After seeing the terrible review at InfoSyncWorld, I became very worried that I was going to regret having just purchased the Navman PiN 100. There is very little in the way of reviews for this product so I will try to be as thorough as I can.
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br /As a Pocket PC, I am completely satisfied with the Navman PiN 100. It is actually just a Mio DigiWalker (it even has the Mio DigiWalker logo on the back of it) so if you have seen reviews for that, then this is the same thing. It runs Windos Mobile 2003, has one expansion slot (an SDIO slot), and a suitably fast CPU and on-device storage memory. I have used it as a Pocket PC for many things now and have not once felt the hardware specs to be lacking. Handwriting recognition is still awful but that is something to mention in a review of Windows Mobile 2003 operating system itself, not the Navman.
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br /You WILL need a 256 or 512MB SD card to hold maps. The included 32MB card is basically worthless, I left it in the box and never used it. Many if not most states are over 30MB and that means you would not even be able to load them onto the card. I suggest getting one of those 256MB cards with wifi ability built-in, then you can kill two birds with one stone. Wifi is a neat thing to have.
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br /As an in-car GPS solution, the Navman is hands-down absolutely the best value on the market. For under $500 (which is including the absolutely necessary additional purchase of a memory card) you get a Pocket PC, all necessary cables, an unobtrusive GPS receiver, a windshield mount, a car charger/adapter, and of course the Smart ST v2 GPS software. The Garmin iQue 3600 is its closest competitor -- I tried it too and decided the Navman PiN was both the better value and the superior product (bigger, brighter screen among many other things). Unfortunately the Navman PiN package feels exactly like what it is -- not one well-integrated product but a box of products sold as a bundle. When you open the box you are confronted with several envelopes, nearly a half dozen CD-ROMs, three different user manuals, and a confusing pile of cords and accessories. They burden you with actually loading the Smart ST v2 software on the Pocket PC, before you load it on your PC, register it and activate it, then install ActiveSync from another CD, and a bunch of other hassles like configuring the GPS COM port and baud rate -- TOO many hassles -- before you are finally ready to use the product. There was so much paperwork in the box that I spent several confused minutes wondering where the serial number was that the software wanted in order to install it. I would like to see the software pre-loaded on the handheld and all of the necessary stuff for your PC come on one single DVD ROM. I just plunked down 5 benjamins for a GPS toy, do you think I have not found myself a DVD drive for my computer yet? Get with the 21st century people.
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br /Battery life is certainly better than the iQue 3600. It is at least 3 or 4 hours but I haven't done any real tests so I don't have an actual figure to give.
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br /The GPS receiver takes some time to pick up satellites. Anywhere from 10 to 15 minutes on your first use, and 2 to 5 minutes from a cold start after that. It seems like definitely longer if you are moving. This is too long in my opinion, I don't know if other receivers are better, or not. As an in-car device I generally want to take it out of my pocket, put it on the dash, and have it ready to go. Instead I have to sort of sit there in the car for a few minutes or just wait until the first stoplight to check on where I am or where I am going.
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br /The car charger is just that -- nothing to say about it. It gets the job done and is nice to have. The windshield mount is a suction cup mount and secures excellently to the windshield. I wish I could say the same for how well it secures the handheld. It barely does at all. It sort of just cradles it lightly. If you put your Navman in it without the utmost care, it is liable to fall right out. That is NOT good. I recommend angling it back some so that gravity holds it in a little. This seems to work for me. I would have rather it clipped in or snapped in, but no.
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br /The rest of this review is going to sound pretty harsh because I don't really like the GPS software that the Navman PiN comes with (Smart ST v2 2.00.0036 SP2). It is promising, but fatally flawed. I want to say up front though, that I would not give up using this device just because I think the software sucks. I just deal with the frustrations and hope there will be an update to iron them out later.
