New Garmins are glass - careful

 

I had my new Nuvi 3760t all loaded up with POIs and routes and it slipped out of my hand less than half-way through my 6,000 mile road trip. The glass is not recessed or has any protection to it, and it fell, apparantly, glass-side down.

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i138/Carey934/0c817791.jpg

Contacting Garmin support to find out how much repair is. To buy a new one will cost me $260, plus the cost of lifetime maps, which I would lose if Garmin won't repair it, since its not a warranty issue. I think I like my other Nuvi's better now, knowing that they don't have glass fronts that can do this from a short fall to the pavement below.

It still works, but I'm afraid I'm going to get a glass shard in my finger tip if I keep using it. It got me all the home and worked great, it just doesn't look pretty...

Something to keep in mind if you buy one of these models.

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Alternate Repair facility

Carey934 wrote:

I had my new Nuvi 3760t all loaded up with POIs and routes and it slipped out of my hand less than half-way through my 6,000 mile road trip. The glass is not recessed or has any protection to it, and it fell, apparantly, glass-side down.

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i138/Carey934/0c817791.jpg

Contacting Garmin support to find out how much repair is. To buy a new one will cost me $260, plus the cost of lifetime maps, which I would lose if Garmin won't repair it, since its not a warranty issue. I think I like my other Nuvi's better now, knowing that they don't have glass fronts that can do this from a short fall to the pavement below.

It still works, but I'm afraid I'm going to get a glass shard in my finger tip if I keep using it. It got me all the home and worked great, it just doesn't look pretty...

Something to keep in mind if you buy one of these models.

You might want to check with these folks and see if it can be repaired cheaper then Garmin.
http://www.sharc.net/gps_repair.htm

--
-Garmin Nuvi 760 & 765T-

Did you try

Carey934 wrote:

I had my new Nuvi 3760t all loaded up with POIs and routes and it slipped out of my hand less than half-way through my 6,000 mile road trip. The glass is not recessed or has any protection to it, and it fell, apparantly, glass-side down.

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i138/Carey934/0c817791.jpg

Contacting Garmin support to find out how much repair is. To buy a new one will cost me $260, plus the cost of lifetime maps, which I would lose if Garmin won't repair it, since its not a warranty issue. I think I like my other Nuvi's better now, knowing that they don't have glass fronts that can do this from a short fall to the pavement below.

It still works, but I'm afraid I'm going to get a glass shard in my finger tip if I keep using it. It got me all the home and worked great, it just doesn't look pretty...

Something to keep in mind if you buy one of these models.

Did you try Garmin, ask them to consider it under warranty. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Nuvi Glass Screen

OUCH !

The repair cost is crazy !

Go to Costco and get a brand new 3790LMT for $300 whicle they are on sale.

Just a thought

Would screen protectors be a good idea to keep the screens from shattering?

--
1490LMT 1450LMT 295w

It's unfortunate for you and

It's unfortunate for you and sorry for the mishap.

All have to remember that all newer electronics are fragile, whether its a smartphone, pocket camera or PND's if you drop it it will likely break or not work at all.

Sorry to hear about the accidental damage

to your nuvi. It would be nice if the nuvi's had a way to attach a wrist strap or lanyard like many digital cameras and handheld GPS's have.

--
Alan - Android Auto, DriveLuxe 51LMT-S, DriveLuxe 50LMTHD, Nuvi 3597LMTHD, Oregon 550T, Nuvi 855, Nuvi 755T, Lowrance Endura Sierra, Bosch Nyon

Another reason to not update hardware

Another reason to keep my Nuvi 265. It's hit the pavement a few times with just a few marks on the case. I also wonder about the glare on the glass screens. I've had to return a new handheld gps because the screen was not as viewable in direct sunlight as my old GPSmap 76csx.

No, unfortunately

spokybob wrote:

Would screen protectors be a good idea to keep the screens from shattering?

