Let's help Garmin design their next flagship GPS for us aficionados!!

 

I think Garmin should build at least one unit for us! People who like to use our GPS, and know what information we'd like to get rather than the great unwashed masses who just want to know where the next Starbucks is!! Since SO many people are using their cellphones to "navigate", I think Garmin should think about appealing to US - those who for whatever reason, are NOT willing to give up our GPS, but becoming frustrated by what is being offered to us. There are many features no longer available that I would like to see brought back. I'll be glad to start a list and welcome any additions.

1) Minimum 5" screen for my older eyes.

2) Display of up to four data fields, time, speed, altitude, ETA, DTA, etc. (from 276/376)

3) Ability to add Custom Waypoint symbols.

4) Retain ability to adjust our driving style speed limits for various types of roads when route planning

5) Add more voice choices

6) Proximity alarms with voice warnings???

7) I like the magnetic mount on the 3597.

8) I haven't put ANY thought into features I'd be willing to do without, but I'm sure there are several.

9) Needless to say, I hope, continue to accept microSD cards of any reasonable size!

--
Stay thirsty my friends - don't drink and drive!
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Bring back "Off Route, Recalculate"

One of my favorite features from my old 2610. Let me decide if I want the GPS to recalculate a route. Not automatically.

Would also love the custom route from the 2610 as well. If I want to take a Sunday drive with no interstates, just back roads.

"Go back the same way"

Add: "Return Same Route" to EVERY unit. I went from Mass. to DC one time through CT and over the Tappan Zee to avoid New York City and head through NJ like I wanted. I followed the Nuvi for the most part but disregarded it when I needed to. Coming back home I zoned out for a moment and missed a critical turn to come back the same way by staying north and back over the Tappan Zee bridge. Before I knew it, and with no chance at a clean recovery, I ended up on I95N in southern CT in a nightmare of traffic jams. I found out later that this feature was on some of the higher end Nuvi's. I think it should be on all of them.

--
"Primum Non Nocere" 2595LMT Clear Channel and Navteq Traffic

POI Icons

I liked the POI icons showing up when zoomed in on my 255W. My 2460 only shows the ones I have uploaded. I just bought a 2595, but it has not arrived yet.
I could care less about voices (I keep mine muted), but would like to be able to have audible proximity alarms on a separate volume control from the turn by turn voices. The 2460 is supposed to have this ability, but it has never worked.

Easy Routes

Deleted previous blurb about transferring routes from Google Map to unit without unit recalculating route because all I see in Google Maps now is the ability to transfer to different cars sad

Played with BaseCamp a little but it has a steep learning curve (at least for me). And the GPS unit still seemed to recalculate a route once it was uploaded. Would like a simple way to create a route on PC, upload to GPS, and have GPS follow the route as designed on PC...no changes.

We're a little behind with an older 2555LMT. The idea here would be a new "affordable" unit that would do this :-0

I agree with the MicroSD

I agree with the MicroSD card slot, to a point. For an enthusiast device, you should have the following:

  • MicroSD card support.
  • 128GB of storage, which should be sufficient to store the entire world plus all JCV files, 3D view buildings, and the other fun stuff, including the variants specifically for Singapore and Malaysia. This would also mean the device would have to support Unicode characters.
  • USB-C connector (high speed, more robust than Mini and Micro-USB connectors).
  • Ruggedized form factor with a capacitive multi-touch screen.
  • Truck GPS support.
  • User selectable location for alerts, either in the banner bar above the map view or a floating bubble on the map itself.
  • All the standard features of Garmin's current top-of-the-line device (i.e. 3597LMTHD).
--
"Anyone who is capable of getting themselves made President should on no account be allowed to do the job." --Douglas Adams

POI Icons

I would like an option to show specific POIs, usually the ones I save and not the ones from Garmin.

--
Steve - 2 Nuvi 3597

Big Screen... Really B I G Screen!

A 7 to 9 inch screen would be really cool

Nuvi1300WTGPS

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

Maps that were up to date? A

Maps that were up to date?

A working selectable map/firmware downloader allowing selection of storage location?

Easy battery change feature?

A battery that lasts a reasonable amount of time?

Consistent brackets with power?

how about

A cell phone app that really works?

Let's be real, the days of the PND are limited at best!

