Garmin GPS truck routing

This looks like a keeper. Little bit expensive though. Like the 465T I expect it will come down in price after the initial market exposure effect takes it's toll. Simply because of the issues I have had with the 465T, I think I would wait until others have tried it and can give an opinion on it's dependability.

 

I think that is wise with most technology is to give it a year or so to work out the bugs,
wish i could have waited before i bought my tnd700 I think that when they come out with a new model it will be #######, with all the user input they have received and implemented

 

Never had big issues with my Garmin 350 for 2 and a half years.... However, haven't used it for the last month and a half and now wasn't able to fully charge it again. So now when I unplug it, the screen goes black immediately and it doesn't give me the option to keep it on battery. First my power button stopped working a few months after I bought it. And it wouldn't turn on/off without charger or plugging into vehicle. Now the unit is on and plugged to my computer via USB cord to try to fully charge it... But it doesn't seem to be holding any charge... I would like to replace the battery but after watching a video about it, don't think would be able to do it without breaking something else It's a shame, this Garmin is great, it has lots of helpful features including a straight truck route while all other new Garmins I saw at store offer only vehicle, pedestrian and bicycle route. These Garmin units have non-replaceable batteries. I mean, only Garmin knows well how to replace them for a very high price...
Can anybody recommend a GPS similar to that Garmin 350 but with a user replaceable battery? Thx.

 

Well, I only work with the truck-specific ones here. But I can't say that any of those have "user-replaceable" batteries either. Don't know if there may be a car one out there that allows it though.

 

I haven't seen any either. All GPSs that I know don't have replaceable batteries. Anyway, I read some about the RandyMcNally and Garmin 465t. Went to truck stop today and checked them out. Seems to me Randy is full of features, things I don't even need or will not use. Garmin 465t was more simple, easier to use, more user friendly and very similar to the one I had before - Garmin 350. After reading about all the bugs about Randy, I decided to buy Garmin 465t. But a couple hrs later I realized I had an extended warranty for my old Garmin 350... So, after going to 2 stores, was able to get a(nother) Garmin 465t in replacement for my old Garmin 350.... So now I have 2 Garmins 465t... But will return one I bought first.

 

A few things you might want to consider when buying a GPS for trucks. I know several drivers that use the 465T and they say it works great and the new dezl model from garmin is supposed have more features then the old nuvi 465T. But one of the main things to look for is the option to put in your own POI's on a sd card and have the unit to read these locations from the garmin or other units. I work for a private fleet and have all of stores put on a sd card by store number and can research for location by store number. With this option you can put in any truck stops or any location as long as you have a lat and long of the location. I even have mine set up to beep when approaching RR tracks on secondary roads because we haul hazmat once in a blue moon. You can make these POI your self with excel program and a free download from garmin. I wish I had GPS unit 33 years ago. Happy trails.

 

Garmin does make devices that take batteries-but none of these are truck specific nor auto specific. These are generally handhelds, something one would use when hiking. A good example of this would be the Garmin GPSMAP 76-these also offer features like nmea input and output and have basic preloaded maps and other data. You could use one of these but you would be constantly loading and reloading map data specific for the area you are in now, were, or are going to.

I have an older version of this-the 76CS. And it offered a lot. But not for OTR trucking.

Mark-K7TKR

 

I don't know of any Garmin GPS for vehicles that has a replaceable battery but you can buy a external battery that will plug into your input plug for when you connect to your computer that will allow you to charge up the internal battery this way. Just find the right connector from the usb port of the external battery to the Garmin. This would be no different then charging the unit from your computer usb port.

 

What do you guys think of the 465T? Does it really help for choosing the right lane on the highway/city roads and getting you to your destination in cities/towns?

 

It does pretty well though it can be confusing. It's a machine so it thinks like one. For example, at exits where more than one road exits on the same set of ramps that split, combine, split again, ect, it will tell you to be in the lane to get off the ramp. It only does the minimum required, though. So you end up in the left lane of a three lane ramp and the unit doesn't update till you pass the point that the ramp separates from the highway. Then it'll tell you that you have 400 feet to be in the far right lane. Whoops.