Thrilled with new Garmin Nuvi 265WT

[Pseudo-Fed]

Well, I researched GPSes here and a couple other places and bought the Garmin Nuvi 265WT (Widescreen, Traffic updates). It was on sale for $219 at Target, with MSRP I believe of $299.

I ordered a Ram mount/Aqua Box combo at a good price from Authorized RAM Mounts Dealer. Free Domestic Shipping On Orders Over $125.00! AND got an extra arm and standard cradle for those dry runs. The extra arm and standard cradle was just another $13 total, so why not. I should be able to loosen the giant thumb screw on the arm and pop in the standard cradle "upper" in a few seconds if I don't want to use the aqua box.

Back to the GPS unit. I wanted bluetooth for use in my truck, and it's awesome. It paired quickly with my blackberry curve 8900, and even sucked in my entire phone book. Since my phone supports voice dialing, I can click the "voice dialing" icon on the Garmin and dial by voice. Of course you can dial a number, search in phone book, answer calls, etc. right from the unit, as well as call those points of interest when they are shown. The speaker is LOUD and clear, even at middle volumes. I also wanted the traffic updates and the Garmin's power cord includes an FM receiver for Navteq traffic. The traffic feature is cool with an icon on the map showing green/yellow/red, with any corresponding delays in minutes. Touch the icon and you get option of showing traffic ahead on route and/or a "traffic map". I've found the arrival time and traffic delay times to be dead accurate so far. I also love my speed shown right along side the speed limit for the road I'm on. The speed limit appears to be shown for all roads except my residential streets, at least so far. Now I have to decide whether to commit this power cord to the bike, since it is $119 or so by itself, including lifetime traffic subscription.

As an aside, the GPS shows my bike's speedo is about 5% overstated. When running 70, the GPS says 66.5, or about 3.5 less, or 5%. Confirmed this when showing 40 on speedo, GPS says 38, which is 5% difference again. My Tacoma speedo is dead on with the GPS unit.

I also considered the 255W, at $159 on sale, but it didn't have bluetooth or the traffic updates.

The Garmin does not have an audio out jack, but I think I saw "transfer audio to phone", which I'll try along with ear buds to see if I can hear the nav commands through my phone. Haven't had a chance yet.

Great unit--can't wait to get lost on the bike!

 

[FZ1inNH]

It is a great unit. I had one briefly but I needed route planning which this one did not offer. I ended up bringing it back and moving to the 765T but only for the route planning.

With this unit, if you have earbuds or speakers and an FM receiver, you can output the GPS audio via FM to a pre-defined station and listen to that station in the helmet. Works OK... works better if you can mount the FM receiver very clost to the GPS as it eliminates all the static (the fm transmitter in the GPS has a small effective range).

If you don't need route planning, this is a great unit! One thing you CAN do instead of route planning is input a bunch of waypoints, then select the new one as you reach each point, thus manually guiding you point to point. The only problem with this is, due to safetly, you have to stop at each waypoint and select the next as it will not let you while moving.

Good write-up! Great product! Enjoy!

Oh, last, and this is for ANY GPS owner... be very wary of any of the paid-for map updates. Take your initial freebe and run. After this, carefully review the changes for a new paid map because in all likelyhood, it doesn't pertain to your area or places you normally travel. Even the latest from Garmin is still missing roads near me that have been in place for years.

 

[Tailgate]

Thanks for the GPS orientation session! Maybe, I'll get one someday.

 

[Pseudo-Fed]

It is a great unit. I had one briefly but I needed route planning which this one did not offer. I ended up bringing it back and moving to the 765T but only for the route planning.

With this unit, if you have earbuds or speakers and an FM receiver, you can output the GPS audio via FM to a pre-defined station and listen to that station in the helmet. Works OK... works better if you can mount the FM receiver very clost to the GPS as it eliminates all the static (the fm transmitter in the GPS has a small effective range).

If you don't need route planning, this is a great unit! One thing you CAN do instead of route planning is input a bunch of waypoints, then select the new one as you reach each point, thus manually guiding you point to point. The only problem with this is, due to safetly, you have to stop at each waypoint and select the next as it will not let you while moving.

Good write-up! Great product! Enjoy!

