Apology Not Accepted!

 

Garmin was a day late and a dollar short with their email and apology. The only apology I will accept is a follow up email announcing "Garmin is accepting applications for a Head of Software Engineering, and Chief of Software Quality Control these positions need filling immediately" with an address to send a CV.

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Wow that is a bit harsh. I

Wow that is a bit harsh.

I hope you are not using a single Microsoft product.

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Nuvi 3790LMT, Nuvi 760 Lifetime map, Lifetime NavTraffic, Garmin E-Trex Legend Just because "Everyone" drives badly does not mean you have to.

Not the !st time

I have owned 3 Garmin Products, a 350 that went back twice for failed power switches, a 750 that has been back 3 times not to mention the month it was virtually useless from a bad update. this will be the secondtime I will have to return my 765 for software issues. Yes I have owned Microsoft products for many years and yes I have recieved the occasional buggy update but never got one that bricked my computer

Wow! Talking about bad luck...

.

bad luck ... but....

mourton wrote:

I have owned 3 Garmin Products, a 350 that went back twice for failed power switches, a 750 that has been back 3 times not to mention the month it was virtually useless from a bad update. this will be the secondtime I will have to return my 765 for software issues. Yes I have owned Microsoft products for many years and yes I have recieved the occasional buggy update but never got one that bricked my computer

What happend is a bummer but you must like something about them, you keep buying them.

--
Frank, MA.

Not anymore

Not anymore I won't be buying them, and BTW the reason Garmin changed the power switch on the 750 to a slide switch was b/c they had so many fail on the 350. And do you think Garmin discontinued the 750 after less than a year? They had lots of problems with them is why. I am not the only one that has had this many problems, search this site or GPS Passions and you will find post by many others that have had reliability issues. There is even a recent thread from somebody that is sending their 765 back for the 3rd time.

Microsoft Brick

mourton wrote:

Yes I have owned Microsoft products for many years and yes I have recieved the occasional buggy update but never got one that bricked my computer

I did. MS critical update KB951748, July 8, 2008. Bricked mine and a whole lot of other folks PCs. Took several days to get a fix.

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Tampa, FL - Garmin nüvi 660 (Software Ver 4.90), 2021.20 CN NA NT maps | Magellan Meridian Gold

I agree 100% with Mourton,

I agree 100% with Mourton, we pay a lot for this toys, They supouse the be tested and reliable, the fastest they can go back and forward to Garmin is 7 to 10 bussiness day, i use my 660 and 765T in my work every day, i need them to work all the time.

Apology Not Accepted!

A Bit Harsh? Maahahaaaaa!

onestep wrote:

Wow that is a bit harsh.

I hope you are not using a single Microsoft product.

Your kidding right?
You must like being a beta tester, Garmin is pretty good at pushing their Nuvi products out the door and letting us, be the final testers for them. And people are pretty darned tired of it.

Send the engineering department to the unemployment line where they belong,let them get a little hungry may be they will do a better job writing firmware.

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Using Android Based GPS.The above post and my sig reflects my own opinions, expressed for the purpose of informing or inspiring, not commanding. Naturally, you are free to reject or embrace whatever you read.

Hungry Software Engineer

BobDee wrote:
onestep wrote:

Wow that is a bit harsh.

I hope you are not using a single Microsoft product.

Your kidding right?
You must like being a beta tester, Garmin is pretty good at pushing their Nuvi products out the door and letting us, be the final testers for them. And people are pretty darned tired of it.

Send the engineering department to the unemployment line where they belong,let them get a little hungry may be they will do a better job writing firmware.

That isn't their problem. What they need to do is fire all of their bean-counters. Then start doing pre-release product/software testing. Find the bugs and fix them before the product hits the street. The bean-counters won't allow that to happen, it costs money and they say that it is cheaper to let the customer do the product testing and then fix the problem(s). And you know what, they are right until they wakeup one day and find that people are no longer willing to shell out $400 for the privilege of testing new products.

