 920 (or any of the 700s or 900s, I assume) because the little arm on the TomTom's suction cup is so short, the GPS can't get over the big fat beanbag ring around the Bracketron mat. This means the GPS winds up angled almost straight-up, and you can't see the screen. Bogus!
  
  But the Gilsson NoSkiBeFriDashMo, which I'm reviewing here, is excellent. The mounting surface (where you attach the suction cup) lies more or less flat with the rest of the pad, so I was actually able to see my TomTom's screen.
  
  In order to test the Gilsson's NoSkiBeFriDashMo, I did some donuts in old man Cruthers's front yard, and I wasn't able to get it to budge. Glisson really puts the "Non-Skid Friction Beanbag" in Non-Skid Friction Beanbag Dashboard Mount!
  
  It is a little big - about 7" by 7", so if you're driving an embarrassing car like a Miata you're going to be even more embarrassed when you can't put the pad in your microscopic glovebox. I suggest hiding it under the seat.
  
  Finally, the bottom of the Gilsson, where the friction lives, feels really weird. I highly recommend touching it.
  
  
• Good product
  By A3EOW9X7Y8JP71 on 2008-06-01
  Good product, god price, fast delivery. I just wish it was not so bulky. It would be easier to pack in the glove compartment.
  
  
• Beanbag
  By A2Y160AYTEJ9ZD on 2008-05-01
  Works great -- Very stable even when accelerating and braking! A little big for my TomTom One... But it works... Now to fit it along with everything else into my carryon...
  
  
  
  
• GPS Mount
  By A38XSNAESHFNHE on 2008-05-03
  Portable Car Non-Skid Friction Beanbag Auto Dash Dashboard Mount for Apple iPod Nano iPhone MP3, Garmin Nuvi 350 200 200W 250 260 650 660 GPS, TomTom One, Zune Player, Navigon 7100, Blackberry, Motorola Razr, MP3 Player or Garmin color eTrex Nuvi 750 76...
  This mount holds my Tom Tom securely to the dash of any vehicle I put it in. Sometimes the mounting cup on my Tom Tom turned loose from the windshield, letting the unit fall. It has not turned loose from this mount. The beanbag is a bit large, but I guess that is one of the reasons that it works as well as it does. This is not really a major concern. GPS units are not that cheap!
  
  

• Bracketron UFM-100BL Nav-Mat GPS Friction Dash Pad
• Garmin Portable Friction Dashboard Mount for nüvi Series and StreetPilot C5XX Series GPS Navigators (C530, C550, and C580)
• Gilsson UBM-1 Portable Car Non-Skid Friction Beanbag Dashboard Mount
• Garmin nüvi 660 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator
• Garmin nüvi 350 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator