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| Garmin nuvi 200 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator | 
 enlarge | Brand: Garmin
Category: CE
List Price: $419.98
Buy New: $108.50
You Save: $311.48 (74%)
Buy New/Used/Refurbished
Avg. Customer Rating:  (496 reviews)
Sales Rank: 164
Platform: Not Machine Specific
Color: SILVER
Media: Electronics
Memorabilia: No
Number Of Items: 1
Batteries Included: Yes
Native Resolution: 320 x 240
Display Size: 3.5
Includes MP3 Player: 1
Legal Disclaimer: Warranty does not cover misuse of product.
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 3.8 x 0.8 x 2.8
MPN: Nuvi 200
Model: Nuvi 200
UPC: 753759065607
EAN: 0753759065607
ASIN: B000NVZE5M
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Basic but invaluable October 26, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
On the scale of available GPS navigation systems, the Garmin nuevi 200 is a relatively modest machine with a small price tag and not a lot of the fancy new bells and whistles. But for what you pay, you get a lot. The core functionality (which is all I was interested in) works extremely well and makes this an invaluable tool whenever I am driving to someplace new.
The touchscreen is perfectly adequate; it's neither too sensitive nor difficult to use. Some of the menu navigation is a little non-intuitive (it is not always obvious which things on the map screen are "clickable"), but is reasonable once you get the hang of it. Again, the features are basic, but do everything one would feasibly expect.
This model does not speak the road names, so you'll have to read them off the screen. Thankfully, I find the screen very easy to read in daylight and at night. The device automatically adjusts the brightness and the background colors depending on which side of sunrise and sunset you are. This may seems like a minor feature but is actually very helpful.
The speaking voice is very clear and distinct. Even with the radio on, it's easy to make out the spoken directions.
I have found the maps to be complete and the directions it gives to be reasonable. There have been occasions when driving through an area which I already am familiar with when the device tells me to go a sub-optimal way. However, it has never steered me completely wrong. I find the directions to be completely comparable to the results I get from Google Maps, Yahoo Maps or MapQuest.
Similar to my reaction to cell-phones several years back, a car GPS was something that I hadn't fully appreciated until I actually owned one. Before I bought mine, I figured that it would merely be a helpful and occasionally handy tool. Now I simply am unable to comprehend how I ever drove without one. I've been house shopping recently, and the ability to simply have a list of addresses in the car with me instead of pages and pages of map and direction printouts reduces my stress-levels considerably.
 Garmin has better options October 19, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I bought this unit and returned it after a week. My husband has an older model from Garmin and one of the features I love about it is that it tells me what street to turn on. Instead of saying "turn right in .5 miles" - it says "turn right in .5 miles on North Road". This newer model however - does not give you the street names. You have to read the screen to see what the street is - and since this unit is so small - good for portability - I found myself squinting at the screen.
I have since purchased the Nuvi 350 instead.
Pros:
Tiny & Portable
Easy to Program
Cons:
No directions by street name
Recommendation:
Spend $30 more and get the 350 instead.
 Illegal and terrible directions October 17, 2008
0 out of 3 found this review helpful
WARNING: Using this for navigation could be very dangerous!!! I just got this and after testing it to plan 2 routes over roads I know very well, I found I cannot trust the routes it chooses. The first one told me to make an illegal left turn in front of 3 lanes of traffic. The next one took me through terrible city traffic over a much longer distance, rather than use the Interstate. It also labeled an Interstate with the wrong number. Yes, I had it configured properly, and downloaded updated software as of Oct 16, 2008. So, the only use for this is as a tiny (possibly inaccurate) map or for GPS coordinates, speed, and elapsed time.
Fragile digitizer & horrible customer service October 17, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
The digitizers on garmin products are fragile. The section cup mount is not sufficient to mount the unit, it will release unexpectedly after long trips. For this reason a dash mount is preferable to the included windshield mount, unless you have quick reflexes.
This is the second product from garmin I've owned where the digitizer has cracked in under a year. Customer service is terrible and the repair cost is nearly the price of a new unit.
This unit suffers from frequent confusion and periodically recommends illegal U-turns in the middle of major intersections or old map data will recommend bad routes (new map upgrade is $69). Also periodically it will not recognize that you have passed your via point and will enter in to a verbal loop where is repeats the same direction until the unit is turned off and restarted.
Don't waste your money.
I've owned a few older LCD/digitizer touch screen or stylus type devices that ran flawlessly until obsolescence. I've never encountered such a fragile device, but as I have not had experience with tomtom or competitors. I don't know if this related to the glass digitizer or if it is specific to the garmin device's design (thin glass, lack of included screen protector).
 Garmin nuvi 200 October 14, 2008
Garmin nuvi 200 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator
Nuvi 200 is a great GPS that I have no problem recommending - excellent 3-D map, route calculation, interface, overall design, and battery life.
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