I'm lucky I guess. I have owned a 750 for over a year now and I have never had a major problem with it. It had v2.3 or v2.4 firmware in it when I bought it and now is running v4.8. Almost all of the updates were to fix problems caused by the last update. A little testing before the release would have eliminated the cost of rolling out 4 or 5 updates.

Jack j

i suggest that each and everyone of you go buy a tom tom

so that we dont have to listen to your complaints anymore. You bought it - live with it or go buy something else

.

I must be one of the lucky one's my 350 has been nothing but flawlessly perfect over the years.

so has the ol 320..

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Garmin nuvi 350 Lifetime Map Updates NT 2018.10

I have a TomTom

Don't like it much.

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*Keith* MacBook Pro *wifi iPad(2012) w/BadElf GPS & iPhone6 + Navigon*

my point - as expressed above - precisely

kch50428 wrote:

Don't like it much.

I hope all the complainers set rid of thier GARMINS and go and get thier Tom Tom's soon ---- so the complaining will stop

Built in

I have had an in dash factory nav system for over three years. Never a problem, never an update needed except I replaced with a new map. Sure it cost more but boy from the problems I am seeing with Garmin units it may be the best bucks I have ever spent. I also have a Garmin for my second car but have had to have it replaced three times. Love my OEM nav system....by the way it is a Lexus system. The next time you buy a car get a nav system and keep a garmin for your second car or to take on trips when you rent a car. You won't be sorry.

--
Bobby....Garmin 2450LM

in dash system

I have an Acura RDX with a nav system and while it is pretty good for simple address entry and navigation it is terrible for searching POIs. I always take my Nuvi 760 as a backup system when I travel

Problem

gadler wrote:

I have an Acura RDX with a nav system and while it is pretty good for simple address entry and navigation it is terrible for searching POIs. I always take my Nuvi 760 as a backup system when I travel

Have you ever had any problems with your Acura Nav system? Had to do any updates? My whole point is why can't these manufacturers of the portable units do it right the first time. Why all the updates, fixes, problems, etc. There have been thirteen updates for my Nuvi 750 I have had for less than one year. Zero for my built in and it works great.

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Bobby....Garmin 2450LM

.

farrissr wrote:

Why all the updates, fixes, problems, etc. There have been thirteen updates for my Nuvi 750 I have had for less than one year. Zero for my built in and it works great.

Garmin is too busy creating and putting out "new" units every 3-6 months to likely concentrate on fixing the old before releasing the new. They seem to employ public beta testing (much more so recently than in the past) and when issues cannot be fully resolved, they proceed to discontinue the units. And these "new" units ALWAYS have some nifty "new feature" added (hence the "new" moniker) and some previous useful feature removed. It's been this way for years since the nuvi line was introduced with the 3xx series.

Maybe this whole 7x5 issue will be a wake-up call for Garmin.

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nuvi 760, nuvi 765T, nuvi 855, nuvi 3790LMT, nuvi 3490LMT - SoCal area

I don't know if this is

I don't know if this is related, but the 7x5 series has been shutting down on its own pretty often after extensive usage.

My unit ended up being one of those that couldn't power on so now it is on its way back to Garmin for service. In the meanwhile, I managed to get my hands on a Tomtom and boy, I agree with Keith and I will take my error-prone Garmin over the working Tomtom any day.

IMHO, it is much better to deal with an non-working unit with Garmin having a fix within days, then a working unit that couldn't get a fix on your location even 20-30 seconds after you made a turn.

jc

ya'll

go easy on em', they have every right to vent. it is frustrating, that said garmins always done me alright. and microshaft has bricked two of my computers with vista. one i actually had to install the hotfix on another comp, then pull the harddrive of the bricked one and put it in an externall reader, then reformat and reinstall the whole os on it with the hotfix.

vent away.....

