Is Magellan better than Garmin?

It's a matter of what you are used to. I used to be an apple owner, when I changed to pc there was a learning curve and now I'm lost on my son's Mac...

Each, TomTom, Garmin and Magellan, have there own points and you can point to one brand and say this is a better feature but in the end it's really just your preference...

At least my view..

I concur - each has its advantages and disadvantages. I had a Tom Tom briefly but just did not like it and returned it for a Garmin which I have kept for close on 6 months now and am not considering changing.

My suggestions is play with them at the store, ask questions of the sales staff and read the posts here on POI Factory. I am sure you will find a unit that ticks all the right boxes for you.

Happy reading!

What's to be accomplished by this? Except possibly starting a flame war?

I like my Magellan just fine, thank you.

I have had both, one really is not better than another. If you get in the rut of one style you will stay in the rut. Very similar to word processors the one you learn you generally stay with.

When I was a smoker I was not brand loyal, and right now don't use either of the above regularly, and not going to be brand loyal to GPSr's either. I own several of different makes now, and use what I feel like takeing with me at the moment.

If you ask a Magellan user he will say, he likes his because of ease of use.

So don't get stuck in a Rut, Each company that makes GPSr's has their own features.

Bob

I've used both and had great results. However, from side by side comparison i found that the Garmin would reroute much faster that the Magellan. I mounted both on my windshield put in the same destination and then purposely made wrong turns. The Garmin had a new route twice as quick as the Magellan every time. I kept the Garmin

I like some of the features on the Magellan, and the voices are better, but the Nuvi quickly pulls out in front when it comes to being compact and user-friendly.

I dunno, the bargain-priced Nuvis are the ones to beat, IMO.

I've own several Garmins and 1 Magellan. My first GPS was the Garmin Streetmap (the monochrome version), the StreetPilot Colormap, and then the Magellen RoadMate 500 plus, and now the Nuvi 760.

The reason I chose the Nuvi this time aroung is because in one year after I bought the Roadmate, Magellen stopped offering map updates for that model. Tech support was terrible, it was outsourced to overseas. Other then way over the top politeness, tech support offered no substantive help or inforamtion. I was particularly miffed that I was never told that there will be no further map update offered. Instead, it was always "you'll be notified when it's available."

There has been a bit of debating about the ease of use of one brand over the other, but I found that after a while of getting use to one model, it really is a moot point. I found both brands to be about the same in accuracy, and each offers different perks. I just chose not to patronize a company that conduct itself like Magellan.

I have moved this thread to the open talk area. While it is ok to discuss the differences in brands and what you like about your favorite it might be seen as confrontational to go into a brand specific forum and declare your love and devotion to the opposite brand.

Let's make sure that respect is shown to all manufacturers out there, they all provide interesting technology that we all love to play with.

Miss POI

Without knowing what models you are referring to. Although I have never owned a Magellan, I have owned several different Garmins, the StreetPilot 550 and nuvi 760 both run circles around my old StreetPilot3 and the StreetPilot3 was better than my EMap.

You may be comparing old technology with new...

I have used a couple of different Magellan's I do not remember which ones. I like most of the software and user interface on the Magellan best when compared to the Garmin. What is most important to me is the way the GPS works under everyday situations. I drive in the San Francisco Bay Area for work so I use the GPS several times a day. The Garmin consistently reacts to my driving habits, ie missed turns, more quickly than did any of the Magellans. I use a Garvin Nuvi 760 but I recently purchased a Magellan for my 75 year old mother because it was easier for her to use. Quick reroute was not needed. Which product is best is determined on need. Thats easy.

My first was a Magellan Roadmate 300. I could not get updated maps. I have a Garmin handheld legend
you have to program it thru a computer with a serial
port. I have a Garmin Nuvi 350 works well I have updated the maps. Loaded POI like that you can save favorites to the screen which is handy for points
to see where you are.

Mark

If you bought your Mother a Magellan with SiRF chips in it, the reroute is just as fast. you can tell right away that it uses the SiRFstarIII chipset, once you notice quick satellite lock, fast re-routes and and lower power requirements giving better battery life and thats without looking at the manual, your 760 uses this technology also. Do a google search for your Mothers unit since you didn't say what it is, and see what receiver it has.

Bob

Is Honda better than Toyota?
Or as most say here in Michigan, Is Ford better than Chevy?

That about explains it.

Couldn't agree more...

I think it depends a lot on which one you got first; my best friend got a Magellan first and he swears by them. I went Garmin and I think they're great.

Really, both have come far enough that features and price should end up being the first concern.

Love it. Can't go wrong with a Garmin.

Garmin-Nuvi

I didn't know they made others

I wonder what the worst brand is I would like to buy one & give my mother in-law one for Christmas & send her on a nice looooong trip

I've owned two different Garmins and they both performed wonderfully.

But before I purchased my newest unit I saw an article in a leading consumer report magazine (LOL - not sure if I can quote the name here!) which compared similar GPSr from different manufacturers. Their results indicated the different units are pretty comparable.

I am also new to this. I called Garmin with some questions and another issue and I have to say its been quite a while since I have had such helpfull tech. support. Made sure the issue was taken care of before we finished our conversation. The lady was very nice. Thats worth a lot.

My first GPS unit was Garmin and maybe that's why I prefer Garmin. Just my $0.02

Last year when I was researching for the purchase of my 1st GPSr I ran across this site. I searched the forums for "Customer Support" for Garmin, Magellan, and Tom Tom. Most of us tech/gadget addicts know most companies after purchase support last until the light of your tail lights fade from sight. I figured seeing what the owners had to say was a good gauge and I ended up with a Garmin and have not been dissappointed with either the unit or the customer service.

Which is better Ford or Chevy, Toyota or Honda, etc....

I went to stores and thoroughly tested all the brands of gps's. I personally preferred the Garmin to the others I tested. I am not saying the others are not good, I am saying I liked the way the Garmin worked over the others. I bought a Garmin 750 and could not be any happier. I think a person needs to shop wisely and buy the one they feel best suits their needs and not by what people tell them...

I'm sure they are both good but there IS a difference between the two companies. If you have a problem with a Garmin you will get excellent customer service. If you have trouble with a Magellan you will end up wanting to scream and kill because of the horrid customer service.

When I started geocaching in August 2005 the folks in those forums were pretty much 50/50 split between Garmin and Magellan. At a recent gathering of around 3,000 geocachers there was a bingo type of game where you had to find folks with more than 1,000 finds, folks who had geocached in all 50 states, etc. One of the hardest spots to fill was finding someone who used a Magellan GPS.........

I own (3) Garmin products Forerunner 201, Forerunner 205 and Nuvi 255W. In all fairness, I've only worked with one Magellan, but I do have to say that all three of my Garmins have been excellent products.
But to add to that, let me say that Garmin's tech support for all these products has been excellent. Without good tech support the 201 & 205 could have have been obsolete for me, but instead, I wouldn't trade them for any other similar unit. And even though I've only had the 255W for a couple of months, I've worked with tech support on this model as well & again they've been responsive & helpful.
I'm sure Magellan has some great units with similar features & perhaps similar quality as well, but I'll remain loyal to Garmin partially because of their excellent tech support.