Great GPS - value and easy to use

I bought this to replace a very old unit. My cell phone GPS was not doing a good job. Great value - lifetime maps, city traffic advisories and a large screen. My only complaint is that it is not easy to force a certain route. I wanted to avoid Chicago in my trip north. When I entered Rockford, IL as a waypoint, it tried to route me downtown instead of keeping me on the Interstate. I tried using the intersection option but it was difficult going through the search choices. If they added an option for me to use a certain road (i.e I-39), it would have made it easier.

Loved it!

We had a different Garmin that gave us a lot of problems and almost didn't purchace another one but I am glad we did. I am not happy about the instruction book. Not clear enough. Wish it had better information. We were two weeks into out trip before we discoved more features also I wish it had a button to push to make it talk when I want it to. My last one did and this one may have it but with lack of instructions I don't know.We just completed a 3000 mile trip and it was great!

A problem?

I own several other Garmin GPS's and have been extremely satisfied with them. I have also owned a Magellan GPS that dies just after the warrenty ran out, but was very inaccurate almost from the Git Go. This Garmin is a puzzle. I love the large screen, recalulations are fast and lane select is great. But I've found that when I have it just in the standby mode, that being not running a navigation, sometimes there is no road showing. It does tell me what road I'm on across the top, but does not display the road. Not a big deal for some people, but I like to know what the road ahead looks like, especially at night. My old Garmins do a great job of painting the route ahead. The free updates are great and for the most part, the unit works as advertised. I am a die hard Garmin fan and have been for years. I also have Garmin products on my boat, so am confident in them.

Good upgrade for an old Garmin

I purchased this Garmin to replace n older unit that did not have the lifetime maps and traffic feature. It seems to be a good unit amd if you read the fine print about the upgrade (must register and upgrade at least every 12 months I believe) it should last a long time. I own 3 other Garmin products and have no problem recomending this unit to others.

Nice GPS with lifetime maps for a good price

I finally learned that the most expensive part of owning a GPS is updating the maps. So, lifetime maps are worth it. Finally, a GPS that knows the roads, instead of telling me I am in the middle of a field somewhere! This thing has updated maps. The traffic feature is kind of nice, I guess, but I haven't really used it.