Finally Home

I wanted to elaborate on the circumstances that led to my anger I made the original post from my iPhone and was limited by frustration and impatience.
I was on my way to the airport for a Confrence/ weekend with my wife in Vancouver when my 765 bricked. I will not go into the details of delayed flights, missed connections, and lost bags that followed. But I did have to rent a car with GPS and since I was in Canada I did not have the time to send my unit back until tomorrow and on Monday 7/6 my Family is leaving for a week of car camping with a Saturday stop at my Moms to shift luggage for a month in New Zealand (I have already paid for NZ maps) leaving on Sunday. What are the Odds Garmin will have a working unit in my hands with the holiday weekend coming up? Not likely!
Also I want to give a measure of defense to Microsoft (pause as I throw up a little in my mouth) an OS for a PC has on the magnitude of millions far more complexity and lines of code than Garmin does on their OS or updates so they should get it right more often and have less of an excuse.

Fix it yourself

Get a Torx #4 or #5 tip screwdriver, whichever fits... take the two screws out of the case, then pop the back off - the battery will be stuck to the back... follow the wiring to where the battery connects to the rest of the unit; disconnect it - wait 30 sec - reconnect it... it should power up - then plug it into a computer, and update firmware - then put the screws back in. Took me less than 15 minutes to fix mine.

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*Keith* MacBook Pro *wifi iPad(2012) w/BadElf GPS & iPhone6 + Navigon*

I have been thinking about it

I have been thinking about it but since the unit is only 8 months old and with it's habit of malfunctioning I am not sure of the economics of invalidating my warranty when the next issue comes up.

I have a 750,

... and for the most part works fine. The one thing I'm not happy about (and I'm not sure if it is supposed to work like this) is the altitude reading is extremely variable. While sitting still each screen update can change up to a couple of feet. Typically, it keeps creeping upward for maybe fifteen to twenty feet, then starts falling again.

Warranty

mine 785t is 2 months old when it when dead on my last day of my road trip. I don't see any marker or sticker to invalidate your warranty. I open mine and fix it. Is a software issue not hardware that cause the nuvi 7xseries to shut off completely. The decision is your if your willing to wait for 10 to 14 days business after Garmin received your unit. Plus, you have to ask garmin for free shipping to them.

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Val - Nuvi 785t and Streetpilot C340

RE: I have a 750,

ajf1958 wrote:

... and for the most part works fine. The one thing I'm not happy about (and I'm not sure if it is supposed to work like this) is the altitude reading is extremely variable. While sitting still each screen update can change up to a couple of feet. Typically, it keeps creeping upward for maybe fifteen to twenty feet, then starts falling again.

Don't expect a lot on altitude accuracy. I have put my 2620, and 2-750s on the dash side by side (and the position doesn't matter) in the car, just sitting in my driveway and never have the 3 unit's agreed or even come close. They differ by anywhere by 50 to 150 feet when reporting altitude. What I find personally interesting is that...

The 2620 is very old and from the day I got it at has always reported the altitude at my home to be 278 feet and pretty repetitive. I've never seen it differ by more than 10-15 feet.

Of the 2-750's, one has the Sirf chipset and the other has the newer M chipset. Neither of these units ever agree with each other and they drift all over the place. The are always at least 50-150 higher (sometimes several hundered) feer higher than the 2620. It doesn't matter how long I sit and wait, the 750's never stabilize in altitude all they report similar GPS accuracies. I've even tried them with external antennas and performance is about the same.

What does all this proove? I have no idea, I do believe the Nuvi has made some compromises in having a more sensitive chipset which makes it more susceptable to errors due to weak signal reception (ie reflections, and interfence). Another thing that make me believe that is when I look at various Nuvi track logs in mapsource relative to the roads on the maps. Is shure is a good thing the units use road lock because come of those track logs are very eratic.

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Frank, MA.

fix it yourself, and if it

fix it yourself, and if it invalidates your warrenty and causes an issue later, rip some arse.

they know its their fault, really they should have put the fix in their email....with a screw up this huge....warrenty valid or not.

by the way, the fix is cake, do it and move on.

