This GPS system is the least expensive of its kind and it works. For basic navigation, it is adequate, however, after a 2500 mile trip, there are some concerns. As other reviews have indicated, some of the information is outdated. Also, this system has a tendency to stick to interstates when other routes might be more appropriate. The battery life of the unit is slowly diminishing. Of course, because of the price, this unit will not apprise you of traffic slowdowns or accidents ahead.

The good things this unit provides are these features: distance traveled, distance and time to destination, speed and direction. Being able to estimate ETA has proved handy as I was able to tell those folks at the destination my estimated arrival time.

If you are looking for the basics, this is a good unit. If you are looking for more bells and whistles, you may need to spend more money.

I must admit, I bought this product with some mixed feelings. The reviews I saw here on Amazon made me wonder if I might be better suited buying a higher end unit. I decided it was worth the risk and bought it. Here are my thoughts after using it on a recent road trip.

The Good: I love the ability to pre-program destinations. This made it easy to find and save all of the places I wanted to visit on my trip, making finding them later a snap. The satellite was very accurate and quick to reroute when I missed a turn or chose to follow another path. The audio was solid and made driving easy.The unit is also very portable.

The Bad: Finding locations was a pain. The interface is hard to get used to and the POI info is a little lacking in my opinion. The screen is a little small, and those without good vision may have to rely on the audio.

Overall: I think this is an awesome unit for the occasional user who does not want to spend the big bucks for a more full featured unit. What it does, it does well. The user interface is embarrassingly poor, but you can learn it eventually. The ability to look locations up ahead of time is a huge advantage.

Who this is good for: The occasional traveler, that does not want to spend big bucks on a GPS.

Not recommended for: Those who struggle with technology. Those who need to program addressee on the fly. (Delivery drivers etc.)

I got this to replace my GPS navigation software I used with my pocket PC. This unit is not nearly as advanced as what I had before. Sometimes it also does goofy routing through a residential area instead of a major road when clearly the major road is the quickest. In the end it gets you there but sometimes you get there in a less then optimal route. The menus are not intuitive. But because it does not have many options, that doesn't matter too much. The manual is poor in that it does not explain some of the screens. I also did not find a more detailed manual on the CD or online at their web site. Sometimes it take a long time to recalculate a route and recalculates over and over for a few minutes for no good reason. Fortunately it is not very frequent that it does that. Battery life after about 4 months using it is short, maybe 2 hours or 3 hours at the most. Now I usually just keep it plugged in all the time. It comes with a car and home charger.

With that said it is pretty simple to use and not bad for the price. I got mine on sale online for about $140. For that price I can't really complain. It comes loaded with maps of all of the USA, Alaska and Hawaii in the 1GB SD card. GPS sensitivity is good and it gets a signal from about any place inside the car. The windshield mount is excellent. With a few small changes to the software this little unit could easily be a 4 star unit. But the limitations in the software makes me give it a 3 rating. The touch screen works fine but I would have preferred a QWERTY layout of the letters instead of the alphabetical layout for inputting addresses. At full price I would not recommend it. However, if you are looking for a basic unit, and find them on sale, it will get the job done without a very big bite out of your wallet.

With the negatives

If you are looking for an entry-level GPS device, this is the one. Let's first begin with the cons:
- Does not carry any of the luxury options such as bluetooth or an mp3 player.
- It does not display the names of the POIs while driving
- The interface can be a little tedious at the beginning.
Having said that, why did I gave 4 stars then?
First of all, you have to understand that you are paying, in most of the stores, less than 200 U$S for a GPS system. These usually go for 500 or 600 U$S.
Also, it gets you there. A gps is not meant to give you shortcuts or smart advices. It is designed to get you to a certain destination. And this device does the job right. Even if you lost your track, or if you missed your exit, the recalculation process is quite fast and redirects you to a new route.
It is not fancy, it does not have music (you have your car player for that) and it doesn't tell you "turn right on McKenzie Avenue". But is does give you directions over voice, has good battery life, colored display and automated software for updates. That was pretty much what I wanted and to spend less than 200 U$S.

pros:
1) cheap, thin and lightweight
2) detailed map on 1Gig card
3) USA and Canada map included
4) good POIs. grocery stores, hotels, restaurants etc. It even showed disney world when I was in Florida.
5) voice prompt
6) select on map. You can select a destination on a map. But I could not find "daytona beach"

cons:
1) Difficult interface to master. All the menus are not visible. For example, to create a route, you have to click on settings, navigate to, my saved addresses and then create.
2) Sometimes it gets stuck on a map. For example, after coming from Florida, I selected a route, but it got stuck in Florida map
3) Not sharp graphics.
4) I think it forgets some settings when you turn it off and then on.

