Motorola Motonav TN555 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator
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Features
- 4.3 Display
- 2 Watt Hands-free speakerphone with noise cancellation technology
- Multiview display options
- 3 months free MotoExtras service package (Google Search, Weather, Fuel Prices, Flight Status)
- Voice Recognition
- Dimensions (W x H x L): 5 x 3 x 1 inches
- Weight: 0 pounds
BETTER THAN ANY $200.00 GPS
I AM NOT GOING TO GET IN ALL THE OTHER FEATURES PEOPLE HAVE ALREADY MENTIONED. THIS GPS IS BETTER THAN ANY GPS ON THE MARKET COSTING TWICE AS MUCH. SO MANY COOL FEATURES, AND THE SPEAKER SYSTEM IS BETTER THAN ANY OTHER. TRY THE NIGHT TIME MODE, EVEN DURING THE DAY, AND THE ORANGE ROAD HIGHLIGHTS THE ROUTE SO VIBRANTLY. TRY THE SPLIT SCREEN WITH AERIAL VIEW. ALSO LONGITUDE AND LATITUDE ARE GIVEN IF NEEDED ALONG WITH ELEVATION CHANGES. AT 99.00 IT MAY WELL BE THE STEAL OF THE YEAR. ALSO, MUCH MORE SOLIDLY BUILT THAN GARMIN. COMES WITH 2 GB, BUT YOU CAN ADD UP TO 16GB WITH A MICRO SD CARD.
A fantastic GPS at affordable price!
Forget about other brands at this price at Amazon. Many functions of this GPS were revealed by other reviewers. Instead of repeating them again, I am just gonna tell you ‘Just get this, you won’t regret!’
An excellent GPS navigator
I bought this product one week ago and since am using it for all my trips. I went to two out of town trips in this weekend and I am even using it for going to office just to test the device. I have to say that I am very impressed with it. While I was making the decision to buy it, I was a bit skeptical about Motorola’s ability to build a high quality GPS navigator specially because I did not even know they build products in this line. I was considering Garmin and Magellan but found that this product has a lot of features but with a lot less price. It calculates and recalculates the routes very quickly. The split view feature is the first of its kind I have seen in any such device and is much useful in many situations. It continuously shows POI, you don’t have to explicitly search for them. It has lane guidance, which works perfectly, camera enforced red light alert, speed limit alert and intersections requiring caution alert. The Bluetooth connectivity and voice commands work fine. I have not tried the Bing Voicesearch and Google search because I do not have data plan. Overall, I am highly satisfied with the product and would say that this is surely a comparable product to the market leader ones made by Garmin and Magellan.
GPS, not so much an all in one
Motorola Motonav TN555 4.3-inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator
Couple things:
- First, the device is well designed, full of potential, but I feel it comes up short in a few ways I wish it didn’t.
- It’s great for the primary function it serves (GPS)
Pros:
- I really like the way it mounts to either your windshield or dash. I personally mounted mine to the windshield, and it works great. A suction cup attached to a lever is used to firmly fix the device securely to the windshield. Then, the Motonav slides in and fixes on the battery mount. A swivel joint allows for customizable positioning in whatever angle of view you’d prefer.
- The map views are visually pleasing, and the screen goes into detail regarding even side roads (without names) in some cases.
- I liked being able to access almost all the functions of the entire device with only a few selections. Well-organized, neat layout.
- I was able to synchronize the contacts and recent calls on my phone to the memory bank in the Motonav. This was pretty cool……because it allows the driver to choose numbers to dial normally seen in your phone’s contact list.
- Sync’s well with your phone using Bluetooth, and it offers a number of different services (using your phone) which come in handy when you’re trying to bypass traffic or know when to slow down (due to speed enforcement).
Cons:
- It seems as though they could have put a little more effort to make it perform better. I don’t know. It sells for roughly $200 retail, so I suppose it should perform a little better than it does. For instance, the phone allows you to speak (via Bluetooth) through the built in microphone on the device. My wife told me I sounded muffled and distorted even. Her voice sounded the same on my end, so I suppose this option is available—- but not very useful. If they’d installed something a bit clearer, this particular feature would have greatly impressed me.
- For some reason, I could sync the contacts and recent calls from my iPhone, but I couldn’t use the text messaging capability. Apparently, you should be able to see a text message come to the Motonav when you receive one on your phone, but this just didn’t happen in my case. Maybe this particular feature isn’t compatible with the iPhone? That would seem pretty weird, considering the enormous popularity of the iPhone, but maybe Motorola did that on purpose? I don’t know. Anyway, thought that was a bit of a letdown.
- It’s difficult to move the device around or handle the device without touching the buttons on each side.
- Only comes with one female voice option, as opposed to the option on other GPS devices of comparable price who offer multiple voices (male and female).
I suppose, in my opinion, it deserves a 3 star (average) rating since it didn’t “blow me away” or “greatly disappoint.” Like I said in the beginning, it’s great for it’s primary function. (GPS Navigator)
Pretty good so far
Overall the GPS work well however it is slow at finding addresses. the bluetooth and speaker sounds great.
Some very good, some so-so; could not test Bluetooth
Necessary caveat: I do not have Bluetooth and cannot speak to the GPS unit’s handling of connected features.
I have had experience with two GPS units, prior to this one: a Magellan Roadmate (Magellan RoadMate 1400 4.3-Inch Portable GPS Navigator, maybe? Can’t remember) and a Garmin nüvi 255W 4.3-Inch Widescreen Portable GPS Navigator. These were probably both help and hindrance in learning to use this device. I am *not*, unfortunately, a very tech savvy person and I’m a hands-on learner to boot, so I’ve been using this for a couple of weeks to be sure that my review is fair. Unless it’s very user friendly, my initial reaction to new tech is sometimes not good.
Accordingly, I wish this had better instructions. Even its online tutorial was not helpful to me, I’m afraid, and I did not personally find it that intuitive. There’s a complicated maze of windows to navigate. So, yes, for me there was a bit of a frustrating learning curve. Once I got the hang of it, though, I found it a pretty decent GPS.
First, it is extremely versatile in its mounting. The Nuvi is in particular a squat little thing. I use a dashboard weighted pad (Bracketron UFM-100BL Nav-Mat GPS Friction Dash Pad) to hold my GPS and have ever since the Magellan forcefully detached itself from my windshield one day. The Nuvi can barely poke its head above the pad. The Motorola by contrast is a veritable swan, with a graceful, long neck and a head that can swivel in every direction. (Which is good, as unfortunately its matte finish can be hard to read from some angles.)
It’s also amazingly quick at powering up and getting ready to go. I’m accustomed to having to wait for both the Nuvi and the RoadMate to wake up and figure out where we are. This thing routinely springs to life the minute I start the engine. And when I turn the engine off, it gives me an option of continuing or powering down. A nice touch.
It has nice, clear vocal instructions – though I miss the voice customization available on Garmin. It has a good degree of specificity, though it may not always *precisely* pinpoint your destination (it consistently tells me I’ve arrived at my home three houses early; if you don’t know the area, this could be a bit disconcerting, though I’ve noted it’s always spot on with side of street and at least general vicinity). The maps seem pretty up-to-date and there is at least one free update available, though only within the first few months of ownership. And it generally seems to find good routes for where it’s going. In addition to taking a few trips to unfamiliar locations, I used it *quite* a lot locally in familiar areas, and while its routes were not always the ones I’d choose, they were always acceptable. Better, when I force it to go my way, it reacts with equanimity. The Magellan was forever telling me to “Make a legal u-turn” (even if the difference between routes was only a few minutes). Most of the time, the Motorola seemed to catch on pretty quickly and reroute in my new direction rather than trying to force me to backtrack . This can be pretty helpful if there’s good reason for not taking the first recommended route – such as an offramp accident or traffic congestion. Which is not to say that the Motorola will *never* try to get you back where it wanted you to be. If the original route is quite superior to the new one, it will (with a highly dramatic “turn back”).
While I found it overall a little less user-friendly than either the Garmin or the Magellan in terms of simply searching for addresses or adding them to favorites (the Magellan remains easiest for adding addresses of the units I know), it rules the field in looking up businesses. I just type in the name, and it gives me a list of options from which to choose. It also offers one nice extra that I haven’t found elsewhere: a speed limit display. I hate when driving in unfamiliar areas trying to guess what speed I’m meant to be going. It doesn’t seem to function on all roads, but it works enough in the areas where I tested it to suggest it could be quite handy. (Some of the premium content, less so. I don’t need to know where red light cameras are, as I don’t challenge yellow lights.)
One thing I do *not* like about this particular unit: while it’s easy to pull up a text turn-by-turn list of the route, I have not been able to pull up an overview map of the recommended route, and at this point I’m inclined to think it’s not possible. This is something I often did with the Magellan, which I used more than the Nuvi. I miss the feature, which can make it easier for you to customize your route.
NUTSHELL: I like this GPS just fine, but while it has some features that edge it above the competition for me, I can’t say that it is clearly superior, and there are some features which the others do better. If you are, like me, a fan of basic spoken-direction GPS, this one could well serve. I’ve been quite happy with this unit. But, then, I was also pretty happy with the Magellan and the Garmin. (Note to people who want to pull this out of their cars and take it on walks: the Garmin serves in that capacity; this one looks like it would serve even better.)
If I were suddenly to find myself in the market for a new unit, I’d do some price shopping between this and the comparable available models of Magellan and Garmin (I’m unfamiliar with other GPS models). Then I’d check to see what map updates are currently costing and how frequently they come out. Currently Garmin has the edge for me there, but that could change. Lacking a really clear front runner, I’d go with the unit that looks like it would be cheapest to update and maintain. If recommending to others, I’d suggest closely comparing the specific features, as there’s a good chance that a feature that means nothing to me will be essential to you.
Excellent! Saved me during a recent road trip!
I’ll admit, I’m a child of the technology wave. I can read a map, but my goodness is it complicated, especially if you’re driving alone. GPS’s are a MUST for anyone young and old, so if you’re wondering whether or not to get your first, let me assure you they are worth every penny. Is this Motorola Motonav the one for you? Let me explain why it should be.
This is my first GPS to try for myself, but I’ve been envious of my friends and family’s GPS’s for several months now, so I have some knowledge when comparing it to others from Tom Tom and Garmin. Though I didn’t first handedly play with these other brands, I could tell and my friends tended to agree this Motorola is more complicated than most, but I think that’s because it also does more.
Just last week, though, I drove a 700+ mile road trip to the Grand Canyon with stops in Phoenix and Albuquerque and several other large cities where I did a lot of town driving and not just interstate. The Motorola got me everywhere, and while I found it a little complicated to play with at first, I was instantly figuring out what all it can do.
With a touch of a button or two I found myself constantly using these features:
-Find businesses of note (food, fuel, lodging, etc)
-View turn-by-turn procedures in advance of the speaker telling you
-Elevation
-Aerial Views
-Exit Signs (shows which lanes go to which exits on popular city interstates)
-Speed Limit (shows what the speed limit is – I found this only popped up on interstates though)
-Text completion*
*this was awesome! My Tom Tom user friend was so jealous that with his model he had to type in the complete address before it would set to go. With my Motorola I could type something like “555 Ced” and it would suggest “555 Cedar Lane” or whatever it happened to be. This was really helpful if I wanted a Wal-Mart or something, just type “Wal” and it would suggest it really fast.
What I didn’t use, but looks awesome
- Blue Tooth Functions
My cell phone doesn’t have Blue Tooth (I know, I’m a stone ager!) but I ran across a lot of functions that that looked really awesome if I had set that up!
There was also some kind of subscription I could sign up for that offered a bunch of crazy extras like the ability to warn you if the stop light has one of those sensors that send you a ticket if you run it. I didn’t really see a need for that, but they also had traffic functions and weather functions that looked like they might be worth subscribing for.
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Overall opinion – if you are looking for your first GPS, you might want to seek out something cheaper and more basic, but the truth is after a trip or two you’re going to wish you had some fancier features. This Motorola isn’t complicated, it just offers a lot, and there is a getting-used-to stage where you are going to need to sort through which functions are beneficial to you and which ones are fluff. The first 100-200 miles of my trip I didn’t think I’d ever look at the aerial map or elevation level, but as I started traveling up winding mountains I found it extremely beneficial to see how severe upcoming curves were and seeing the difference in elevation. There are probably several other functions I’ll start using next that I’m not familiar with right now, getting a Blue Tooth cell phone is definitely on my list because voice activated commands sounds like something that would be amazing, especially when driving alone when you don’t have time to be pressing buttons to get the information you need.
