Compact 700 MB GPS navigator with bundled MP3/audiobook player, photo viewer, and world travel clock
Small enough to fit in a pocket or purse; mounts on vehicle windshield with included suction cup
Preloaded with City Navigator NT maps of U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico
Turn-by-turn directions, automatic routing, and 320 x 240 color touchscreen display
Secure Digital (SD) memory card slot; measures 3.87 x 2.91 x 0.87 inches (W x H x D); 1-year warranty
Rating: - Excellent
Excellent product. Easy to use, intuitive menus, touch screen. Did not need manual. Went to Wash. DC first week I got it. Only problem I had was that sometimes the GPS told me to turn while I was in a tunnel due to road crossing overhead. Could be due to new road construction. Got the friction dash mount also. Much better than suction mount included. Am getting another one for my father-in-law for Christmas.
Rating: - Never get lost again, Nuvi will show you the way.
I have had the Garmin Nuvi 350 for a little over two years and it has been one of the best purchases in my life. I like to take road trips with my wife and we rely heavily on Nuvi to get us around, find interesting places and most importantly get us home. I would say that Nuvi has been successful for us 98% of the time in leading us to our destination. The other 2% comes from needing to get updated maps once a year as roads change due to construction or traffic changes, etc... but Nuvi will still get us within a few blocks from where we want to go.
I got mine for $306 but now it's $190 (w/shipping, etc...) so it's a real bargain. There are newer models with more features, etc... but I haven't found them as reliable or the features to be worth the upgrade/price difference.
The next big thing that I will test of my GPS is for a month long trip that I am planning to Europe. On the Garmin website there are maps that you can purchase besides the US so with Nuvi I will get a little pocket sized tour guide when I visit Europe.
Rating: - Great Device BUT Outdated Maps AND Lousy Customer Service
First of all, let me say that this is a great device. My low rating is because the unit comes with outdated maps. Althought Amazon says that "most" units come with the latest maps, that was not the case with my unit, purchased just a week ago. I would not have even realized that the maps were outdated if I had not read it in the user forum on this website.
Now for the details. The 350 (also the 360) has been discontinued. Presumably, that's why the maps are outdated. However, Garmin customer service could not (or would not) tell me which units come with the latest maps. If you buy a model that has not been discontinued, perhaps you will get the latest maps - who knows? The latest maps currently available are the 2009 version. To check your version, turn on the GPS, touch Settings, then Map, then Map Info at the bottom. My unit shows the 2008 version.
Whether or not the updated maps will affect you depends solely on where you use the unit. I did find that a nearby shopping center built 3 years ago was not reflected on the 2008 version. Even though we're still in 2008, the 2008 maps are at least a year old now.
On the other hand, the 350 sold for $300 a years ago and is now on Amazon for around $160. If having updated maps doesn't matter to you, go ahead and buy this unit. It's still a great unit at a good price. But, for me, if I'm going to buy something "new", I expect it to be up-to-date.
If you buy this unit, Garmin will provide the 2009 map update for "free". I think it normally costs $50 or $60. So, in theory, you can buy the unit with the old maps and update them with the latest version for free. DON'T COUNT ON IT!!!! When you register the product online at the Garmin website, it provides a link to download the "free" update. I'm fairly computer-savvy, and I was able to download the map update (also the latest firmware and operating system) with no problems, although it took a couple of hours. However, every time I tried to install the map update to my GPS unit, it made my computer freeze, and I had to turn off the power. After trying this twice, it made my computer unstable, and I ended up spending hours cleaning up the mess on my computer (ultimately by doing a safe boot and a system restore). I'm running Windows XP on a 3 year old computer. If you have Vista or more RAM, perhaps you won't have the problems I did - who knows? Unless you're an IT specialist, my strong advice is - DON'T DOWNLOAD THE MAP UPDATE ONTO YOUR COMPUTER.
You can get the map upgrade mailed to you on a DVD instead of downloading. I've requested the disk and will give it a try. If that doesn't work, I'm going to box up the thing and return it to Amazon. By the way, although Garmin customer service repeatedly insisted that the DVD was free, there is a $10 fee for "shipping and handling". Since a DVD can be mailed anywhere in the country for about a dollar, I think that's outrageous and told them so. Long story short, after asking to speak to a supervisor, I was told that the DVD would be mailed to me, free of charge. We'll see if I get it. If I get it, we'll see if it works.
To narrow it down, your options are as follow: 1. Buy the unit, and don't worry about the fact that the maps are at least a year old. 2. Buy the unit and pay $10 more to get the map update on DVD. 3. Buy the unit, download the map update, and waste several hours before accepting option 2 or 3.
Aside from the map situation, this is really a wonderful device. Although it may not select the most efficient route, it will get you from Point A to Point B. After doing some research and trying out the unit, I urge you to get a unit (such as the 350) with what they call "text to speech". This means that the unit gives you directions AND street names in audio. In other words, with text-to-speech, it tells you to "Turn right onto Main St in .2 miles" as opposed to "Turn right in .2 miles". With the latter, you will invariably miss your turn. Trust me on this. On Black Friday, units will be available for $125 or less, but I haven't seen one in this price range that includes "text to speech". Without it, the unit is worthless, and, in fact, DANGEROUS. Pay a little more and get this important feature. Otherwise, you will miss your turn, or you will try to follow the display, which is a great way to have an accident. The scary thing is: all the morons talking on their cellphones while driving are now even more distracted because they're playing with their GPS at the same time.
The 350 has a 3.5 inch screen (measured along the diagonal). Units with a W (such as the 260W, 205W, etc.) have a 4.3 inch screen, but they usually cost around $50 more. That extra display sounds nice, but I think it's unimportant. If you follow my advice and get a unit with text to speech, you will NEVER need to look at the unit while driving, so the screen size is really a non-issue. The smart money is to buy a 3.5 inch unit with text to speech. Amazon has a neat little grid that shows you the basic features on the different models.
One more thing: a well-known consumer testing magazine rated the 350 very highly in its June 2008 issue. The December 2008 again rates GPS units, but doesn't include the 350 (presumably becauses it's discontinued).
Rating: - Easy to use, Easy to own
Very easy to use right out of the box, self explanatory interface, takes a bit to find locate satellites, but not so long as to be annoying. Makes road trips MUCH less of a hassle. My wife and I drove out of town a couple days ago to look at a new house, and this baby took us right to the front door of the house, in a city we have never been to in our lives. Very helpful.
- 
-