Skeptical of the low price, I got this GPS to try it out and return but I'm definitely keeping it. It was the cheapest GPS I could find out on the market that was small enough to fit in my shirt pocket.
br /
br /Pros:
br /+ price, $170
br /+ good gps signal reception
br /+ slim, fits in my shirt pocket but its mistaken for a pocket protector often
br /+ bypass / detour calculation, good for finding alternate routes
br /+ quicker time / short distance priority mode, good for taking local roads
br /+ time/distance to destination display
br /
br /
br /Cons:
br /- no automatic night mode
br /- slow, delayed response. to feel better, see price to justify. (its built on WinCE)
br /- UI is not elite like the Garmins but I can live with it. My manual is still in the box.
br /

This GPS has a great price, compared to others. It is true that it is not as fancy as the other ones you might encounter, but if you're like me, all I need is a GPS to take me from point A to point B accurately and quickly. Navigation is an interest, as well, but not as much of a priority. Let's look at some important aspects of the device.
br /
br /Accuracy:
br /It is very reliable. There are a few spots where the device does not know where it is, but the system will recalculate the route very quickly in a matter of seconds.
br /
br /Route Selection:
br /Here is where it could probably improve a bit. It will take you to the quickest route. However, it does not take into account the advantage of major highways and the possibility that you might go over the speed limit on those more often. Therefore, it sends you to backroads more often than you would like. Another point is that it does not have an option to avoid tolls, nor does it not notify that you are approaching one. Even with these disadvantages, the system is still very good at choosing routes.
br /
br /Navigation:
br /The navigation, in my opinion is pretty straight-forward. The touch screen is great and the program's levels are very easy to follow and customize.
br /
br /Other features:
br /You can set it to notify Points of Interest (POI), so you know when you're approaching restaurants, banks, etc... This is a good feature. I have not been able to find churches on their database, though.
br /
br /Directions:
br /Very clear and loud voice, warnings are done on time and the display has displays of the current road (3D or 2D, your choice), the distance and direction of next move, next street or road, current street, speed, and time remaining.
br /
br /Price:
br /I did not find any other GPS systems that were this inexpensive and reliable. Very happy with my purchase.
br /
br /Hope this helped!

The X-930 is unable to enter GPS coordinates with greater than 2 digits of Longitude degrees, making it a useless feature for half the globe, from roughly west of the Mississippi River to Singapore.

I thought this was going to be a very useful way to enter Points of Interest. I planned on locating my POS's with Google Earth, then entering the GPS coordinates into the unit. This is much more accurate than an address, and sometimes where I am going doesn't have a street address. However, being in California at 120 degrees Longitude, the X-930 doesn't allow for 3 digits of Longitude to be entered. (which is fine for Europe...)

When I asked for a firmware patch, customer support said there was none and relayed my bug report to product development. To me, that means this isn't going to be fixed any time soon. Don't buy this product. It does not do what they advertise and when informed of a fatal flaw, nothing is done about it. In my opinion, this product should be recalled..

ViaMichelin is going out of GPS business. You will be buying a unit that will be discontinued and presumably neither supported or updated. See below: ViaMichelin, the subsidiary of the French tyre manufacturer specialising in digital travel assistance products, has stated it will no longer participate in the GPS navigation device market. According to a report published in France's La Tribune, the company, which holds 14 per cent of the French GPS market, has found it difficult to expand in Europe in the face of strong competition from rivals such as TomTom. Sixty of ViaMichelin's 170 employees are affected by the decision, La Tribune reported.

I have to agree with some of the lower star comments. First, it is not user friendly. Second, it will not locate alot of addresses. Third, the instructions are very poor. Fourth and final, the screen is very difficult to read during the day. I am in the process of exchange to a better rated unit. You get what you pay for,"true in this case".

ViaMichelin X-930 Portable GPS Navigation System

Great product. Very easy to use. Put into work right away. Connects to SAT easily and fast every time. Three drawbacks though; first one is that you can not change setting while it is still in navigation; it resets the navigation path therefore you need to set it up again, but it is a quick process. The second one is it does not provide warnings for traffic jams or closed routes like it advertized. So you would not know it until you get there to be stuck in traffic or had to make the u-turn. The last drawback is that the map database is not up-to-date. My new home address was not in the database so I had to assign a near-by location point as my home location. Other than these drawbacks, this unit is probably the best GPS unit that money can buy at this price range. The unit is very responsive. There is no lag or delay. The built-in battery does not last long so I have it connect to the car charger at all time. If you can tolerate these noted drawbacks, this unit will do its job for you 100%. I firmly believe I made a good purchase decision.

I absolutely CANNOT recommend this GPS considering all the name brand options in this price range. I purchased it based on the price and reviews and felt I had done well. I had no need for the extra bells and whistles that others come with, it was a better price. It had a poor interface, but I could suffer with that b/c of the price. It took awhile to acquire a signal, but I could suffer with that b/c of the price. Or so I thought. One time it took over 35 minutes to acquire signal. Another time my wife really needed it (she was driving to an unfamiliar area, at night, in the rain) and it never aquired a signal the whole 45 minute trip. Now I accept it won't stop the rain, can't turn the night into day, but I DID expect it to help her find her destination. She was scared and late for her appointment! I started wondering, , do I need to suffer with that b/c of the price? Well, I chose to call ViaMichelin to see if I might have a defective unit. The polite, helpful, customer service told me the ViaMichelins have a 'quirk'. If the unit was shut off for more than 8 hours, it would take awhile to re-acquire the signal. His suggestion was to power the unit on about a half hour before it was needed, so it would have time to find the satellites. I thought this was crazy, so I decided to return it and shop for another.
br /
br / I settled on the Magellan Maestro 3100. Again, based on price and reviews. This GPS has an interface that is a thousand times more user friendly, has that predictive text thing that makes data entry so much more easy, has a million other features that are far superior to the ViaMichelin, and MOST OF ALL, it acquires the signal within a few minutes. Doesn't matter how long it's been off, if it's raining, or if there's thick cloud cover.
br /
br / The only advantages the ViaMichelin has over the Magellan Maestro 3100 is the fact that it shows estimated time to destination and it has updateable maps. These are too few advantages for my money...
br /

If you are looking for a gps that gets you from a to b then this one does it well. The unit is quick and even works indoors. But it is not user friendly. Traded it for the Garmin 220 and it is better for what i need. Especially points of interest. They all loose there flair after about a week so go on your budget and what you really want it for. I recommend to go with a Garmin. they are just better.

Bought this a little concerned after reading some of the negative reviews but after using it I am not disappointed.

I'll try and address some of the concerns. First I had this unit up and running with no problem, without even looking at any manual. (Yes, the manual it comes with is a little skimpy, but just go on the Europe the web site and download the manual for the 950, it's almost exactly the same and is a full manual).

It warns for turns at a half mile, I found this plenty of time. and actually the display tells you what direction you will be turning and how far, long before the voice warning, so I had no problem there. And actually it knows when your on a local road as the warning will come at .2 miles instead of .5 because you are traveling at a slower speed.

I gave it a 4 as there isn't map updates available but I'm not overly concerned given the price I paid and based on it performance.

I have had it for 3 days now used it 4 times and it has been flawless!

Great price. The GPS reception is amazing, I have a $600 Garmin that doesn't come close to this one, and that is without an external ant. The only short comming on the X-930 is the software navagation, It is a bit awkward! For example, you have to go through several screens to get to your saved addresses. To switch to night view is a royal pain, and sometimes I forget how to get to a setting and it takes a while to find it again. Oh and the map screen should let you remove the detail from the top to allow you to see more of the map. I was hopeing that they would come out with a software update, but on the website it looks like they have dropped this model from existance??? You might want to keep that in mind if you plan on buying a current model. Here today gone tomarrow.

