Motorola MOTONAV TN30 4.3-Inch Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I have had 2-3 other GPS units for my SUV over the years such as Garmin, and Megellan. I believe this one works as well as the other units in terms of showing your position on the map, re-calculating your route and general information on the screen. Searching for location and displaying POI's is on par with similiar GPS systems. Where the TN30 is better than the other units is it offers Bluetooth hands free calling on my cell phone. The unit paired right up with my phone and the sound is loud and clear. The other nice feature is the spoken street names. I really like knowing the exact street to turn on when in a new or unfamiliar location. I can glance at the street sign an know for sure this is my turn. I would have given it five stars but Motorola does not have a map update for their GPS units at this time and mine came the NavTeq maps from the first quarter of 2008 (NT 2008.Q1). You can find other units with newer maps or map updates from the manufacturer. With no updates available yet it makes me wonder the commitment of Motorola in the GPS market. Map issues aside, overall I am very happy with the product.

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For those who can't live without a personal navigation system and their mobile phone when on the go, the advanced MOTONAV TN30 enhances all the great features of a standard GPS with added bonuses. MOTONAV TN30 is an ultra-durable Bluetooth enabled, portable GPS navigation system that combines the confidence of finding destinations with a speaker for hands-free cell phone connectivity on the road.

Find Your Way... And Then Some MOTONAV TN30 provides Motorola's best-in-class Bluetooth wireless technology to enable drivers to make and receive hands-free calls with a compatible phone through the unit's internal speaker. This technology automatically quiets directions while a call is in progress and shows Caller ID on the 4.3-inch screen.
Locate Anything, Anywhere TN30 also provides easy-to-follow, clearly spoken street names and directions along with accurate maps and routing on screen. Mapping covers the entire U.S., Puerto Rico and Canada, and features over four million pre-loaded points of interest to allow drivers to find virtually any local business, restaurant or gas station. Its 4.3-inch touch-screen interface allows drivers to effortlessly type in their destination and navigate with ease. Create routes in both 2D and 3D modes for an enhanced viewing experience. Ideal for everyday driving, TN30 provides on-screen speed, distance, arrival time, elevation, and distance travelled as well as fastest and shortest route options. Users can zoom in and out, and explore the maps by touching and dragging their finger on the screen. An SD card slot allows for additional map loading (sold separately). TN30 helps drivers easily find their way using several options, including recent destinations, saved favorite locations or plan a new route.
Follows Whenever You Go The TN30 is ultra portable, and can easily be transferred between vehicles, making it easy to take along on trips. The system mounts on a vehicle windshield with included suction cup holder for easy use.
Features
Bluetooth hands-free calling and Caller ID
Hear spoken street names and turn-by-turn directions
Search restaurants, gas stations, banks and more
Lane guidance shows which lanes to use
Anti-glare 4.3-inch touch screen
Preloaded maps of the 50 U.S. states, Puerto Rico and Canada
Automatic day/night mode adjustment
2D and 3D map perspectives
Zoom and move maps with a finger
Millions of searchable points of interest
Shows speed limit display and warning
SD card slot for updated maps
USB port for charging

What's in the Box MOTONAV TN30, windshield mount, dash mount and in-car charger

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Motorola Motonav TN565T 4.3-Inch Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator Review

