Home > Consumer Reviews > Navigon 2100 max 4.3-Inch Portable GPS Navigator with Text-to-Speech, Lifetime Traffic, and 2 Years of FreshMaps (Special Bundle)

Background: I had always rented vehicles with a GPS until recently my frequency of travel to unfamiliar cities had reached a point where it made sense to purchase my own. I was not looking for a GPS to play MP3s, make phone calls, take photos, or fill out my taxes. I simply care about its ability to navigate from point A to B and to get around an unfamiliar place, and so I'll limit this review to those features. I tried two devices: the Garmin nuvi 755T (same as the 765T minus the Bluetooth) and the much cheaper Navigon 2100 max with the bundle that included lifetime traffic.


Garmin Nuvi 755T

Pros:

-Could use all the features right out of the box
-Always got me from Point A to Point B
-Map very pleasing to my eyes
-The lane guidance is useful, but not as useful as I thought it would be (I find that keep right/left voice commands can stand alone).
-Considerable more Points of Interest than Navigon 2100 Max. Also many more Points of Interest categories and the ability to simply enter a category if it's not listed and still get good results (e.g., Salons or Dance Studios were not categories, but I entered them and the device retrieved many nearby options [you can also search in a different city]).
-Really good recalculation, it doesn't waste time just trying to get you back to the original route if a different route from your current location is better. It also recalculates at blazing speeds (I had a new route before I made it to the end of a 800 foot block).
-Text to Voice is really good (far more useful than I would have guessed). This really allows you to keep your eyes on the road and gives you peace of mind that you're turning in the right place.
-Very useful visual layout indicating direction of the turn and the street onto which you should turn (but the voice prompts, especially with Text to Voice, are so good you never need to look at the display).
-Local speed limit always posted with your current speed nearby (more useful than I imagined)
-Good volume and easy to change volume while in use.
-Easy to turn on or off with an external power switch.
-The traffic feature was extremely useful and the information was easy to access during use. The much discussed ads will not be an issue for you, trust me.
-The 3D navigation created a nice view, but honestly, even in strange areas with tall buildings, I didn't find this feature to be of any additional value.

Okay, But Could Be Better:

-The screen could be more sensitive, but it's a lot better than the Navigon 2100 Max.
-The device did not always properly locate me (this can be avoided by turning it on and setting the route about 45 seconds before actually leaving).
-The power source plugs directly into the mounting cradle, but it's still such a chore to remove the device from the cradle (pressing a button on the bottom on the cradle, which is mounted on a moving ball, while tilting the device forward) that the time advantage of a direct cradle plug in is lost.

Cons:

-The turn warning distance is way too short (only 0.2 miles)
-There's no ability to exclude particular streets from a route (you can set it to avoid highways, tolls, etc. though).
-Initial estimate of arrival time was a complete farce in every single test. It estimated a standard 45 minute trip to be only 25 minutes and pushed back the estimated arrival time nearly every minute never reflecting the accurate arrival time until I was at the final destination. Easily bested in this category by the much cheaper Navigon 2100 Max.


Navigon 2100 Max

Pros :

-Always got me from Point A to Point B without deep confusion
-Always correctly located me
-As in the Garmin Nuvi 755T, the lane guidance is useful, but not as useful as I thought it would be (I find that keep right/left voice commands can stand alone).
-Good turn warning distance (0.5 miles)
-The recalculating is quick, but not as quick as the Garmin Nuvi 755T
-Ability to exclude particular streets from route (a hidden feature: after the route is initially calculated, open the turn by turn and simply x out the streets you don't want to use).
- As in the Garmin Nuvi 755T, the Text to Voice is really good (far more useful than I would have guessed). This really allows you to keep your eyes on the road and gives you peace of mind that you're turning in the right place.
-Very useful visual layout indicating direction of the turn and the street onto which you should turn (but the voice prompts, especially with Text to Voice, are so good you never need to look at the display).
-Warnings when speeding (And the ability to set how far above the speed limit [separately for city streets and highways] triggers the warning)
-Ability to have local speed limit either shown constantly or when a speed warning is triggered
-Good volume and easy to change volume while in use
-Initial estimate of arrival time very reliable. Estimated a standard 45 minute trip to within 1 minute and pushed back estimated arrival time only once (adding a minute).
-Easy to turn on or off with an external power switch.
-The traffic feature was extremely useful and the information was easy to access during use.

Okay, But Could Be Better:

-Screen sensitivity
-It sometimes took a couple of minutes to initially locate me, but was always spot on when it did.
-The power supply is plugged into the device which is mounted on a cradle, but the cradle provides such limited range of motion that it's difficult to get the device in the most desired position and I was forced to accept it slanting slightly during every use.