They don't prevent the screens from shattering, but would prevent slivers from digging into the fingers.

If the screens were gorilla glass, that would help. But gorilla glass is expensive compared to the tempered glass used in the nüvis.

--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams

New 2012 Garmins will be available on Oct 2011

The new models will be out soon. I am just wondering who's going to upgrade?

Here's some info from the Garmin website:

The nüvi 3400 series (Prestige) features Garmin Guidance 3.0. For example, Digital 3D Traffic provides updates every 30 seconds from one of the most extensive traffic avoidance systems. That's 4-10 times faster than other traffic services and it's still 100% subscription free! SafeText reads incoming text messages out loud to you via a Bluetooth® compatible phone. And Bird's Eye photoReal junction view shows what complex interchanges look like from above. wow…that's slick.

Garmin has other new models as well. I just got a 1350LMT, (which is an older model) for my birthday this year. So I will not be upgrading anytime soon.

--
Garmin 1350LMT

Not that it matters...

Strephon_Alkhalikoi wrote:
spokybob wrote:

Would screen protectors be a good idea to keep the screens from shattering?

They don't prevent the screens from shattering, but would prevent slivers from digging into the fingers.

If the screens were gorilla glass, that would help. But gorilla glass is expensive compared to the tempered glass used in the nüvis.

The photo shows a cracked glass, if it was tempered glass then it would have shattered into hundreds of pieces. Nuvis don't use tempered glass.

--
Nuvi 2460LMT

nüvi glass not safety glass, but IS tempered

Tempered glass is a generic term encompassing a couple different methods of heat treating glass to be stronger than normal plate glass. The most common application of tempered glass is in the automotive industry, where it is used for side and rear windows. This glass is referred to as safety glass, because the glass by design shatters into tiny fragments when broken. The individual fragments are designed to have no sharp edges. The type of glass used in most smartphones and the 37xx series is not heat treated to the same standard as safety glass. The only difference between the glass in smartphones and plate glass is in the amount of damage the glass can take before breaking. This is clearly illustrated in the following video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVxj6gRYwS0

The use of the video in this discussion is not to demonstrate how strong Gorilla Glass is, but to illustrate that tempered glass breaks in same manner as standard plate glass, while requiring only a bit more force.

--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams

Thanks For The YouTube Link..

Strephon_Alkhalikoi wrote:

The only difference between the glass in smartphones and plate glass is in the amount of damage the glass can take before breaking. This is clearly illustrated in the following video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVxj6gRYwS0

Ahhhh.. very interesting.

Nuvi1300WTGPS

--
I'm not really lost.... just temporarily misplaced!

Not so bad...

pratzert wrote:

OUCH !

The repair cost is crazy !

Go to Costco and get a brand new 3790LMT for $300 whicle they are on sale.

A new one would cost me $260 online plus the cost of the lifetime maps, which I would also lose.

Garmin said they'd fix it for $140. So, I think I'll take them up on it, since that's less the half the cost of a new one and i won't lose my lifetime maps subscription.

Just updating this post since I just got off of the phone with Garmin support. They said since I have 10 Garmin GPS's registered to my name, to show their appreciation for my business, they discounted the repair rate to $90 + tax ($95.94 total).

They actually don't repair them, but will send me a new one and associate it to my account and transfer the lifetime maps to it, so I had better backup all my favorites before sending it in. That sounds good to me and the price is right. So I'm happy with Garmin support and how they handled this. I bet TomTom and Magellan would not have been as cooperative or as easy to reach.

Breakable, disposable

As gadget-man said, today's electronic stuff is mostly fragile, and considered disposable by the manufacturer--even Garmin. Guess we'll all have to start walking on the grass...

--
Tuckahoe Mike - Nuvi 3490LMT, Nuvi 260W, iPhone X, Mazda MX-5 Nav

.

For $3 you could get a sleeve to give your new gps a little protection

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=108&cp_id...