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br /First off, the map view. The map view is gorgeous, in full 16-bit color, with color coded roads to show your route, the current road you're on, roads that pass under/over your road, and little arrows indicating direction of traffic. Major and minor roads are different colors, and the roadnames are displayed very clearly and legibly. Geography like lakes and forest is marked with blue and green. The view switches to a 3D angled view whenever you are on a route to a destination, and rotates so that up is always your heading and you can see more in front of you than behind. The graphics are state-of-the-art for this market and nothing in its price range with the exception of TomTom Navigator can touch it. Your friends will be impressed.
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br /The voice navigation is well-timed and intelligible, with the exception of "make a legal u-turn" which to most people sounds like "make illegal u-turn" (worth a few laughs). Voice only says when to turn and which direction, it doesn't say the street name or even highway number, which is too bad but that's typical for a PocketPC program.
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br /The two big disasters of this software are its address input for destinations and routing, and the routing algorithm itself. These are the fatally flawed features which keep me from recommending this device to anyone who would get frustrated easily.
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br /When inputting an address, you are allowed to select from your contacts (a Windows Mobile 2003 feature), however if you do this, you will 100% of the time be told that you have selected an invalid address. Sometimes this is because the map data is 18 months old and doesn't know this address exists, but most of the time it will accept the address if you re-enter it by hand. This is unacceptable. Also, when you start entering it by hand, it will suggest a drop down list of possible locations, and they will all seem pretty much like the same place. There is no way to tell if the address you are entering should be in Richmond VA, Richmond MCD VA, or one of several other entries for what is obviously the same place. Then you will enter a street, for instance Lotus Lane, but it will not be found because you didn't type Lotus La. This is asinine. Entering the address for a destination takes 5 mintues because of this nonsense, when it should take 5 seconds. And you will have to do this every time you enter the address, unless you pick destinations off of your "Recent" list. Once, I loaded a destination off of my contact list and ignored the "invalid address" warning and Smart ST2 routed me to some completely non-related location of the same town. From now on I make sure I do the address input in the way it wants it.
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br /As for routing, it has a lot of quirks. I will describe some of the ones I have experienced. To put it blunty, it can recommend some DUMB routes -- I mean really out of your way sometimes. I use "quickest" navigation and "shortest distance" is even worse. Once it took me to what appeared to be a complete dead end, and the map said I could keep going -- not without a machete I couldn't. I drew an "avoid area" and the route put me back on the course I should have stayed on in the first place. Other times, it takes you pretty close to where you have to go and says you have reached your destination, but you could be anywhere from one to eight blocks away from where you need to be. This can be frustrating if you fight hard for a parking spot in the city and get out and realize you still have to walk 8 blocks. It might have to do with the way the software estimates street addresses. It uses ranges of addresses and estimation to guess where a particular street address is. Sometimes this works reasonably well and other times (when ranges are large) it doesn't work at all. You might be better off never giving it a street address. Instead only give it street intersections and take yourself from there. Autorouting works fairly well, but Smart ST2 is slow to route anything, and so it will display a question mark for a minute or two until it suggests a new route. Sometimes when you know better and have a better route in mind, it will stubbornly insist you make a u-turn at every cross street until finally re-routing and "seeing the light" of what route you had in mind. I have seen other PocketPC software be smarter and faster at re-routing.
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br /So in conclusion, I highly recommend this product to geeks willing to deal with some quirks (and hope for fixes), but not to the general public who would probably be hopelessly frustrated by the routing and input problems, despite the pretty interface and good value.
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br /P.S. my review of the software is of the version after you apply the currently available patch on Navman's site. Before I did this, all of the routing problems I mentioned above were like twice as bad, and I would have given two stars instead of three. When reading any poor reviews of the Navman PiN, try to check if they are using the software before or after the patch.

