Short Unbiased Review of Garmin 260W Portable GPS Navigator
Posted in Uncategorized on 02/20/2010 02:47 pm by PeterGarmin announced the nuvi 260W, a user-friendly widescreen personal navigation device that speaks street names. It’s not a big surprise that since Garmin introduced the Nuvi 200/250 line and then the 200W and the 250W line, that the Nuvi 260 would be follow-up by a widescreen version too.
In addition to the features offered by other members of the nuvi 200 family, the Garmin nuvi 260W instantly calls out street names (saying “turn right on Main Street” instead of “turn right in 200 feet.”). This safety feature allows drivers to keep their eyes on the road while navigating through busy traffic and tricky roadways. The nuvi 260W also sports a sunlight-readable 4.3-inch touchscreen display.
“The nuvi 260W gives consumers the most sought-after navigation features, while eliminating many of the premium add-ons,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin’s vice president of worldwide sales. “The result is a PND that simply gets you from point A to point B – reliably, efficiently, and with style.”
The Garmin 260W has a built-in GPS antenna that makes it thinner and even easier to install in a car. The intuitive “Where To?” and “View Map” welcome screen allows users to quickly find a specific street address or establishment’s name, or search for a destination by category. Turn-by-turn, voice-prompted directions then guide the driver to their destination. If they miss a turn along the route, the nuvi automatically recalculates a route and gets them back on track, speaking the names of the streets along the way. The nuvi 260W includes preloaded detailed mapping of the entire United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico – with over six million points of interest (like hotels, restaurants, ATMs, gas stations, and more).
The pocket-sized nuvi 260W also includes a built-in picture viewer, calculator, currency converter, unit converter and world clock. These new navigators are also well-suited with Garmin’s line of rich content such as the Garmin Travel Guide(TM) and Garmin Language Guide(TM). For additional security, Garmin has included the Garmin Lock(TM), an innovative patent pending theft prevention system that disables the unit from performing any functions until the user types in a specific 4-digit PIN or takes the unit to a predetermined secure location. Garmin has also added the ability for customers to add custom points of interest (POI’s) from third parties such as school zones and safety cameras.
The nuvi 260W includes a vehicle suction cup mount, vehicle power cable, dashboard disk, and owner’s reference manual.
It is also one of the least expensive auto GPS unit you can buy.