Other things I liked were the size of the screen (very readable), the voices (very clear and easy to understand), and keyboard (large buttons, very rare to accidentally press wrong letter). Overall I really really liked this product, and I’m sure you would, too!
More complicated than I would want
I already have a GPS from several years ago that was a bare bones GPS that I really enjoyed it was made by Garmin. The Mortolla is much nicer but a little more difficult to use, when driving i want as much ease as possible (note that i did not read the directions and was not interested in the fancy extra features) however when i missed the turn the Mortolla reset in seconds and also has way more POI than any GPS i have used in the past. The voice was very clear and gave me enough time to change lanes before i needed to exit. You get both the map version of where you are going as well as the turn by turn written directions but you have to scroll down to read more than several lines which requires you to push a few buttons (not easy while you are driving). The extra items and the complexity of the GPS make it seem as though it was intended for a copilot to fiddle with while I drive. However I did like the ease that it updated my directions, the speech and clarity of the voice commands was nice. Hands down this is much better than my previous 2 gps and was about the same price. I have seen many GPS (everyone in my family has one) and the Motorla was the nicest at the entry level point range and was also the biggest screen.
Very good with excellent extras
The Motorola Motonav TN555 is a very, very nice GPS with few negatives. First, all the standards are here: voice prompting with street names and landmarks, a rich points-of-interest database, easy entry of new navigation points, Bluetooth integration with your cell phone, and a widescreen display. What sets it apart, though, are the extras. For one thing, the Motonav takes advantage of the Bluetooth connection to the your phone, not only to download contacts and act as a microphone, but to download data to the GPS. It doesn’t use the phones data plan, however, but a voice call, like an old analog modem.
There are pros and cons to this approach. On the plus side, you don’t need an expensive data plan for the GPS nor do you have to have a phone that has one either (although I do have an iPhone with one). On the negative side, it interrupts whatever else your phone may be doing to make the call. Obviously, if you’re already on a call, it won’t work. And if you’re using your iPhone to listen to music or podcasts, for example, as I do when I’m driving, then those will be suspended while the GPS does its thing. As the only time I’m likely to be manipulating the GPS to download information is when I’m stopped and parked, that’s not a bad tradeoff for me.
So what can it download? How about addresses from Google Maps. If you look up an address at maps.google.com, you can click on the “Send” button and enter the model and serial number of the GPS. Then when you’re in your car, go to the menu, select “Google” in your favorites, have it download through your Bluetooth-connected phone, and, voilà!, there it is. The days of hurriedly writing down the address on a scrap of paper and remembering to bring it with you to the car to punch in at your dash are over.
The phone connection also offers another neat feature. You can set someone as a trusted contact and they can receive updates on your position via text message, either one time or any time they text “motonav” to your phone. It will respond either with your current location or, if you’re en route, your location, destination, and ETA. This could be great for your spouse so they don’t have to call you while you’re driving, but it could be awkward if your boss wants to be a trusted contact too.
There are a number of “Motoextras”, which are subscription-based services, including updatable weather, flight tracking, gas prices, and speed cameras. The speed camera shows an icon in the corner of the display while you’re driving, showing your current speed. It would be great if it knew the speed limit for your current road too. Real-time traffic is only available on the next higher model in the product line, the TN700.
One of my favorite features is the instant on. Our old Garmin Nüvi takes forever to start up, find the satellites, show the legal disclaimer, and get to where I can actually enter an address. I also like the physical volume and mute keys. On the Garmin, I had to navigate through several menus to adjust the volume on the touch screen, which I have to take my eyes off the road to do.
But how well does it navigate? Very well. It has a few of the same quirks that the Garmin did. Maybe they buy their maps from the same place, but they both show a “phantom” connecting road in my neighborhood that would be very convenient if it existed, but would require a US Army-issue Humvee to traverse today. On the other had, it lacks some of the Garmin’s quirks like the Nüvi’s insistence that I cannot turn left on my usual route at our closest major intersection. Even when I’m sitting at the light it wants me to go straight, turn right through some neighborhoods and come back on the intersecting road well out of my way. The Motonav just brings me along the logical route.
