Updating Garmin Nuvi 500 Using 4 GB Micro SD Card

See http://www.poi-factory.com/node/31185 for information to install maps to SD card or http://www.poi-factory.com/node/39231

Jim, both of the links offered by charlesd will require downloading from Garmin unless you already have downloaded the map to your 500 and your computer (which is not the default Garmin update option). Given that, my suggestion is to follow the 2nd link and clone the largest map your nuvi 500 is entitled to receive fully on the SD card. If your nuvi was purchased with all of North America, you can install all of North America to the card.

To help you decide, charlesd's link one will let the nuvi work even without the SD card for the areas installed to the GPS. The SD card adds the remaining states (or Canada or Mexico, etc. if your 500 is entitled to receive them) meaning that the SD card is only needed to be in place when dealing with the areas installed on the SD card.

Charlesd's link two—the alandb technique—will create the entire map on the SD card without the need to select regions, and since the entire map is on the SD card, the card must always be present for the nuvi 500 to work.

To (maybe) state the obvious, you will need to again follow one of the two above procedures each time a new map comes out unless you're willing to live with whatever smaller map update can be given to your internal nuvi storage.

Good luck. If choosing the alandb cloning technique, note that your nuvi 500 does not use a .system folder and doesn't have the issues associated with the nuvi 8xx series. Therefore cloning your 500 will be one of the easier models to clone.

@CraigW
I think the 500 is limited to a 2Gb map size limit. I don't think Cloning will work. Over 2Gb and it just won't load.

Op will have to use MapInstall to install the additional parts of the map to the SD card. 2 maps will then be listed in the menu.

BTW, Garmin site said that this unit only came with the lower 48 and Hawaii and PR.
https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/on-the-road/discontinued/nuv...
They might not be able to get all of NA from Garmin.

Yes, if the nuvi 500 is limited to files under 2GB, I agree to use the MapInstall method for the areas not initially installed.

This link doesn't list the 500 series as being limited to a 2GB file size though:

https://support.garmin.com/support/searchSupport/case.faces?...

And yes, if the 500 was sold as a 49 state plus PR, then that'll be the biggest map that can be installed.

Well i have the nüvi 5000 and i alway put the full maps on the Sd card my nüvi will only take the lower 48 but i put the full map on the SD CARD and i get it all

2 articles on Garmin:

https://support.garmin.com/support/searchSupport/case.faces?...

https://support.garmin.com/support/searchSupport/case.faces?caseId={a209e880-9319-11e2-65d0-000000000000}

Looks like the 500 has a 2Gb limit, although it's not clear as they mention a c500 in one article and the 500 series in the article about using MapInstall.

The first link does not mention the nuvi 500 series as being incompatible with the new maps with file sizes over 2GB.

The 2nd link tells of the GPS models with limited internal storage that don't automatically receive the map updates to SD cards, and suggests the MapInstall method to install to SD parts of the map that didn't install internally. The line mentioning the nuvi 500 series is:

nuvi 300/500/600/800/805 series

I don't have a nuvi 500 but I do have a nuvi 855 covered by the above line. My nuvi 855 can accept file sizes over 2GB. We probably need to find a different faq or hear from a 500-series owner as to whether the nuvi 500 can use files over 2GB in size. I've seen nothing so far indicating that the 500 can not use the large files.

Your profile indicates you have a nuvi 660, also covered by the above line as one of the 600-series nuvis. Can your 660 use files over 2GB? If so, why do you think the above line indicates that the 500-series can't use large files?

Jim1348, the OP here, could add a lot here if he tries the clone technique. This assumes that the City Navigator 49state plus PR yields a .img file greater than 2GB. And if the map is less than 2GB, then there's no need to worry now about its ability to read files over 2GB in size. Jim?

Thank you very much for all of the replies.

Now I have a question about MapInstall. I have been using Garmin Express most recently for my updates, but I do still have MapInstall on my computer. However, the most current map showing there is City Navigator North America NT 2015.4. How do I get the most current maps on MapInstall then?

The first link mentions a c500, which is a Street Pilot. Didn't know if the c500 was a later version of the Nuvi 500 or not.

When my 660 first encountered a problem with the map being too large due to "Not enough memory", I purchased a SD card. No Garmin software would let me D/L over 2Gb. I downloaded a "Free" map that was over 2Gb and put it on the SD card. When I switched to it through the user interface - it would not load, or would hang. I don't remember the exact details. Since then I install the main map using GE and use MapInstall to load the rest onto the SD card. I'll never need the extra, since I use only the 3597 now, but the son may borrow it someday for a trip to Canada.

I tried the "Cloning" method as well, and that would not work.

Maybe Jim1348 could install a Free map over 2 Gb to the SD card and see if it works.