If you want a product that uses maps from 2005 and is accurate about 65% of the time, this unit is for you. I have tried repeatedly to get updated maps to no avail. Every time I call customer support I talk to some very nice people who tell me that they're still waiting on news of when the updates will be released. I've been told, "Any day now" for two months. Customer service personnel said they had been expecting the updates during summer 2007. In the past two weeks I've used the product in areas where I'm very familiar with the roads. On one occasion I was directed down a road that dead ended at a river. On another occasion I was told to turn into a parking lot (on my way to another destination). This past week I was driving in a location about 170 miles from my home. On the first leg of my trip, I followed the GPS directions. The trip took 186 miles (3 1/2 hours). On the return trip I decided to follow the road signs. The return trip took 163 miles and a little less than 3 hours. I thought ViaMichelin was a reputable company. It appears that I was wrong.

While the via Michelin offers a bright, easy-to-read screen, you practically have to punch it for it to respond to your input. It's also great for planning trips that are no longer than 3 miles away, because that's the radius for points of interest. Long story short, we hated it, we sent it back, we're getting a Garmin. Just another example of getting what you paid for.

Really sorry I bought this one. Maps are old, can't locate my house on it and I've lived here 5 years. Little to no support from the company. It appears their main market in Europe. Map updates are not available. Find a unit that allows you to update your maps from the internet. I am sure there are better units available.

This unit is essentially a paperweight. The maps are ridiculously old and there is no chance of getting updated versions, since ViaMichelin is no longer making GPS units. They have also turned a deaf ear to the existing customers who are begging for new maps. If you call customer service, they will outright LIE and say that new maps are coming soon, but don't believe it. The smart money is on anything but a ViaMichelin.

ViaMichelin is exiting the US GPS market and will not support updates to the old 2005 maps. I heard this right from the horse's mouth. The unit I own didn't even recognize portions of the PA Turnpike which has been in existence for over 50 years.

Out of the box - it hasn't been easy to figure out how to get around. I haven't had time to read the manual but I never had to with my Garmin. It didn't charge in the cigarette lighter on my rental car and left me stranded in Dallas - Lost. I had to call for help. The map did not reflect road changes that were made at least 10 years ago. Out of date cartography!-- Frustrating. Whole freeways missing.

I purchased the X930 for my wife. The con they list is probably the most important fact they can mention. It is difficult to the point of impossible (occasionally) to input and find locations. It would appear from the product's website that they have discontinued the product and even the website is somewhat difficult to get around. My friend has a Garmin and I recommend their product over this one with no reservations. I am unimpressed with the lacking userfriendliness of this product and do not recommend it's purchase despite it's low price tag.

Good product for a small price.Handy and easy to use. But sometime, a little bit slow to connect and to get the satellites.

I read a lot of reviews and examined a lot of GPS units at local retailers prior to purchasing this unit. For the $150 that Amazon sells it for, there is not a better GPS in the price range on the market. I've never owned a GPS before, and I am extremely satisified with this unit.
br /
br /The operation of the unit is simple, straightforward and very well organized. You don't need to charge it up prior to operation. Just plug it into your car's cigarette lighter/power outlet and go! The unit will totally charge while you are driving, and once the power light is green you can unplug it (so that you can plug in your iPod or Sirius radio) and the unit will run about 3-4 hours on a full charge.
br /
br /The unit's suction cup mounting hardware sticks great to my windshield glass (that's illegal to do here in California, by the way). I haven't had much success it getting it to stick to the dashboard in any of my cars. For that matter the Sirius radio units won't stick to the dashboard either.
br /
br /For what it's worth, ViaMichelin is the top selling GPS in Europe, even outselling the other European based GPS, Tom Tom. Having visited the ViaMichelin European web site, I wish that the carrying case for the unit was sold in this country. No biggie, just a wish.
br /
br /I do want to point out that the unit does allow you to correct your typing mistakes when entering an address. The other reviewers that state that it doesn't must be unaware that the -- key is a backspace key. One can simply type "San Fran" for example to let the unit find "San Francisco". It's pretty much a no brainer to enter in an address.
br /
br /The unit rapidly finds GPS satellites (better than my Sirius radio finds its satellite for some reason) and quickly calculates the route. The voice instructions are clear and spot on for accuracy. It even agrees with my wife for which route to take, which pleases her to no end.
br /
br /The ability to use this in pedestrian mode is also great! I travel throughout the US, Canada and Europe, and being able to use this in both an auto and on foot is just simply wonderful. The advantage of pedestrian mode is that one can walk against the direction of a one way street, which in automobile mode wouldn't be possible.
br /
br /You can purchase the European map set off of ViaMichelin's European web site. The Europe map set is pricey ($200) but amazingly accurate for the whole of Europe. The current European map set is for 2007 and it also updates the software in the ViaMichelin.

