is the new Zumo 660 any good?
 

I was thinking of getting the new Zumo 660, the number seems to be just right...... but seriously has anyone got one... or should I get the 550 instead? (don't like that number) I've never had a sat nav so I've got no idea ... still using maps but they blow in my face a lot... ;0) brrrrrrrrrr:HappyRoll_ANPIUI:

I still own the 550 myself, but went to check out the 660 in the local Garmin shop and know some people that have bought it.
The larger screen on the 660 is definitely a big plus, lane choice indication is nice as well, although not that big of an improvement.
I think I would miss the buttons from the 550 though as I frequently use them to zoom, change the volume and flip through the map view, fuel view and music player view.

The 660 also still has some software issues and annoyancies. Garmin have a tendency of releasing a new product before the software itself is entirely finished. They do provide regular software updates though so that problem should solve itself.

If I had to buy a new GPS device right now, with the current special offers the 660 would probably be my first choice.

Noooo! Just bought mine before TT started this special. Wish I'd waited a couple of weeks :icon_cry:.

Havent had a GPS before, so cant really compare its usefulness and functionality, but so far I'm happy with it.

Don't feel s bad now... looking at the prices I paid, I got my 660 �70 cheaper than TT is offering :ebay:.

Have a look on ADVrider.

Here's the general GPS forum:

http://www.advrider.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=37


And here's the Zumo 660 thread:

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=418363



Looks like a few people aren't very happy with it...


Nick.

thanks for all the info so far, much appreciated :041:

OK so here's the big question are garmins Mac compatible? Everything seems to be aimed at a PC user aaaaarrgghhhhhhh

The Zumo itself just acts as an external hard disk (2 actually, 1 for the internal memory and one for the SD card if it is inserted). So adding routes, copying track logs, managing music and images are all perfectly possible on a Mac (or any other operating system for that matter).

Mapsource (the software to draw routes on a computer) on the other hand is Windows only. But Garmin do offer some alternatives on their web site: http://www8.garmin.com/macosx/

Caution.....
 

Those of you have keep up with the technology will know that there is a bit of developing problem with the whole GPS thing....

The US military (the ones who own and run the sats) are claiming that they are going to begin failing unless there is some investment. I don't think for a minute that they are going to allow that as it would be such an impact to the military. I do think that they may start to license the use though, and this may well render neary all the civilian units useles.... without some software and method of payment. It's just my opinion, but there's no such thing as a free lunch, and if they are going to invest I think they will most definitly look to recover the costs.....

If you choose a unit that has WAAS (different countries have different acronyms, but it's all the same technology) support then you can use this to correct any incomplete or inaccurate GPS reading. there aren't many units that support augmentation systems that I'm aware of - the Zumo550 does though.

WAAS - Wide Area Augmentation System. We have this running in the UK, I've used it for maritime navigation, but it's a bit hit & miss on undulating ground.

This might also contain a slight dose of scaremongery, I have read in the Financial Times that for every sat nav sold a portion of the cost we pay to the manufacturer goes towards the satellite owners fees already, and this was devised so that end users wouldn't need to pay additional "roaming" costs.

I recently looked at the same. I ended up buying a second hand (but brand new condition, software never registered) Zumo 550 for �320 and I'm glad I did. I've heard a fair bit of negative comments on the 6-series and the 550 is really nice.

As far as software goes, I'm not sure if the Garmin software works on MAC (I gave up on MAC when Apple stopped make superior hardware), but I've used mine through Google Earth on Windows as well as Linux and that works really well.