Nextar SNAP5 Super Slim 5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator
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The Nextar SNAP5 GPS mobile navigation system assures that your days of getting lost are over. Finding an address or any one of 1.6 million points of interest such as the nearest gas station or restaurant is a snap anywhere in the U.S and Canada. Now with 3D building graphics for many major cities. Just enter information on the SNAP5 larger 5 inch touch screen and let the voice prompt and detailed map guide you to the destination. The SNAP5 has a built in stereo speaker, high sensitive antenna, MP3 feature and photo viewer. The SNAP5 has Text-To-Speech navigation that clearly pronounces instructions including street names(English). Preloaded with Canada and USA map that includes Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico on 1 GB SD card. Additional features include MP3 player and JPeg image viewer built in. Also includes AC/DC Adapter, Car Power Adapter, Suction cup, protection/carry pouch and USB cable.
Features
- Nextar SNAP5 In-Dash Vehicle Navigation System with 5-Inch Screen
- Pre-loaded with maps of the U.S and Canada on a pre-loaded SD memory card
- Plays MP3s so driver and/or passengers can listen to their favorite MP3 files while in vehicle
- Text-to-Speech safety feature that allows driver to keep eyes on the road while getting directions
- Touch-screen display provides interfacing capability while map is being viewed
- Dimensions (W x H x L): 1 x 4 x 6 inches
- Weight: 3 pounds
A Pure Piece of Garbage
Other than having the DC adapter break off shortly after pluggng the thing in, and being imposible to read in the sunlight, it works well.
I would not recommend this thing to my worst enemy, much less a friend. Complete, absolute waste of money. Then, when you try to order a new part for it, you must be registered and wait a couple of days for their response for a password or whatever.
Don’t buy the thing. Mine is going to be returned!
Great For The Money
GPS units need to do one thing: get you from here to there. The Nextar 5 does that quite well, with some bonuses I didn’t expect in the price range as well as a few negatives.
First, the positives: The screen is huge compared to my last GPS. It’s easy to read from anywhere in the car (especially great for my kids in the back seat that like to watch where we are) although it can get washed out in direct sunlight – though that’s par for the course. It’s also got built in batteries that allow you to unplug it and use it on foot for a while, which is nice, and an AC adapter for use outside of the car, also a neat feature.
The directions are excellent, even catching a U-turn around an island near my office that most miss. Getting off course and then re-routing is also incredibly easy. It has both night and day modes, which I liked, as it dims the display down so as not to be distracting when driving after dark, and you can choose between multiple display modes to suit your personal preferences.
So it gives good directions, has a great, large screen, and looks good – what are the negatives? First of all, it takes longer than I think it ought to to start-up and load the navigation software. That may not bother most people, but I didn’t like it. Worse though, the touchscreen is not consistently responsive, causing me to hit a selection once, wait a few seconds and hit it again, at which point it registers both hits and goes past where I want it to. If also found the POI settings a big non-intuitive – I found it took longer that I thought it ought to to figure out exactly how to display the specific items I wanted displayed at any given time. Finally, for some reason my unit will not auto-set the time; something my other GPS units have no problem doing. There’s a setting to allow it, but it says it’s unable to do so. And when I manually set it, it would forget what time zone I was in every time I turned it off, which made the clock off by 5 hours every time I turned it back on. Weirdly, this behavior just fixed itself recently, and it now at least remembers the time zone.
Most of these issues are picking nits though, and with the exception of the time zone issue, which has apparently fixed itself, none are deal-breakers. The core functionality of the Snap5 has been fantastic, and for that reason I’d recommend it as a good and budget conscious alternative to some of the other GPS units on the market.
pretty good
Very simple to use, right out of the box just plug it into the cigarrette lighter adapter and it found a satellite within 30 seconds… easy to put in addresses, the navigation instructions are very clear.
Only bad point is sometimes when freeway exits have and East and West exit, it does not tell you which direction to go. Also, it’s a little bit hard to figure out how to add multiple destinations.
Other than that, everything is great. Huge screen, easy to see… looks especially nice at night time. Driving through San Francisco is the best, the 3D mapping shows all the huge surrounding buildings. Friends impressed with it and it’s features.
Now if I can only figure out how to add customized voices…
Money well Spent !!
The Nextar Snap5 GPS Navigator was a great investment at a great Price.I tested it out on a trip to visit Family which was a 125 mile round trip.It gave me not only the normal Freeway route but also shorter toll road routes as well.I also like the fact of multiple Language settings available and Male and Female voice options. There were a couple of times however that it was a bit slow down loading information.The slim body does not take up alot of my dashboard and the five inch screen is easy to see day or night.