When I first heard of the Michelin X930, I was very skeptical. This GPS system is very good for the price. It does everything that I need it to do. The voice audio is loud and clear. This system looks stylish and is small enough to carry in your pocket. I had the chance to compare the Garmin with this one when I rented a car from Budget. I had both systems running at the same time and the X930 was just as accurate as the Garmin. If you want to save yourself some cash, then I would suggest the X930.

br /I read all the reviews of this GPS unit before I bought it, and I have to admit that I was on the fence when I purchased it. But, this GPS unit is perfect for what they are used for, which is getting you where you want to go. My wife and I went to very remote hills in NY, on roads that are hardly even existing, and the GPS picked up everyone and sent us in the right direction. It doesn't have all the extra things like MP3 and so forth, but it's a really nice product. I also like that you can put it on pedestrian mode and walk with it. The Amazon description lists this GPS at 2.2 pounds, which is obviously a typo. The unit weights about as much as a business card. I also read that there isn't an option for night mode to dim the brightness, which is also incorrect. The option is right there in the main menu.
br /
br /All in all this a great little GPS and I would recommend it to anyone. You certainly can't beat the value for the money. Plug it in and start using it right away. Oh yes, and there is a review on here that states it takes a long time for the GPS to pick up its start up location, which is not true. If you don't mind waiting for about 10 seconds, you should be fine.

It's hard to use, resets or turns off while in use, though plugged in the charger or recently unplugged from charger. Unreliable for directions. Thumbs down. Save up and get the Garmin which I got the opportunity to use and loved. Purchased the garmin for a few other people who loved it as well/

I have had this GPS for 3 months it has been in the repair shop for 30 days as you could not charge it, I got it back and it works. But it works sometime and sometime it gives the wrong directions. Support said to send it back to be repaired. I didn't buy this GPS to have it in the repair shop all the time. Also the suction that holds it to the windshield does not hold, and it can fall anytime while your driving and scare the hell out of you.. Stay away from this GPS.

This product is just bad. It froze at critial times (often). It was hard to reboot. It gave me wroong directions several times (even took me threw NYC when I wanted to go to upstate NY. Terrible product! At one point, the unit frooze for good and could not be fixed. The software is useless. I could go on forever. Stay away.

A very poorly made product. The screen freezes and the system shuts down and then you are left at the mercies of the heaven. The Michelin guys wont help you out either and you cannot return it.

At first I was pleased with this unit but in less than 2 months of actual use it was on the way out. It refused to find some addresses. Then it would flash between screens. I called customer support with the usual results...no support. The foreign lady told me to do a hard reset and I did. Now the unit will not come up at all. If you must have a GPS please do not buy this one. A Garman or a Magellan is far superior and will last for years not 2 months.

After some research I had to decide between a few basic units, TomTom one 3rd edition and alike and the ViaMichelin. I purchased the X-930 because it seemed to be a fairly simple to use unit with all I was looking for at a great price. I travel to Southern Europe pretty often, and I know ViaMichelin has great maps and updates. After using the X-930 for sometime it was clear that the 2,006 US maps are waaaaay too old. Then I learnt there are no updates available for US maps. OK, customer support cannot say when, if ever, these updates will be available. Next, I consider buying the European maps for a trip in the near future. Customer support says those maps WILL NOT WORK if the unit was purchased in the US. Long silence on my side of the line ends up with the customer support representative saying something like 'some people make those maps work with the unit, but ViaMichelin does not support that'. OK, that IS weird. Anyway, I will probably get rid of the unit as I cannot be hoping ViaMichelin will soon solve these issues. My vision of the company is not half as good as it used to be. I just do not understand how a company like ViaMichelin SELLS A GPS THAT IS GOING TO WORK ONLY IN THE US, WITH MAPS NOT UPDATED FOR TWO YEARS, AND THAT DOES NOT SUPPORT MAPS FROM EUROPEAN COUNTRIES. This is a joke of a deal.