Garmin

My personal opinion about Garmin is they spread themselves too thin by cranking out so many models. Instead of making a half dozen models and doing it well they crank out model after model then, it seems like, obsolete them after six or eight months. I don't think this gives them time to get all of the bugs out before they are moving on to a newer model.

--
Anytime you have a 50-50 chance of getting something right, there's a 90% probability you'll get it wrong.

Bummer

Sorry to hear of the problems. They are usually fairly good, though, I have to admit, the updates often cause new problems that did not exist before...

Tom Tom

IAHMALE wrote:

so that we dont have to listen to your complaints anymore. You bought it - live with it or go buy something else

I had a Tom Tom. It told me to go west along the Trans Canada to get to New Brunswick. New Brunswick is east. Thanks, but I want to get to my destination, not go away from it.

--
Jesus died for your sins. If you don't sin, Jesus died for nothing.

Business Model

Don B wrote:

My personal opinion about Garmin is they spread themselves too thin by cranking out so many models. Instead of making a half dozen models and doing it well they crank out model after model then, it seems like, obsolete them after six or eight months. I don't think this gives them time to get all of the bugs out before they are moving on to a newer model.

I agree with you but that's their business model. Its all about marketing and the bottom line.

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Tampa, FL - Garmin nüvi 660 (Software Ver 4.90), 2021.20 CN NA NT maps | Magellan Meridian Gold

Is this different from other companies?

Is this any different from any other company? I have bought have backed crap from all major companies.

Sorry To Hear The News

I have had 3 Garmin products for the past 2 years and all work flawlessly. The only issues I have ever had are with the dash suction cups which Garmin has replaced for free several times.

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RKF (Brookeville, MD) Garmin Nuvi 660, 360 & Street Pilot

Sorry To Hear The News-Part 2

I also had an issue with one of the FM Traffic/Power cords, again which Garmin
promptly replaced for free.

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RKF (Brookeville, MD) Garmin Nuvi 660, 360 & Street Pilot

In car nav. next car

When I get a new car, it will have in-dash nav. system. I don't need a map update every year and they seem to be less bugs in the software from what I could tell.

I'm not even updaing my 750 because its working now and don't want to mess it up, said to say.

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Nuvi 50LM Nuvi 2555LM

Just wondering, how do you

Just wondering, how do you not need updates?

I too have had 2 garmin devices and loved them. no issues, but then again, I buy low end.

Do updates, just not now

cmgibson wrote:

Just wondering, how do you not need updates?

I too have had 2 garmin devices and loved them. no issues, but then again, I buy low end.

I have been updating my 750 but lately with all the problems, I'm just holding off until there's a update that effects me. So many updates don't apply to my needs or wants.

My 750 is working just fine for my needs.

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Nuvi 50LM Nuvi 2555LM

Garmin doen't just do GPS

I've been reading the comments with some interest. Seems like the GPS (7XX series anyway) are having problems. You will undoubtedly be pleased to hear that the GPS is probably not Garmin's main line - I think it is avionics and fish finders (go figure). Check the next commercial plane you are on and I'll bet it has some garmin product! (Ouch?)
My son is a software architect and he tells me that it is industry practice to get the code out there even if there are some errors as the power users will discover the errors faster than all their testing (forest and trees).
Part of our problem is we are the power users of the Garmin GPS. Our passion for the GPS is, in some cases, our own downfall. My two cents worth anyway!

--
Tom

I did the fix

So Far, So Good!

Great!

mourton wrote:

So Far, So Good!

Finally took mine for a real run since the fix... Got into an area where the traffic receiver actually got some data - and saw how that ad-supported traffic thing works. Not obtrusive at all.