WARNING - The US version ships with a 32M card not the 128M card cited in the Australian review posted here. A hastily added sticker on the box says a 128M card is "recommended" In fact, unless you live in a rural area, you can't load the map for your home area until you buy an additional card. Amazon should note this in its listing. The manufacturer has decided that its worth shipping a product that can't be used as shipped to save a few bucks.
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br / The only other problem is a poorly documented setup. Basically they're shipping a kit. First you load the PC software on your desktop, then load the map software from the included (too small) card. Finally you load the map setup software on your desktop and activate your Navman over the internet . That's when I discovered I couldn't load the map for Northern California until I got an additional 128M card. As it happens I could steal one from my Treo 600, so I managed to get it functioning.
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br / Once working, it works well. Entering addresses is strange if you don't have a zip code because they've made up sub regions that are parts of a town. Once the destination is in, however, the 3D maps are beautiful and (so far) seem accurate. Voice prompts are useful but not overly verbose. It's easy to use and read as well as being a nice small, light package
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br / If the maker hadn't made a last minute decision to ship it without the required card, I'd have raised it to 4 stars.

I've wanted an in-car navigation system for a long time, but was put off by their high cost and non-portability. I was pretty excited to see this Navman unit - at last a totally portable driving navigation gps, that I could use hiking, driving or boating at a reasonable price.The unit is well constructed and does not 'feel cheap'. It is very small/thin, but has a beautiful bright display. The screen really is nice. The maps (Australia in my case) come pre-loaded on a 128mb SD Card. They also come on CD if you want to use the SD Card for other things. It comes with a sturdy windscreen suction attachment, car charger, wall charger, slip cover and USB cable.The small flip-out antenna can lock onto satellites when I'm inside my house! I was concerned I would need an external antenna for the car, but I've yet to encounter any difficulty with getting sattelite locks.The Navman unit is actually a rebadged Mitac Mio 168 (first Pocket PC to include a built-in GPS receiver), which has received very good reviews. The primary difference is that the Navman comes with SmartST mapping software. Unfortunately, this may not be a such good thing. The SmartST software is great to use - the 3D street maps are fabulous, and it's very easy & intuitive to enter in addresses or search for location 'types'. However, it is *NOT* possible to enter waypoints or GPS coordinates, so it is not suitable for geocaching out-of-the-box (what a shame). There are 3rd party PocketPC programs that you can use for geocaching.The voice prompting is loud and clear, and location accuracy seems to be quite good. I've been driving around the city of Brisbane for the last few days, and only had one 'error' with the directions (I was on a service road a few metres away from a highway - it thought I was on the highway). Roundabouts are handled well (ie. it will say "On the roundabout, take the second exit"). If you make a wrong turn, it auto-calculates a new route very quickly. As it is a PocketPC, it comes with "Office" type software, such as PocketExcel, PocketWord, an MP3 player, games etc. Since I've never used a PDA before, I didn't realise how versatile they were. It's amazing how many 3rd party software packages are available. It now seems crazy to buy a dedicated GPS or car navigator when integrated gps PDA's like the Navman are available. If you've put off buying a GPS, take a look at the Navman PiN - highly recommended.

After researching different GPS navigation options (laptop with adapter, built in car unit, PDA with adapter, handhelp GPS etc) I decided to get the Navman PiN. (its the same as the Mitac, which has been out for a while and plenty of product reviews available)
br /It arrived 2 days before my cross-coutry drive. I unpacked it and started the installation and set up. It took a bit longer than I expected, their web site is horrible, and since the product needs to be registered before you casn use it, you better hope their server is up and runing otherwise install may fail. After sweating the install I got it working. (2 hours later) Its been working perfectly ever since. Very easy to use for the most part very accurate. During the whole cross country trip, we experience no problems. Sometimes, the device thinks you are driving next to but not on the road, and shows you travelling parallel to the highway. (i think this may be more of a map issue) I found this really annoying because it starts telling you to make turns to get you 'back' on the highway even though you are on it already. Also sometimes it would suggest an obviously ill advised manuever. So you can't be a vegetable about the navigating, you gotta think and I would definitely carry a map to compare some of the suggested routes vs reality. I wish the deivce would allow more control about sepcific preffered routes. (i.e. I want it to show me my favorite route instead of just Shortest or Quickest)
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br /Let me just say, the device is really amazing. I am nit picking in order to lay out some of the things I found annoying about the device, but all things considered there is nothing even close to this on the market right now (except for the Garmin iQue, which I do not like because of the Palm OS and the lack of SDIO port (you gotta have the SDIO option for wireless networking)
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br /I highly reccomend this device to everyone, fantastic screen, small unit, amazing functionality.
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br /I want to give it 4.5 stars.
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br /I found that a 128MB SD card holds enough maps for a full days driving (about 1000miles in most directions) therefore my 3000 mile trip required little over three and a half 128MB cards) I am considering buying the new 256MB SD/811g wireless networking card)
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br /I wish it came bundled with cradle, mini-headphone jack adapter, built in WiFi antenna and card and an extra SD card.....but for about 400 bucks, its a fantastic bargain at this time.
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The Good
br /The Navman is a handy device. I owned a Palm V before this and a PocketPC device is just better, in my opinion. The color screen is great. The integration with Windows is great. I really like the device.
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br /The Bad
br /The SmartST map and nav software is close but still sucks. I live in Alabama and none of the city names are right. I live in Huntsville but the SmartST app says I live in Hueytown. The maps are accurate at the street level but most of the city names are wrong. The routing view is pretty cool especially if you are map challenged. It gives a view from the perspective of the car instead of a birdseye view. Programming the route is a pain. The address lookup is annoying to use. The main application that runs on the laptop/desktop computer will only load maps. It sure would be nice to construct routes on the big computer and download them to the PocketPC.
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br /All in all I think the Navman is a good value. Just be prepared to spend a little extra and get a big SD memory card and some new software, maybe Delorme Mapping Street Atlas 2005 for Handhelds.
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br /Software Update
br /I purchased Microsoft Streets and Trips 2005 and it works nicely with the Navman. No GPS problems. The ST maps are superior to the SmartST maps. HOWEVER, the SmartST maps are much smaller. The entire state of Alabama can be loaded onto the Navman using the SmartST application but only the city of Huntsville can be loaded (as a single map) using Pocket Streets and Trips. So if you are planning a long trip on Streets and Trips, be prepared to load a bunch of small maps. I guess I will use SmartST for city to city navigations and the Microsoft products once I get there.