Bought due to the price, it was a mistake :
br /- Viamichelin has left the gps market now. So no more support, no more update on maps. In 2 years, your acquisition will be obsolete.
br /- horrible long time to get the gps signal acquisition. Sometimes 15 minutes to get back the signal (and the information !) after going through tunnels... Unacceptable.
br /- horrible bugs, needs to be often reseted.
br /I have sold it and bought a Tomtom...

Even though this the first GPS i tried/bought, i did not like the features much. After buying i saw other ones in the store and found out that if i had spend $100 more i would have got a much better one than this 'good looking not so useful gadget'. Would'nt recommend anyone to buy it.

I was disappointed with this product, mainly because as previous owner of a TomTom product, my expectations with GPS interfaces is quite high. The X-930 certain does the bare minimum for navigation if you know the address of the location you are going to. That's pretty much it. It's inexpensive and bare-bones and not very easy to use. If you are looking for something more intuitive, more roboust, and shorter learning curve, go for the TomTom One. It's worth the extra money.

This product is great to find stuff in a new city. If your traveling, bring it along for once you arrive. However, do not use it to get directions to a destination far from where you live. It doesn't pick the "quickest" route as it's feature says, and can add hours to your trip. Better to use Yahoo Maps or MapQuest, and then use this as a back-up. It's definately great for finding points of interest in a city. I found several things in my town that I was unaware of. I definitely would bring it along on every trip.

This product is a good deal for the price, but the instructions leave a lot to be desired I haven't found a way to get alternate routes if there's a problem on the one it suggests, other than just going a different way and letting it recalculate.

I bought this GPS for my 20 yr old directionally challenged son.
br /
br /The product works fine. Unfortunately, the preloaded maps are several years outdated. The company claims that an update is due "soon". We don't know at this point if they are going to charge for that as well.
br /
br /The directions tend to take you on some very strange paths no matter what preferences you set (odd turns through neighborhoods rather than staying on main roads.)
br /
br /I wouldn't recommend this product.

Menu is a little clunky. It fits will in our car. We live in Boston, so it does not always know the easiest way to get around.

br /It does not answer the phone
br /It does not play music
br /It won't bake a cake
br /or brew a cup of coffee.
br /
br /Once you figure out the instructions, it may take a few trial and error attemps, you will never be lost again.
br /I have never been more than 15 feet from the information I entered.
br /If you input the wrong information, that is where you will end up.
br /
br /I love this GPS

A great value. High quality and accurate without unnecessary bells and whistles. More factory-made-looking than others I've seen. Does everything I wanted. Highly recommend it if you don't want to pay several hundred Dollars.

I use this on my Trip to Atlantic City, The direction are straight-forward, with voice commands. I would recommend this product for it value price and easy to use menu.

I have been testing this GPS, for about two weeks. It gets crazy once in a while and give wrong commands, it avoids highways and trips that might be completed in 25 minutes can take much longer, but eight out of ten times, it directs you where you are suppose to go. I have friends having different brands of navigators, paid a lot of money, and still have the same problems. In my opinion, the Garmin 340 is the best one, since it gives the names of the streets, but you can not go wrong with the Via Michelin if you take into consideration the price.

We purchased this to use while traveling to visit our son in Seattle area. Haven't had a chance to use it thoroughly, but from what we have learned from playing around with it, it is pretty easy to use. Great little GPS for the price.

OUT OF 10 I GAVE THIS A 7. I DID NOT UPDATE IT USING THE CD, ETC. JUST CHARGED IT AND USED IT OUT OF THE BOX. THE POI IS ON TARGET FOR THE MIAMI AREA. IT ALWAYS BROUGHT BE BACK TO THE HOTEL I WAS STAYING IN WHEN I GOT LOST.

Fairly Good Buy for the Money.
br /Worked right out of the box, with the initial battery charge being the only issue (it took a lot longer than the 4 hrs noted in the instruction manual). Positives- Fairly Easy to use, quick to adjust route for missed turns, clear directions/voice, additional instruction (manual) available online. Not Optimal - only 2 options for routing (quickest/shortest) - I was hoping to be able to select 'major highways', maps used are not current (probably about 2-3 years old) so if a place of business has relocated, or your visiting someone in a recently constructed area - no luck (choose something nearby). Overall, for the price (vs competitors), pretty good... I'm hoping for map updates to be available online.. we'll see.

