Lowrance Electronics - iWAY 500C GPS Receiver Review

I am one of those, "get-lost-in-your-backyard" type of people...ok I admit it, I can't find my way out of my garage. I have a terrible sense of direction so this is why I am sooo in love with my iway.  

The Lowrance iWay 500c does what a GPS navigation system should do: it provides an easy way of inputting destination addresses, it locks onto the GPS satellite system in a reasonable time, it provides generally clear directions via voice and on its large screen, and the device reroutes you if you make an error. The iWay 500c included 10 gigabytes of map data; therefore, you do not need to download and install maps for different trips.

The iWay 500c also includes a 10 gigabyte (GB) hard drive to load with MP3s for playback on your car stereo. Your unit can be connected to the accessory input of your car stereo if your car's system has one (mine does not.)

What you get

Lowrance iWay 500c unit
Mounting devices including the usual suction cup
USB cable
Software disc
Cloth screen cover/cap for storage to protect the screen
Power supply (transformer brick) 

How to install it 

1. Moisten the suction club on the windshield mounting unit and apply to the windshield. Swivel the lever near the suction cup to apply suction.

2. Snap the iWay 500c onto the windshield mount

3. Position the unit so that it is visible to the passenger or you (the latter is not officially recommended due to safety concerns)

4. Plug the power cable into the "cigarette lighter" plug in your car.

That's it. Once you get hang of positioning the unit for best visibility and snapping the unit onto the mount, the whole affair will take maybe 45 seconds. 

How to use 

1. Start your engine. Never, ever run the iWay 500c without the engine running. Its power requirements are so high that it will run your battery down in less than 5 minutes.

2. Power on the unit via the lowest hardware button on the right hand side of the unit. Hold the button for about 2-3 seconds to turn the power on.

3. Hit the Find button which is the second hardware button from the bottom on the right hand side of the unit. You will be queried to either go to the Address Book, Recent Destinations, or to enter your destination address.

4. Enter your destination address via the address or via the intersection of two crossing streets. To enter the address, first enter the street number via the onscreen keyboard. Then enter the whole or partial street name but leave out any directional words or words like "street" "road" "court" etc. Also enter the state from a drop down scrolling list. Hit the onscreen "Done" button and you will be presented with a list of choices compatible with what you input. You pick the choice that is exactly what you want. You will then be presented a menu to add this address to the Address Book. If you do, then you can name this address (e.g., "Jim's House" or "State Capitol Bldg Wisconsin") for easier access next time.

5. From the address book screen there will be a button labelled "Go To Address" which when pressed will set the GPS into calculating a route to this destination from where you are. This process usually takes less than a minute.

That's about all you need to do to get started and get to your destination. The voice directions which you can customize warn you of turns well in advance.

There are several different ways you can look at the driving maps by sequentially touching the icon at the upper lefthand corner of the screen:

1. North is always straight up on the map.
2. The direction of travel is always straight up on the map and north-south varies as you drive.
3. 3-D view which is a variant of #1 with a bird's eye view

You can also hit the scale button in the lower lefthand corner to zoom in or zoom out of the map. 

The screen is large (5 inches diagonal) and therefore much information can be shown if so desired.

1. Time to next turn
2. Miles to destination
3. Estimated time of arrival (ETA)
4. Speed
5. Miles to next turn
6. Arrow showing direction of next turn
7. Current time

...and there are many other data bits that can be displayed. You are limited only by the amount of screen real estate. Whatever you customize your main driving screen with will reappear each time you power on the unit without having to recreate all the settings.

The screen brightness and contrast can be adjusted with on-screen sliding controls easily. When the brightness is increased from the default settings, the screen is easily visible even in bright sunlight. You can also rapidly adjust screen brightness by tapping the power button. Each tap either raises or lowers the brightness of the screen. This makes it easy to adjust as the ambient lighting goes down or goes up in your automobile (e.g. sunset.)


Your routes can be customized with intermediate waypoints. You can find Points of Interest (POI) in the large included database including restaurants, hotels, and other attractions. You can also tell the iWay to stay away from interstates or use them preferentially.

There is a Trip recording screen that once reset will give you your total mileage, total time, average MPH, and current MPH all in one place.

The iWay 500c is a large, heavy unit. Despite this the included suction mount works well, but the unit sways or jiggles a bit as the car hits bumps. 

Visual and audio directions are clear, but some complex curly Q's on interstates may be difficult to resolve without intently peering at the screen which is very dangerous to do. I don't think this a fault of the unit, but of GPS units in general. If one does make an error, the unit will always get you back on track easily.

Inputting your destination is very straightforward either directly, via the Address Book or via Recent Destinations. I have heard that certain other brands of GPS have some difficulty here (also see my other GPS review).

The audio directions are loud and clear with female intonation. You can silence the unit if you wish.

Maps are generally detailed and accurate. I have only encountered a very few instances where the map was out-of-date and that was in some areas where new development was ongoing (e.g., suburbs). Updated maps are available on a NAVTEQ CD-ROM for about 100 dollars. Updating may be accomplished by powering up the iWay 500c via the included AC adapter and using the USB cable to connect to a PC which has been loaded with the update

The menu system of the iWay 500c is accessed via large icons. Certain functions may be several layers deep in the menu system. While the system is intuitive, there's nothing like just exploring the unit by pressing each of the icons to see what functions can be accessed.

One other thing: if you are at a specific location and wish to set that into the address book, just touch the screen and you will then be asked to label that location for inclusion in the address book.

I hope this is helpful.