Yes, free mp3 player... You can get it along with tonns of free soft on internet... Exciting...
br /Fun started from setting up desktop soft and applying patch.
br /But it is nothing comparing to fun of day to day use.
br /I have used Garmin aviation GPSes and Garmin iQue for more than a year before got this PiN thing (which i thought was cool since it had more built-in memory, faster CPU, runs pocket windows, and had no bad reviews at the time).
br /Ok, next day, my first trip from NJ to Long Island, I hit Rt.95, crossing GW bridge and screen goes gray saying no map data... I exit software, start it again, hit recent trips, wait for 5 minutes until it recalls the ONLY trip in memory and hey, it's working but i missed the exit and have to make a u-turn (with 20 min of traffic).
br /Next day, i still have lots of faith in this PiN in a butt, and rely on it for trip to Briarcliffs, NY for meeting. Passing this dead spot on Rt.95 again, restart, it's ok, maybe there is en update i can get later... I am almost there, driving on some road, then my PiN happily reports "DESTINATION!!!". You should see this destination, one line road and trees around... Destination was actually close, only about mile away, thanks to local police officer.
br /Another story when i was testing my patience. Was driving home and suddenly had suggested by PiN to take immediate exit right. It puts me on same highway in opposite direction, then suggests a u-turn in few miles. Leads me to same spot where i was fooled first time and suggests immediate exit right... I knew it's in the mood for a long joke, but i really wasn't, and actually wanted to get home ASAP, so since i knew the direction relatively well - simply turned the damn thing off.
br /Actually once it was trying to save my life. In MA with few fellow colleagues we were looking for place to eat. I got my magic PiN and found a seafood place in Westboro using point's of interest feature. Cool! But i know my PiN well enough to sit and relax, so I am lookin around carefully while we are driving and searching for the place. Here it is, and right after i see restaurant sign - PiN suggests continue 2 miles and something. We laugh, pull off the road. And only 2 hours later a realized that it was actually saving us from this food trying to drive us away...
br /Anyways. Now my windshield holder is broken and i can't find place to order it. That's actually what brought me here on Amazon... Remember, i was hoping to get update for map soft? Only $99 to get SmartST v3... Nah, what i need is update to another GPS...
br /As of now! I am using my wife's Garmin iQue every time it's critical to get to places ontime. I use mappoint for all other cases. I don't even know if i really need a windshield holder at this point, since i don't even remember where my charger is... And I will never spend more than $20 on any NAVMAN product in my life.

I purchased this item as an affordable GPS, yet it offers so much more. I've checked out other GPS systems, and this preforms as well as higher end GPS only systems. A previous review commented on the couple minute delay to connect, but this is common with all GPS as they connect with 3-4 satellites to get coordinates.
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br /The bonus comes in with the MP3 player for me. I won't be using GPS all the time, but to be able to use MP3 player instead of an IPod was a nice feature. I recommend purchasing a 1 Gig card or larger (when available). I'm able to load almost the entire Eastern U.S. Seaboard and have room for a couple hundred songs.
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br /The Navman is also a full blown pocket PC. You can synchronize it to your computer for your appointments and contacts (Outlook is included if you don't already have it). In addition you can bring Word, Excel etc. documents with you on the road. Not a big feature for me, but I'm certain for others.
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br /As with any new technical device, you will have questions. I called tech support 2-3 times. Each time I had to leave a message for them to call me back. It was a pleasant surprise that they called me right back, answered any questions I had, and offered other important need to know info. Tech support was really great!
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br /There were only 1 or 2 other items similar to the Navman. I selected the Navman because it had the highest battery life, a very secure car mounting device (no bean bag) and all the items needed from car, portable and home use. An onscreen keyboard for data entry was the final selling point for me (I have a cell phone with "Grafitti" input which is frustrating).
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br /The final clincher was if I wasn't happy with the purchase I had a 30 day return policy with Amazon. Amazon won't be finding this returned by me! A great product, single use or multi use!