I bought this product last year, it was like $175 when I got it. It works good, can guide you to the place you wish. Two point I don't like: 1. the screen cannot be clearly seen when strong sunshine. 2. Seems I never successfully mounted on my window, maybe this is my problem. Map is old, it would be better if free map update is provided.

I purchased this item on Amazon after seeing it on one of the shopping networks. Saved over $30 and that's including express shipping. I have no desire or need for one of those other GPS units with various media players, I wanted just a basic unit that tells me where to go (no pun intended). Two days after I received it I went on vacation to a NASCAR race in Talladega, AL which is a 14-hour drive from where I live, and this unit got us there with no problems whatsoever. It refigured our route if we decided to go to a point of interest and we made excellent time. I was worried it might miss some of the backroads we were on, but no worries. Awesome. Highly recommend!

It is the best product out there for the money, it gets you where you want to go without problems.

Pros
br /Able to work at street level or zoom out to large geographical scale, updates changes quickly. Like the SD card, with ability to change out for other maps from Michelin. The mount is an engineering marvel: rotates, pivots, swivels to fit dash or window or other viewing angle. Can carry with you rather than needing constant plugged power source.
br /
br /Cons
br /loading the address. Painfully slow, laborious task. Voice is annoying. Setup for first use is hesitant and clumsy.
br /
br /Overall
br /Great little piece of equipment and very useful for me and my needs, even with the cons. With prior experience on TomTom and Navigon(Transonic), would recommend this as a superior unit.

I am pleased with this product. I wanted a basic, easy to use GPS, and this has worked perfectly. It takes a little while to get used to the controls, and the alpabetically ordered keypad takes a lot to get used to. But the directions are surprisingly much more detailed then I ever expected (even tells you how to exit on multi-direction ramps).

I bought it for my husband as the little GPS he had was very old. He had been playing with a friend's Garmin Etrex (B and W) but picked the Michelin.
br /The michelin will talk to you while you drive which is quite convenient when you travel quite a bit. The screen, too, is of a descent size. The size of the Michelin is palm size so it can fit anywhere.
br /It does the job and all for a low price. You can't beat that!
br /One thing is missing: the altitude.

it is a great value it does everything they say so far had it for 2 months & use it every day for work

I was looking for a user friendly inexpensive GPS and I am so glad I chose this one. I like it so well it's the second one I purchased. I gave this one as a Christmas gift.
br /Happy in California..

This is a great product for a first time user. The price is very reasonable. I love that you can either use it as a touch screen or you can use the stylis that is included. The only down fall is if you make a mistake in typing in the address you can't correct it you have to backspace until you get to the part where you messed up. Other then that it is awesome with the directions it gives and it is quick to reroute you if you don't turn when it tells you to. I'm getting ready to use it on a long trip and I'll fill you in on the details once I do..

I was excited about getting a GPS and after seeing the price on this one and reading lots of favorable reviews i picked this one up. The unit is sleek and nice looking. Thats all is good about it. I punched in my office address which has been in existence for at least 10 years, it did not show up. punched in 10 more addresses that have been around for at least 5 years, no luck. All this was done outdoors. I didnt think any more and returned it.

I picked up a Garmin StreetPilot c340 and this thing is awesome.

My advice, dont waste ur time and money on this GPS.

If i cud i wud give it 0 stars, but the least is 1 star.

Pretty easy to use. Basically plug and go. However, there have been two addresses including my own that it does not recognize. In bigger cities I find it does a great job. No frill, just the basics.

I bought this for my husband for a birthday present and it is not at all user friendly. I would not recommend this at all.