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(More customer reviews)It's going to be a long review.
For starters, I've used in-car OEM GPS for the past 2 cars, and I've seen how they have evolved and technology has really improved over the years.
I really enjoy the GPS/bluetooth/audio integration (in my Honda Civic Hybrid) but since this is a hand held unit, I won't complain. Besides, it's fractions of the cost 1/10 of the OEM GPS Navigation units).
The screen size is just right. Even though I've enjoyed the OEM 7" GPS, but this one packs lots of information in the 4.3" very nicely. Even when you are driving at a location with 7 lanes, it highlights exactly which lane you should be driving. It is very updated (there's a location nearby my house finished construction 2 years ago but my new 2009 Civic didn't have an updated map of that Freeway interchange. But this one did. And it is a very confusing interchange, but this one executed the command and routing beautifully.
The speed in pulling up a destination is a bit slow when compared to my in-dash unit. And the GPS signal sensitivity is a bit low (since it has no external antenna. when I am in a car port or under a highway overpass too long, it may lose GPS signal.
The routing announcement is tooooo frequent. I guess if you are in a new area and are stressed out trying to find your destination, it's good to be constantly reminded. But if you are just driving around in an area you are fairly familiar with but just making a detour or need to make sure you are making the right turns, the announcements are too frequent. And there's no way to reduce it too. (You can only choose the types of command to on/off.)
No media player (good or bad? you decide. Some people want it, but I'd like it simple.)
It has great bluetooth/hand free phone integration. As soon as you start the engine, and if the charger is plugged in, the unit turns on and immediately links to your cell phone.
The call display is great too. Clearly displaying who is calling and not distracting your drive. The sound is loud enough and the mic is right at the front right hand corner to capture all of your voices. I don't know whether it has noise cancellation build in, so I don't know if the caller on the other side can hear me well or not.
The traffic update is great. I usually use my iPhone to check traffic condition before I drive home or go to work. With this, it tell me if there's traffic with advance voice warning and red lane indicator.
The screen can be a bit too sensitive when you are trying to enter destination info when driving. So I strongly recommend you stop completely to enter the destination before you even change gear to drive.
The command to turn is the only major complain I have. Many times you are already at the corner and the voice command prompt you to turn. So, do look at the screen if you know you need to turn soon, or it will be too late.
The battery doesn't last that long if you are not plugged in--only 2.5 hours.
The cradle attachment is very well designed and sticks to the windshield like spiderman would do. I wish it came with a pouch to store the GPS unit so you can carry it out side your car. It is another prime target for car break in to steal the GPS.
I tried connecting the GPS to my computer using the USB, but it doesn't do anything to check software update. I can not find any information on software/map update in the user manual or online at motorolla site. I don't know if they plan to support this unit with new firmware or new map updates, etc.
So that's what I could think of so far after one day of usage. I haven't used the call feature to Bing or other services. (It uses your phone via bluetooth to make a call to a 408 area code number to check on everything (weather, point of interest, stocks, etc.) So it's not a 3G or edge network subscription. The traffic update, however, doesn't require your phone.
For a fraction of the cost of an in-dash OEM GPS navigation unit, I'd strongly recommend getting this unit (the lifetime traffic update is a dream come true.)
For most cars, a factory installed bluetooth hand free integration is about $500. Why buy that when you can have a GPS and bluetooth hand free for under $300? Do your math.
To be fair, I've only used a Garmin unit once when I went out of town trip with a friend. So I borrowed a Garmin GPS (don't even remember the model number).
That unit was very nice too, very intuitive in usage. But this one, has much more features built-in and at a lower price.
The only thing missing now is a speed radar built-in. They could make a receiver unit in the cradle and the software in the GPS unit. So when driving it will you know if there's a police with a radar gun ahead. Oh btw, this one tells you if there's photo radar enforcement ahead too.
It really packs a lot of feature in there with a reasonable price tag.
Highly recommended buy.
***Update***
After using it for a week, I want to update additional worth mention features.
1. I've lowered it to 4 stars. Reason for dropping one star? The mix of the following reasons:
a. unable to add previous destinations to favorites; it only shows 10 previous destinations. no choice on selecting one of them and add it to favorite or contact list so you have a quick list.
b. the phone call to BING is a drag. It takes up the phone line to do data stuff like an old modem. I can't believe Motorolla would use this old technology on this device.
c. it's impossible to handle the unit without accidently hitting some buttons (volume + -, mute, etc.)
2. A good feature: I drove with this GPS unit on but without a destination entered. It is still doing it's job even without a destination: a. still warning you of any photo radar spots, b. still has active bluetooth sync to your phone. c. still shows traffic data; d. still shows your driving speed if you are over the speed limit.
Still a recommended buy.

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Motorola Motonav TN555 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator Review

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(More customer reviews)I really wanted to like this product, but it didn't stand up to side by side comparison with my 2 year old Nuvi 750 (see my review on the nuvi here http://www.amazon.com/review/R3BLFWG7PQZ883/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm )
Here are some my gripes about the Motonav:
-mine arrived used or at least covered with oily fingerprints, but it was via Amazon Vine so I didn't sweat it.
-usb cable is difficult to plug into motonav, as a result the delicate internal pin is already bent in mine
-updating the software took aver two hours and motonav spent quite a bit of those two hours locked in and endless cycle of error messages and powering on and off. I had to manually reset motonav several times just to continue downloading the updates. As an aside, it appears to be using a Windows based operating system.
-can not zoom out to view large map of routes. Full route only viewable via micromap which does not show street names and is not zoomable. Being a highly visual person, this is important to me. I don't care to see the street by street written route. I want to see the map and be able to quickly navigate to parts of the route to zoom in on the details. I drive all over South FLorida and I need to see where the GPS is taking me before I go there (some areas are just not safe).
-motonav has voice command options, but I found them to be mostly ineffective, even when speaking slowly and loudly
-there is only one voice option (snobby female) that works with all functions of the motonav. If you switch to a male voice, you end up with different voices for different features, some male and some female. The nuvi has a few dozen voices to choose from and the voice you choose works with every function.
-route retrieval was sluggish/slower on the new motonav as compared to my two yr old garmin nuvi.
-it is fairly difficult to hold this device without pushing buttons mounted on the sides and top.
-screen is not easy to see when hit with direct sunlight as compared to my garmin nuvi. I was not able to find any settings to increase contrast on the motonav
-only comes with one map update which must be completed within 6 months of activation. Free lifetime maps should be standard by now.
Things I did like about the Motonav!
-fewer screen touches to get to most functions and searches as compared to Nuvi
-more detail in the maps (parking lots mapped out in addition to streets)
-sleek appearance
-syncs with blutooth compatible phone to give you access to your address book (if you want to initiate calls via your gps)AND uses your phone to give you live traffic
-automatically routes around traffic problems if you so choose
For me, the good points don't compensate for the not so good ones. Check out my video to see the Nuvi and Motonav in action side by side.
Let me know if this was helpful, please vote. :-)

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