Already returned it…
I liked many of the device features. I would have kept it for the long haul but the connection to the cradle didn’t allow for the device to charge while it was in the cradle. The magnet held the device just fine, but the pins didn’t make contact with the tabs to give the unit the needed power. The weight on the cradle itself made the device bounce up and down and generally giggle as you drove making even the 5″ screen difficult to see.
OK
My old unit was a Magellan 860 which I was never fond of from the get go. The 5 works well but is quirky…… I can’t see making use of all the features without the users manual, it is not the most intuitive address loading unit. It is also a bit of a learning curve to figure out which screen you need to be in to do what. It also doesn’t save the saved addressed in alphabetical order that i can find anyhow. The worst of it so far was driving SOUTH to Knoxville and being told most of the trip I was on NORTH 75 and of course the same stupid thing coming home. Its a LOT faster than my old Magellan. I didn’t go with Garmin because the Garmin screen didn’t tell me how many miles I had to go to get to my destination (I don’t care when Garmin thinks I’ll get there). And one has to be very very careful on where one touches the screen while scrolling thru the 5’s menus. I accidently (and didn’t know it) shut off “recalculate route” in an area I had never been before – not pretty. It is certainly worth the $140.00. Also does a decent job of showing pics – haven’t tried the sound portion yet.
Larry
A Good GPS
My husband has been using Garmins for many years, so that’s what I have to compare the Nextar too.
The set-up was easy. It’s a mostly intuitive set up and uses a touch screen which is nice. Putting in your address is very easy. And it has a great list of points of interest along your route.
It’s very light and has a nice zippered case, so you can take it with you.
The first time I used it the setting for ’shortest distance’ was chosen. I was trying to get my son to a soccer game at an unfamiliar field, although I had a basic idea of which way to go. The Nextar kept trying to have me take all these crazy back roads. I ended up using my Google maps directions.
Once I returned home I changed the setting to ‘fastest’ and I’ve used it numerous times since. It’s been a great unit. The screen is nice and big. You have the option between 3-D or 2-D view. I like the 2-D, it’s easier for me to use.
One thing is doesn’t do, that the Garmin does, is tell you the name of the streets. The Nextar will say “In 200 feet make a right turn” – the Garmin will say “In 200 feet make a right turn on Main Street”. This was the one thing I didn’t like about the unit and why I gave it four stars, instead of five. It does show you the name of the next street at the top of the unit though, so that does help.
Overall this is a good unit, it works well and will get you to your destination with ease. And, it’s very reasonably priced.
POI’s are nice but it confused East and West
I’ve had this now for several weeks and have used this side by side with my Navigon. Living in Northern Virginia, traffic can be a problem, and changing routes is very normal. With the Nextar SNAP5, I can be miles down the road before it kicks in with another route. More disconcerting is driving East on I-66 in Falls Church, and having the voice tell me I am going West. When signage tells me I’m going a direction, the compass tells me I’m going in that same direction and the GPS voice tells me differently, I panic and want to pull off the road but I know better. This system is large in screen, but that screen displays many icons and a map that is eclipsed by the Navigon 4.3 smaller size in package. Startup is much faster in the Navigon than the Nextar SNAP5 under the exact same conditions, as I turn them on at the same time in the same place and wait for the navigation to begin. It has taken me in very complicated and inefficient routes which would make Euler roll in his grave. The text to voice function is less clear than the Navigon and the voice often breaks in and out with delivery, making the words unrecognizable. I do not like the coiled cable at all, but do like the placement of the connection better than the one on the Navigon. The map representation on the screen is unappealing and difficult to read in either option available and it’s extremely difficult to see during bright days. I sometimes cannot identify the map at all, regardless of how I position and reposition the device. I have not used the MP3 function and never will, so that’s wasted on me. The POI’s are nicely organized and it’s interesting to find spots from a database that is very outdated which haven’t existed for years. It’s a great concept if it is current but otherwise is a waste of time and can cause problems if you head to a spot that doesn’t exist. I do not know if updates are available as they are (with subscription purchase) for the Navigon. This also does not have a traffic update availability as does the Navigon. Since I don’t use it without power from the vehicle, I cannot comment upon the battery life. A stylus is included, but I also haven’t used that expect in a rare occasion. The carrying case is nice if you want to carry it, but I have yet to use the case. Very nice to have a power cord to charge it away from the car. All in all, the price of less than a hundred and a half is reasonable if you want the MP3 function but for me, I much prefer the Navigon.