There’s also a setting that allows you to bias the route selection for or against highway driving (i.e. faster versus scenic). In theory this is a nice option, but the highway bias option often wants to turn me onto an interstate for a half-mile to saver mere seconds, while the scenic option sometimes chooses some very convoluted routes. A middleground would be nice.
But the bottom line is that Motorola’s GPS give industry-leader Garmin a run for its money. And at $219, that’s not a lot of money.
Great Directions
The Motorola Motonav TN555 is a really good hands free navigational device. When I opened the box I quick and easily connected it to my cell phone. First, I tested the hands free option by calling friends and family to see if they could hear me. The reception was crystal clear for both of us. Giving the command to call someone you have to know exactly how the person is listed in your contacts, or else their name will never come up.
The driving directions are very clear and concise. However, it sometimes cannot pull up the destination I’ve entered. If I took a short cut or veered off course, the Motornav would stop directing me. It would pick up again once I was back on its course.
The extra-added bonus was on the display screen I was informed of places to get gas, restaurants, and even hotels. I was also told of the speed limits for the area I was in and the speed I was doing. Overall, the Motorola Motonav TN555 is a nice device to have for the directionally challenged and to those really trying to get into the hands free rule in order to be safer on the streets.
Excellent GPS
I bought this unit after a week of online search to replace my broken 255w. Excellent quality, very nice ‘aero’ like display, I like transparent windows, easy to set up, intuitive, in a few words I thinks this is the best GPS for me. Nice job Motorola.
Easy to set up and use – very pleased
First off, I must admit that I have never had a GPS navigation system before, so I am not going to be able to compare my experience with this product against my experiences with other products. What I can tell you is that I took this gadget out of the package and have been quite pleased with it ever since. I found it very easy to set up, and easy to charge by connecting it with its USB cable to my laptop. It was easy to attach to the windshield of my car.
It took me a matter of about a minute to synchronize the GPS with my cell phone, and now the GPS finds it every time with no fuss. I found it quick and easy to pick a destination and click Go! to set the trip planner in motion. It warns me about speed enforcement areas and red-light cameras (though I will not renew the subscription on this service, as I tend to watch my speed and not play games at red lights).
My one complaint is that I was not able to figure out (without the manual) how to get the GPS to plan a trip with a destination that was merely a street address, rather than a named destination (such as a store or tourist attraction). Other than that, though, I must say that I am very pleased. I know a little about computers, but nothing about GPS’s, and yet I had the navigator up and working in a matter of minutes.
I am glad that I joined the 21st century by getting a GPS Navigator, and I am glad that I own the Motorola Motonav TN555.
(Review of Motorola Motonav TN555 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator)
Motonav compared to Nuvi
Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/RDWFAWTHPIKF1 I really wanted to like this product, but it didn’t stand up to side by side comparison with my 2 year old Nuvi 750 (see my review on the nuvi here http://www.amazon.com/review/R3BLFWG7PQZ883/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm )
Here are some my gripes about the Motonav:
-mine arrived used or at least covered with oily fingerprints, but it was via Amazon Vine so I didn’t sweat it.
-usb cable is difficult to plug into motonav, as a result the delicate internal pin is already bent in mine
-updating the software took aver two hours and motonav spent quite a bit of those two hours locked in and endless cycle of error messages and powering on and off. I had to manually reset motonav several times just to continue downloading the updates. As an aside, it appears to be using a Windows based operating system.
-can not zoom out to view large map of routes. Full route only viewable via micromap which does not show street names and is not zoomable. Being a highly visual person, this is important to me. I don’t care to see the street by street written route. I want to see the map and be able to quickly navigate to parts of the route to zoom in on the details. I drive all over South FLorida and I need to see where the GPS is taking me before I go there (some areas are just not safe).
-motonav has voice command options, but I found them to be mostly ineffective, even when speaking slowly and loudly
-there is only one voice option (snobby female) that works with all functions of the motonav. If you switch to a male voice, you end up with different voices for different features, some male and some female. The nuvi has a few dozen voices to choose from and the voice you choose works with every function.