Oh, last, and this is for ANY GPS owner... be very wary of any of the paid-for map updates. Take your initial freebe and run. After this, carefully review the changes for a new paid map because in all likelyhood, it doesn't pertain to your area or places you normally travel. Even the latest from Garmin is still missing roads near me that have been in place for years.

FZ1-how do you have your 765T mounted, and can you take advantage of the traffic updates? I read in a review that this model requires use of the Garmin mount since the power cord somehow plugs into the mount, rather than the back of the device like with the 265WT. Did this special traffic/mount method affect your ability to get traffic while on the bike? Thanks...Jeff.

 

[OZXJR]

I just bought the ram mount and Aquabox ,works a treat :thumbup:

 

[FZ1inNH]

I PM'd an answer to Jeff who asked questions there.

The Aquabox has foam pads that you have to stack in side the box to bring the face of the GPS out to the membrane so it can be touched. What I did was stach them but took the last pad and cut it to form-fit around the mount (FM receiver/transmitter) and also cut where the plug fits and a channel for the cord. The excess cord is pulled into the Aquabox and wound up inside beneath the pads. I left enough cord outside the box to plug it in and easily turn the front lock to lock.

It works great but we don't have the traffic broadcasts up this way. It is nice to have it when we go through the major metro areas though, where it is implemented.

Hope that helps!!

 

[Pseudo-Fed]

I PM'd an answer to Jeff who asked questions there.

The Aquabox has foam pads that you have to stack in side the box to bring the face of the GPS out to the membrane so it can be touched. What I did was stach them but took the last pad and cut it to form-fit around the mount (FM receiver/transmitter) and also cut where the plug fits and a channel for the cord. The excess cord is pulled into the Aquabox and wound up inside beneath the pads. I left enough cord outside the box to plug it in and easily turn the front lock to lock.

It works great but we don't have the traffic broadcasts up this way. It is nice to have it when we go through the major metro areas though, where it is implemented.

Hope that helps!!

FZ, dumb question, but I'm trying to find out if the 765T will allow FM broadcast of the navigation commands. I ride with a cheap Sansa MP3/FM radio and could use it to "catch" the commands output from the Garmin. Or will it just FM broadcast the MP3 or other audio output. Thanks.

 

[FZ1inNH]

Okay, I had to get some pics to help out on the FZ6R forum so I shot these while out in the Busted Knuckle Garage. I normally take the time to link these so you don't have to click a thumbnail, but I'm too tired to make them all BIG... You can see the RAM mount, Aquabox (closed/opened/empty), foam in and out of the box, what the mount looks like from the front of the bike and last, the cigarette adapter to plug it into until I put in a permanent kit with my classic zip-tie fastening system to the wiring harness under the clutch-side fairing. I just cut the wheel to full lock and can easily reach down and plug in. :thumbup:

 

[FZ1inNH]

I will likely be geting the Zumo 660 next year and giving this to my wife for her bike. Then I will not need the Aquabox.

I am looking for a rider with the Zumo 660 to see if it will pair with my Scala Q2 headset first, then I can really use the Scala for GPS and bike to bike comms.

 

[BlueHorizon]

Yesterday I fitted a Garmin Nuvi 260W to my bike also using the RAM mount, but not an aquabox. What I did do is to use the Glisson power adapter which I connected to the left headlight connector so that it only powers the unit when the bike is switched on (and avoid draining the battery). Works like a charm! :thumbup:

Here's a link to the Gilsson cable: Gilsson Bare Wire Power Cable (GPSCity.com)

 

[Pseudo-Fed]

Thanks for the pics FZ1. Actually returned my 265WT and bought a 765T. Actually got one at Car Toys for $349--where I believe they're discontinued. Do like the extra features for the extra $$. And I do agree the FM transmitter sucks, as one reviewer also noted. It does however seem to work well within 1 foot of my cheap Sansa 2gb MP3 player with FM radio. So, I should be able to switch between the Garmin and regular FM on the bike when I need to hear directions. Thanks again for the pics. Have my Aqua Box on order from Authorized RAM Mounts Dealer. Free Domestic Shipping On Orders Over $125.00!

 

[FZ1inNH]

You're welcome Jeff! Glad it helped you out. So, the sansa... if you can mount it close to the GPS, you'll get some decent sound. And the 765T has the media player and takes a memory card so you can load up on MP3 music. :thumbup: