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Customer Reviews and Ratings for Garmin StreetPilot c320 |
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100% of our reviewers recommend this item.
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Al Skiles
Mar 21, 2008
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TRUCK DRIVER
I bought the 320c street pilot a couple of months ago and the map is very out of date. It takes me to wrong locations often. I have been looking for a house to buy in SC and where it takes me is close, but hardly ever gets the location right.
Recommend? YES
68 viewers found this helpful.
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Alex
Jan 8, 2008
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I purchased this a year and a half a go for a trip to Baltimore for a wedding and then Wisconsin for a family reunion. I like the estimate time of arrival feature and we had to use the find the hotel feature once. The trip functions are nice The route it chose was slightly different then the map we got from the Automobile Association but that was not a major issue. It does give you a degree of comfort in knowing you will not be completely lost in a strange city. Pros I was surprised at how good the touch screen is. The routing does not take into account that side streets maybe faster but it has not steered me wrong yet. I like the ability to chose highways, U Turns, paved roads etc. Cons The size is a bit bulky and doesn’t fit easily into a shirt pocket The countdown distance to turns seems too long. A few times I have overshot my turn because the unit distance doesn’t seem right. Does not have the map planning function that later units have After about 18 months the battery in the unit has died. Servicing from Garmin was quoted at minimum $240. Excessive heat seems to kill the batteries and it has happened to quite a few of these units. There are online sources that show how to replace the battery yourself. The battery can cost as little as $8. Great for the DIY person. This is my first GPS unit and I am quite happy with it despite the cons listed above.
Recommend? YES
63 viewers found this helpful.
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Ralph
Nov 7, 2007
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GREAT UNIT
I bought the C320 in January 2007 specifically to use in my car. I had used a handheld Magellan unit up till then, and I have to say the C320 is great for vehicle use. It lacks many of the finer features that a better, hand held unit has, but for in car, point to point navigation it can't be beat. The voice instructions are excellent, and the timing for turns etc is perfect. It even seems that speed and distance to the next turn is taken into account so that an instruction to turn is given in a manner that is consistent with time available to make the turn. The calculated route is highlighted on the screen so a quick glance usually shows if its this street right here, or the next one. This is invaluable, especially in older parts of towns, where some streets are very close to each other. My wife is a notary and does closings for a couple of west coast companies. Even though she grew up in this city, she often uses the C320 to locate properties where she has to do a closing. In July we took a 10 day trip to California, and the C320 was invaluable. It was almost like having a local with us in the car all the time. We travelled from Carmel almost all the way up to the Oregon state line, and we preprogrammed our various accommodation sites into the unit. Driving to each destination was a snap, and finding gas stations or food outlets while on the highway was a breeze. It has a small downside, when maps have not been updated along with road improvements or changes. However, some judicious seat of the pants navigation along with using the map on the C320 display has always worked fine for these instances. I specifically chose the C320 so that I could change out the SD card - they are so cheap today that it really makes sense, especially if you intend to travel overseas and need to load maps for foreign areas. This is one unit I would not hesitate in recommending to anyone. Its not perfect, but its close enough to make the small anomolies not worth mentioning.
Recommend? YES
72 viewers found this helpful.
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Jay
NJ
Prior to 2008
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Better than I expected ! I just received my 320 from GPS city a few days ago, and it is wonderful how well it works. I bought it for it's portability, battery life, and ease of exchanging maps. I purchased the European Maps as well because I'm planning to travel overseas soon, and it's amazing how easy it is to install the software. Absolutely get the 1 gig SD card. It acquires sat signal very well. Best features are ease of finding destinations, accuracy (it knows quite accurately how fast you're going ! makes a great trip computer!), and is fantasically portable ! The touch screen eliminates the need for clunky buttons (big plus) and the only things I would ask for are faster downloading of the maps (function of the SD card, not the 320) and interchangeable battery. Bravo Garmin, and THANKS GPSCITY.com !!
