Nuvi 765 locked up with black screen

I, too, am very curious about the cause of the problem. They guy I talked to at Garmin (after a 45 minute wait!!!) said that they do not download software over satellites, but could not explain how all the units went bonkers at the same time. It sure sounds to me like a software Trojan horse that was planted when the software was designed. If this is the case, what guarantee will we users have that this won't happen again?

It is nice to be loyal but not stupid, there has to be drawn a line what is acceptable and what is not!!!

If GARMIN is truly commited to the customers, they should compensate all 7x5 owners for inconvenience.

Those updates CAN NOT be considered as compensation. IT is only GARMIN'S DUTY to fix their own screw ups !!!

I think it was ploy by garmin to have the unit go blank all on the Between June 22-23. My 785t hang up twice on June 22. I just reboot it. Then June 23 morning, I was planning my route then it will complete blank. FREE CD MAP upgrade! I say!

yeah,im curious as well, it had to have come thru the msn antannae or traffic antannaes, or something to the effect, wonder what it was.

as far as the obsered wait time, garmin always seems to try to do well, but, i dont know about you guys....but when i have work to do, i cant go home tell its done.

sounds like they need to stay and pull 24 hr. shifts tell these units are fixed and on the first thing smokin' back to their owners.

This update fixed my unit. I agree with another post that Garmin has lost attention to quality. Their software is more and more like early Microsoft Windows (which has been stable for quite some time).
Jen

I shipped mine back after getting the email from Garmin (and before hearing about he - open the unit and unplug the battery fix). They just got it today. I had called them Friday and they agreed to get it sent back to me quickly with 2 day shipping. So hopefully I'll have mine back sometime this week.

My 765T allowed the upgrade ok on Friday. Yesterday it went into a loop when booting. It would get the horizonal bar after loading maps then reset. The only thing that would work was the "press the corner while turning on" reset. Now things are better. This was running 3.6 with 2010.10 maps.

My 755T also shut off and refused to power up. I simploy removed the cover and unplugged the wires connected to the battery for about a minute. It powered right up (had the WebUpdater already started on the PC) and connected the USB cable. It launched right into the new update which fixes the problem. It took me 2 minutes to open, disconnect, and close the unit. Just use the right Torqx 5 screw driver so you don't strip the screws.

My first foray into the fix, I had a torx-5... smallest one of the set I had just purchased... it didn't work. Got a set that had a torx-4 - that worked on mine.

Suffice it to say - size may vary between various models - or even within the same model #... so if you have to find a Torx set - get one that has a 4 & 5...

I don't think it would be possible for this problem to come through the antenna or "over the air" in any way. It seems to me that it has to be a software error that was triggered by date/time or some other combination of events. As I recall, Garmin had a significant layoff of long term employees a few months ago. I wonder if this failure might be sabotage, some type of software bomb that has been sitting there waiting to be triggered.

Agreed. In no way does Garmin transfer this kind of data wirelessly (either via GTM 20 or GDB 50) to the unit.

As alanb stated, it's likely rather a bug within the firmware code, likely triggered by a bug in the MediaTek GPS Chipset itself:

Sabotage by recently laid off & disgruntled long-time Garmin employees also cannot be ruled out either but the bug mentioned in the quote above seems more likely...

Garmin has provided an update for the 7_5 series.

Sometimes we just have to relax by taking a chill pill.
I commend Garmin for acting so fast to correct this major messup, that many are speculating on what caused it; Be careful, because it would not be long before someone suggests little green men from mars, or the Chinese, or the Iraquis, or God forbid the mother in law, she is always a good bet right guys?
Concerning compensation, do you ask to trade your spouse because he or she did not put the mayonnaise on your sandwich before putting it in your lunchbox?
Do you ask for new tires for your 2 month old car if the wipers stopped working during the worst snow storm you ever encountered?
We should all be thankful that they acted so fast to get the units back and running again.
We know that with technology (The main reason we buy these new toys so often) comes a greater chance that more things will go wrong more often, because there are more things TO go wrong.

I purchased a Palm Treo smart phone 2 yrs. ago and was not happy that there was no insurance available past the 90 day warranty, and when it finally died 2 yrs. later, I purchased an I Phone, and again, no insurance against it quitting past the manufacturer's warranty, but we still buy them, because we love toys and technology.

