3597LMTHD Impressions (From CES)

I would have posted this a week earlier but came home to a family emergency. In any event, I went to CES last week and I took my 3490LMT with me and put it along side of the new 3597LMTHD to do a few comparisons. I was not overly impressed with the new unit but it did have some features that were overhauled that I think are worth mentioning.

-Resolution: Still a bit sharper on the 3490 (probably because of its smaller screen) but seemed sharper than the 3590LMT which I compared it with last year.

-No more pedestrian mode on the 3597LMTHD.

-They are not producing anymore 4.3" versions in the Prestige Line (only 5" screens).

-Added "Real Directions" which in my test at the booth said, "Get into two left lanes and then make left at traffic light." as opposed to stay left and turn left on Main Street for example.

-MTP & Mass Storage Modes still exist. It didn't mention it originally on their website but I confirmed it by going into the developer page on the unit.

-Active Lane Guidance: It seems that they are moving more towards (in my view) an animated Bird's Eye View more than the original Lane Assist arrows in the upper left. The split screen with the map on the left and the animated lane assist is in sync together as you drive. The pink line will move over into the next lane as you get closer to the intersection. It 's a nice feature but I still like the arrows. However, not every intersection has this. Some have the arrows and others have the animated pink line so it switched back and forth according to what data it has for that next turn (similar to intersections that have JV's and others that do not). JV's still exist for various exits as well so basically the unit is flipping back and forth between Active Lane Guidance, the old LA arrows, and JV's depending upon the next turns map data.

-The UI was overhauled: I personally thought the green background made more sense relating to road signs than the grey put that's just a personal thought. As for the UI itself, they have done the following:

1) Added Up Ahead: Which basically are tabs on the right that indicate road services (can be toggled on or off).

2) Current Street Name is now listed on the bottom center of the screen at all times (thank you - how long did this take?). I've had this feature on my Pioneer Head Unit for years and couldn't understand why Garmin only had this on some old models when you were not navigating or just showed next street names. Whatever. It's now there.

3)The (P)arking icon (P with a circle around it) has now moved to the status bar on the top right (where the next street name is listed). It no longer covers the screen on the left when it temporarily appears (which I personally found annoying sometimes).

-Added a strong magnet mount which literally pulled my whole arm up to it when placing it back on. It's very strong!

In conclusion, there are some nice additions and it's worth considering but none of which is a major deal changer for some. It you prefer pedestrian mode or the smaller screen size and don't care about the new UI than you'll probably be happy staying with your current mode. If those things don't matter and you're in the market for a new unit, this will probably be a good choice but I'd wait for the bugs to be ironed out with a few firmware updates first. The guy at the booth said the software is still in beta.

Here's another website review with some photos:
http://www.gpsmagazine.com/2013/01/ces_2013_hands-on_with_ga...