Recommend? YES
67 viewers found this helpful.
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Jim Holloman
NC
Prior to 2008
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Initial impression of the Garmin StreetPilot c320
First of all, let me say, that the c320 is a worthy aid to navigation and well worth the cost if one is not on a tight budget.
Background:
I have been driving cross county, and in strange places, for 38 years. I seldom get lost. I know how to use a map effectively. However, most of the time, my wife is with me and does the map reading and navigating. She is excellent at reading maps and estimating distances. She nearly always keeps me on track. About three or four times a year, I will need to stop and ask for directions.
The c320 is my first experience with a Nav unit. I received it Sat. afternoon, 30 April, and gave it a test run on Sunday. I programmed a route from where I live to Brevard, NC and told it I was driving a car and to avoid highways and unpaved roads. It was mounted on the windshield of a car that does not have a shielded, or heated, windshield. Satellite reception was rock solid; even in the mountains.
It put me on what it thought was Hwy. 70 (a road that has been I-26 for several years) for a short distance and then told me to exit and to follow the ramp ahead. The only ramp ahead was the ramp to get back on I-26 and it was not directly ahead, it was offset about a hundred yards. So, I made a left turn since I knew that Brevard would be in that general direction. The unit started recalculating. I followed the directions as clearly as possible and it continued to recalculate. It took me though some of the worst sections of town. It took me on very narrow streets with two way traffic (one vehicle had to pull over while the other passed). It would tell me to turn where there was no place to turn. On one occasion, it told me to turn left to get on Broad when one would continue straight for the street name simply changed. It took me around and around in what appeared to be random circles. My wife said that the lady (in the c320) had lost her mind. I agreed. So, we told the unit to stop navigating and found our way to Brevard Highway.
During this test, one would have been much, much better off with a local map. I have to believe that the c320 would have done much better had I told it to use highways and to take the fastest route.
Once on Brevard Highway and heading in the right direction, I turned the c320 back on and it was able to direct me to Brevard without getting lost again. But, it was a straight shot.
Once in Brevard, it was time to eat, so I did a lookup for food. Under Fast Food, the c320 had only four locations listed, whereas there were probably at least a dozen fast food restaurants in the area. It did not have McDonalds nor Taco Bells; both on Brevard Highway and both, I believe, have been at that location for over a year. But, it did have an Old Hickory House restaurant listed under Bbq (BBQ). So, I drove to the Old Hickory House and found it to be in the middle of a residential area completely removed from anyone traveling through the town. It was open 5:00p till 8:30p Tuesday through Saturday and from 11:00a till 2:30p on Sunday. We arrived at 2:35p on Sunday and could see no one inside. The only way one would find this restaurant was to either live nearby or have a Nav unit. But, why would the c320 steer me to an out-of-the way, part-time, restaurant and not list many of the full-time restaurants on the main streets. I had to wonder how business were selected to be included in the database. Do they have to apply? Do they have to pay a fee? A little experience, a state map, and a couple of eyeballs would have done better at finding a nearby place to eat. But, if you want to find a restaurant that no stranger to the town would have been able to find without directions, the c320 can do it for you. The restaurant might be closed. It might be very small. But, the c320 will direct you there, nonetheless. But, when it says to turn left and there is no left turn, keep going straight and let it recalculate. I don't yet know how to tell the c320 to take me back to where I was before I got lost. I guess one needs to store their current location as a Favorite before heading off the main streets into residential areas.
A little later I told it to take me to Wendy's (one of the four fast food restaurants listed) and then I headed in the wrong direction on the same street that Wendy's is on. On this occasion, the c320 was impressive. There was plenty of parking lot in front of stores where one could have easily turned around. But, the c320 would have no way of knowing this. Instead, it told me to turn left at the next street, Fisher Street, and then turn left. The second left put me on a very small, residential street that was a half-circle that brought me right back out to Fisher Street. The c320 told me to turn right and then turn right. The unit had turned me around in a quick and safe manner that did not require a U-turn, although I had not checked U-turns on the Avoidance screen.
