Map Updates

Last week, I used my Garmin Nuvi 750 GPS to get to the Elkridge Harley Davidson dealership for my motorcycle safety course. The unit was invaluable in finding the place and showing me the quickest route. Interestingly, when I arrived at the dealership, I entered no man's land as there weren't any accurate maps on the unit showing the street that runs parallel to the dealership. That reminded me about getting the latest map update for the unit.

Garmin offers 2 ways you can get map updates. You can download them or you can get a single DVD with the update. The cheapest option is to download them. Garmin offers lifetime map updates for just under $120. That's a great deal especially when compared to spending nearly $70 a piece for each update on DVD. However, there is a downside to it. I have a decent internet connection and, it takes me routinely something like 7 HOURS to download each update. They are that BIG. The last update was over 2 gigabytes in size. Because of this, I would prefer to get the DVD as it would be easier to install each update. However, as I previously mentioned, each update costs just under $70 on DVD. Considering Garmin releases up to 4 updates a year, you can end up spending more on updates than what your GPS unit cost you! I suspect Garmin is scamming people on those $70 DVD updates. I can't believe they cost that much to produce. Because of the high cost of the DVDs, I bite the bullet and download the updates. Barring this serious nuisance, I've been very pleased with my Garmin unit and would recommend it to others. Cheers all.