Cons:

-Thin Points of Interests (more important than I thought) and no ability to search categories not already listed (a real problem). You also must select a city each time you search; it doesn't just automatically pull up nearby locations like the Garmin Nuvi 755T.
-It's hard to see ALL of the display icons including information on speed and your current speed
-The dull, mostly gray, maps with an orange route indicator are hard on eyes.
-The keyboard takes up only half the screen making it chore to type in anything. This is especially problematic when trying to switch states or from letters to numbers (or vice versa) as these display buttons are extremely narrow and it was difficult to select them without long fingernails.
-The recalculation kept trying to send me back to the original route even if it was no longer the best. For example, it took the device 15 minutes to stop trying to reroute me to 16th St. (in DC) after I had purposely driven up Connecticut Ave. Had I taken its recommended rerouting (thus backtracking), my trip would have taken 20 minutes longer.
-You can't use all the features out of the box. I was forced to register the device and thus provide an email address in order to use lifetime traffic and fresh maps features (but, in all fairness, you can opt out of spam, and I've yet to receive an unwanted email).

Conclusion:

The Garmin Nuvi 755T was about $350 versus the $160 for the Navigon 2100 Max with lifetime traffic included. I think both devices performed solidly, but the edge can only be given on personal preference. All said, the Navigon 2100 Max is probably the better value for the buck, but such a statement is relative to what's important to you. I personally went with the Garmin Nuvi 755T because: 1) the map coloring and icon size was easy on the eyes, 2) it was much easier to type on the Garmin Nuvi 755T, 3) the number of Points of Interest, and the ability to type in your own category, are of particular importance to me, and 4) I personally find not losing time on rerouting to be worth the additional costs. Hope this helps.

I just got this Navigon for my wife because the Tom Tom one she had broke down. So I wanted something new that has a nice look and work efficiently.
Well this Navigon 2100max does it all. The glossy and thin look will make you think you got something very expensive when I actually paid for a very low price! The LCD screen is big enough, the map graphics and colors are excellent! Very smooth and fast! You won't have to wait for 1 min or 2 for a GPS signal! It even shows you the name of the restaurants as you are driving down the road, it shows real fast food and gas station logos. The turn to turn direction is 100% accurate unlike other GPS telling you to turn when you aren't even there yet. This machine will show you the speed limit on any road and will warn you when you go way over the speed limit, will even tell you about upcoming traffic jam and change route for you. I don't even want to mention about Exit guide! This thing can tell you what kind of restaurant or gas station or if there is a rest area in the next exit when you are on the freeway! What else can you ask! Get your money's worth with the Navigon 2100max. You will also get free update maps for 2 or 3 years! I just got another one for my sister in law and about to buy a 3rd one! Also one more thing for business people, this Navigon can log your business trip mileage! Very good for taxes purpose! I have said enough ! There are a lot more to it but I will let you guys discover it!

Nick ;)

So I've compared this item head to head with a Garmin 350, and here are the differences that I see:

Advantage for Navigon:
1. Wider screen without paying an arm and a leg.
2. Virtual 3D shows which lane you actually should be in, and freezes the picture to show you ahead of time. Very nice. (Look at image above for this).
3. Voice is very loud - I actually only had to put it at about 1/2 the volume when traveling 65 mph. (Garmin's was at the maximum voice level).
4. Lifetime map updates.

Disadvantage for Navigon:
1. Buttons are hard to press. I have somewhat large fingers and it is just about impossible for me to type on it. Other men may have the same problem. I had to use my fingernail, and even then it took me retyping everything twice to get it.
2. Slower to respond in route recalculations. The Garmin caught a missed turn quickly, and was able to have me turn at the next street. The Navigon had me turn at the next street, but the recalculation was slow enough that by the time it posted the directions, I was already past the next turn. It did this four times, for each of the next four blocks while I was driving straight at 35 mph. It didn't update fast enough, so it really never told me to turn before the next street. At the end it just told me to turn around.
3. POI, POI, POI! I wanted to drive to a nearby Howard Johnson's. I couldn't just put in Howard Johnson's, it first wanted to know what type of business it was. And then what city it was in. The HoJo was about 5 miles away, but it wasn't listed on 'Nearby'. Fine because I knew what city it was in, but if you didn't know what city your desire was in, you really lose effectiveness. If I got off the interstate and searched for the nearest Ramada Inn, and the Ramada was 6 miles away, it won't be finding that one.


So distinct differences between the two. The inability to find nearby business and the difficult in typing really limit its effectiveness though. After using one for a bit, I feel the nearby locations is a main feature of the GPS. I didn't feel this way before - I looked at it just to find directions from point A to point B. But those POI offer you the freedom to detour, and stop along the way at the types and locations you love. I would like to know that my favorite sandwich stop is at the next exit down the road, and I'm afraid the Navigon won't find that one.

