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2013 Garmin Nuvi series gives more human sounding directions

LAS VEGAS -- There's life yet to be found in the portable navigation market. Garmin has just pulled the wraps off of its new line of Nuvi GPS navigators at CES 2013. We were able to get a brief hands-on with what appears to be the best Garmin Nuvi models yet.

Before we get too carried away, the new Nuvi models largely behave like the old models, but there are a few new features that bear mentioning. Most interestingly, the new Nuvis boast a feature that Garmin calls Real Directions, which augments the standard turn-by-turn directions and text-to-speech spoken … Read more

Garmin's Nuvi 3590LMT cozies up to Android phones for data

LAS VEGAS--Garmin's no stranger to connected portable navigation devices (PNDs), but its newest top-of-the-line model connects to the Internet using the connection that you've already got in your pocket.

Previous generations of Garmin's connected PNDs utilized an internal GSM antenna to connect to the NuLink service. The new Nuvi 3590LMT is able to connect via Bluetooth to an Android phone running its Garmin Smartphone Link app, gaining access to Garmin's live services such as traffic information, traffic camera images, weather, and fuel prices to its navigation device, utilizing the smartphone's mobile data plan. The free … Read more

Garmin Nuvi Essentials series: Simple, yet effective

Sometimes, you don't want a ton of bells and whistles on your GPS device. Sometimes, you just want to reliably and cheaply get from point Alpha to Bravo.

Enter Garmin's Essentials series of Nuvi GPS navigators. Specifically, we're taking a look at the largest model in the entry-level Essentials series: the 5-inch Garmin Nuvi 50.

There aren't many surprises here where design is concerned. If you've handled a Garmin Nuvi in the last half decade, you'll know exactly what to expect from the 50. The icons are all where you'd expect them to … Read more

Crave giveaway: Garmin GPS unit with Wallace & Gromit voice skin

If you tend to get lost whilst out for walkies wearing the wrong trousers, this week's giveaway could help point you in the right direction. The prize? A Garmin Nuvi 1300 GPS unit and downloadable Wallace & Gromit voice skin. It'll guarantee you a grand day out.

The new voice skin features Wallace and his ever-faithful canine pal Gromit offering turn-by-turn directions such as "Are we nearly there yet? Only Gromit's got his Tai-Chi class later, an' I'm ready for me tea" and "Well would you believe it, we have reached our destination, ha, ha, crack open the Caerphilly." All the while, you'll see the pair's infamous van driving across the on-screen map.

The Garmin Nuvi 1300 GPS unit normally costs $110, with the W&G voice skin going for $12.99, but you have a chance to get both for less than the cost of a nice slice of Wensleydale (i.e. free).

So how do you try to win this week's prize? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test (administered in a British accent, of course). … Read more

Crave giveaway: Garmin GPS unit with Darth Vader VoiceSkin

If you're a Star Wars geek who happens to get lost a lot, it's a good thing you found your way to this week's Crave giveaway. The prize is a Garmin Nuvi 255WT GPS unit preloaded with Garmin's newly released Darth Vader VoiceSkin.

That means the dark lord will be steering you around town with such directions as "Turn around when possible. I find your lack of faith disturbing," and "In 100 yards, take the exit left, and do not fail me this time!" Does your fancy-shmancy in-car nav system talk to you like that? We didn't think so. (Hear samples of the menacing commands here.)

Normally, the Garmin Nuvi 255WT GPS unit with a preloaded Darth Vader VoiceSkin would cost around $125.99, but you have the chance to snag it gratis.

So how do you try to win this week's prize? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test (in Bocce, of course). … Read more

Garmin supersizes the Nuvi at CES

LAS VEGAS--There was once a time when a 4.3-inch screen on a GPS device was considered huge, but now that's just the entry level. These days it takes a retina-searing 5-inch display or larger to stand out among a sea of navigators and GPS-enabled smartphones. Along those lines, Garmin has just pulled the wraps off of its new, supersized Nuvi 2400 series of GPS navigators.

Snarky comments about the ever-enlarging portable navigation device form factor aside, the 2400 series' 5-inch screen can aid in visibility and reduce the amount of time spent scrutinizing a tiny digital map.

More … Read more

Garmin updates its other flagship model

We recently awarded the svelte and lightweight Garmin Nuvi 3790T our prestigious Editors' Choice Award. However, we have always considered the 3790T to be a co-flagship model to the more fully featured Garmin Nuvi 1690 with NuLink. Not content to let the series rest on its laurels, Garmin has just updated the 1600 series with the new Garmin NuLink 1695.

One of the first things you might notice is the new moniker. The official title has been changed from "Nuvi" to "NuLink!"--complete with the exclamation point. The change in name emphasizes the importance of the … Read more