Navman iCN510
- Reviewer
- Ben Harvard Taylor
- Review Date
- 3 March 2005
- Manufacturer
- Navman
- Price as reviewed
- £500
- Latest price
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Reader review
User: Helen, Manchester
Date Posted: 20 July 2006
Review: The Navman 510 probably works OK 80% of the time - but it is unmittigatingly awful the rest of the time. I paid £499 a couple of years ago - it was top of the range at that time. It's awful; it just doesn't reliably do what it should - which is to take you by the shortest/fastest route to your destination. Eventually Halfords took it back on the basis that it was "not fit for purpose". I now have the TomTom 300 which is infinitely better. For example the 510N: - defines a route then if you divert from it, it still tries to feed you back to that route at the point where you left it. I was going from Salford to Nottingham. It suggested going M602, M6, A50 - which is OK but I had a bit of time spare and preferred to go a more scenic route (and avoid traffic on the M6 past Stoke). So I went onto the A56 to M60, out past Ashton and was about at Snake Pass by the time it stopped trying to route me back around the M60 to the M602 then via M6, A50 etc. The TomTom recalculates the best route from where you are to your destination - rather than directing you back to the original route. - It constantly tried to feed me down farm tracks - and wouldn't ignore the route even when I drove a mile or so away to try to find an alternative route. - I calculated a route from Salford to Loch Lomond in Scotland. It indicated 3 hours and 170 miles. I decided to check on the AA route planner - it indicated 235 miles and over 4 hours (by the same roads!) Guess which was right! - from Old Trafford to Sale - 4 miles in 5 minutes (average speed required 48mph - through 30 & 45 mph speed limits) in fact there were about 8 pages of complaints. The unit was returned to Navman who tested it and confirmed that it was working as designed. They also checked the version of the software and my settings - everything was as it should be. It was just total RUBBISH! Awful, it sends a shiver running down my spine thinking about it. The TomTom 300 is better in almost every respect. The ONLY feature that the Navman has that I'd have liked on the TomTom is a warning when you stray over a preset speed that you can set. But that's not sufficient reason to put up with something that miscalculates routes, expects you to speed to achieve it's calculated times - sends you down farm tracks and doesn't automatically recalculate routes as quickly as it should.
Rating:
4 people have rated this review helpful
Reader review
User: David Adams, Liverpool – England
Date Posted: 16 February 2006
Review: I have just purchased the ICN 510 from Tesco's as it was on offer. I think I know why. 1) The information is well out of date. 2) It does not recognise many street names 3) It offers multiple town options - most are the same 4) Try and do door to door - You can’t!
Rating:
7 people have rated this review helpful
Reader review
User: Mark Booth, Ipswich, Suffolk
Date Posted: 9 February 2006
Review: I purchased my 510i Premium edition last August for its European mapping on CD for my driving holiday in France. The graphics, ease of use and portability is excellent. It took me a little while to improve my searching technique as a lot of road names/locations are not recognised if you just type them in. The 510i is superb for the close in detailed navigation but it is a good idea to have a rough idea what route you prefer for the longer distance’s as it can lead you down the garden path a bit!!. Be very careful with changing the routing settings as being directed down single un-graded tracks did not go down well when I was towing. Many times I had to ignore its instructions and force it to recalculate a different route which it did very well and quickly. The down side is it was necessary to buy a much larger capacity SD flash card (another £60!!) but with 1G I now have enough memory to get most of the area mapping I wanted loaded on. Obviously it does assume you have access to a suitable PC with USB port to use the cable supplied to do all this! A very clever, well priced piece of electronic gadgetry I have owned for a long time.
Rating:
3 people have rated this review helpful
Reader review
User: Steve Hardwicke, Pontypool, Wales
Date Posted: 26 January 2006
Review: I've owned and used the Navman 510 for approx 6 months and my view is that it is excellent. I purchased the premium edition which includes full European street level maps and these have been a godsend during a couple of driving trips in to France. This year we are holidaying in the South of France, 9 miles from the Spanish boarder and I'm taking it with us in our hire car. My only gripe and something which I was unaware of when I purchased it is that distances to manoeuvres are in miles and feet (why feet?). Although it can be changed to Kilometres and Metres for continental driving. The default settings for the routing preferences seem to work best but it does occasionally suggest routes which you would not choose if you knew where you were going. It's easy to use, gives clear instructions, it will get you to your destination and is light enough to carry while you are away from your car. Would I recommend the 510? Yes, now that the price is dropping and while it is still available. But check and compare the price of the Navman 520 which has updated maps and software first. Happy navigating.