I’m picky about my GPS units, but this is surprisingly good…
I’ve been through a few Garmin, Magellan and TomTom units in the past, and had always gone back to Garmin… Until now, I’ve never used a Nextar GPS. It sounded like one of those cheaper “off-brand” GPSs that just don’t deliver, but I was pleasantly surprised by the overall quality as well as the price point.
First thing you notice is the size. Compared to my other GPSs, this thing is gigantic. It might make it a pain to move from vehicle to vehicle, so it’s probably best left in one car. And the size of the unit plus the mount make it more difficult to mount where it does not interfere with your line of sight. However, the bright, bold screen, clear graphics, and overall size of the display make it very easy to see what’s going on quickly, meaning less time with your eyes off the road when checking your position. The different viewing modes and the “dashboard” with speed, distance, time, etc. are all very clear and update pretty swiftly… Good times.
I haven’t taken it out for extensive navigation testing, as I’ve only been around town lately, but from what I can see around town, it’s accurate and seems quite up to date. It calculates routes fairly quickly, and those routes seem to be just fine.
The Text-to-Speech voices are quite clear, not quite as good as some of the more expensive units, but definitely clear and easy to understand.
Overall it’s not the greatest GPS in the world, there are some clunky aspects to the GUI and sometimes it gets bogged down, but for the price it’s a heck of a nice unit.
Huge display with a few glitches…
The Nextar SNAP5 GPS is the largest, in your face mobile navigation system I have ever used. When I first opened the box and revealed the sheer size of the display I was amazed. I was a little concerned it would take up too much room on my dash and limit my line of sight while driving, which wasn’t really an issue once I put it in my car. It comes with the car charger, home charger, and case, which was very nice, considering most others do not.
I have not connected the Nextar to the internet and I have only used it as it was in the box. I took it out for a little test run. I attempted to locate a specific home improvement store in the next city with the intentions of having the Nextar SNAP5 get me there successfully. I did not know the specific street address of the business, so I simply typed in the name. The display is slow to respond to touch when typing. The device only would display the closest store which I wasn’t wanting and other stores that were 150 miles away, not the store that was only 10 miles or so away. So, I decided to put in one of the big name shopping stores. The store can be seen from the road I was on, but the device attempted to take me about two miles out of the way.
I have used Garmin, TomTom and Magellan GPS systems and they all worked without this many issues. I would definitely recommend spending your money on one of the more reputable GPS systems. This one was simply not up to par. I will add a photo comparison to one of those units shortly, to show the size comparison.
Many things to love about this unit!
This is an amazing gps! The flyover ability is worth its price alone.
FINALLY! A unit that comes with an AC adapter! This unit came with everything: a car charger, the AC adapter, a carry pouch, an SD card, a USB cable, a dashboard mount, a bracket, and a magnetic cradle (which also provides a new charging outlet). My unit was missing the stylus but the stylus is neither necessary nor probably useful on the road when we have long been used to touch screens on a GPS unit.
One very interesting find on this unit is that it provides latitude and longitude coordinates for its location. This is a huge plus on board the boat. We use radar and satellite navigation, of course, but this unit is much easier to use and it can be kept on deck more easily than a computer or going below to the navigation station to check the radar.
This was not all easy. It did seem like there were things – like the direction book – that could have been made a lot more user friendly. English is my first language but I’m not sure about this direction book’s. It took an inordinate amount of time to input simple information such as addresses. Page 32 has a short section on adding addresses quickly. It’s not. And it won’t allow me to use the name of the city nearby. The name of the city is Holland, but this unit insists it is Holland(Zeeland). It’s not. It also takes extra steps to input names for favorites – not a big deal – but you have to start by deleting the address, which fills the name spot by default. Adding a series of addresses that you intend to delete as soon as you have found them is also time consuming.
The magnetic cradle is nice but I still try to keep magnets away from my laptops so I try to remember to disconnect it before connecting ithe unit to a laptop using the USB cable. The only other problem with the magnetic cradle is that it weighs down the unit.
Comparing this unit to other units, I did have some problems. Glare on the screen. This could be a significant problem. (In Michigan, in the fall? Not so much.) This screen may be larger than most but it leaves more surface to turn in different directions to get the view that you want. My Garmin nuvi 660 4.3-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator in its entirety is the same size as the screen on this unit. But the Garmin does not generally have glare problems. The nextar is heavier and does not get thrown into my purse as easily. As a result, it is much more likely to end up living under the seat. However, my Garmin nuvi fits into my pocket.
Another way this unit falls short is that it does not provide an easy ETA. Often when I have been stuck in traffic, I get frustrated because I know I’m going to be late. The primary reason I have a gps in my car is because I have a tendency to get off the highway looking for a faster route. The Garmin fixes this by putting the arrival time on the map screen. On the nextar unit, this is not so simple. You need to go to Route menu and then Route info.
