My new 680 arrived. It sucks, so far…

 

After all the anticipation, the performance is worse than the 660 that I returned.

First off, I went through the 4.20 update and the MSN Direct activation setup. More on that later…

Starting out in the map mode, I drove a few miles from my home and got on the 5 FWY heading North. Right away I could tell there was a problem because the 680 shows me as traveling an a street paralleling the freeway. After approx. 3 miles it finally had me on the freeway, but at this point it became clear that the 680 was lagging behind my actual position and on top of that it only showed the exit numbers rather than the actual name (the 660 had spot on positioning and gave the exit's name). It was upsetting to me that I'd be passing exits before the unit showed them at the top of the screen, particularly since I hadn't experienced anything like this with the 660.

I was getting more and more disgusted with this unit. Maybe they're using their own chip in this production run?

I couldn't get the MSM butterfly to show anything but "inactive," so I called them and the support guy tells me that it's because I'm using the cellphone/Nuvi bluetooth setup and that I can't use both. Next I turned off bluetooth and tried again, but same thing, MSN inactive. Another call to MSN got me the info that I needed to update to MSN GBD SW v2.30 and then go back and start the activation process over.

When I got home, I looked for this update and realized that there was no update in the list of models for the 680 and that because Garmiin still shows me as having a 660 as well as my new 680, it must have given me the 660 update.

I attempted to delete the 660 but there's no option to do this online, so I guess I'll have to wait until the morning to call them.

So for now, no update and if, after I install it, there's no way to use it with my bluetooth phone setup I think it goes back to Costco.

If that happens, I'm back to wondering if I should go back to the 660 or upgrade to a 760 and start looking for the best price.

The only good thing about this situation is that prices should still be coming down.

Any comments on fixes for my issues?

Thanks for your thoughts,

GeneL

Updating

Did you get the "Web Updater" from Garmin and run this for updating the 680?

Also I use both bluetooth and MSN with no problems.

--
Allan Barnett - Garmin nüvi 885T/765T/Pharos GPS (bluetooth) w/MS Maps on PPC

Updating

I've had my 680 since they came out and I have never had your problems. I run my blue-tooth phone everyday and I get MSN traffic alerts as well. I don't have any lag at all. If it continues, get another one. The 680 is great.

--
Larry - Nuvi 680, Nuvi 1690, Nuvi 2797LMT

I finally got through to Garmin support and, at least fixed …

I finally got through to Garmin support and at least fixed the MSN update. I have to wait until the morning to see if it now works in the car. If it does, then one of my issues is fixed.

I'm glad to hear that others have had no problem using the MSN Direct along with bluetooth. Thanks for posting about that. smile

The other, and I would say, much bigger issue is that there have been a multitude of miss-location issues. For instance, my previous 660 would recognize when I left the street that I live on and turned into the driveway going to my carport. It would say arrived at "Home" (which is designated as "Home on both Nuvis) as I drove in. The 680 ends up showing me as back on Pacific Coast Hwy, which runs parallel to our complex and as I drive to my parking spot it keeps going, showing a route as if I'm driving on the highway. As I said, this never happened with the 660.

When I drive up Pacific Coast Hwy (PCH) it shows the streets that change names on either side of PCH, but only the names on the right side as I drive North and only the ones on the left side as I drive South. Problem is that it doesn't indicate the MAJOR street names when there are two names. I seem to remember that the 660 gave both street names separated by a hyphen or a slash. Most directions I give about how to get back to the freeway is to go to Crown Valley Parkway and take that all the way to the 5 FWY. If they were heading South on PCH they would only see Monarch Bay Drive, the entrance to a guarded community, not Crown Valley Parkway (you get the idea, right?).

Last, and probably the most problematic, it seems not to be in sync with my actual location, what with showing me on an adjacent street or lagging behind in showing both street names and fwy exits Also it only shows the exit numbers, not the actual names of the exits. The 660 showed both.

Looks like it will take another call to Garmin on Monday. Too bad they're not open on the weekend. sad

I would have been back to Costco to return this POS if I hadn't experienced the 660's getting these things right. Maybe there's still a chance that I can get the 680 to work properly or that a replacement will provide the fix that I need?

I would have kept the 660 if I hadn't learned that I could save between $200 to $300 by returning it when I did. Now, I wish I had my old 660 back, working the way a Nuvi is supposed to.

Oh well, sigh! Maybe it will all get straightened out.

Thanks again for your thoughts,

GeneL

I just got a 680 and while

I just got a 680 and while the bluetooth works well with my phone, the volume just isn't loud enough to be useful for hands free. The FM transmitter performance is so poor that it is also useless.

Garmin would have done better to provide a way to connected directly into the antenna line simlar to XM Radio receivers.

bluetooth/fm

On my unit, the bluetooth is loud and I have to turn it down... while if I use the FM which souds great, there is to much echo for my wife's liking.

--
Allan Barnett - Garmin nüvi 885T/765T/Pharos GPS (bluetooth) w/MS Maps on PPC