This GPS does everything the $400.00 & $500.00 GPS systems do plus an whole lot more. FREE traffic updates for life & 3 years of free maps that can be downloaded whenever you want.

it knows all the school zones and warn you before you get to them. The P.O.I. in this thing is the best on the market right now. The battery last an long time and getting an GPS signal at startup is real fast, less then 10 secs here in Fort. Lauderdale, Florida.

The Text-To-Speech works great and is very clear even at max volume. Lane assistant and Reality View will blow your mind. If you like me and don't need the bluetooth or MP3 player build in then this GPS is for you.

This is my first GPS and now I am an Navigon fan for life.

Thanks Navigon for making such an great GPS and thanks Amazon.com for shipping it to me fast.

I bought this GPS on Black Friday from Amazon.com and received it in 5 days. This is my first GPS, but I have been researching different brands of GPS for quite some time. In order to write this review, I have been using this unit extensively in the last two+ weeks. I will give my account of the pros and cons according to importance here.

1. Free lifetime traffic. I personally believe that free lifetime traffic offers a lot of value. There is a reason why other brands like Garmin charge $$ a month for this service. I feel I am in control when I can see where an accident or slow traffic is. I have been very happy to use this feature in the last few days when we got a lot of rains and many accidents happened. For the unit I bought, I had to activate the traffic feature online. There was instruction on how to do this in the package. Others reported that they could use it out of box.

2. FreshMaps. Amazon.com claims that all GPS units sold from Amazon.com have up-to-date maps. If it is true, then Navigon must have just released a new version in the last three weeks or so. I tried the frashmaps feature on my Navigon 2100 Max, and it updated the maps as well as the software on the GPS. I noticed that the original map (48 continental states only) came as a 1.2(?) GB mega-size file in the unit. After the update the maps are now in 48 smaller files (one for each state). As a result, the Navigon 2100 Max now responds much faster! It now takes ~60 MB less total disk space than the old version. Recalculation (when you miss a turn) time is almost twice faster! Other noticeable features added include automatic switching to standby mode in 30 seconds after lost power (engine off) and a button to turn off the unit on the left bottom corner of the screen. I am not sure whether this is new, but now you can tap on somewhere on the map and it offers you options to (1) Take me there (2) Add to route (3)(4) (I forgot what these two were).

3. Fast and accurate reception. The GPS receiver is of very high sensitivity. It locates the satelites in half a minute or so. I was told by others that the GPS unit had to be mounted on the dashboard so as to let the unit see a clear sky. This is not true with the Navigon 2100 Max. I put it inside of the car and it still gets good reception.

4. Screen size. I thought to get the Navigon 5100, but hesitated when some reviews said that the buttons were too crowded on the screen. The 2100 Max definitely does not have this problem with a 4.3 inch screen.

5. Easy configuration. You can pretty much control everything of how it displays, such as 2D/3D maps, Day/Night display, speed limit warning(5,10,15 and it is very accurate, too).

6. Route planning. I don't have experience using other brands of GPS, so I can't comment on the comparison part. But I feel there are much to be improved for this GPS in this area. One day it instructed me to turn left when it was a one-way street to the right in Downtown San Diego. This was before the recent map update though. I normally take a local street to avoid freeway traffic on my way to work in the morning. The day I decided to follow the route given by this GPS, it took me 20 minutes longer on the road (waiting in traffic). Unless the unit knows rush hour traffic information, I don't see how it can improve on the planning. I am very good at reading maps and road signs, so I am fine with what it is now.

Finally I would say that a lot of issues are actually due to bugs in the software and can be corrected with a software update. I am in the software business, and I know it is impossible to make any software completely bug-free. With FreshMap also updates the software, we can rest assured that Navigon is making progress on fixing bugs.

===Added on 1/8/2009:===
Here is what I found on Navigon web site:

For NAVIGON 2100 max users who subscribe to NAVIGON FreshMaps: Our newest and best generation software is now yours--free. Download your latest edition of NAVIGON FreshMaps and get our next generation software--and a navigation experience that is faster, easier, more intuitive and more accurate than ever.*

Outstanding new features include:

Reality View(tm) Pro 3D guidance---now with more coverage in more places
Lane Assistant Pro-- Never miss your turn with lane map guidance
Text-to-Speech -- Advanced voice guidance using new phonetic technology
Exit Guide -- Search upcoming exits for the POI of your choice
DirectHelp -- Instant access to nearby emergency services providers
Smart Speller -- Makes entering addresses and searching for POIs easy
Auto-off Feature -- Turns off your system when you turn off your car
NAVIGON Sync -- Imports your Outlook® contacts for easy access to addresses

This is next generation navigation--and it's yours, free.