Rating:
2 people have rated this review helpful
Reader review
User: Bob Abercrombie, Fife (UK)
Date Posted: 6 January 2006
Review: Bought my 510 in the January sales 2005 and saved £100. Price has since dropped by at least another £100 since then. Being an ex Merchant Navy Navigator, I am fascinated that GPS receivers have been reduced to such a compact size. The first GPS system I sailed with took up the whole back end of the bridge. The Navman 510 has proved to be accurate in reaching its location however the route it takes can be somewhat circuitous. I was disappointed that it didn't take the full seven digit post code but I have just sent off for an upgrade (£31.95 including post and packing) which I believe will upgrade my 510 to the equivalent of a 520 thus enabling seven digit post code searches. I find the instructions from the unit are clear and concise and as mentioned it always gets me to my final destination (but on a few rare occasions not necessarily by the best route). I would recommend waiting for the January sales and searching for further reductions in price. A GPS receiver is a must these days and whether you decide on a Navman or another make I would recommend every car should have one. Another down regarding these units is the cost for upgrading the maps. I have found some major new roads are not shown (conversely, some minor roads leading into new estates have surprisingly been included). In general I'm very happy with my purchase which I hope will keep me mobile for the next couple of years.
Rating:
6 people have rated this review helpful
Reader review
User: David, Manchester
Date Posted: 9 December 2005
Review: I purchased this product from Tesco last week I used the Navman CD that came with the unit and installed the free downloadable speed camera software via the POI editor no problem. I'm very impressed with this Navman model and have compared it with the Navman pin300 which a family member owns, both the navigation software is impressive although the Navman iCN510 window screen fitting is better as it is more secure and offers less screen shake on the car journey. My overall verdict is 9/10 but would recommend the service pack update from the Navman web site which will sort out any screen errors that they already know about.
Rating:
4 people have rated this review helpful
Reader review
User: Darren Harris, Berkshire
Date Posted: 24 November 2005
Review: I bought the iCN510 from Tesco for £229. I started to input some local destinations to test it and get used to it but to my horror it just kept on giving instructions as if I were two miles ahead. It didn’t stop when I did and didn’t even reroute when I tried to confuse it. It's going back for a full refund! The setup is confusing and it didn’t even recognise my own home postcode. When selecting Windsor as the town, it gave me several options, of which a few looked the same...until I put in the road name. Then it didn’t recognise the road where I worked until I chose another "Windsor & Maidenhead" option. When I get home sometimes it would tell me I'm at number 4, and at other times number 11, or number 9 or number 15 or number 1. It changes all the time - what can I say. It’s nowhere near as easy to use as a Medion which is as cheap and a lot easier to use and more reliable. As G B of Scotland says, “buy a Navman at Your Own Peril”!
Rating:
8 people have rated this review helpful
Reader review
User: G B, Scotland
Date Posted: 15 September 2005
Review: I purchased a Navman ICN 630 in May 2005, after a little research I found out that you can insert your own points of interest into the Navman (e.g. Road safety camera database). I looked for advice as to how to do this and found out that you need Smartst version 3 installed on your unit. Hey this was a brand new unit surely it must have the latest software, WRONG! I contacted Navman, Smartst Version 3 and was told it would cost another £80. I protested at the additional charge as there are no details on the packaging, warning of additional charges for upgraded software. Lets face it if you purchase a new PC you would expect Windows XP installed not 98. And be warned £80 is for one country only! More areas cost more again. I contacted Navman several times regarding the above matter, I also questioned how they can sell Smartst version 3 software for the ICN 620 model for £20 yet they were charging £80 for the same software for the ICN 630 series. (I read on a forum the ICN 620 was much cheaper as it was riddled with bugs). Anyway after contacting them several times they agreed to sell me the upgraded software for £45 and someone from their online store would contact me with the offer. Navman’s online sales team never contacted me despite sending them several e-mails. I sold the unit on e-bay at a loss and bought a TomTom instead (in my opinion its better anyway). Buy a Navman at your own peril, but don't say I didn't warn you.
Rating:
3 people have rated this review helpful
Reader review
User: Andrew Cooke, Yorkshire
Date Posted: 27 April 2005
Review: I decided to invest in the Navman 510 after reading the various reviews and shopping around for the best price. It is a great piece of kit and the portability is useful for security (slips in your pocket easily when leaving the car). The display is very good and the menu screens are easy to navigate although the 4-way selector button is very sensitive. A useful feature is the ability to import your own Points of Interest such as the speed camera database which is freely available on the net which means this device can double up as a speed camera detector unit. In terms of routing, the Navman does a pretty good job although it does suggest some strange options occasionally as do all devices like this. The best way to use any sat-navigation in my opinion is to have a rough idea where your are heading first and then let it take care of the finer details and last few turns. The instructions are clear if sometimes a little late when approaching tricky intersections. The mapping is not as good as the fixed-in VDO Dayton system I used in the past which had a larger screen and visible display of ETA etc but that system cost £1500 so for £350'ish this is a bargain which I can recommend!!
Rating:
4 people have rated this review helpful
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Navman iCN 510 Car GPS Receiver
(Automobile GPS, Handheld, LCD TFT Display, Accuracy: < 16 feet, Battery Life: 4 Hours)
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