Overall, this is an amazing unit. It has a lot of great features as described in the product information. The price is also amazing!
Very Simple to Use — Love the Big Screen!
Having never personally owned a portable GPS device, I was surprised at how big the Nextar Snap 5 was. At first, I thought that the 5-inch screen would be too much for portable navigation but it seems much better compared to the navigation units my friends have. The Snap5 is actually pretty light for such a big screen and that is probably due to its slim design. Compared to my friend’s Panasonic navigation device, the Snap5 is actually similar in weight even though the Panasonic is smaller.
The menu feature on the Snap5 really is easy to use. As soon as you turn on the device you can select music, photos, setup or the navigator function. The one thing that is somewhat disappointing is the load time for the navigator program – but that is probably the only function that is slow on this device. The Snap 5 instantly recalculates directions after making multiple wrong turns – a very important feature. The system itself is set up very nicely for simple use. I’ve used other navigation devices in the past and this seems to be one of the most simple-to-use devices I’ve come across so far. I was very surprised that the preloaded “points of interest” actually had all the places that I looked up.
The nighttime screen application is a very impressive feature. Instead of having the bright glow of the map while driving at night, the nighttime screen offers a vivid navigation screen without the glare. The voice-guided navigation is also a great plus on this system. My friends and I have found that this system provides more reminders while navigating than other systems. Some people can consider this a plus or minus, but it definitely helps when driving around new places. Also, since the speakers are built in to the unit, there is no mess with dealing with additional cables. The speaker is quite adequate even at 50%.
This navigation system is well worth the money and is a great deal. This is definitely a device I would recommend to everyone, especially for those looking for an affordable option.
Easy to use but invisible in daylight
As long as you use this indoors or at night, it works great. But if you take it out in daylight the screen appears blank. This includes the bright interior of a car dash, which is about the only place you would use it. The screen is as large as I would ever want in a windshiled mount, but not too big. I actually mount it over the radio display in both of our cars, where there is a recess to keep sun off.
Menu navigation: excellent. This is the first unit I have had that is fast and logical. You can get to almost anywhere in the menu structure in 3 clicks. It makes me wonder how Magellan managed to make theirs so convoluted and exasperating.
Finding places: excellent. It even found my office by name, and we are a 7 person design firm. Finding places to eat, get gas, or anything else can be done anywhere on route, and sorted by detour from route, destination, or current position. My ancient handheld Garmen was far superior to my 1 year old Magellan at finding gas stations and food, but niether can touch this unit!
Route planning: ??. Haven’t tried this yet. It is so easy to use the history, or find things, this seems a lot less important than in my earlier units.
Turn notification: excellent. It shows you 2 turns ahead, which I have never had on my other 2 units or MS streets. This makes a HUGE difference and should be standard on all GPS. It shows landmarks and signs on route in 3D. It even distinquishes between lanes under certain circumstances, such as carpool lanes and some transition ramps. Notifications are clear, and it reads the distance to turn in yards, not .1 miles, so it is easier to anticipate.
Mount: good. The magnetic mount is outstanding but the arm is quite long and visually bulky on a low sloping windshild. It feels like it would vibrate, but the harmonic does not match the car (as it does on shorter mounts), so the unit remins surprisingly steady and easy to read even on bumpy roads and freeways. The arm is so long, in fact, that the unit is in front of the dash when mounted just below our sedans rearview mirror. However, windshield mount only works at night, since the display is almost unreadable during the day.
Accurcy: Once it indicated an offramp 4.5 miles after a “keep left”, but after passing the “keep left” it immediately said exit in 1.5 miles. It was hard to exit the carpool lane and 6 lanes of traffic in that much time! No wrong turns yet.
This is by far my favorite GPS ever, but the display nearly spoils it. How could they think this thing trough so perfectly in so many ways, and miss something so basic?
Affordable and Everything You Need Is Included
What a difference a 5″ screen is compared to my previous 3.5″ Nextar GPS unit. The Nextar SNAP5 Super Slim 5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator has an LCD screen that is crystal clear and easy to read. The unit is super slim and lightweight, measures at 5.8″ x 4″ x 0.7. This is a very affordable GPS unit if you are just looking for a GPS that does the basics with a little piazza. It does not come with all the extras such as blue-tooth or Wi-Fi capabilities, but that is why it makes it so affordable. Nextar GPS units have only been around for a few years, but they are slowly starting to gain respect in the GPS market. I owned one of their first original GPS units, the Nextar X3 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator and MP3 Player which came out in 2004. I can see that Nextar has made terrific improvements in the design, ease of use and the overall user-friendly functionality.
