Product ReviewsGarmin nüvi 1300 Automotive Mountable

My Backup is a Garmin Too!

I bought this Nuvi because I thought someone had stolen my other Garmin of about 3 yrs out of my car. Turns out my son had gotten it to make a trip to see his sister about 3.5 hrs away. I actually haven't played with this one much yet, but it is quite a bit simpler (intuitively...) to use. I think it may even update 'on the fly' faster than my other Garmin. I got my old Garmin back a couple weeks later, and if it didn't have a bunch of routes and contacts I like, but as soon as I can sync them over... poor older Garmin will be retired with only occasional consultant situations in the future. The Nuvi lacks the speed limit and of course the speed warning if exceeding the limit. I was used to setting it as an alarm to keep me on my toes. I don't think you can do any of that on this Nuvi, but I could be wrong. For the price it is phenomenal. The only gut feel I'd like to share is that if you want a timely update, the Nuvi will notify and let you choose how to do it. You don't have to remember it... ever. The updates and maps as I understand it are FREE for LIFE. I haven't checked into that on this purchase, so I really don't know. I just know I like this little Garmin guy a LOT. Simple yet powerful and efficient. Great GPS and travel guide unit. Allows setup of most common things people look at for this type nav unit. I can type 'Buccees' and it will show in distance and time with routes to get there for the closest then next, etc. I love that too. Just a cool and reasonably priced GPS and nav unit.
I can't quite give it 5 stars because of the lacking speed monitors and alarms... but that is a small price to pay for something that will automatically update for FREE with new maps and local establishments all around your travels.Read full review...

Garmin proves itself worthy of the dashspace

I really enjoy the Garmin Nuvi 1300. This model has a nice widescreen that is easily viewable and the touchscreen is easy to use. Simply enter an address,and the Garmin Nuvi 1300 will take you there. You can download extra features from the Garmin website. You can also download free stuff too. Just remember to set the Garmin to choose the quickest route,not the shortest. Otherwise, you will be taken on a very scenic,untraveled road that usually has livestock of some kind free ranging in the street. Quite an experience. Anyway, for the price this model Garmin is worth every penny. I even bought my brother one because he drives everywhere and he wanted to keep better track of his milage and fuel usage. The Garmin Nuvi 1300 will keep track of your fuel use and even tell you how effcient your driving is. You will always know how close the nearest place to eat is when your out of town and the garmin will take you to literally thousands of other places.Read full review...

Good deal overall

I purchased the Garmin Nuvi 1300 to help me keep track of business use and expenses in my truck. The features are great and easy to use; I really like being able to download other voices or create my own to replace the generic voices that are pre-installed. The only problem I have had with it is getting it to accept the map updates. I am still working with Garmin's tech support to try to figure out why the updates won't finish. I suspect it is a software based issue and not a flaw in the physical unit. Sometimes I have to type the name of the highway in just right to get the unit to find it and sometimes it doesn't realize that the road has been altered to follow a different path even when the path of the street was changed years ago. However, it is very useful overall and has many routing options to choose from. I especially like the feature that will allow it to remember where I parked the car in those giant parking lots!Read full review...

A life saver in Costa Rica!

Doesn't work like the touch phone screen I'm used to, and sometimes it will tell you to turn on roads that are not there, but once you get used to it, we couldn't have done without it. Maps are useless since many roads are not marked. Phone maps use lots of data and the costs can get high. This a great alternative.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: khalidsiddiqi

Value and Size

I like the size of the GPS; you can literally put it in your pocket if you decide to use it walking the streets. This package beats paying for the map of Europe alone. It's economical and practical. I don't leave for Europe for another couple of months, but I tested it, searching for addresses in Europe. So far it works. The exterior condition is a bit beaten up, but the inside appears to be intact. The final testing will be actually in Europe. I did hear that the first time you turn it on in Europe, it takes a very long time to boot up. Can some one confirm this. What's your suggestions?Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: danny_electronics

Good deal if it has the LM (lifetime maps)

This is a very basic Garmin model (nuvi 1300). Very easy to use and gets you where you want to go. I paid $95.00 for it on ebay and feel it was a good deal with lifetime maps. This is what really sells the unit. It should be noted that the older units did not have the LM in its model number as do the newer models. But if it says lifetime maps on the box or has the card, you can be sure it's ok. Purchasing the maps cost around $90.00, so I feel that I got the unit for about $5.00. I also have a Garmin 550c which is an older clunker,but better unit (I did purchase the lifetime maps for it about 4 years ago). I gave the 1300-LM to my son and got my 550c back because I need the bluetooth when in my truck. For some reason the 550c predicts my arrival time within 2 or 3 minutes and the 1300 is usually off my about 5-10 minutes on a typical 3 hour tour. The 1300 is well worth the money as long as it has the lifetime maps. Transferral of the map ownership is not an issue as the garmin site will reconize its internal chip as lifetime maps if it came with it or if it was purchased at a latter date.Read full review...

