Garmin - Nuvi 760 Review

Bottom-Line: In a side-by-side comparison with my three year old TomTom One XL-S GPS, the Garmin Nuvi 760 GPS comes up short.   

In the past I have relied heavily on Mapquest.com for detailed step-by-step directions to and from one town, village, or hamlet to the next, as well as direction in the city of Chicago itself. But, over the last (3) years I have been using a TomTom One XL-S GPS device to get around, however the maps are getting old and TomTom wants $79.99 for a new one, plus $9.95 a quarter for updates.  Plus my TomTom One XL-S has been acting quirky of late, turning on by itself, seemingly resetting itself at random time; etc.  I thought, time for a new GPS unit and choose the Garmin Nuvi 760 GPS Personal Travel Assistant. But after using it for a week, I have decided to go back to my trusty TomTom One XL-S GPS, read on to see the reason why.            

The Garmin Nuvi 760 GPS is a 4.3" unit that in addition to providing directions, a photo viewer, and MP3 Player, also brings text-to-speech capabilities to the table.  Real-time traffic services can be had via RDS-TMC traffic receiver, and turn-by-turn direction can be played back through the car stereo thanks to a built-in FM transmitter.       

The Garmin Nuvi 760 GPS comes pre-loaded with maps of the United States, Canada, right out the box.  But the unit is surprisingly lightweight and compact measuring in at 4.8 inches wide by 2.8 inches high by .8 inches deep; and weighing in at a very manageable and portable 7.4 ounces.

My Viewpoint

In a side-by-side comparison with my three year old TomTom One XL-S GPS, the Garmin Nuvi 760 GPS comes up short.  Although the units utilize the same size screen the TomTom XL-S manages to fit more raw (useful) information on the screen including the speed limit on the road you are traveling as well as your speed!  And the TomTom XL-S warns you when you exceed that limit, not so for the Garmin Nuvi 760 GPS. 

Where the Garmin Nuvi 760 GPS shines is in the extras like a built-in MP3 Player, image viewer, usable SD Media slot, and FM transmitter.  Misses are the lack of computer based software, sparse information on the screen, and lackluster speaker volume.  Both units got me to where I needed to be, but on balance I prefer the TomTom One XL-S GPS; the Garmin Nuvi 760 GPS is already on its way back to Amazon.com, and the maps on my TomTom have been updated.