Equipped with text-to-speech support, built in stereo speakers, SD card with pre-loaded maps of US (includes Hawaii, Alaska and Puerto Rico) and Canada, MP3 player, photo viewer, 2D and 3D map viewing modes for “major cities”, day and night mode and rechargeable Li-ion battery. It allows to choose different backgrounds (13 to pick from). You can even choose your mode of transportation – from car, emergency, taxi, pedestrian, bus or bicycle. The magnetic docking clip allows you to connect the AC power adapter to it and you can easily snap it and snap off the GPS unit without having to unplug it every time. This makes it easy to store or take take along with you. There are over one million points of interests and your address book can hold up to 300 of your favorite places to go. The touch screen is very responsive and the driving instructions seem to be accurate. It does take a bit when you turn it on to acquire the signal, but once it is acquired the GPS constantly has strong signal strength (and I live out in a very rural area). It also recalculates routes very quickly.
One neat feature that my other GPS did not have is that as the name street you are on displays at the bottom of the display, it also shows the house numbers as you approach them. Nice feature when you are looking for a specific house number.
For a VERY affordable price you get everything you need in the box. AC Adapter, Car Adapter, USB cable, Pouch, Mounting cradle, Dashboard mount disk, Mounting Bracket, 2GB SD card. This is a GREAT DEAL since most GPS units only come with the car adapter and mounting cradle.
This GPS is perfect for someone who does not all the fancy extras and wants a GPS that is affordable and dependable.
Not a bad gps device
Rewritten on 10/15/09 – Would give this product 4 stars
When I wrote my first review, the unit wouldn’t work correctly. I am not sure why, but it is working fine now. After putting the unit through multiple destinations and comparing it to a Garmin every step of the way, this unit worked just as well as a Garmin.
The software navigation wasn’t too bad. It did take about 30 seconds to get into the navigation software but that is within the average boot up times for gps units. There is a toggle switch on the bottom that is an on/off switch. It has to be in the on position and then you hit the power button on the top of the unit. To me, 2 buttons seemed a bit awkward. When setting the destination, it eliminates any letters or numbers that aren’t possible as you type in the street, state, city or address which is a nice feature.
The suction mount very bulk but does stay in place and doesn’t fall off the window. It is nice that the unit came with a wall charger and a car charger and a carrying case.
When I opened the box, I realized the unit was very big and it seemed even bigger on my windshield. The unit didn’t wash out in the bright Arizona sun which is a huge plus.
The software on the GPS unit isn’t streamlined and the main menu gives you the options of either GPS, Pictures or MP3 along with a options choice. I didn’t test the pictures or MP3 because I just can’t see a need for them in my life. The screen is a tad unresponsive so it felt like I had to keep pushing to select an option. Once in the GPS menu, it seems to respond better. The POI database is very extensive and found more local places than my Garmin.
I took both the Nextar and a Garmin on a 200 mile drive and they both worked very well. I noticed the Garmin said we would be at our destination 45 minutes sooner than the Nextar. As we got closer, the Garmin adjusted its time upward while the Nextar adjusted downward and they both met somewhere in the middle. I am sure it has something to do with the mathematics and routing calculations. The only thing that differed between the two gps units was sometimes the Garmin would know the posted speed limit in rual areas while the Nextar wouldn’t I find the speed limit display on the GPS to be a VERY useful setting. I live in a city that loves speed cameras (both mobile and stationary) and if I am driving in unfamiliar territory, I love the fact that I can look at the GPS unit and see what the speed limit is.
The Nextar allows the user to change up to 3 items on the left side of the screen. Choices range from current speed, posted speed limit, estimated time, etc. It will only allow 3 choices so choose wisely. You can change them at any time but I wish it would allow a 4th option and then it would display everything a person would need during a trip.
All in all, this unit work well, even if the interface is somewhat clunky. Once it got a satellite lock, it worked as well as my Garmin. I didn’t test either the MP3 player or the picture as I view both as unnecessary features.
Unbelieveable Bargain
I purchased 2-SNAP 5 GPS after buying several SNAP 7 units. The SNAP 5 is just as accurate and easy to use. These GPS are by far superior to my Garmin 7200 and Tom Tom. It takes just moments to set up a route or destination with the touch screen. Its as if the software is reading your mind. As a example I wanted to find a Wal-Mart about 40 miles north of me so I entered the search for Wal-Mart looked at the results at 40 miles set it as a destination and I was routed to the front door.
What a gem of a driving help.