Suck it up and enter the reality of life...

good points....

and regardless the cause, i do say they have always done well by me, and did well here....
i also still say, they better kick it in the rear and go 24/7 to keep fixing their mistakes....

Just performed the self fix ... much easier than I feared. I was concerned about possibility of snapping off sometype of plastic "clips" while removing the cover - no problem at all!

I needed a torx-5 for my 765

One additional note for everyone ... prior to attempting the self fix, I had done the online Garmin reporting and got the RMA info sent to me. I replied with a complaint about having to pay the shipping myself and they did reply with a UPS call tag. Another case of if your nice, Garmin will step up.

It's been one week, using the Garmin every day, and it is still working fine after the battery fix.

Mine did the same thing. However, about a week before it suddenly had problems, I got an email from Garmnin about a "mandatory update" I needed to load immediately on my Nuvi 755. I of course ignored the email, then suddenly a week later, the Nuvi started losing the satelite and locking up.
So I went to the webupdater, and it would not recognize my 755, it said "not compatible"....
A call to Garmin revealed I had to do a master reset, then it would take the update. after multiple tries, I did get it to reset, then to take the update....Viola'! it now works perfectly again!

So...what happened? I'm guessing it has a problem with processor update times vs. the "hotfix" software feature....it feels like it stumbles over itself code-wise then just gets brain-freeze.

Update 07/03/2009

I got my nuvi 765t back today and it looked like my existing unit was repaired and it also had the mandatory update for the 3.6 version of the firmware on it. I was rather pleasantly surprised since I had previously been told I wouldn't get it until late July at the earliest. I'll see how it works tomorrow and over the next week since I'm taking a day trip Saturday and a longer trip later this week. First indications lead me to believe the unit it working properly. It was also a good sign that it powered up after I powered it off a few minutes ago.

Apperently Amazon is aware of the problem. I just recieved this email (7/3/09)

makes me even more confident in making future purchases from Amazon.

had I not been a member here at poi-factory, and checked in every day, and was an infrequent user of my 765T, I may not have known about the issue, and would have bricked mine at some point, perhaps while on a trip into totally unfamiliar territory.

well done Amazon!

Don't say I didn't warn you all early on, I told you, Garmin was making Junk and we were nothing more than Beta Testers for them.

This is going to cost Garmin Big, And I am glad to see it, it has been a long time in coming. Maybe just maybe Garmin can get back to making a quality products like the did but stopped when they rolled out the nuvi line and now zumo's.

And to those that didn't flame me, I feel for you. Because you just met Dr. Garmin, and he doesn't even use Vaseline. I hope Garmin truly has the firmware problems worked out (i doubt it) for your exchanged units..

This problem was there for long time. My previous two 765 units died in similar fashion. When it died third time on Jun 23, 2009 then I learnt that this it is not just me alone. I was experiencing this problem from late January I believe.

I just got my unit back from Garmin of course it got delivered the day after I left for a 1k road trip but oh well. They told me I would be getting a brand new unit but I received the same unit back with the 3.60 update.

What else did you expect from GARMIN? ...but don't worry. You will not be the only one.
Mine left me 2000 miles from my home, better get used for GARMIN'S tactics,...and take old good maps with you or...get yourself more reliable GPS. Don't forget:

GARMIN USED TO BE THE #1 ON MARKET, BUT NOT ANYMORE!!!

They are quickly loosing good reputation due to the poor quality control and inadequate testing of their latest products.

I spoke with Garmin when my 765 locked up. They tried to be very helpful, gave me a return RMA right away and apologized to me for for the inconvenience.
Stuff happens. This is my 3rd Garmin device and they have always given me great service and the best products. With the down turn in the market, it is not likely Garmin needs a write off for what this will cost them. I feel sorry for them. Maybe I'll buy an extra case or something.

We will see how this all works out, but so far, Garmin gets an A for effort.

That was funny.

It's not funny but naked truth, otherwise GARMIN would compensate all incovencied 7x5 owners! It is arogance and empty apology as allways.

Garmin has always had good customer service. When my 755T bricked, they provided me an RMA and a UPS call tag (yes, they paid for the shipping because I asked nicely rather than calling up and bitching at the helpless call center people who had nothing to do with the failure). They received my unit on the 1st of July and I had the same one back in my hands on the 7th.

