Garmin Update...worth The Money?

[Luvbelly]

I hooked up my Nuvi today and it suggested I check the Garmin site for map updates. I was a bit shocked when I saw the prices. Expected $30 or $40 for the new maps but was a bit shocked when they wanted $70 for a one time update. I don't use the deivce often but if needed it doesn't serve the purpose with the maps out of date. Are you guys shelling out for the update or just buying a new unit every couple years?

[RyanbabZ71]

I did for mine and I have been trying to upload the new maps onto mine for a few days now. I have a new computer and it is currently downloading so we will see. Is it worth it? Mine is a few yrs old and it doesnt find alot of addresses I put in so I think it will suit me fine. I went with the lifetime update.

[hockeypro1411]

What do you know about torrents? Free maps anyone?

[Stouffer]

Depends on what year map it has and what Nuvi you have. I what every couple of years with all the construction going on it is not worth doing it every year where I am at.

[jnpaddison]

for local updates ,, give or take a year , if i was going cross country - i'd say it would be worth the upgrade

[Delmarva]

I updated mine once and won't do it again. I had gotten used to the routing of the previous firmware level, and the new routings of the new firmware level didn't make any sense to me.

[sk]

I updated mine once and won't do it again. I had gotten used to the routing of the previous firmware level, and the new routings of the new firmware level didn't make any sense to me.

But did you update just the firmware, or just the maps, or both? Firmware updates are free but map updates are not. You can also update the maps without updating the firmware.

[97SierraGMC]

What do you know about torrents? Free maps anyone?

 

thats what i have been for the past couple years

[97SierraGMC]

What do you know about torrents? Free maps anyone?

 

thats what i have been for the past couple years

[Chris's 07]

I did on mine , but mine is also ran off my head unit.

[Delmarva]

I updated mine once and won't do it again. I had gotten used to the routing of the previous firmware level, and the new routings of the new firmware level didn't make any sense to me.

But did you update just the firmware, or just the maps, or both? Firmware updates are free but map updates are not. You can also update the maps without updating the firmware.

 

 

I did both... the firmware screwed me and the maps didn't seem any different...

[97SierraGMC]

I updated mine once and won't do it again. I had gotten used to the routing of the previous firmware level, and the new routings of the new firmware level didn't make any sense to me.

But did you update just the firmware, or just the maps, or both? Firmware updates are free but map updates are not. You can also update the maps without updating the firmware.

 

 

I did both... the firmware screwed me and the maps didn't seem any different...

 

 

i think the maps more or less add more info to places and address more than add new streets and stuff

[Delmarva]

I updated mine once and won't do it again. I had gotten used to the routing of the previous firmware level, and the new routings of the new firmware level didn't make any sense to me.

But did you update just the firmware, or just the maps, or both? Firmware updates are free but map updates are not. You can also update the maps without updating the firmware.

 

 

I did both... the firmware screwed me and the maps didn't seem any different...

 

 

i think the maps more or less add more info to places and address more than add new streets and stuff

 

 

You're right. My neighborhood wasn't on my nuvi until I updated it. It also had some POI updates for new places in town.

[Nick The Great]

It's gonna depend where you are and what you do. Around here, the roads don't change that much.

 

I rarely use POI, more often just directly type the address.

[Spurshot]

Of course, I updated mine when I got them new. Both Garmins. The first Garmin I got was a few yrs ago that my wife bought for me. This last yr, my brother bought me a new Garmin 265 or some such model from Costco. He also bought a topo map pkg for California and gave me a copy on a SD card that plugged into the gps. Pretty neat stuff.

 

I haven't updated the old unit and don't plan to. But, I travel for work and pleasure thruout the west, to the eastcoast, or the Seattle area enough that I want reasonably recent mapping software. I take the thing with me for use in rental cars quite often. In October, I drove from Calif to South Dakota and back thru Yellowstone and many other places on the way home. The week of last Thanksgiving, I took my gps with me in a rental car from NJ down to Norfolk and over to Roanoake, then back thru PA and back to NJ and up to Boston. I would have been a lot more frustrated in the cities with just maps. I'll be in Seattle next week. Current software is important to me.