Hey GPS gurus.......I need some quick help

[OoPEZoO]

Little background story......Mom bought Dad a Garmin Street Pilot C330 for Christmas this year. Dad refuses to even learn to answer his cell phone, let alone program a GPS so it has mainly collected dust. I have borrowed it a few times for some short car trips and to get a feel for it, but certainly not enough to become an expert.

 

Anyway......I stopped by their place yesterday and picked it up, thinking it would be nice to try out on the bike (weather permiting) when we travel down to VA for MAYHEM. Is it necessary to buy separate mapping software in order to plan a trip on the computer and download it to the unit?

 

I spent almost an hour on the Garmin website and got absolutly nowhere. I would have thought that the unit should come with the software needed in order to comunicate back and forth with the computer. I have the driver CD and loaded the webupdater program, but there doesn't seem to be any other software with it.

 

On the Garmin site, I came across the MapSource download page, but it says I can't use it unless I already own a Mapsource Product........I'm confused as hell......can someone please shed some light on this for me.

[OoPEZoO]

Well.....unfortunatly, I think I found my answer. This GPS won't do what I want. It can tell you how to get anywhere in the USA, but apparantly it doesn't have the ability to put a route together and then save it for future use. Needless to say, I'm a little disappointed.

 

Oh well, guess I'll stick to my old method........tape a post-it note with directions onto my dash....

[JR356]

Hi,

 

Here is the c330 link at Garmin.

 

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=6385

 

Did you download the Manual?

 

The unit comes pre loaded with City Navigator NT,you should at least be able to update that via the USB cable for the unit.

There should have been an unlock code in the box with the unit,so that you can update the unit and the City Nav software.

 

Chances are that if Dad didn't use the unit,he never registered the product,so you may have to do that,hopefully he didn't throw away the unlock key/registration info.

 

JR356

[OoPEZoO]

Yeah, I have all the info that was in the box. I actually registered it and updated it for my Dad back in December when he first got it.

 

I'm not having any issues with updating it. I was just trying to make it do something that I don't think it can do. I wanted the ability to look at a map on my computer, plot a course that I want to take, save the trip, then download it to the GPS so I can use it to follow that route next weekend. From what I'm finding.......thats just not going to happen.

 

It seems that the only way to do a trip on this GPS is to plug in the final destination, then add waypoints that you want to go through on your way there. Then if you stop the trip, you have to reprogram the whole thing over again from scratch.

 

Unless you are telling me that I can use that "unlock code" to download the Mapsource software and do what I'm talking about through that. If thats the case, I wish they would put that in english somewhere in the documentation.

[Pictou]

I don't know about the c330 but some of the newer garmin units come only with the maps pre-loaded on the GPS. They don't have a disk with maps you can load on your PC. I expect you could buy a copy and load it on your PC and do it that way. Sometimes Garmin updates its mapping software and it will sell the updates to qualifying customers at a discount. You might want to check that out just in case as the update would have to come on a disk. I don't know the capabilities of the unit but if you were able to create a route on the PC you probably could upload it.

 

I personally don't like the Garmin trend of not including maps you can load onto your PC. Without the ability to do route planning on the PC the GPS unit is far less useful to me.

[TKNorCal]

Call Garmin tech support, explain your situation, and they will walk you through the problem. I have found the Garmin tech folks to be outstanding--friendly, speak English, and live in Kansas.

[OoPEZoO]

Call Garmin tech support, explain your situation, and they will walk you through the problem. I have found the Garmin tech folks to be outstanding--friendly, speak English, and live in Kansas.

 

I didn't realize they had REAL tech support. If I can't get it figured out by Monday, maybe I'll give them a ring.

 

I guess what surprises me the most is......bear with me here. I'm 28, I'm a complete tech junky, Have a degree in elctronic engineering, have built all my own computers for the past 15+ years, and can pretty much figure out just about anything involving programing/setting up/working on electronic equipment. If I'm getting this screwed up with something this simple.......how would my 55 year old Father (who can't program his own VCR) have a shot in hell of figuring it out. I actually feel bad for my Mom......she researched like crazy on her own before she bought this for him. Spent all this money, and I know in the back of my mind that he is never going to use it because there is nothing that comes along with the unit to properly explain what and how it can be used. Its almost like the instructions were written by someone that already knows everything about the unit, so they paraphrased the whole thing. I know I'll be able to get the bugs worked out, but I don't think my Dad will ever touch it.

[Gregori]

If you want that kind of programmability, the StreetPilot 2xxx series are a good bet.

For your father, the C550 was probably a good choice.

 

The C series GPS units are dumbed WAY down for the average user. (They put a variant of them in rental cars...)

When you turn it on, you have just two options - "where to" and "view map."

(Garmin's own website starts the description of it with the phrase: "Talk about simple.")

 

I've actually thought about getting one for my wife to use, since ALL she's going to ever want to point to point directions, and she doesn't care at all about the various options my 2610 offers.

[steveknapp]

I'll 2nd that. The C-series does not allow offline route generation. They do allow programming of a destination via the units own UI. And if you enter a new location while navigating it will allow you to go add it as a via (to Torrey, via Gleno's BBQ).

 

That's about it. The C-series are THAT simple. But not all Garmin units are like that. The streetpilots, the Zumo, the 276/376 retain the off-line route editing features.

 

Oh, the C330 isn't waterproof either.

[OoPEZoO]

I'll 2nd that. The C-series does not allow offline route generation. They do allow programming of a destination via the units own UI. And if you enter a new location while navigating it will allow you to go add it as a via (to Torrey, via Gleno's BBQ).

 

That's about it. The C-series are THAT simple. But not all Garmin units are like that. The streetpilots, the Zumo, the 276/376 retain the off-line route editing features.

 

Oh, the C330 isn't waterproof either.

 

Cool, thats what I've kind of read/heard about over the past few days of researching. Sounds like his GPS is the perfect thing if he just needs to go from point A to B while driving a car. It doesn't sound like a real tool for an adventuring motorcyclist like myself. I figure I'll buy a Zumo (or something like it) for myself eventually. I plan to hold out until the (fingers crossed) XM/Sirius merger happens so I can get Sirius through it.......then I'm sold. I would also like a completely wireless Bluetooth setup (with added intercom and CB/FRS radio capability), but I know I'm stretching now

 

Thanks for the help guys

[PAndie]

When they make one of these w/ GPS/Sirius, add a radar detector and bluetooth capability, that's the day I"m buying one. I'll have to budget to hire somebody to help me figure out how to use it, but at that point it'll be worth it.

[OoPEZoO]

When they make one of these w/ GPS/Sirius, add a radar detector and bluetooth capability, that's the day I"m buying one. I'll have to budget to hire somebody to help me figure out how to use it, but at that point it'll be worth it.

 

Bingo...... when the day comes, I'll figure it out and give free seminars