Attach a lanyard to a GPS

I attach a flashlight lanyard to my Garmin Zumo 665 with one of these "adhesive pad eye kits" (scroll to bottom of page), and loop the lanyard over my motorcycle's mirror stanchion. I have dropped my various GPS units many times when I install or remove them, and the lanyards save the day when they dangle from the mirror rather than dropping to the ground. It would work for handhelds units, too.

Peel them off before sending the unit in for warranty work. You can get more of the super-heavy-duty two-sided 3M adhesive from eBay or Radio Shack, and cut it to fit the pad for reuse.

Fred

Glad to hear

Carey934 wrote:
phillyguy19020 wrote:

Did you try Garmin, ask them to consider it under warranty. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Just updating this post since I just got off of the phone with Garmin support. They said since I have 10 Garmin GPS's registered to my name, to show their appreciation for my business, they discounted the repair rate to $90 + tax ($95.94 total).

Glad to hear you got a good exchange deal from Garmin.

New isn't always better

sailornorm wrote:

Another reason to keep my Nuvi 265. It's hit the pavement a few times with just a few marks on the case. I also wonder about the glare on the glass screens. I've had to return a new handheld gps because the screen was not as viewable in direct sunlight as my old GPSmap 76csx.

My c340 has hit the ground dozens of times, most recent was this morning in the hotel parking lot. Bounced around for some time, still no issues. Had to replace the battery as the old one didn't hold a charge. Screen is fine, being recessed a bit helps too.

--
Streetpilot C340 Nuvi 2595 LMT

Extra protection service

Bestbuy offer accidental damage warranty even you drop, spill, abuse the unit. Of course you pay some premium for it, still cheaper than buying a new unit.

that sucks

I have dropped my old garmin 530 a few times and it always scares me!

New Garmins are Glass

I guess the nbew 3490 will be the same.

I think the glass allows for a sharper image.

I have seen the 3790 next to my 885 and for sure it is a better image.

Touchscreen technology

Normally I wouldn't revive old threads, but I felt compelled to reply to pratzert's statement. In it he mentions that the glass allows for a sharper image and then compares the 3790 to the 885. The reason for the difference in image quality is the change in touchscreen technology.

A resistive touchscreen's basic design is similar to modern keyboards. In a modern keyboard, when a key is pressed two dots on two different layers of circuits come into contact beneath it. The completed circuit is noticed by the keyboard's controller and is transmitted to the software to interpret as the correct letter. Resistive touchscreens work in the same fashion except they measure the disruption of a slight electrical field running through the bottom layer of the touchscreen when the top layer of the touchscreen makes contact.

For reasons of added durability and glare reduction, the top layer of a Garmin resistive touchscreen uses a matte finish. The end result is a duller screen than on the 3xxx units. The 3xxx units use a capacitive touchscreen, which eliminates the flexible plastic layer, providing for a sharper image. A capacitive touchscreen works by measuring the change in voltage when a finger touches it, rather than completing a circuit. Capacitive touchscreens are generally more reliable than resistive touchscreens as they are only a single layer, do not usually require calibration, and are not subject to delaminating like resistive touchscreens.

--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams

I agree

Strephon_Alkhalikoi wrote:

The reason for the difference in image quality is the change in touchscreen technology.

I agree with your explanation of the 2 different types of touchscreen technologys but would also add that the 3790 may also appear to have a sharper image because the screen resolution is 800 x 480 pixels compared to the 885 which is only 480 x 272.

--
Nuvi 350, 760, 1695LM, 3790LMT, 2460LMT, 3597LMTHD, DriveLuxe 50LMTHD, DriveSmart 61, Garmin Drive 52, Garmin Backup Camera 40 and TomTom XXL540s.

The change in image

The change in image resolution would in fact have a lot to do with it too. You're right about that.

Honestly, I didn't even think of that.