The Garmin nuvi 1300: It's good, but...

Overall, I am very satisfied with the Garmin nuvi 1300 but I do have a couple of minor complaints.

First of all, I do recommend that owners/potential buyers visit the Garmin web site to read through all of the product information and to review the FAQs. Some folks have made an issue of Garmin not including the USB cable with the device but this did not matter to me. The required cable is a standard type "A" to mini "B" USB cable. Many other devices use this same cable and I already own a couple of them. (I also heard that if you contact Garmin customer service, they may send you a cable at no charge.) Other reasons to visit the Garmin site: to register the product, to download the full PDF manual and to install the "my Garmin Agent Plugin" for web updates.

I know a lot of people don't want to read the long manual but in my opinion it will save you a lot of early aggravation and will help you use all of the nice features this unit has. I have also found that if you take your time and don't start pushing functions before the unit has made a calculation or transitioned to another screen the unit is more reliable.

Pros:
1. Volume works great. I'm hard of hearing and 70% is plenty loud.

2. Satellite response time is quick and recalculating time is generally very responsive

3. Lane assist is a great feature especially on major thoroughfares and freeways.
4. Speaks street names clearly and is surprisingly close on correct pronunciation. (Spanish street names can be fun though). Male & Female voice available.
5. Shows posted speed limit and actual driving speed which is a great feature.
6. Turn list viewing is a nice feature especially in unfamiliar areas with a lot of turns ahead.
7. I like the time or distance to destination feature. The time estimates to a destination have been quite accurate. It's a nice feature especially on long legs.

Cons:
1. No USB cable included
2. No manual (you must print from web site and it's over 60 pages).
3. May lose power and not restart for some time (or not at all as with my 1st unit). This is the reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5.
4. Even though I made the screen calibration, when typing in addresses some of letters don't response as easily as they should.
5. Browse Map feature glitchy and worthless.Read full review...

Garmin nuvi 1300t

The Garmin nuvi 1300t was recommended by Consumer Reports as a best buy, so I went ahead and found a new in box unit on E-bay and made a successfull bid. I've never owned a vehicle GPS unit before. The thing I find most dissapointing is when you select a destination from the on computer menu, say for example a restuarant, without entering the address yourself, the final destination leaves you usually up to a block or there abouts shy of your destination, telling you have arrived at your destination, sometimes even without telling you which side of the street it's on. So far the only other complaint I have is the voice they used for the audio directions sounds in her early thirties, but, slightly anebriated, slurring her words, sometimes to where the commands are unrecognizable. I wonder if I can download a more sober version on-line from Garmin. Other than that, the on-screen touch commands are easy to use and see in all lighting. Good Bidding, JeffRead full review...

Buy Tom Tom rather than Garmin if map data for Tom Tom for your area exists

In terms of features, the Garmin Nuvi 1300 (and my Garmin Nuvi 350) compare poorly with my Tom Tom Go 300 GPS that I purchased in 2005 (9 years ago). As far as I've been able to figure out, Garmin GPS devices are not capable of showing you a route from a point other than your current location to another location. With my Tom Tom Go 300 GPS I can use the "Prepare route" (or in earlier versions of Tom Tom software, the "Advance Planning" mode) to see the distance and route from any two points anywhere in the geographic data base. For example, with Tom Tom I can be in the United States and look at the route from an airport in Paris, France to hotels near the Paris airport. While there is a "Favorites" category in Garmin GPS devices that allows you to enter favorite locations, I've been unable to find a way to add to Garmin's points of interest, which is easy with Tom Tom. My reason for buying both of my Garmin GPS devices is I was able to buy map data for Colombia (South America) for Garmin but not for Tom Tom. My reason for buying the Garmin Nuvi 1300 despite already owning a Garmin Nuvi 350 is the 1300's thinner size, making it more comfortable to carry in a pocket, which is an advantage of either the Garmin Nuvi 350 or Garmin Nuvi 1300 over my Tom Tom Go 300 - although an advantage of my Tom Tom Go 300 is it sits fairly reliably on a rubber pad on the dashboard of a car without the suction-cup mounting device. That suction-cup mounting device takes a lot of space in a suitcase.Read full review...

Good Quality and Great Value

Got a really good deal on this Garmin... No frills bluetooth. However if you need GPS from point a to b this is perfect model. Only gave 4 stars due to it taking a long time to acquire a signal

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: new | Sold by: crystalclearcon...