As many of the reviewers have alluded to, this is a cobbled together device. The unit is made by a Chinese company called Mio. The hardware is a Mio Mitek 168. The reason why this is important is that you will have to end up contacting them for any hardware issues and their tech support is awful.
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br /I also found that my unit does not work with the SANDISK Wifi+256M card and was frustrated in my attempts to get help from either San Disk or the unit manufacturer.
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br /The Software is Windows Mobile 2003 from Windows, comes with Pocket Word, Pocket Excel, MS Explorer, Messenger, Mail, Pocket MSN, and the usual things like notepad, calender etc.
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br /The only thing from Navman is their software called SmartST V2. You can also provide intersection, points of interest (which are very out of date, it could not find many of the restaurents in Sacramento that have been open for 3 years).
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br /We were driving from Las Vegas to Sacramento and at one point we were on our way to Bakersfield, it did not even recognize the highway and was showing as if we were way off the road. Also it kept trying to route us through I-5 which is the long way. It also does not keep what you entered...and if you hit the wrong key you have to start entering the address all over again. It's also not smart enough to at least prefill the City.
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br /The voice option lets you choose 1 male or 1 female voice. No other choices are available.
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br /There are other small quirks with it as well. I also wished it would show you the direction you are going since thats possible with other GPS software like Ostia from Pocketgear (which I may get to replace SmartST).
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br /They provide accessories that let you hook your device to your car windshield or any other smooth surface, its surprisingly strong and holds very well, its based on suction.
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br /All in all I have mixed feelings about this device. I like having the versatility of a Pocket PC since its not a dedicated GPS device. But I would have liked to deal with a company that supported all of the pieces as one. If anything goes wrong its hard to get help it seems from my experience at least.
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br /All in all its quite a good value, and its a lot cheaper than the other units in the marketplace. It seems to have no problem picking up GPS signals wherever I went.
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br /Pros: Good Value, Versatility, Easy to Install in Car and remove
br /Cons: GPS software could be better, hardware device manufacturer provides poor tech support. Does not work with Sandisk wifi+256M card

I thought I'd bought a slick little GPS. Unfortunately, it would not lock onto a satellite. Tech support had me "reset" the unit and it worked briefly before making uncommanded switches to Comm 1, disabling navigation. While it was working, it was unable to compute simple nav problems. "Roads do not appear to connect" was the mantra. I also could see that the comprehensive nav data base did not reflect changes to a major local highway, several years old. To top it off, the screen is totally unreadable in sunlight and barely readable in a car. I'm an experienced lover of GPS(auto jet aircraft), but had to return this box for a refund.

Update after 2 weeks of usage.
br /I can't even give 1 STAR as the navigation system really sucks.
br /Takes me through several local streets eventhough you can take an expressway very next to it. Won't let you look forward incase you want to see what is upfront when in Navigation mode. System crashed in the middle of journey. Totally undependable.
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br /I finally bought this after looking at Navman and Garmin IQ. The pocket PC really looks amazing but the Navman map software really sucks. Some of the key features missing
br /1. Cannot search for a nearest restaurent or a pizza shop. You need to enter your current address to get near by places.
br /2. Cannot add a stop over which is really nice feature.
br /3. Cannot locate the rest areas on the freeways which is crucial when driving long distance.
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br /Also, it takes an aweful long time to load each map even though they are pretty small.
br /Was showing longest road when trying to navigate from San Jose to LA. It would have been very nice if it had a stop over feature.
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br /Over all, it is nice to have gadget but is not dependable completely.

I am so mad that I read these reviews and bought this product! Imagine if you set up your computer or laptop with the programs you wanted, the setting you wanted, and the addresses and contact information you wanted. BUT, because you went longer than 8 hours without connecting it to a power outlet, you lost all your data and setting. Well, that is what this does! You have to start all over again as if you have just taken it out of the box...... You even have to re-install the navigational software! If you can guarantee yourself that you will keep this PDA on electrical charge without a battery-only period lasting more then 8 hours at a time, then by all means buy this product because it has all the great features mentioned by the others -- beautiful screen, light weight, etc. Otherwise, if this is how all PDAs operate, I think I will stick with pencil and paper -- they do not erase themselves after a period of time. It is totally unacceptable for a device as expensive as this to not have some form of internal memory that retains your profiles and settings! Even a simple cell phone can remember a name and number -- but not this device!
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br /I gave one to a friend as a gift. I set it up for him, added a few games, put in addresses that he would be visiting on a trip to California, had the maps he needed loaded on a 512 memory card. By the time he went to use it, it had been longer than 8 hours, and everything was gone. The maps were still on the memory card -- but the program to read the maps was no longer in this "Pocket PC"!
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br /Please do not make the same mistake that I did. The company calls it a "Pocket PC", and the software that loads from its ROM makes it look like a mini PC, but it is not. It is more like a "Digital Chalkboard" -- and the battery is the eraser!