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*Keith* MacBook Pro *wifi iPad(2012) w/BadElf GPS & iPhone6 + Navigon*

I agree

When I was working in IT, I told my boss the program have still bug that I found out but the program is running ok. He told me to not worry about because once the client find it. They will pay to have it fix. He told me to get it to production(my protest was noted). Yikes

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Val - Nuvi 785t and Streetpilot C340

wow!

gwapaval wrote:

When I was working in IT, I told my boss the program have still bug that I found out but the program is running ok. He told me to not worry about because once the client find it. They will pay to have it fix. He told me to get it to production(my protest was noted). Yikes

wow!

looks like we're all gonna have to learn to read maps again, oh well....suite me.

Product Testing and Customer Support

birchtree wrote:

My son is a software architect and he tells me that it is industry practice to get the code out there even if there are some errors as the power users will discover the errors faster than all their testing (forest and trees).
Part of our problem is we are the power users of the Garmin GPS.

My theory is that IT staff CANNOT screw up an applicaiton or electronic product like the common user. Fifty developers at Garmin would not have time to try the things that 1000 end users would do with their GPS unit the first day they got it!

I do not fault Garmin for sending a product out with bugs in it. BUT, companies selling electronic gizmos should improve their customer service side, so that when the end user encounters a problem with their GPS, dealing with the company is not an additional frustration. And I think that is where a lot of people have encountered problems with Garmin.confused

Not acceptable

DanielT wrote:
birchtree wrote:

My son is a software architect and he tells me that it is industry practice to get the code out there even if there are some errors as the power users will discover the errors faster than all their testing (forest and trees).
Part of our problem is we are the power users of the Garmin GPS.

My theory is that IT staff CANNOT screw up an application or electronic product like the common user. Fifty developers at Garmin would not have time to try the things that 1000 end users would do with their GPS unit the first day they got it!

I do not fault Garmin for sending a product out with bugs in it. BUT, companies selling electronic gizmos should improve their customer service side, so that when the end user encounters a problem with their GPS, dealing with the company is not an additional frustration. And I think that is where a lot of people have encountered problems with Garmin.confused

Sorry but I totally disagree with you...I have had a Lexus in dash nav system for over three years and have never had a problem or had to update it because of bugs running around in it!!!! The only thing that has been updated is the map which I did myself and took less than 2 minutes. I have a Garmin 750 which I like very much but quality wise doesn't even come close to the built in unit. There have been 13 updates to the 750 for bugs and fixes.....go figure....Putting out inferior products for the consumer to identify poor quality is totally unacceptable.

--
Bobby....Garmin 2450LM

Defective software

farrissr wrote:
DanielT wrote:
birchtree wrote:

My son is a software architect and he tells me that it is industry practice to get the code out there even if there are some errors as the power users will discover the errors faster than all their testing (forest and trees).
Part of our problem is we are the power users of the Garmin GPS.

My theory is that IT staff CANNOT screw up an application or electronic product like the common user. Fifty developers at Garmin would not have time to try the things that 1000 end users would do with their GPS unit the first day they got it!

I do not fault Garmin for sending a product out with bugs in it. BUT, companies selling electronic gizmos should improve their customer service side, so that when the end user encounters a problem with their GPS, dealing with the company is not an additional frustration. And I think that is where a lot of people have encountered problems with Garmin.confused

Sorry but I totally disagree with you...I have had a Lexus in dash nav system for over three years and have never had a problem or had to update it because of bugs running around in it!!!! The only thing that has been updated is the map which I did myself and took less than 2 minutes. I have a Garmin 750 which I like very much but quality wise doesn't even come close to the built in unit. There have been 13 updates to the 750 for bugs and fixes.....go figure....Putting out inferior products for the consumer to identify poor quality is totally unacceptable.

You are right Bob, there is no excuse for releasing a poor product. GM and Chrysler have been building inferior products for decades and look how successful they have been of late. Garmin now is at the top of the pack but they won't stay there by letting their customers do the product development. If you P.O. enough of your customers for long enough, you end up wondering where your customers went. Bean-counters have ruined more successful corporations than almost anything else.