--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams

calibration

Now I’m really confused, both my 260 and 2460 have the same dull screen look and neither is glass, following Strephon_Alkhalikoi description both are resistive touchscreen and are less reliable than Capacitive screens.

My confusion comes from the calibration stand point, the manual in my 260 shows how from time to time the screen may need calibration and how to do it, the manual for the 2460 doesn’t make any mention of calibration, has the new resistive touchscreen improved so much they no longer need calibration?

--
Garmin 38 - Magellan Gold - Garmin Yellow eTrex - Nuvi 260 - Nuvi 2460LMT - Google Nexus 7 - Toyota Entune NAV

Quite Possible

Quite possible, and likely related to the change in firmware. The 2460 I believe uses a Linux-based firmware while the 260's firmware didn't use an open-source base. I have to check my 1300LM's manual to be certain, but I don't believe it mentions calibration on a hard reset either. It is mentioned in the 200W manual. Different firmware could lead to an improvement in the reliability of the touchscreen, reducing or eliminating the need to calibrate it on every hard reset.

Sorry for any potential confusion, but you can always tell a resistive touchscreen from a capacitive one, just by pressing on it. Resistive touchscreens will always have a slight amount of give compared to the glass of a capacitive touchscreen.

Oh and Flaco, the last sentence in my post should have said "durable" instead of "reliable". Both types of touchscreen are reliable, but from personal experience, capacitive touchscreens are more durable.

--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams

so which new models of

so which new models of garmin do not have a Glass screen?

I think

I think only the 3xxx models have glass screens.

--
Nuvi 350, 760, 1695LM, 3790LMT, 2460LMT, 3597LMTHD, DriveLuxe 50LMTHD, DriveSmart 61, Garmin Drive 52, Garmin Backup Camera 40 and TomTom XXL540s.

ouch

ouch, that sucks they make from some cheap thin glass like that ...

at least you've got a very decent deal from Garmin on the repair, for $90+tax I would just go with it, especially that they send you a new unit and transfer all maps assignments to it smile

plus for Garmin Customer Support smile

EDIT:
I've dropped my 275 a few times at home (wooden floor), not a scratch, not sure if the plastics would survive a drop to asphalt or pavement though. don't wanna try to see LOL laugh out loud

Carey934 wrote:
pratzert wrote:

OUCH !

The repair cost is crazy !

Go to Costco and get a brand new 3790LMT for $300 whicle they are on sale.

A new one would cost me $260 online plus the cost of the lifetime maps, which I would also lose.

Garmin said they'd fix it for $140. So, I think I'll take them up on it, since that's less the half the cost of a new one and i won't lose my lifetime maps subscription.

Just updating this post since I just got off of the phone with Garmin support. They said since I have 10 Garmin GPS's registered to my name, to show their appreciation for my business, they discounted the repair rate to $90 + tax ($95.94 total).

They actually don't repair them, but will send me a new one and associate it to my account and transfer the lifetime maps to it, so I had better backup all my favorites before sending it in. That sounds good to me and the price is right. So I'm happy with Garmin support and how they handled this. I bet TomTom and Magellan would not have been as cooperative or as easy to reach.

--
Garmin nuvi 2595LMT; Android 5.0 (Samsung GS3)

thank you. i will stay away

thank you. i will stay away from buying that series.

Great...the FUD starts.

Great...the FUD starts. *rolls eyes*

Seriously, unless you have a tendency to drop your devices I wouldn't worry about screen damage. If you read Carey's original post he mentions dropping his nüvi onto pavement, where it landed face down. There aren't a lot of devices with capacitive screens that can survive such a drop. The ones that can likely have Gorilla Glass, though even then the screen can break.

--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams

gps protection

GadgetGuy2008 wrote:

For $3 you could get a sleeve to give your new gps a little protection

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=108&cp_id=10840&cs_id=1084001&p_id=5266&seq=1&format=2

I use a padded glass case with a zipper and a pocket clip for my 750 gps.