I've used mine now for 3 weeks. To store all the maps you will need at least a 1GB SD Card - I have a 512MB Card and managed to load the entire east coast (from Florida to Ohio and to Maine). The installation is easy to follow but the address input is incredibly dumb - it's illogical for one - as many others have reviewed previously. I use it in Greater NY/Tri-State area and the directions can be slightly off but when it works it works great - many a times though i could have thrown it out the window duing data input - the link to outlook/contacts is useless.
br /I have bougth MS Streets Trips 2005 and will see if it works with the NAVMAN - it may make for a fine addition.

First off, let me tell you that this is a great PDA, especially for the money. For under $400, you can get a quality PDA with a GPS Navigation system (hard to beat the price). As with previous reviews, definately invest in at least a 128mb SD card. I purchased a 512mb SD card. This allows me to upload all of Florida and have plenty of room for music and other states if needed.
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br /The actual device is small, lightweight and compact with a very sturdy antenna mounted on the back of the device that you can flip open when using the Navigation. The only flaw I have seen with the outside design of the PiN is the shortcut buttons on the face and on the side of the unit. These buttons are very sensitive, and can very easily be pushed on accident while in your pocket (quite often), turning the unit on (thus draining the battery). I found a way to set the shortcuts to "none" where they are not a shortcut to any application, but they turn on the unit to the main menu screen when pressed (a little frustrating).
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br /The Navman PiN is equipped with Windows Mobile which comes with the standard Word, Excel, Calendar and MP3 player. This is pretty much standard with all PDA's. The SmartST software for the Navigation that you have to load is a pain, it would be nice if it was pre-loaded. The battery life is excellent! Also, the mounting kit for the car is great as well and it is very sturdy.
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br /Finally, the Navigation system is second to none compared to others in it's class, and some of those twice as expensive. I have not had really any problems with the SmartST software as of yet that some people have been having. The maps are a little out of date, but living in the metro Orlando area, I have not run into many problems. The signal is great once you get it. It usually takes about a minute on a cold boot in the morning to aquire signal. I would suggest remaining stationary in the car while attempting to acquire signal as you will get it much faster. One thing that would be nice for future updates of the software is to let the user select the 3D view even if they are not entering a destination (as it currently does not prohibit the 3D mode when just cruising).
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br /All in all, this is a great product well worth the money. Remember to get a bigger SD card and maybe even a screen protector.

I gave it one star because I purchased it for the gps side of it and the software really disappoints.
br /I own a limo company and needed to supply my 6 drivers with gps sytems, so I did some research on line and found the Navman PiN 100 for 500.00 better than the 800.00 to 900.00 for the integrated ones...
br /Did some more research and found that Fry's had them refurbished for 250.00ea. I had read a lot of reviews for the Navman and I knew that the problem was the software not the Mitak Mio 168 hardware.
br /So I looked for other software options and found two, Copilot Live 5 and TomTom Navigator 5.
br /I decided to go with the TomTom software because I know somebody that has a TomTom GO and I liked the software.
br /So I ordered 1 Navman from Fry's and decided to try the software for my self, if I did not like it or if all the other reviews were tru I had a solution to it.
br /It really is a piece of garbagge (read all the other reviews)
br /nothing works and the main problem is the way to input addresses or the problem with it.
br /So here is what I did; I bought the Navmans from Fry's at 249.99ea, bought a copy of TomTom Navigator 5 for 149.99 and load it to all the Mio 168's.
br /I did not need to buy extra SD cards because on the TomTom the WA map is only 21MB so I erased the cards that came with the Navmans and viola.
br /It has been 3 weeks now and all of the drivers are very happy with the devices and happy because I saved a LOT of money.

