You get What You Pay For

[sandy_ruotolo]

My naivgon gps system was so outdated, decided to visit Dell where I have an account, and scoped out the Navigon 2100 max. Appeared to be cheaper then a Garmin, and the reviews seemed mostly positive. The GPS arrived without incident, but due to my work and school schedule the GPS sat in the box for a month and a half before I decided to test it. Got the thing up and running, decided to test it by asking for it to take me from work to home, a route I know extremly well. The screen would go black, when I hit the touch screen I would come back on. It told me to make a left onto a rampway for people who where exiting, avoided that. Took my usual route and it got lost. It froze. Called Navigon, the customer service person said maybe it was a new highway. Replied I didn't think that the state of PA suddenly built a highway overnight, the highway had been around a good 20 years that I've been here. Then they could not find my street location. Said that's funny all my credit card carriers new where I lived, got mail at this address everyday. Asked that it be returned or replaced. said I had to contact Dell. Dell has a 15 day return policy, which had expired, and it was not a Dell Product, it was Navigons. Had sent Navigon a e-mail concerning the problems I was having it, asking for them to either repair it or replace it. Customer service tried to tell me to go outside and turn it on leave it that way for 15 minutes. Said it was 28 degrees and I wasn't about to do that. Said they could not help me if I refused their suggestions. Went outside stood for 15 minutes, reset it. Tried again in the morning. It was giving me directions on how to get from work to home, problem was I was trying to get from home to work. Called Navigon and said they sold unreliable products, said they could not do anything about it. Got so mad purchased a Garmin what I should have done in the first place. Works like a charm. I think I'm going to smash the Navigon with a hammer and return it to them without an address. Lesson? You get what you pay for. Never again.

[Dawn U]

Wow. Now that's customer service when they won't even stand behind their own products. Although, if they couldn't find your address, maybe it's because they were using their own GPS?

[picman]

Not to stick-up for the product, (Garmin user here) but have you checked for a software update?

[KenJulio]

You could use it as a paperweight and you will never get lost while at your desk.

Sorry to hear about your exp.

[Jenny Z]

Major bummer :( I got a Navi 2100 from woot.com, and haven't had a problem with it... I'm glad for that, sounds like their customer service sucks :(

[Rson]

Some work friends got a Magellan from Hertz in Italy. After a few hours of driving along the Italian countryside they called and turned off the GPS.

Every 5 minutes it would prompt to turn around. I think the woman had been drinking when she programmed it.

[SCone]

The problem with most GPS units is there's no way to see the logic behind routes. I tell mine "fastest route" and it may take you across a parking lot. And "least use of freeways" will take me down the access road of the freeway.

It will also take you off the freeway, down the access road, and then right back on the freeway???

I've learned to verify the route before heading out, just to be safe.

[kenw]

why do people buy non-Dell stuff from Dell?

heck, I still trying to figure why people by Dell stuff from Dell.......

(rhetorical question, no response needed)

[KD5NRH]

Originally Posted by sandy_ruotolo

My naivgon gps system was so outdated, decided to visit Dell where I have an account, and scoped out the Navigon 2100 max.

Got so mad purchased a Garmin what I should have done in the first place.

Congratulations; between the two devices, you should be able to get completely, hopelessly lost by the time they both decide a road exists where none has ever been.

I've tried several brands around here; they all list a road that was dug up and resodded 15 years ago, a road that was proposed in the late 19th century and never built, fail to list a major road that was built 20 years ago, and show that every business west of Walgreens is at Walgreens. (End of a numbering system that was changed in the early 80s, which every online mapping service picked up on years ago, but not the GPS makers.)

Until one of them can produce a unit that's up-to-date at the time of sale, I can only see the annual updates as pure scam. Since these units weren't even up to date as of the operational date of the first GPS satellites, there's just no excuse for their discrepancies.

[kneemeaux]

Twice in the last few years I've had people stop me in my neighborhood while I'm walking the dog and ask for the Mexican restaurant. The problem is there isn't a Mexican restaurant within a mile of here.

BTW I sent them both to a nice place the old fashioned way.

[sandy_ruotolo]

Thanks, guys, I didn't check for the up-date, but bought a new Garmin, and don't have a problem with it. From what I understand, Navigon is hit or miss. I think if Navigon would have at least offered to have me send it in, at my shipping expense to check it out, I would not have developed the feelings I have for them. And I agree, most of them are not up-to date. Somethimes I think I fall in "love with new technology." and get disappointed when it doesn't work . I think I was safer just down loading Google maps, at least I wasn't attempting to make a turn onto a off-exit ramp of a major highway while using their map.

[crazeazn]

try this place! www.locationstore.com for newer units, its a local company

[sandy_ruotolo]

Thanks crazeazn, next time, if ever I need one I'll check them our.

[photonewb]

if you think GPS units are inaccurate now, imagine what it was like 10 years ago when they were becoming popular and the military still had their differential signals coded in!!! They've since turned them off and GPS became a heck of a lot more accurate over night.