Thanks for the info, good to

Thanks for the info, good to know.

awesome support

Carey934 wrote:
pratzert wrote:

OUCH !

The repair cost is crazy !

Go to Costco and get a brand new 3790LMT for $300 whicle they are on sale.

A new one would cost me $260 online plus the cost of the lifetime maps, which I would also lose.

Garmin said they'd fix it for $140. So, I think I'll take them up on it, since that's less the half the cost of a new one and i won't lose my lifetime maps subscription.

Just updating this post since I just got off of the phone with Garmin support. They said since I have 10 Garmin GPS's registered to my name, to show their appreciation for my business, they discounted the repair rate to $90 + tax ($95.94 total).

They actually don't repair them, but will send me a new one and associate it to my account and transfer the lifetime maps to it, so I had better backup all my favorites before sending it in. That sounds good to me and the price is right. So I'm happy with Garmin support and how they handled this. I bet TomTom and Magellan would not have been as cooperative or as easy to reach.

I can't even begin to describe how much I like the Garmin Support. Every single time I have had to call them, I ended up pleased. I won't even consider another brand. GO! GARMIN!

--
R/Tim NUVI 660, ETREX Vista, Rhino 120, zumo 660, nuvi 3790

I don't know how many times I've dropped my Nuvi 760

I don't know how many times I've dropped my Nuvi 760, but so far it's been OK. The case has several bumps and scratches, but the display is OK. The last time I dropped it on concrete. It bounced off my foot first, and the On/Off/Lock switch seems to have suffered. It turns on OK. It locks and unlocks OK. When I try to turn it off though, I have to slide the switch very slowly. Otherwise it beeps, but does not turn off. That was in May of 2010, and I've been extremely careful since then.

The Importance of a Bezel

The nüvi line, except for the 3xxx units, all have a plastic bezel around their resistive touchscreens. The bezel alone reduces or eliminates accidental damage to the screen by dropping since the screen never actually impacts the surface. The 3xxx units have a full face capacitive touchscreen, meaning no bezel. When they hit the ground face first you get a scratched screen at best, a totally blown screen at worst.

--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams

spare

whenever possible, I travel with my old spare 2620, just in case of issues. I would really hate to be without a GPS on a big trip to a place I am not familar with. If worse came to worse, I could buy a new one, and I also travel with my laptop, so I could quickly install my routes and POIs. Hope it would never come to that.

--
___________________ Garmin 2455, 855, Oregon 550t

Customer Loyalty Recognized

Carey934 wrote:

Just updating this post since I just got off of the phone with Garmin support. They said since I have 10 Garmin GPS's registered to my name, to show their appreciation for my business, they discounted the repair rate to $90 + tax ($95.94 total).

Nice to see that Garmin recognizes customer loyalty!

--
Shooter N32 39 W97 25 VIA 1535TM, Lexus built-in, TomTom Go

Garmin has no customer service

On Sep 11 2011 I purchased the NUVI 3790LMT from the Garmin Store on Michigan Ave here in Chicago, very rude bunch only interested to make a sale. on my way home we stopped at COSTCO only to find the same unit on Sale so I took a picture of the add and called the store after a not so polite discussion the manager would not honor the Costco and just hung up.. I send the pictures along with an a explanation request to Garmin Corporate and nothing as of today.

Today I was driving and hit a pothole and the screen broke for the Top of the mound took it to the store and they said that the second screen broke and they were not a replacement store and to call 800-8001020 and pay 150.00 to replace as the screen is not cover...

Wow if I ran this type of customer service I would be out of business...
this is my last Garmin I will ever buy...

PS my screen never show the Exit view that they so claim and got the run around on that as well.

what other unit out there do you recommend?

This Was Preventable

So why didn't you go back to the Garmin store that day and return the device if Costco had it for less? Did you really expect corporate to do anything for you?