--
Never argue with a pig. It makes you look foolish and it anoys the hell out of the pig!

will they listen

But will they listen to us?

Nope.

Nope.

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

Standalone GPS days are

Standalone GPS days are numbered.
In the near future ALL vehicles will have navigation systems as a standard feature, not as an option.

I think Garmin will continue to push the non-automotive lines harder than the automotive line.

Phone apps will continue to get better.

The question is: will the adding of user POI'S still be allowed. I doubt it.

--
I never get lost, but I do explore new territory every now and then.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained!

If we say nothing, nothing will change.

The longest journey starts with but a single step.

Can we make a difference? Yes?

Will we make a difference? Quien Sabe! Only the Garmin Gods know.

Dreams are still free.

This exercise is the only exercise I get!

--
Stay thirsty my friends - don't drink and drive!

better routing

I don't like "fastest" which usually means find the nearest interstate. Shortest, which gives some really convoluted routing. What I want is an option in-between - so I make my route manually on the computer, then replicate on the GPS. Or, kind of like Google - give me 2-4 routes choices and let me pick from the map.

--
___________________ Garmin 2455, 855, Oregon 550t

MORE DETAIL AT HIGHER ZOOM!

Current Nuvis and Zumos lose too much detail when zoomed out. It is impossible to know what roads, towns and important landmarks (lakes, rivers, mountains, parks) are nearby, let alone in the general region. Please bring back map displays with the names of places and roads displayed in reasonable detail.

The detail exists, but is suppressed on the GPS. I can only presume Garmin does not want to confuse us with the information other than the road we're on, and the one where the next turn will be; but isn't that the purpose of a map? Smartphones show this level of detail and are useful for searching and locating destinations. Most Garmin GPS devices are not useful for browsing destinations and surroundings.

Advanced Sensors

I saw an ad stating that Garmin was getting into the advanced sensors (blind spot warning, lane drift, and need to brake).

Support for .png (with transparency) Custom Icons

Support for .png (with transparency) custom icons rather than the current 8-bit .bmp with magenta for transparency.
Higher resolution (ie., higher dpi) screens so the smaller font sizes are more legible.

Mark

my next GPS

--
Never argue with a pig. It makes you look foolish and it anoys the hell out of the pig!

Next GPS

Voice recognition. Typing in an address is so old school.

agree!

williston wrote:

Add: "Return Same Route" to EVERY unit. I went from Mass. to DC one time through CT and over the Tappan Zee to avoid New York City and head through NJ like I wanted. I followed the Nuvi for the most part but disregarded it when I needed to. Coming back home I zoned out for a moment and missed a critical turn to come back the same way by staying north and back over the Tappan Zee bridge. Before I knew it, and with no chance at a clean recovery, I ended up on I95N in southern CT in a nightmare of traffic jams. I found out later that this feature was on some of the higher end Nuvi's. I think it should be on all of them.

Yes, this would be a great feature. Which "high end" units have this feature?

--
. 2 Garmin DriveSmart 61 LMT-S, Nuvi 2689, 2 Nuvi 2460, Zumo 550, Zumo 450, Uniden R3 radar detector with GPS built in, includes RLC info. Uconnect 430N Garmin based, built into my Jeep. .

There is Reverse Route, but

There is Reverse Route, but there is no guarantee that the unit will use the same exact route.

--
Frank DriveSmart55 37.322760, -79.511267

More Standard Internal Memory

20GB should be more than enough. 8GB seemed like more than enough when I got my 2595, but the available total free space is slowly dropping with each new map update.

--
"Primum Non Nocere" 2595LMT Clear Channel and Navteq Traffic

Go Home the same way

soberbyker wrote:
williston wrote:

Add: "Return Same Route" to EVERY unit. I went from Mass. to DC one time through CT and over the Tappan Zee to avoid New York City and head through NJ like I wanted. I followed the Nuvi for the most part but disregarded it when I needed to. Coming back home I zoned out for a moment and missed a critical turn to come back the same way by staying north and back over the Tappan Zee bridge. Before I knew it, and with no chance at a clean recovery, I ended up on I95N in southern CT in a nightmare of traffic jams. I found out later that this feature was on some of the higher end Nuvi's. I think it should be on all of them.

Yes, this would be a great feature. Which "high end" units have this feature?

