Garmin n vi 500 3 5 Inch Portable GPS Navigator

Garmin n vi 500 3 5 Inch Portable GPS Navigator

The Garmin nuvi 500 will guide you while you drive, hike, bike or boat. Go sightseeing with geotagged images from Garmin Connect Photos or see your terrain with the digital elevation model basemap. The nuvi 500 comes preloaded with highly detailed City Navigator North America NT Lower 48 States plus topographic maps for the U.S. The preloaded map data features millions of points of interest, including hotels, restaurants, gas stations, ATMs and attractions. The map data is provided by NAVTEQ, a world leader in premium-quality mapping. Geocaching, including Wherigo Platform player Built-in DEM Basemap (Digital Elevation Model) 3.5 QVGA color antiglare TFT with white Backlight Touchscreen Display – 320 x 240 Pixels User replaceable lithium-ion battery – up to 8 hours depending on use Dimensions – Width 4.21 x Height 3.35 x Depth 0.9 (10.7×8.5×2.3cm) Weight – 7.6 ounces (215 grams)

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars Power button?
I’ve owned Garmin Nuvi’s before and they are great! And with the nuvi 500 I got free map upgrades when i registered it.

The only issue I have with the 500 is the power button. Most of the other models have a sliding button that prevents accidental turn-ons and turn-offs. With the 500 its a push button that only needs one tap to turn on. For a all purpose unit that is put into pockets and backpacks, this is annoying because it gets bumped and turned on wasting battery life. I dont understand Garmins logic behind the power button on this model.

4 Stars Good Choice
I purchased this item 6 weeks ago and have used it mostly for geocaching but my son used it in the car and it has functioned well for both of us. It has served me very well in caching, the points seem to be accurate as I compared it to my sister’s smaller gps (I can’t remeber what kind she has). The only thing I haven’t figured out yet is how to delete my caches once I have logged them and want to get rid of the info but in all fairness, I haven’t called the help line either. If you want a gps for more than one function, it also has a bicycling mode on it, this seems to do well.

1 Star Poor customer service
I based my one star rating on extremely poor customer service and the fact that the Nuvi 500 is NOT updated for 2008-2009. When I called to ask for the update I was told due to the topo and other map features on the Nuvi 500 there is no update yet. The best part was when the customer “service” rep asked me why didn’t I get the 550?

I was directed to a more senior rep’s answering machine. Of course I have received no return phone calls, nor return email. It is like sending into a black hole.

Unfortunately I am stuck with this now as Amazon won’t take returns after 30 day without big penalties.

I will never buy another Garmin product.

5 Stars Good price, great Performance
I have had this GPS for over a month now. It works very well. It replaced a much older GPS of another brand. It cost almost half as much and does much more. It is nice for walking as well as driving. It fits in a shirt pocket. I recommend spending a bit more for this model than the less loaded model.

4 Stars good all-around gps
I’ve used my nuvi 500 for mototcycling (with RAM mount), geocaching, and in the car. It’s been on the bike in driving rain without problem.

The Bad: Only car charging cable included. A standard, inexpensive USB cable will transfer data with a computer…but won’t charge the unit. Lack of magnetic compass hurts geocaching capabilities. No headphone jack. Maps don’t differentiate between a good gravel road and a dirt path that requires 4wd and a winch. POI’s are missing many long-standing establishments. Even after doing all the auto updates, mine still doesn’t speak street names. Where’s the manual?

The Good:

It has saved my bacon on several occasions and despite some shortcomings, I’d buy the same unit again if I lost this one. You can buy GPS units that will do any one job better….but it’s tough to find one that will do a passable job at all of them.

Buy/More Info