I've been using my PiN 100 for almost 2 years now and on an almost daily basis. I drive all over the state of Oregon and Washington for my job. I have to make multiple stops daily and to almost always never the same place twice. The PiN has done an excellent job at getting me from point A to B.
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br /For me, the GPS finds it's location typically within 1-2 minutes. Definately not the 10-15 minutes others have stated.
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br /The software can be a little difficult to find an address at times. I start with a zip code, then the street. If the street can't be found, I use the City for the search instead of the zip code. It will auto-populate the street names with just a few letters. Keep in mind, if the street is misspelled in the software (has happened several times) you may only want to put in the first few letters to see if it comes up with a close address.
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br /Another factor to consider is the date of the maps. There have been at least 2 map updates since this product was released. There have also been 2 major software updates since release. SmartST v3 and SmartST 2005. 2005 being the latest. It runs $99.95 from the navman store. I'm still using v2, and will be upgrading to 2005 this week.
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br /I've found this GPS/PDA to be the best purchase I have made in a very long time, not only because I find it very easy to use (I am however an experienced technophile) but also because it was very cheap considering it's competition.
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br /I also suggest looking into the updated software. One of the many new features is the ability to plan a route, going from point A to B, To C, To D without having to stop and put in a new address at each location.
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br /The PDA functions are what can be expected from Windows Mobile 2003. I have watched movies I ripped from DVD while on a plane or waiting at the airport. I've listened to MP3's, played games, and of course managed my contacts and calendar all while on the road.
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br /If I go out of town, I load a new map into my PiN and plug it into my rental car to get me around. It's familiar and I know how to use it. No need to pay the extra fee from the renal company, I've got my own.
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br /There is only 1 problem that I have had in my 2 years of use. My car adapter has failed me this week. It's broken and needs to be replaced. I just ordered a replacement online for $20, delivered.
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br /I paid $399 for my Navman 2 years ago during a promotion. It's by far the best $400 I've spent in years!

I have had this unit for almost a year and I am happy with it. It gives clear display and clear voice/written instruction. The unit is small, just like the size of a PDA. The initial GPS connection is slow (maybe 5 min?), but reconnection is quick and it rarely get lost. The software has problems sometimes, and I need to occassionally press the reset button to unfreeze the unit. I purchased another 256MB SD card to load all my commonly used maps (Northern and Southern California, Arizona, and Las Vegas, etc). There are still a lot of room for extra maps in this SD card. Since all the maps are saved "externally" to the memory card, resetting the GPS device will not erase the maps. Overall it's a good deal for the price. I am still very happy with it.

I have used a lot of navigation systems, this one is very good, used it in 3 states that is New Jersey, New York and California, worked great and liked the easiness of use of this product.

This product is great. The software still lacks some features. The maps aren't that detailed. Microsoft streets and trips 2003 work great with it. I agree with the previous reviews about entering an address. It takes some time, nothing like Microsoft. The 3d imaging are awesome. Overall, it's a good product and hope to see more software enhancements in the future.

I got this as a gift in Christmas of 04. All the other things you have read are basically true: good value, lots of accessories included, everything you need is in the box, except a decent sized memory card. I was very impressed for the first couple of weeks of use. No database or software is going to be perfect, so I can understand the strange routings and the incomplete/incorrect street information. Having to install NavMan into the thing straight out of the box before you could use it was also really annoying, but I guess you would have to do that anyway when you buy a larger memory card. Trying to find a town or address was definitely very clunky and almost impossible. Still, for the money, I thought this was pretty decent, at first.
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br /First problem was when I tried loading some other software on for hiking. Turns out you have to power off/kn the unit or else the gps receiver would not be released by the navman software for use by the other program. Cycling the power made all memory go away, so I was forced to realign the screen and go through the annoying Windows tutorial every time. I gave up on the topo software.
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br /The biggest problem by far is that the battery cannot hold a charge. If you take this out of your car for more than a few days without leaving it on a charger, the unit seems to forget that the Navman software was ever installed. What a huge hassle! I went through this a couple of times, then it seemed like even when leaving it on the charger it would go south. So, when I went to grab it and go on a trip, I had to mess around for 20 minutes reinstalling everything each time. Finally, it would not "remember" the installation at all, and I contacted NavMan tech support. They were pretty nice and sent me a refurbished unit, about a year after I first received it. It worked OK for a couple of trips, and I was careful to leave it on the charger, but then a couple of months later, I went to use it, and... dead again. I have officially given up. Again, I believe this is a Windows/platform problem more than a NavMan problem, but it still amounts to a useless piece of junk. Anyone want to buy mine, cheap?
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br /I have since gotten a Garmin ETrex Vista Cx, which is 10 times better, includes a barometric altimeter and electronic compass, and always works when I turn on the switch... what a concept! The screen is smaller, but it still gets the point across, and I can take it hiking and biking as well. Garmin gouges you for software and maps, but I would still rather have something that will actually work.