It has been so long since I purchased my 2595 that I don't remember anymore. A coupld of the top of the line units at the time had this feature, but it was just too big of a jump in price for me. I do remember that they had the ability to store the route you just took so you could follow it back on the return trip. Even on a pleasure drive this would be a great feature. I have been on some fantastic back roads in Maine while on vacation and came across some great stops (fantastic hole-in-the-wall eating places, shops and fishing holes) that I will probably never find again without this feature.

--
"Primum Non Nocere" 2595LMT Clear Channel and Navteq Traffic

Fix the Bluetooth

It has never worked correctly and they have refused to de-bug it. There is a problem with the volume when paired with a phone for hands-free use that no amount of fiddling can correct, and downloading the phone book to the Nuvi is a hit-or-miss adventure. (well documented here over time)

--
"Primum Non Nocere" 2595LMT Clear Channel and Navteq Traffic

Like Strephon says...

Makinja wrote:

But will they listen to us?

Strephon_Alkhalikoi wrote:

Nope.

Nope.

But, Garmin has a page dedicated to user's ideas.

http://www8.garmin.com/contactUs/ideas/

Believe me, throughout the many years I've been involved in GPS, there have been numerous "wish lists" compiled, here and on a few other GPS related websites/forums and pretty much nothing came out of them that I could personally tell.

Garmin seems to have their own features list, Garmin's very own myDartBoard™, that they pick and choose features from for their units, seemingly at random so users never seem to be taken seriously.

But then again, I guess it's good to keep prodding them for features...maybe one day, we will see the GPS we want to see and not what Garmin thinks we want/need.

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

Long abandoned bugs caused by FW updates

I'm not optimistic that any of our suggestions or ideas would ever make it into a product. I corresponded with them for several months about the traffic icon problems after one of their firmware updates: They took their perfectly functioning traffic icon and rendered messed it up to the point where it would stay green even after hours of receiving NO traffic signal/feed. (It would also REMAIN green even after the power cord/antenna was removed from the unit! I gave up when I was advised it was working as intended.

--
"Primum Non Nocere" 2595LMT Clear Channel and Navteq Traffic

I have to agree with Williston

Even after numerous user complaints about removing "Recalculating" rather than making it an option, and the stupid balloon icons for favorites instead of the nice customizable icons of earlier models, what has Garmin done in new models? Ignored us!

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

I'd like to see MP3 music

I'd like to see MP3 music playback capabilities, and HD Radio transmit capabilities like I used to have in my 660 before that interface died.

--
A 2689LMT in both our cars that we love... and a Nuvi 660 with Lifetime Maps that we have had literally forever.... And a 2011 Ford Escape with Nav System that is totally ignored!

Not a chance

Makinja wrote:

But will they listen to us?

Heck no! In my experience, they take away old features that were good (e.g. voice proximity alerts), and replace them with features that are not so good and/or break.

Case in point: I used to be able to send POIs from my phone to my Garmin via Bluetooth, but something changed (most likely a software update to SmartPhone Link). Garmin found that it was easier to deny the existence of the problem rather than to fix it.

Exactly!

beagle.fan wrote:
Makinja wrote:

But will they listen to us?

Heck no! In my experience, they take away old features that were good (e.g. voice proximity alerts), and replace them with features that are not so good and/or break.

Case in point: I used to be able to send POIs from my phone to my Garmin via Bluetooth, but something changed (most likely a software update to SmartPhone Link). Garmin found that it was easier to deny the existence of the problem rather than to fix it.

Exactly!!! I remember thinking: I can really help them here with the messed-up traffic icon colors because I noticed it immediately and knew it happened with the specific FW update. Yeah right. I still was convinced I'd get through to them when I advised I had taken a trip through northern Maine (WAY northern!) where traffic reporting radio signals did not exist and yet the icon remained green instead of changing to Gray like it did before. (I proved it by switching to the developer screens and noted no signal for hours). The real killer though was when I disconnected the cord (traffic antenna) to run on battery and the ICON remained green! Garmin: "Working as designed" hah!

--
"Primum Non Nocere" 2595LMT Clear Channel and Navteq Traffic

Garmin shot itself in the foot

At this rate, my next GPS WILL be my smartphone.