I put a trouble ticket in on Wednesday for an existing problem that I have had with my GTM traffic receiver (delay doesn't calculate up, only down). They called me that evening, the entry level tech couldn't assist and said someone would call within the week. I received a call the next morning from software support; they are sending me a new GTM 20 and have already sent me a new code for my ClearChannel lifetime (yes...I have both).

They have always emailed back within a day of my trouble tickets even before this recent fiasco.

As you say, and others before you, stuff happens. These things are getting more and more complicated and something is bound to get messed up at some point. If someone isn't happy with Garmin, by all means try something else and see how happy you are. I have used Magellan and TomTom units (not mine) and prefer Garmin by a large margin. I for one, will continue to buy Garmin products.

Well they sent me a 10% off coupon for a Garmin Accessory. Not that I need to buy anything right now, though, so it does me no good.

This has got to be a debacle for Garmin. It kill reputation & you remember what happened to the American Car Industry when they did that.

Somewhere in the bowels of Garmin is a guy who can't write software, too.

Not a funny thing. Think I'll stick to my Nuvi 350 for awhile.

Fred

It reminds me of a resent news story that I heard about Amazon. Apparently they deleted books that were bought from peoples' Kindles without their permission. We don't realize the outside controls that some of the companies retain on our electronics.

The irony of it is, the books deleted were by the author of 1984. Big Brother strikes again.

As understood it the digital editions that were supplied to Amazon were from a publisher that lacked publishing rights to the manuscripts.

Mine did the updating, updating, updating, thing once more when I got it back. I plugged it up to the PC and ran webupdater and haven't seen the message since, so maybe it's fixed.

I have owned a StreetPilot III, a 680, and now a 765T. I have taken 2 trips of over 1000 miles using the 765T. Boy does it bug me. In normal (track up or north up) views, when on the open road, virtually no cities show. I wanted to see about how far the next few towns were to decide where to stop for the night. If I go to drag mode (touch the screen somewhere and it redraws) the towns show up. Otherwise they are not there. When I am passing through or near a town, I see the streets, but cannot see what town I am in. I do not recall this issue with the 680. Similarly, detail is only shown for under 1/2 or 1/3 mile scale... hardly enough map to see where you are.

This is driving me crazy. Also, when near a large city (like NYC or Philadelphia), the 765 might take a minute or more to fully refresh the screen. The center where I am is drawn, but very little else. Very frustrating. Also, most of the route numbers are not drawn, making it impossible to see if there is a better route.

It also does not seem to want to take the 'fastest' route. Last night it routed me off the interstate, onto a state highway that passed through 17 towns... count them 17. This was to save about 15 miles by taking the interstate. Since I couldn't see any towns on the map when I dutifully exited the freeway, I had no idea that I was turning a 30 minute trip into nearly 2 hours... stopping at least once in each town and hitting terrible traffic in several of them.

Another thing is the 765 seems to be very inconsistent when selecting a waypoint. Sometimes it shows the little pop-out showing distance and time info, other times it simply jumps to the screen that asks if I want to add it as a waypoint. Sometimes I just want to see how far away it is.

I have always been a Garmin fan, but now I think that there must be better units out there from other brands. This new series is really bad.

Has anyone else run into this and am I missing some settings? I have the maps set to highest detail. I am ready to toss it. I have had it nearly 2 months, but purchased it at Sam's Club, so I may be able to get my money back.

Any suggestions from anyone?

-Herschel

This is the current Garmin trend...strip away as much useful map detail as possible. The new 1xxx series units are even worse than your 765 as far as map detail goes.

See the topic with user reviews here:
http://www.gpspassion.com/forumsen/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=123610...

Screen shots beginning here posted by Don:
http://www.gpspassion.com/forumsen/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=123610...

The screen shots posted by myself (SergZak) in that topic beginning here show the detail that is lost by going from the nuvi 760 to the 765. You can compare these to the shots posted by Don above to see how much worse the 1xxx series is in comparison to the 7x0/7x5 series as they are of the exact same area.
http://www.gpspassion.com/forumsen/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=123610...

Also, see the 760 vs 765 comparison screenshots I posted a while back here:
http://forums.gpsreview.net/viewtopic.php?t=10472#67403

with more here:
http://forums.gpsreview.net/viewtopic.php?t=10472#67446

Thats interesting, I guess someone would never notice it unless they compared it to the other unit!