Best GPS Router Garmin or Rand McNally

[wayne77590]

On 7/22/2017 at 6:51 PM, NanMWright said:

Garmin seems to have dropped the recommended 760LMT and is now selling a 770LMT-S.

Has anyone tried this? Is it an upgrade?

I need to get a new GPS for travel full time, and I'd like to stick with Garmin.

They are identical hardware units. The only difference is one comes with European maps and the other does not.  I think the 770 is the one with European maps.

[dkreuzen]

I had a RV760 and now a RV770. The RV770 is not hardware identical to the RV760. The RV770 has a glass screen, it has higher resolution, and it is faster. I am sure there are other changes but I can't say for sure. The RV770 has some new features that I find handy. However the maps that come with it are identical to the RV760.

I recommend the RV770, it is defiantly and upgrade to the RV760. 

[wayne77590]

I just can't trust the search engines on the internet anymore. Sheesh!

[BillAdams]

Really?  Why not?  What are you searching for?  Asian brides?  If you are looking for campgrounds, rest areas, truck stops or anything else I can think of that would be RV related there is really no better source than the internet.  I should clarify that I use Google exclusively for random searches (YMMV) and I use RV Parky and RV Park Reviews for campgrounds.  I used the Pilot / Flying J app for fuel stops.  I use GasBuddy for fuel pricing.  I use specific websites or apps for specific requirements.

There is no reason to distrust the well known internet search engines unless you are searching for questionable search results.

[wayne77590]

Nope! Not questionable.  To many times Google and other search engines give you what they think you want to see instead of what you want to see.

Your experience may differ depending on how you use the internet.  I prefer google to other search engines but it isn't what it used to be. Of course I have only been using the Internet since 1994, but did have a 300bps land line connection back in '84.

Yes, I use all of the "Applications" you mentioned and they are specific applications for what they are intended for.

 

[BillAdams]

I use Google as well and have never seen anything that would make me say " I just can't trust the search engines on the internet anymore. Sheesh!".  Google is my right arm and I can't think of more than a couple of instances in the last year or so where it has let me down.  If you don't like Google, try Bing (Yuck!), Duckduckgo or any of the hundreds of search engines.  You will end up coming back to Google and you will be happy that you did.

If you don't trust Google then you should go back to using the Yellow Pages and paper maps.

[wayne77590]

Yep, Dr. Internet is always right.  Reviews are always right.  Searching for one thing and getting tons of things "they" think are related is also another thing. 

Anyone can create a meta (tag) name "keywords" on a web site and put anything in it they want. An extreme example would be a sugar company not only putting the word sugar in their meta tag but also the word rock. So someone searching for rock gets the sugar company.

FMCA does a decent job of meta tag keywords as do many other sites but there are still sites out there the the Google BOTS and other search engine BOTS pick up and display as erroneous information.

Yep, I could go back to the Yellow Pages but last time I used them information I was looking for was not there. 

As to the original post, my money is on the Garmin and whichever model is the newest for RV's. It has many features that I enjoy and I find it better than the Tom Tom I now have sitting on the shelf.

[BillAdams]

No one said anything about everything being right.  However, it is the largest source of information available to the average person.  You have to filter through the advertisements and inaccurate responses but if I Google Best Burger on the Beach, Melbourne, FL it's pretty easy to filter out the results that don't answer the question and I will likely have a very nice lunch.  Without that option I have very little chance of finding a similar place without a lot of wasted driving.  Some of these gems are quite well hidden or in a building that looks like a dump and I would have just keep going.

No matter, enjoy your flip phone and the Yellow Pages but I think I will use the technology available to us.  It works for me.

[hermanmullins]

Come on gentlemen, everyone has an opinion. Please don't let it get personal. 

Herman 

[whiteeagle]

Thanks Herman .. Hopefully the OP will get more opinions to the question asked.

[wayne77590]

11 hours ago, wayne77590 said:

As to the original post, my money is on the Garmin and whichever model is the newest for RV's. It has many features that I enjoy and I find it better than the Tom Tom I now have sitting on the shelf.