We all know that the market for portable GPS navigators is apparently shrinking. It's pretty much a given that as a company, if you want to survive, you have to adapt with the changing times. That means diversifying, but it also means taking risks. If a company is not willing to take the risk, it becomes complacent, and when it becomes complacent, it decays and eventually fails.

Looking at the way things are going, Garmin's problems go back to the Asus deal. Are they still constrained by the terms of that thing? While they currently have navigation apps on both iOS and Windows, the Android versions are discontinued.

Think about it. The (arguably) largest GPS receiver company on the planet has no navigation app on the largest smartphone app store on the planet. Do you see anything wrong with this, because I do. Relevance of a standalone GPS receiver aside, if you are a major manufacturer like Garmin, when you produce then discontinue an app in a given app store it shakes people's faith in the strength of the company.

The smart thing for Garmin to have done was to have kept their Android offerings on the Play Store, even if those offerings were never to receive updates. Instead, they basically conceded the Android space to Sygic, Tom Tom, and the smaller companies like Route 66. Garmin tucked its tail between its legs and ran.

By exiting the Android space, Garmin has shown me it is unwilling to take a risk. While it has diversified its holdings by offering multiple products that aren't GPS receivers, its unwillingness to take the risk has lead to complacency. What was the last truly innovative GPS receiver Garmin released, and when was it released?

If I were to answer that question, it would probably be the nüvi 755 series and the introduction of Junction View. While there have been some new features released since then (3D buildings, voice command), most anything Garmin has developed has been an offshoot of something that has already existed. Because Garmin doesn't truly innovate anymore, that fuels the "play it safe" attitude that goes along with not taking risks and becoming complacent. It's going to bite them in the ass, and probably sooner rather than later.

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

I would like to see an

I would like to see an integrated dash cam with the six or,seven inch units

--
Michael J. Moonitz Massapequa, NY C340, N650, N660, N1490T, N2797 LMT, NuviCam

Map share.

Something like tomtoms map a are would be awesome. Garmin is not always 100% right all the time when it comes to map accuracy. A community based map system would be a welcome addition in my book.

I agree 100%

I agree 100%

Let's hope not...

KenSny wrote:

Standalone GPS days are numbered.
In the near future ALL vehicles will have navigation systems as a standard feature, not as an option.

Which almost NEVER get updated and if they do cost hundreds of dollars for an update.

Gee, no thanks...

i want

To be notified when entering an area known to be a bad area.

Maybe a voice message that comes on saying, "YOU'VE ENTERED AN AREA EVEN THE COPS WONT ENTER!! WHY DONT YOU GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!!??"

--
Never argue with a pig. It makes you look foolish and it anoys the hell out of the pig!

"bad area"

BarneyBadass wrote:

To be notified when entering an area known to be a bad area.

Maybe a voice message that comes on saying, "YOU'VE ENTERED AN AREA EVEN THE COPS WONT ENTER!! WHY DONT YOU GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!!??"

That would antagonize the "social justice" constituency and they may decide to boycott stealing Garmin units!!!

--
Stay thirsty my friends - don't drink and drive!

Oh YEA

Sure Garmin will listen rest a sure the Problem is you got to speak a little bit louder..

Garmin "Can you hear me now"

That's All We Need...!!

KenSny wrote:

Standalone GPS days are numbered.
In the near future ALL vehicles will have navigation systems as a standard feature, not as an option.

I hope they're NOT TomTom or that we have to wait 6 months to update them, or that we can't load POI's, or that it will cost us $$$ to do any of the above, or..., or... evil rolleyes sad

I'll just stick with my trusty Garmin.

Nuvi1300WTGPS

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

it's been done

Honda has a system that alerts if you're in a high crime area, but they don't sell it in the US and don't currently plan to do so.
http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/cars-trucks/daily-news/...

Intruder wrote:
BarneyBadass wrote:

To be notified when entering an area known to be a bad area.

Maybe a voice message that comes on saying, "YOU'VE ENTERED AN AREA EVEN THE COPS WONT ENTER!! WHY DONT YOU GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!!??"

That would antagonize the "social justice" constituency and they may decide to boycott stealing Garmin units!!!

The problem is in my phone... NOT.

Did they blame the problem on your cell phone too? grin

Here's the real GPS killer!!