From Brevard, I took Hwy. 276 and then the Blue Ridge Parkway back to Asheville. Once again, the c320 produced mixed results. It told me to turn left onto a National Forest Road. At that point, there was no road -- it was destined to put me directly into the woods. Naturally, I did not turn. It then recalculated and told me to turn left on Fish Pond Road. At that point, a left turn would have put me into a guard rail. There was not an intersection within miles. But, I was on an overpass that passed over a narrow, dirt road. Perhaps it was Fish Pond Road. However, at the time, I had the Avoidances set to avoid unpaved roads. The lady seems to have lost her mind once again.
The Blue Ridge Parkway has many sharp turns because it runs along the sides, and ridges, of the mountains. The daylight was getting dim, and I was able to see the screen clearly. I was very impressed with the accuracy of the c320 in drawing the road ahead and thus indicating the sharp turns. One of the turns was a 180 degree turn and the first indication was the image on the c320.
Pros:
o) A worthy aid to navigation. But, it should be considered only as an aid. It should be used in conjunction with maps and a good dose of common sense.
o) Quick to detect when you are "off route".
o) Very fast calculations and recalculations.
o) Moving map with realistic, at least in most cases, depiction of the path of the road ahead.
o) Easy to use interface with fast response.
o) Auto detection of daylight saving time.
o) Extensive functionality; including Points of Interest (POI), My Favorites, Go Home, Recent Selections, Near (what?), screen customizations, map browse with zooming, 2D or 3D presentation, built-in compass, trip statistics with estimated time of arrival, text listing of route.
o) Ability to use the unit as a stand-alone unit without being connected to a power source.
o) The cradle providing the power connections when mounted. Thus, the unit, itself, has no power cable attached except when recharging the battery. And, recharging is done through the USB connector.
o) Excellent windshield mount and ease of transferring the unit to other vehicles.
o) Not integrated with any other car functions.
o) Quick power up and load time.
o) Quick to acquire satellites.
o) Touch screen requires only a very light touch.
o) Distinct voice that is easy to understand.
o) Frequency of voice instructions eliminates any last-second surprises.
o) Ability to press the "Turn In" icon and get details on the upcoming turn.
o) Ability to touch the Header and then any entry on the Route Listing to get details on any future turn.
o) Ability to automatically switch between day and night screens based upon time of day.
o) Ability to simulate routes. But, because of fixed speed of apparently around 30 MPH, this is only useful for relatively short routes. Anything over 10-15 miles is going to take a long while to simulate.
o) The standard 128 Mb card was sufficient for three states; NC, SC and GA. However, I plan to purchase a larger card.
o) I am using Windows XP and the installation of the software and map database was as smooth as silk.
o) Relatively affordable. I paid $580.00 plus S&H.
Cons:
o) Very difficult to read in bright daylight. Sunglasses makes it even more difficult to read. Perhaps some type of sun visor would help.
o) The c320 can get lost and send one around in what will appears to be endless circles. I suspect this is likely to occur only when the c320 is told to avoid highways or to use the shortest distance.
o) Has out-of-the-way, hard to get to, restaurants in the database while not having many of the chain restaurants that are on main routes. This comment is based entirely on one experience in Brevard, NC; in regard to Old Hickory House restaurant.
o) The distances provided to destinations are apparently short in many situations. I have noticed distances that appear to be understated by at least 30 percent.
o) The text listing of the route should provide a sum of the segments as the last entry, i.e., "123 Total Miles".
o) Apparently does not recharge the battery while connected to a 12 volt source.
o) Needs to be mounted on windshield or dash to have view of satellites and for the driver to be able to view the screen while driving. Yet, this places the unit in direct sun and it gets very hot. The screen also produces a good bit of heat. The top of the unit should be a heat shield and insulator rather than just dark plastic. I will probably glue some heavy duty aluminum foil to the top of my unit; perhaps put several small squares of 1/8 inch foam tape on top to serve as standoffs so that the aluminum foil will not touch the plastic. It will not be pretty, but it will provide a basic heat shield.
o) Needs ability to upload personal Points-Of-Interest.
o) A 256 Mb card should have been provided instead of the 128 Mb card. The 256 Mb SD cards are currently selling for around $30.00 (May, 2005). I suspect most of the 128 Mb cards will be dumped. Apparently, in Europe, the c320 does come with a 256 Mb SD card (see http://www.trustedreviews.com/article.aspx?art=1343).
