Nuvi 250 or 350 with Athermic window

gouezeri · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jul 02, 2007 Posts: 7

Hi, I'm looking for some user recommendations/assurances.

Currently looking at both the nuvi 250 & 350; the main requirement being the European maps. I don't really need the bluetooth or mp3 capabilities of the 360. My main concern is using a nuvi 250 mounted in the centre of the dash (I want it reachable for both driver and passenger) with an athermic screen (citroen picasso). The only advantages of the 3*0 series for me would be the ability to add an exterior antenna and maybe TTS. As an aside, does the 360 support multiple destinations/waypoints on a single route?

So the real question is will I need an external antenna and would the 3*0 be worth the extra money (currently about 60 pounds extra) given that it is an older model?

Thanks in advance for any help!
D

philpugh · Posted: Wed Jul 04, 2007 9:43 pm Post subject:

It's highly likely you will need an external GPS antenna with your athermic windscreen. Although the units are quite sensitive - they usually do require a bit of additional help - especially in getting the initial fix.

Non of the current nuvis support multiple destinations - however you can add one 'via' to a route.

How I approach this problem is to set up all destinations as Favourites - then just navigate to the next one after you reach the previous one. It only takes a little bit of extra work before the journey.

AFAIK there aren't any consumer PNDs that do real multidrop routing (i.e. best route to get to all destinations.)
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Phil

gouezeri · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jul 02, 2007 Posts: 7

Thanks for the help Phil. It looks like the 3** series is going to be a safer option, in order to have access to the external antenna.
Thanks again

portman · Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2007 10:12 am Post subject:

If you get a Brodit vent mount for your picasso it will be much easier to reach and away from the windscreen so either Nuvi would work. You'll need the clip to attach to the car then the adapter to fit the Nuvi, DSL developments on ebay is a good place to start. I've got my 310 on the drivers side small window just with the normal garmin mount.
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Samsung Mega
Tomtom 500

gouezeri · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jul 02, 2007 Posts: 7

Useful information, thanks PM
I'd stumbled across the Brodit mounts during my searches, but only noticed them for TTs. I'll go and do another search and see what I can find related to Nuvis. I've not received the device yet (hopefully today), but as soon as I do, I'll try a few different options and post back with any results for other members.
Thanks
D

philpugh · Posted: Fri Jul 06, 2007 10:26 am Post subject:

gouezeri · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jul 02, 2007 Posts: 7

I can't comment on whether a Brodit mount would help with an athermic window, but it should help me to position the GPS where I want it. Placing the GPS lower down would also make it easier and neater to run cables to an external antenna at the back of the vehicle (either on the shelf or the roof) if needs be. As soon as the device arrives, I'll have a play and see to what extent the location of the GPS has an effect on the signal in my car.

portman · Posted: Sat Jul 07, 2007 12:16 pm Post subject:

I've got a Nuvi 310 in my Picasso on the side window and works fine, by putting a 250 or 310 on the centre vent rather than the windscreen it is away from the screen(its a big screen!!) and so would receive a better signal, my big glass sunroof may also help. The other benefit is that you can reach the gps because the windscreen in the picasso is a long way off!
_________________
Samsung Mega
Tomtom 500

gouezeri · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jul 02, 2007 Posts: 7

Ok, well I've had the chance to try this out now, driving from London to Norwich to Oxford and back to London. Not what I would call an extensive test, but at least enough to know what works and what doesn't! As Portman points out, the Picasso windscreen is pretty big, and set a long way away, which isn't ideal. However, once the unit has a lock, it does seem to work ok if attached to the windscreen (though with a weaker signal of 5-6 sats). Bringing the unit away from the screen and placing it anywhere further forward than the speedo, or to either side, increases the reception greatly (over the weekend I was averaging 8-10 sats). So far I don't think I will need an external antenna, which is good news.

As far as mounting goes, I've not had the chance to try many options. The suction cup seems to work fine on glass, but refuses to stick to anything which is not completely smooth and clean. The only option here would be to use the supplied disc and stick it somewhere on the dash. I might try that, but for the moment I'm looking at other options. The Brodit proclip is a definite option (if expensive), but I'm slightly concerned about it advertising the presence of some kind of GPS/PDA/Phone device to thieves, particularly when people talk about thieves looking for telltale suction cup marks on windows, as the proclip is far more obvious than that. I'm also looking at trying the Garmin "friction mount" (bean bag affair) and a replacement suction cup mount which might be strong enough to attach to the dash. I'll post back with any results.

Anybody looking to replace their mount might want to have a scan of this thread
D

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