Purchased this unit because of the low price and for the most part I am quite satisfied with it's features. Having said that, a few caveats: 1. As far as I know, ViaMichelin still has no capability to upgrade maps in the US (they can be upgraded in the European version) as previous posters have stated, in some areas the maps can be seriously out-of-date, in my mind that is a serious flaw in any GPS unit.
br /2. With very few exceptions, do not use the "shortest distance" option. In an urban setting this unit will have you making the most ridiculous twists and turns that don't necessarily equate to the shortest routing available. Even in rural environments it can get seriously "messed up" (it had me make a loop in a subdivision that brought me right back to the street I started on!).
br /3. As others have mentioned, it is not the most "user friendly" unit available, but if you don't mind a 1-2 week learning period then this is just a minor inconvenience.
br /Overall, 4 stars for price, good voice prompts, it does get you where you are going and a really nice stand!

I purchased this for my personal use. I was very disappointed after several attempts at re-deploying the software-This system never worked (AT ALL)...to my amazement. I returned it for a FULL REFUND. This is by no means PLUG/PLAY.

I gave this as a gift to our daughter, Debra Bassett. We already have 2 GPS and enjoy using them. One is the X-930 and the other is bigger, a Maggellen Roadmate.

This GPS is perfect! The large, colour screen is easy to view, and the entire thing is so easy to navigate! The little pen in the side is really helpful and will minimize fingerprinting on the touch screen. The maps are detailed and the voice guide is very clear. I could not have ever asked for a better GPS device than this one. It is amazing...you will not be disappointed!

Certainly can't complain about this product. It's pretty easy to program and directions are pretty clear too. I like most that we can move it between cars with no fuss at all.

Absolutely the best deal going. Works great, user friendly, not a bunch of useless bells and whistles. Everyone should own one!

Although it is not as sophificated as some other GPS systems it gets you where you need to go!

Good GPS, catching plenty of signal, pretty accurate. Good basic entry-level portable GPS. Highly recommended.

If I followed it I would have gotten off the freeway at every off ramp between Oakland Ca & Folsom CA

I dropped mine and it never worked again. The screen shattered, and it wasn't even that far of a fall.

We were very unhappy with the difficulty in navigating the product. Although the first customer service person was excellent,(Michelle) the second was almost rude. Plus, we had difficulty reading the screen while mounted on the dash, during bright, sunshine hours. Wouldn't recommend it. Looking for my refund.

Basic problem with these windshield mounted gps units is that they are too attractive to thieves. I enjoyed mine until it was stolen about half a year after I bought it. My car was parked on my property, in a supposedly nice bucolic neighborhood, about 15 yards from the road facing my garage door, unlocked. But if you lock the car, maybe your car gets damaged. The police say you should not simply rely on taking the unit off the mount, because thieves often take the car apart with the idea that the unit has been stashed somewhere (as it often will be). It would be too much trouble to take the whole thing out every night and reinstall it every morning. So I will not be replacing this. Even if I were looking for another gps, there's a lot more competition in this price range than when I bought. And, like everybody says, it takes a long time to get used to its unintuitive interface. I suspect the thief is pretty baffled by it right around now, and if he tries to sell it, will find the resale value disappointing.

When we first got it we noticed it has a glitch with number streets. Which is really the only sucky thing about it.

I bought this for a 900 or so mile trip, and it told me repeatedly to change my course. I of course used a map as a backup to the gps, and the gps was consistently wrong.

my baby. my love. without her i am lost. this is my first GPS device and i quite like it.

I lost one part and now I can't use the base. They don't sell parts . The lesson: Go with a known company.

Other problems: Low battery life, not easy to use.

AVOID!!!

I called customer service and they said (We don't sell parts), unacceptable! How can they sell this thing in the US without selling parts?

Maybe Amazon should not sell it....

I bought this and it worked fine for the first 4 weeks. I was a pain since I live in DC and constantly had to change states between MD/DC/VA but otherwise it wasnt bad but some of the POI information was outdated. One day I went to turn it on and it was totally dead. Don't know what happened by Martha (as i named it) decided it was her time to go to the great beyond the morning of my cross country trip. thanks martha, you stink!

Hardware is half way decent but the software it came with is unbearable. Go spend a few more bucks and get a name brand unit.

Most GPS users rate a 200-500 $ device with a human brain !! What we know GPS will never know. We use GPS when we do not know. Mixing our know with GPS know causes conflicts and we pit ourselves against a very ordinary gadget.

I follow GPS with faith and due delligence, and if it is wrong there is no need to quarrel, take the right action, This has worked good for me,

Not bad , other than it came in a huge box, consider reducing packaging.