I'm sorry, but I'm just not in the mood to be sympathetic to your plight, not when you could have prevented it.

FYI, any unit other than the 3xxx units would be a good bet, since all of them have bezels to prevent the screen from directly touching the ground. But, be aware that if the screen does break, you're still out. Broken screens are considered abuse and do not fall under Garmin's warranty. The retailer's warranty is a different story.

--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams

Deal breaker

Apolo66 wrote:

...very rude bunch only interested to make a sale.

That would have been the clincher for me, and I would've walked out of the store. Pay you my hard-earned money for being rude? I think not.

--
nüvi 3790T | Those who make peaceful revolution impossible, will make violent revolution inevitable ~ JFK

I think we don't know all the story

Juggernaut wrote:
Apolo66 wrote:

...very rude bunch only interested to make a sale.

That would have been the clincher for me, and I would've walked out of the store. Pay you my hard-earned money for being rude? I think not.

Before you pass judgement, consider this:

Apolo66 wrote:

and called the store after a not so polite discussion the manager would not honor the Costco and just hung up.

Just how did Apolo66 go about stating his case? Did he call and demand or did he ask what the policies were regarding price matching? If the conversation turned abusive, then I wouldn't have any qualms about hanging up the phone either.

--
Illiterate? Write for free help.

.

I wouldn't have bothered to call back about the device, but would have because of the rude staff. Businesses are hurting for money because of the economy. Others are more than willing to take it with a smile... Besides, Costco's return policy gets my dollar (almost) everytime.

--
nüvi 3790T | Those who make peaceful revolution impossible, will make violent revolution inevitable ~ JFK

Common Sense, Or Lack Thereof

Juggernaut wrote:

I wouldn't have bothered to call back about the device, but would have because of the rude staff. Businesses are hurting for money because of the economy. Others are more than willing to take it with a smile... Besides, Costco's return policy gets my dollar (almost) everytime.

Your post highlights my general point. The common sense move would have been not to buy the device from the Garmin store in the first place, but we already know he did and that the conversation with the Garmin store manager did not go well. So the common sense thing to do would be to return the device to the Garmin store, once it was discovered that Costco sold it for less, then purchase the device from Costco. He didn't do this, and it leaves me scratching my head, wondering what his thought process was in all this.

--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams

Not good

I dropped my c580 MULTIPLE times

--
[URL=http://www.speedtest.net][IMG]http://www.speedtest.net/result/693683800.png[/IMG][/URL]

Not good for GPS to be dropped

alofficial wrote:

I dropped my c580 MULTIPLE times

I've dropped my c340 too many times to count over the years, it is very scratched and worn but works like a champ! The screen looks great, just some minor scratches on it.

--
Streetpilot C340 Nuvi 2595 LMT

Fragile!!! Is an understatement.

Wow! Its just like the iPhone 4. Thanks for this info. I'm going to stay away from that model when its time for a new one.

--
Nuvi 660. Nuvi 40 Check out. www.houserentalsorlando.com Irish Saying. A man loves his sweetheart the most, his wife the best, but his mother the longest.

New Garmin Screen Glass

I guess it helps with the clarity of the screen.

Sounds like a trade-off, but I prefer durability.

thanks for the heads-up,

I'd better be careful with my 3790t..

@pratzert: I would be

@pratzert: I would be inclined to point out that the 3xxx series capacitive touchscreens are a bit more durable than the resistive touchscreens. My searches on ebay for damaged GPS receivers seem to highlight this. I have seen plenty of 2x5 and 1xxx units offered for sale with damaged screens for use as parts. I haven't seen 3xxx units available in a damaged condition. As a disclaimer however, I suspect that the lack of damaged 3xxx units on ebay is due to the owners getting the touchscreen replaced since the 3xxx are the top of the line units.

I will say though that should a resistive touchscreen break, it's easier to replace than the touchscreen on a 3xxx unit.

--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams
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