MapInstall can only install maps from your computer to your GPS if the map is first installed to the computer.

Using Garmin Express, click your GPS device, then click Map Options, and finally click Install Map to Computer. This will install the latest map (currently 2016.10) to your computer. Once 2016.10 is on the computer, and with your nuvi connected to the computer, open MapInstall which will let you install the parts of 2016.10 not on your nuvi to a SD card. Be sure you know what portion of 2016.10 is already installed to the nuvi, then in MapInstall select the regions not on your nuvi and install them to the SD card.

That should work although I'll confess I haven't needed to use this procedure for years.

The StreetPilot C500 is an earlier GPS than the nuvi 500. The C500 series was released in March 2006 while the nuvi 500 was released in July 2008 according to Wikipedia.

Your 660 results certainly could be due to the 2GB filesize limit. But if the 660 can't use large files, it should be mentioned on the Garmin faq listing the GPS devices that can't use large files. I'm left confused and can't test it myself since I don't have a nuvi 5x0 or 6x0 to try map updates.

[Update]
You may be right given this older link agreeing that the 660 has a 2GB filesize limit:

http://www.poi-factory.com/node/44570

Given this, I agree that a nuvi 500 will most likely also have the 2GB filesize limit and if so, the best way to get the full map update on these older models is to install the largest map possible to the nuvi (and also install the map to the computer), then use MapInstall to install to a SD card the portions of the map update that weren't installed to the nuvi. Garmin confused me by not including these models in their faq listing the models unable to use files over 2GB.

Quote:
◦nuvi 300/500/600/800/805 series

Note that they list 600 series. I have always assumed that that included the 660. They list the 800 and 805 as different series. So I have always thought that that xx5 series was different electronically. Think about the way they list firmware updates. There always seem to be "xx"s in them.

Somewhere there must be a chart explaining the model numbering system, which has probably changed over the years.

The current software version for the nuvi 5xx is 4.30. If you have software 3.40 or later, the nuvi 500 will support map files larger than 2 GB on SD.

Here is the software change log for your reference: http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=4249

Note that support for files > 2 GB was added in version 3.40

Great find alandb!!!!!
Hopefully, that will solve the problem.

Well, in that case, I return to my suggestion that the OP use the clone method and to put the entire 2016.10 map on the SD card rather than split it between the nuvi and SD card with MapInstall.

It's certainly odd to me that Garmin would update the nuvi 500 series to accept files over 2GB in size but not also offer a firmware update for the 600 series. The 600 series update history:

http://www8.garmin.com/support/download_details.jsp?id=1925

shows a past update allowing larger SD cards but never mentions file size. Either they never updated the 600 series to use files over 2GB or it was always there. From the old Factory link on the 660, both alandb and metricman state that the 660 still has the 2GB limit. So it appears that the older nuvi 500 can read files bigger than the nuvi 600 series can. Very odd.

I'd like to make a suggestion regarding splitting the map after having it downloaded to the PC.

Create a map for an area you most likely will be visiting and send that one to the Nuvi. Put the remainder on the SD card.
Now uncheck the map that's on the SD card in the map info screen. This will let the Nuvi boot faster, should you need the map on the SD card, simply put a check next to it.

Note: Just be careful when dividing the map and make sure you don't have double coverage of an area on the two maps.
Doing so, you will encounter search feature issues. You won't get search results when there is double coverage because the Nuvi gets confused (like me) since it's on both maps.

Actually, the nuvi 5xx series is about two years newer than the nuvi 660. It is about the same generation device as the nuvi 2x5 series. The thing that made the 500/550 unique is that it was a "crossover" between an automotive GPS and a handheld. It had the same basic design characteristics as the 2x0, but was waterproof, and its software had native support for geocaching and other handheld functions. Because it was waterproof, it was quite popular with with motorcyclists as a cheaper alternative to a zumo.

http://www.poi-factory.com/node/42240

That 'splains everything now...except why Garmin hasn't included the 600 series in their 2GB file limit faq,

I think they have CraigW, in the first link provided by metricman: https://support.garmin.com/support/searchSupport/case.faces?...

Time to get the glasses checked Craig

While searching, I came across a comment on another forum that stated that Garmin Support told them it's the number of sections that are limited. The 2 levels are 2025 and 4025(?). The 660 is limited to 2025 sections

Also, there may be a physical limitation as to how much memory the 660 can access. For me, it's kind of a moot point, since all of NA is on the 660 and accessible.

Nope, it's a memory issue , especially since I offered the link in my 2nd reply in this thread. Does eBay offer RAM updates for human brains?

If human Ram were available on Ebay, you can be sure I'd be the highest bidder.