Jack j

But your Lexus is a closed system

farrissr wrote:

Sorry but I totally disagree with you...I have had a Lexus in dash nav system for over three years and have never had a problem or had to update it because of bugs running around in it!!!! The only thing that has been updated is the map which I did myself and took less than 2 minutes. I have a Garmin 750 which I like very much but quality wise doesn't even come close to the built in unit. There have been 13 updates to the 750 for bugs and fixes.....go figure....Putting out inferior products for the consumer to identify poor quality is totally unacceptable.

But your in-dash system is a closed system. You can do no modifications to it, change operating parameters or a great many other things you can do with a portable. Now if you think the system in your Lexus is so great, why did you buy a Garmin and not just another Lexus unit?

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ɐ‾nsǝɹ Just one click away from the end of the Internet

Inferior Products

a_user wrote:
farrissr wrote:

Sorry but I totally disagree with you...I have had a Lexus in dash nav system for over three years and have never had a problem or had to update it because of bugs running around in it!!!! The only thing that has been updated is the map which I did myself and took less than 2 minutes. I have a Garmin 750 which I like very much but quality wise doesn't even come close to the built in unit. There have been 13 updates to the 750 for bugs and fixes.....go figure....Putting out inferior products for the consumer to identify poor quality is totally unacceptable.

But your in-dash system is a closed system. You can do no modifications to it, change operating parameters or a great many other things you can do with a portable. Now if you think the system in your Lexus is so great, why did you buy a Garmin and not just another Lexus unit?

Your statements have no correlation with Garmin putting out inferior products. The Lexus system had many of the features 3 years ago that garmin is just getting and still does not have. Sorry Smileys no comparison...If Lexus made a portable unit you can bet I would buy one in a minute..I am not knocking the portable units as I have a 750 I use in my second car and when I rent cars on vacation. My problem is why Garmin or the other portable manufacturers cannot get it right the first time or let's give them a second chance and do one update to correct any minor issues. My goodness look at the posts on this website and all the problems people are having....I had to send back 2 750's before I got one that worked right...bad batteries was main problem as it seems they are skimping and not using quality batteries.

--
Bobby....Garmin 2450LM

WHAT???

a_user wrote:

But your in-dash system is a closed system. You can do no modifications to it, change operating parameters or a great many other things you can do with a portable. Now if you think the system in your Lexus is so great, why did you buy a Garmin and not just another Lexus unit?

And you think the Garmin units aren't closed systems?? Please tell me what changes to the operating sytem you can make to a Nuvi. I'd love to hear it.

And FYI - adding POI files or modifying a voice file doesn't constitute makings changes to the operating system. Those things don't affect the underlying coding.

Right On

GadgetGuy2008 wrote:
a_user wrote:

But your in-dash system is a closed system. You can do no modifications to it, change operating parameters or a great many other things you can do with a portable. Now if you think the system in your Lexus is so great, why did you buy a Garmin and not just another Lexus unit?

And you think the Garmin units aren't closed systems?? Please tell me what changes to the operating sytem you can make to a Nuvi. I'd love to hear it.

And FYI - adding POI files or modifying a voice file doesn't constitute makings changes to the operating system. Those things don't affect the underlying coding.

Amen!!!!
Besides it works perfectly...why would I want to modify anything.....

--
Bobby....Garmin 2450LM

Apolgy not...

I see some are drinking the Kool Aid and thinking Garmin can do not wrong.

What I see is a company in so much of a hurry to get new products out on the market (and why so many?), they are willing to let their customers be their Beta testers.

I believe that at some point this marketing ploy bites them on the behind, and they lose a significant market share, never to regain it again.

This reminds me of a great Ponzi scheme. And we all know how that ends.

--
If you ain't got pictures, I wasn't there.

Where did you get the map update for your Lexis in-dash gps?

I thought that the only source for the Lexis map update DVD was the dealer who also installed it and charged hundreds. I would be very happy to find a non-dealer outlet to purchase a map update for a Lexis unit.

--
jpo
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