In summary:
The c320 is an amazing piece of technology. It has a fast multitasking operating system with touchscreen interface, sensitive multichannel satellite receiver, extensive graphics, numerous automated functions, extensive functionality including database lookup, good screen resolution, text to speech -- all in a compact package that weighs about a pound and is capable of operating independent of any external power source. When Russia launched Sputnik in 1957, I could have never imagined that I would one day be using satellites to help be navigate around town and across country.
This initial impression of the c320 is based upon a one-day experience with the c320 by a novice operator. Read it in that context. It may contain information that is invalid and misleading. Read other reviews and opinion before drawing any firm conclusions regarding the c320.
Jim
Recommend? YES
65 viewers found this helpful.
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Ray Cuomo
NY
Prior to 2008
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For the money the best product on the market. I purchased a 1GB card and downloaded the whole east coast & Colorado with more than 50% remaining. The map software is very accurate, it routed me to my home within 200 feet. I purposely took different routes and the unit re-routed within 5 seconds. Voice directions are very clear. Screen is sometimes difficult to read in direct sunlight and the software took almost 30 minutes to download the east coast but otherwise I would highly recommend this unit.
Recommend? YES
60 viewers found this helpful.
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Daniel
OK
Prior to 2008
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Great little unit. My only complaints are that you are not able to built routes in the software, hence you can't save routes to the unit either. Really the only reason I'd want to do that is so that I could plan my route avoiding certain highways/cities and planning my stops along the way. But you can save all your stops to your favorites and easily touch the go to on your way and it will quickly calculate for you, just takes a little more attention from the driver/navigator and messes up your arrival time estimates and trip info. It's just seem more convenient and logical to plan all your stops and avoidances on the pc and upload it.
Aside from that, I love the touchscreen, re-routing and map drawing is faster than the quest and 2610. I like the portabililty, you could even take it camping or hiking if you wanted. Very user friendly, voice directions are clear but about the same as 2610 & quest. Routing algorithms seem the same as all garmin gps units, however the quest & 2610 do a better job of estimating arrival time, maybe because the software lets you change driving speeds to your personal habits. The c320 software seems limited but I only played with it briefly.
Overall a good unit.
Recommend? YES
75 viewers found this helpful.
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Chris Mavros
FL
Prior to 2008
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The c320 is very well designed in terms of compactness, mount and ease of use. It works very well but common sense must still be used when navigating because no computer map database is 100% accurate. The most important improvement needed by Garmin, is to make the map labeling more detailed. When observing the moving map without navigation engaged, text labeling of roads, towns, and cities is sparse. (even with the map detail set at the highest setting) You can be driving along with a very nice looking graphical map display but have no idea where you are because no city or town names are ever displayed on the moving map. Even the roads are labeled sparsely. In an emergency, you would not be able to glance at your unit and tell someone on the phone where you were. When you have the navigation active, the moving map becomes even more lacking in detail. Many times the only thing visible on the map is a red line depicting your route and the position of your vehicle. Since Garmin provides the users a means to increase and decrease map detail, it doesn't make sense that they so severely limit the upper range of map text detail. In a previous handheld Garmin GPS unit that I owned, every road & town & city name could be viewed on the moving map. If the map became too cluttered with text, I could always adjust the map detail to a lower level. I am hoping that Garmin will hear from enough customers on this subject and correct this omission with a future software update.
Recommend? YES
67 viewers found this helpful.
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