-route retrieval was sluggish/slower on the new motonav as compared to my two yr old garmin nuvi.
-it is fairly difficult to hold this device without pushing buttons mounted on the sides and top.
-screen is not easy to see when hit with direct sunlight as compared to my garmin nuvi. I was not able to find any settings to increase contrast on the motonav
-only comes with one map update which must be completed within 6 months of activation. Free lifetime maps should be standard by now.
Things I did like about the Motonav!
-fewer screen touches to get to most functions and searches as compared to Nuvi
-more detail in the maps (parking lots mapped out in addition to streets)
-sleek appearance
-syncs with blutooth compatible phone to give you access to your address book (if you want to initiate calls via your gps)AND uses your phone to give you live traffic
-automatically routes around traffic problems if you so choose
For me, the good points don’t compensate for the not so good ones. Check out my video to see the Nuvi and Motonav in action side by side.
Let me know if this was helpful, please vote.
Easy to Use and Feature Rich GPS – Highly Recommended!
Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R28PHWBUM0ZNEB ***UPDATED – April 6, 2010*** The Motorola Motonav TN555 is a great GPS with a lot of advanced features. The standard GPS functions all work exactly as you would expect for a GPS in this price range, but I was extremely impressed with how well the advance features worked, and more importantly, how easy they were to use. Here are my observations:
Pros -
+ Easy to Use Interface; the touch screen menu is intuitively designed
+ Split Screen Display; map and rout always shows, even when menu, phone, or advance features are being used
+ Good Display; while a little muted (see video), the display can be seen even in bright sunlight
+ High Quality; all of the components are well designed and built (see “Customer Images”)
+ Easy To Understand Voice and On Screen Directions; clear Text-to-Speech
+ Accurate Points of Interests (POI); at least for my area
+ Speed Limit Displayed on Major Roads; unit can be set to alarm when posted speed limit is exceeded
+ Advanced Features (that I have tested);
+ Integration with Bluetooth Enabled Phones; allows for use as a speakerphone and access to “Contacts”
+ Voice Recognition; allows for hands free calling and access to search functions using BING (see “Cons”, below)
+ Integration with Google Maps; Use your PC to find a location on Google Maps (see Video)
+ Access Local Information; pull current weather, sports, etc
+ Traffic Notification; very useful during rush hour in large cities (I tested in Baltimore, MD)
+ Red Light Camera Warning; accurate and given with plenty of notice, at least for Baltimore
Considerations -
- Advanced features require use of your Bluetooth enabled phone and will use “air time” for updates
- Advanced features might not work if you don’t have cell service
- Voice Recognition is very good in a fairly quiet car, but accuracy degrades when there is a lot of “road noise”
- Side Control Buttons assignments can be changed, but I always accidentally press the bottom right one (“MUTE”) when connecting the unit to the window mount so there is no sound if I’m not paying attention (easy enough to correct)
- Only one free map update and it must be installed within 60 days of using the GPS
Overall, I am very happy with this unit and can say that Motorola got this one right! After a few weeks of very heavy use, the “Pros” greatly outweigh the “Cons”.
Highly Recommended!
CFH
Full featured GPS system
This is a very good product. Lets you have all the navigation features you could want, plus handle your cell phone via Bluetooth for calling, messages etc. Handles both voice and keyboard commands for all functions.
Comes with a very nice removable mounting kit for your vehicle along with charging cords for both your vehicle or a PC plug in charging.
The touch screen operation is quick and quite intuitive to use. The large screen very readable. You can subscribe to other Motorola services which will give you even more data and information at your finger tips.
One Caveat: If you’re using it with a Motorola Droid phone; the Droid phone can not/will not sync your contacts list from your phone. This is the fault of the Droid phone, not the GPS….however this seems inexcusable to me, as they are both Motorola products. The Droid phone software does not support Bluetooth transfer or sync.
You can unclip the unit from the vehicle mounting and take it with you as “Pedestrian” mode. Good idea, as it’s an invitation for break in and theft if you leave the unit in place when you are parked away from home.
I highly recommend the unit; but be aware of the limitations if you have a Droid phone.