Here's what's realistically going to really put GPS toys as we have any notion of them out of business.

http://money.cnn.com/2015/06/26/autos/self-driving-car-near-...

--
Never argue with a pig. It makes you look foolish and it anoys the hell out of the pig!

Already Have That...

allenhwa wrote:

I saw an ad stating that Garmin was getting into the advanced sensors (blind spot warning, lane drift, and need to brake).

My new Mazda CX-5 T already has some of these options.

Nuvi1300WTGPS

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

A few years back the Garmin's were costing $500+

catnapped wrote:
KenSny wrote:

Standalone GPS days are numbered.
In the near future ALL vehicles will have navigation systems as a standard feature, not as an option.

Which almost NEVER get updated and if they do cost hundreds of dollars for an update.

Gee, no thanks...

It was the same situation a few years back with the Garmin's costing $500+ but as time went buy they get cheaper. Same thing is happening with the built in nav systems, they soon will be provided at no additional cost.

I have had built in nav in my GM car for years and I prefer it for the convenience of not having to mess with mounting and dismounting every time I leave the car parked. It is far more sophisticated so not as easy to learn but offers more options including 3 route options to choose from and the nav info not only shows up on the touchscreen and audio but in my car the turn info and distance are also displayed in my Heads Up Windshield display which is invaluable when in heavy freeway traffic.

As far as map updates they come out once a year and take all of 1 minute to switch to the new map. As far as cost I have updated mine 3 times with an average cost of $25 each time after selling the prior years map update on eBay.

I just recently sold my last Garmin unit a 3790LMT because I realized that I had not taken it off the closet shelf in over 6 months.

--
Garmin Drive Smart 55 - Samsung Note 10 Smartphone with Google Maps & HERE Apps

There are some great ideas

There are some great ideas here, but I feel that Garmin will not take notice. They are too focused on the "now" rather than the future. That has been the downfall of many once large companies in the past.

Settings

It would be nice to be able to tell the GPS if you have a E-Zpass so it would let you be in the right lane when coming to a toll with split lanes for cash or pass.
In Florida some of the tolls have a lane that will go around the tolls.
The GPS will tell you to stay left when the prepay lanes are on the right.

--
Don't sweat the petty things and don't pet the sweaty things!

nice thought.

Timantide wrote:

It would be nice to be able to tell the GPS if you have a E-Zpass so it would let you be in the right lane when coming to a toll with split lanes for cash or pass.

That's nice but I think there are at least about 5 EZ pass systems in ythe lower 48 and they don't seem to honor each other

--
Never argue with a pig. It makes you look foolish and it anoys the hell out of the pig!

They all work together here in the NE

BarneyBadass wrote:

That's nice but I think there are at least about 5 EZ pass systems in ythe lower 48 and they don't seem to honor each other

There are 5 or 6 Ez-Pass or equivalent systems here in the Northeast and they all honor each other's tags. I drive all over the northeast US with my NY EZ-Pass tag.

-K

There is an EZPass section

There is an EZPass section of road in Raleigh, NC, then from VA all the way north, EZPass is the auto toll de jour.

--
Frank DriveSmart55 37.322760, -79.511267

- Bring the 3597 build

- Bring the 3597 build quality and magnetic mount back!

- A software that ask you every time you start the GPS if you are carpooling/using toll roads or not so no wrong rerouting happen when taking carpool/toll exits and vise versa

- Better mobile app that belongs to this century!

- Satellite view maps

- Either get google maps traffic updates or work on a similar quality traffic service.

- Different screen sizes for the same unit. I hate how big the NuviCam screen. I miss my 3597.

- Include dash cams in all new models.

- Put the dash cam in the top center for better view angle

- Allow the cam to be adjusted in 360 degrees angles instead of 180 degrees

- Either add top quality noise canceling mic which is used to answer the calls or take off this whole feature since the current one sucks.

- A smaller cable and flexible cable head.

- Integrate the traffic reciever to the mount instead of the cable for better reception due to location.

- Provide an optional accessory cable that can be used as a permenant cable which connects to the car electricity system and hides behind the dashboard or pillars/roof. This will be ideal for people who don't like how the cable looks laying above the dash all the time and using the only power outlet all year long (some cars only have 1 power source in the front. Others have tight space around the power outlet)

--
NuviCam & 3597
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