Garmin GPS

[The Wanderer2]

Garmin has the RV 770 GPS on sale with free shipping for $299, is that a good price?

[JohnD10]

Originally Posted by The Wanderer2

Garmin has the RV 770 GPS on sale with free shipping for $299, is that a good price?

If it is on sale by Garmin, then I would say that is a good price!

[dan-nickie]

Looks like a pretty good price. I couldn't find anything below 329. Most were 350 to 400.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Forest River Forums mobile app

[The Wanderer2]

That's what I thought, it was a good deal.

[Igave]

I’d say so too. I’m going to search for it.

[The Wanderer2]

Originally Posted by Igave

I’d say so too. I’m going to search for it.

It's on the Garmin web page.

[Snoviper]

Originally Posted by The Wanderer2

It's on the Garmin web page.

I picked one up, seems like a good deal. I think Garmin sets minimum prices so that resellers can't undercut each other. You never really see deep discounts on current models. The $299 is the cheapest I have seen, especially with free shipping.

[The Wanderer2]

Well I pulled the trigger and bought one for my new motorhome. I've always had good luck with Garmin products. I wanted a second GPS in the motorhome that I could program with the dimensions of the motorhome and avoid hazards while on the road.

[SailorSam20500]

Originally Posted by The Wanderer2

Well I pulled the trigger and bought one for my new motorhome. I've always had good luck with Garmin products. I wanted a second GPS in the motorhome that I could program with the dimensions of the motorhome and avoid hazards while on the road.

The Garmin will help. But as Reagan said "Trust but verify". The Garmin does NOT have all the spots you should avoid... In fact, mine has tried to send me around roads that were not an issue and sent me on routes I wish I had avoided.

[Igave]

I think these are great aids. I just think about all of the help from these devices we have available today, versus just a very few years ago. But, I do agree, it doesn’t mean we should ignore signs, common sense, or ancillary help while traveling to unfamiliar areas. Nothing is going to hold our hand every step of the way and I don’t expect that. Thanks OP for the heads up on this, I saved some bucks for what I think will be a good tool.

[The Wanderer2]

I never trust any GPS totally. They’ve led me a stray in the past. There just another tool to use when traveling.

[gordonsick]

I have a Garmin 770RV and it is pretty helpful. But it does some pretty dumb routing at times. I had to use Apple Maps on the iPad to figure out some of the routes, since it is hard to get the big picture from the Garmin, and it does pick some really silly routes sometimes.

For example, I recently tried to do a trip on the barrier islands in North Carolina and in Texas. The Garmin only gave me the NC barrier islands (the Outer Banks) after a very long wait, and only after I forced it to start just before the bridge to cross Chesapeake Bay. Similarly, when I wanted to take the Port Bolivar ferry to Galveston (free and capable of taking many 18 wheel semis), it continually wanted to route me through Houston.

To be more confident of being able to travel these routes, I used the Allstays app for clearances, and checked State websites.

Also, the Lane Assist feature is nice to tell you which lane to use in various on and off ramps. Unfortunately, it doesn't work for really complicated ramps – just when you need it.

–Gordon

[Eagle5]

Originally Posted by The Wanderer2

I never trust any GPS totally. They’ve led me a stray in the past. There just another tool to use when traveling.

agreed!

and Garmin has been in the GPS game since the beginning and their interface IMO is the best and easiest to use/naviagate through, etc.

[Reverse_snowbird]

[QUOTE=gordonsick;1980034Similarly, when I wanted to take the Port Bolivar ferry to Galveston (free and capable of taking many 18 wheel semis), it continually wanted to route me through Houston.

–Gordon[/QUOTE]

You probably need to change the settings from 'faster route' to shorter route when you are close to something like the ferry. Ours will take us to the freeway every time when on 'faster route'. Sometimes you have to mess with the settings to get the route you want.

A feature we really like is 'Attractions' when you are in a specific location. We've discovered a lot of off beat but fun places when we're camped. However, the features like 'attactions' an 'lodging/campsites' work best the closer to your destination. And of course, restaurants selections always work best near your current location.

[gordonsick]

Reverse_snowbird
Your suggestion of switching to shorter route from faster route is interesting.

However, on all of my problems navigating the barrier islands of NC and TX, the route I wanted was both faster and shorter.

–Gordon

[dave-g]

There is an option to -
avoid ferry's
Avoid tolls


The ferry option got me in trouble in Nova Scotia this past summer.


I have also had problems with weight. many back road bridges are not rated for our 15 ton rv's. That the gps did not pick up till I got to the bridge.


I have the older 760 and I paid more then $299 for it in 2012!

[Reverse_snowbird]

Originally Posted by gordonsick

Reverse_snowbird
Your suggestion of switching to shorter route from faster route is interesting.

However, on all of my problems navigating the barrier islands of NC and TX, the route I wanted was both faster and shorter.

–Gordon

Well... these things aren't perfect and sometimes you have to give them a helping hand. This is where a small Atlas comes in handy.

You may need to pick a small town on the route you prefer and add it as a stopping point on the route. For example, if you were coming from the east, adding Port Bolivar to your route MIGHT get you there with Galveston as the destination. Then again, it might loop you through Galveston to Port Bolivar and back. Not sure what you'd do if coming from the west.

We had a trip planned in West Virginia to a Corp of Engineers campground. The COE site routed us from the south no matter what direction you came. Garmin routed us from the north. We decided to follow the COE directions.
In order to get us there, we had to enter (on the Garmin ) a small town to the south that the COE had on their website as a midpoint destination on our route. If we had followed the Garmin, we would have encountered a hairpin turn with a cliff on one side and a drop off on the other. No way our trailer would have made that turn. A Class A ended up leaning against the mountain when it took that route going north.

So use the Garmin as a tool, but we always carry a small pocket atlas also. We've done that since Garmin put us in an onion field in New York (Who knew that had huge field of onions in NY state)