As I indicated, and I have had several GPS's, I find the one I have, Garmin 760 LMT to be the better of the bunch.  I don't know about the 770 LMT but if it is half as good as the 760 it is a good buy.  My iPhone 7 is good also but doesn't have the features for an RV that the Garmin has. DW's iPhone 6 is the same but she uses it and her iPad Pro as the right seat navigator. 

I don't think any of them are infallible.  I rely on my navigator (DW) but one time her iPad mapping system said to take "sage" road and my Garmin wanted me to take a different route. We followed DW's instructions and on the Sage Rd I was almost able to see the license plate on the TOAD going around some of the turns.  Hey, it happens, right?

I would strongly suggest that if one knows the night before where they are going to use the internet mapping system to scope out the route. It has made me change my GPS's route a few times. Use the satellite view to see what the road really looks like.

Happy trails.

[tbutler]

I use Garmin products, not because they are perfect but because they are reliable and function better than other systems I have seen or used.  I started with a handheld or portable Garmin Aviation GPS III that I used for almost 20 years of flying. 

Next was a Garmin eTrex Vista, a handheld unit primarily designed for hiking and exploring.  I began using this one for navigation with our motor home in 2003.  It wasn't designed as a road friendly unit but it gave me a "shortest route" and distance to destination information. 

In 2012 I purchased an auto GPS, a 3450LM (LM = Lifetime Map Updates).  I used it in the motor home and also in our toad.  Once we parked the motor home we would move it from the coach to the car.  At the time, Louise was using a truckers atlas (she still does) to check road clearances which cover truck routes but not all routes.  It has a 5" screen and is still being used in the car.  With the map and software updates, it works better than new. 

In 2014 we took the 3450 with us to New Zealand and Australia.  I purchased a map set from Garmin for those two countries.  It came as a micro SD chip that plugged into the 3450.  If anything the map information for those countries was perhaps better than for the US.  There are far fewer roads to update so it is likely easier to get it right.  I was amazed to zip through roundabouts with no problem.  Almost every road intersection in these two countries (well, lots of them) are roundabouts and when driving on the wrong (left) side of the road, having the GPS was worth its weight in gold. 

In 2015 I purchased a 2757LMT (Lifetime Map and Traffic) which is just a larger auto GPS.  It has a 7" screen which is easier for me to read where it sits on the motor home dash.  I have the Route 1 data set for clearance information for the US and Canada.  I keep that set as well as all my Garmin maps up to date, checking all for the latest information before leaving on any trip.  With the current Garmin management system, Garmin Express will prompt me to get the latest updates.  Yes, this does take some data but once done, all the information you need to travel anywhere in the US and Canada is on-board.  No further internet data download is needed. 

I also have a Garmin Approach G6 for golf.  It has most every golf course in North and South America, Europe, New Zealand and Australia.  It also updates.  As with the auto GPS units, Garmin Express keeps me notified of updates that are available.

All this said, we do cross check the GPS information with other maps.  Louise is the navigator and she is primarily a paper map person but will use my iPad when I prompt her to do so.  We will check and vary from routing that the GPS offers.  Sometimes when we need to zoom in on roads in an area, the iPad has maps that can help answer questions.  The satellite views provide more than simply road maps can and are thus useful. 

The Garmin map information can be downloaded to your computer as well.  Base Camp is the Garmin program for planning and manipulating maps.  I have the older MapSource software from Garmin to do my rough trip planning.  Sometimes the routing that MapSource suggests is different from the routing that we get from the stand-alone units.  I don't try to interface the computer and download routes to the GPS but it can be done.  If you keep the computer updated (free with lifetime map updates), you can look at the road information much easier on a large screen.  I find it much easier to explore on the computer than on the stand-alone units.

Garmin auto and other GPS products are available at WalMart, Amazon and almost any other major general merchandise company.  The 3450 cost me about $349 from Amazon in 2012.  The larger, more modern 2757 was just under $200 at WalMart. 

[huffypuff]

On 7/20/2017 at 1:15 PM, huffypuff said:

To my surprise my Rand McNally is working after the last online update.  I don't know for how long but it fine for now.  

Just the other day it quit again and had to be hooked to the laptop to repair it.  So frustrating to have something that you paid good money for to sit worthless and has to be repair to work again.  I filed a complaint to their local BBC asking for a refund.  I still have the receipt and box it came in.    I will probably get nothing out of it such as I got when filing a complaint about my ISP.   

[jleamont]

Puff, Rand McNally is a slimy company. I kept following their instructions updating sent it back, Updating....updating they assured me the fix was in the next update all the while the warranty clock was ticking, they were stalling me and then denied any further assistance under warranty.

[huffypuff]

On 8/25/2017 at 3:33 AM, jleamont said:

Puff, Rand McNally is a slimy company. I kept following their instructions updating sent it back, Updating....updating they assured me the fix was in the next update all the while the warranty clock was ticking, they were stalling me and then denied any further assistance under warranty.

Yes, they strung me along for awhile so I contacted their I BBB by web Wednesday night.  The tech support supervisor called me early Friday morning agreeing to a refund and sent me a label that morning.  According to tracking they will receive it this coming Thursday.  I sent everything back including boxes, cables, mounts, unit and letter with the RMA number and original receipt staple to it.  After they receive it the supervisor said it will be 4 to 6 weeks before I see the refund. You can bet they will play this out as long as they can.  

Now I'm looking for a replacement GPS also.  I would like to have programmable safe routing for large vehicles towing.  

[jleamont]

BBB, huh, never thought of going that route. Do you have a link?

[CarlAda]

I have a Garmin.  When I bought the current coach, it came with a Rand McNally.  After a few trips, I swapped out the RM and put in the Garmin and sold the RM.  I just prefer the Garmin.  That said, the wife still navigates using her phone and Google.  The problem with Google is that it doesn't take into account low bridges and poor routes for large coaches and trucks.

[huffypuff]

7 hours ago, jleamont said:

BBB, huh, never thought of going that route. Do you have a link?

https://www.bbb.org/chicago/business-reviews/maps-dealers/rand-mcnally-in-skokie-il-19075

I hope that link works for you.  

[jleamont]

Yup, thanks!!

[huffypuff]

9 hours ago, CarlAda said:

I have a Garmin.  When I bought the current coach, it came with a Rand McNally.  After a few trips, I swapped out the RM and put in the Garmin and sold the RM.  I just prefer the Garmin.  That said, the wife still navigates using her phone and Google.  The problem with Google is that it doesn't take into account low bridges and poor routes for large coaches and trucks.

I looked at a couple today the rv660 and rv770 then went to online reviews.  The reviews wasn't promising enough for me to get one.  

[veraken]

We also have a Garmin 760 and are very happy with it. That being said, we did have a trip where it tried to put us on a road which was not fit for a motorhome. Thankfully a local came by. He said his truck wouldn't even fit on the road the GPS was sending us and gave us directions to get back to a major road. Yes, I did contact Garmin and notified them of the problem. Lessons learned!! Don't trust your GPS as your only source to get you there!! We use the GPS as a guide, then check the maps (old school), Google maps, and follow the directions given on the campgrounds website.

__________________
Vera & Ken
1998 Holiday Rambler Imperial

[hermanmullins]

On the trip to the last rally in Madison,WI we were in a small town Illinois. Found a RV park (small but nice). Plugged the address into the Garmin. Took us through a residential  neighborhood. It was the only way in we found out. Came to a Stop Sign, Madam Garmin Said to turn RIGHT. As a Good Driver I looked both ways before making the turn. When I looked LEFT there was the park. But hay, I still love you Lady Garmin even if you sometime put your shoes on the wrong feet.

Herman

[huffypuff]

These routing glitches is sure is better than the unit shutting down or locking up like the Rand McNally.  Then having to hook to a laptop to bring back to life.  I talked to a full timer yesterday and he claim a few glitches sending him where it didn't make sense.  Seems like all has that bug if information on your rig and bridges or road is wrong.  As long as the glitches keeps getting reported I would think it will get better.  

[jleamont]

This was almost me a few times thanks to Rand McNally   .

Lola was a Rand McNally product

[wildebill308]

How did you get a picture of me on Cadillac Mountain???

Bill