I have a Navman Pin 100 and the latest software SmartST 2005 and it still sucks as a GPS unit. The new software offers very little if any improvement over the old. The Tech support is poor also, they know the problems but can't offer any real solutions for you. I put my address in and it told me that there was not enought info. Would not recommend this unit to anyone looking for a GPS solution. If they would improve the address location there may be some hope for the thing. Battery life isn't very good either. I've tryed putting address in every way possible and it is still a crap shoot.

I bought the Navman almost half a year ago. It came with the SmartST V2 software. Whenever I have a good view of the sky, the unit will acquire its position fairly quickly. Once you succeed in entering your destination (see below), routing is fast and usually accurate. The dyanmic rerouting feature - applicable whenever I miss a turn or take a detour - works fast and can keep you heading in the right direction. The hardware seems sturdy. A cool feature is that you can use the Navman PiN as a handheld portable GPS - something that no other automobile-based unit can do.
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br /Now the bad parts. The Teleatlas maps shipped by Navman is full of errors, including wrong street name for our local school. I noticed numerous errors (usually small) driving around the San Francisco Bay Area and through a few Northeastern states. The Points of Interest (POI) database is out of date and incredibly hard to use. Entering a destination address is like solving a word puzzle - the user interface is so frustrating that I sometimes want to smash the PiN to pieces. Despite the integration of Windows Mobile GPS unit, it is extremely difficult to adapt addresses from my Outlook address book to the strange format required by Teleatlas.
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br /Navman claims that the 2005 version of its software (which I would have to pay extra for) should solve some of the problems. If you a casual GPS user, I would not recommend this unit since you will most likely become frustrated by the user interface. This unit could be a good choice for someone who is an expert user, understand the limitations of GPS, and are willing to suffer through bad user interfaces. The PiN form factor is unique so you do get two GPS devices (automobile + handheld) for just the price of one. The PDA part works flawlessly but the unit is slightly bulky as a PDA because of the integrated GPS antenna.
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br /My unit cannot pick up a usable signal in our minivan which has a heat reflecting windshield that blocks GPS signals. I am going to try an external antenna. Also when I used Navman PiN in Manhattan (NYC), the unit had trouble locking onto GPS signals because of the tall buildings all around us.

I bought the Navman almost half a year ago. It came with the SmartST V2 software. Whenever I have a good view of the sky, the unit will acquire its position fairly quickly. Once you succeed in entering your destination (see below), routing is fast and usually accurate. The dyanmic rerouting feature - applicable whenever I miss a turn or take a detour - works fast and can keep you heading in the right direction. The hardware seems sturdy. A cool feature is that you can use the Navman PiN as a handheld portable GPS - something that no other automobile-based unit can do.

Now the bad parts. The Teleatlas maps shipped by Navman is full of errors, including wrong street name for our local school. I noticed numerous errors (usually small) driving around the San Francisco Bay Area and through a few Northeastern states. The Points of Interest (POI) database is out of date and incredibly hard to use. Entering a destination address is like solving a word puzzle - the user interface is so frustrating that I sometimes want to smash the PiN to pieces. Despite the integration of Windows Mobile & GPS unit, it is extremely difficult to adapt addresses from my Outlook address book to the strange format required by Teleatlas.

Navman claims that the 2005 version of its software (which I would have to pay extra for) should solve some of the problems. If you a casual GPS user, I would not recommend this unit since you will most likely become frustrated by the user interface. This unit could be a good choice for someone who is an expert user, understand the limitations of GPS, and are willing to suffer through bad user interfaces. The PiN form factor is unique so you do get two GPS devices (automobile + handheld) for just the price of one. The PDA part works flawlessly but the unit is slightly bulky as a PDA because of the integrated GPS antenna.

My unit cannot pick up a usable signal in our minivan which has a heat reflecting windshield that blocks GPS signals. I am going to try an external antenna. Also when I used Navman PiN in Manhattan (NYC), the unit had trouble locking onto GPS signals because of the tall buildings all around us.

Horrible software - very hard to enter addresses. Lets say you're looking for restaurants, you'll need to enter a 'Area'. So you enter a city - it will bring up several options with the same city name. You don't know which to choose. It cannot serach for POIs based on the current location.
br /Worst gizmo investment I ever made.

I have had my Navman PiN100 for a year now. I use it all the time. I don't know if the others live in rural areas but, here in Indianapolis, I even get GPS signal from inside my house. I love the Navman PiN100. It takes me everywhere I want to go, all the time (and I travel alot by car across country). I have read many reviews before making my selection (money was not an issue). According to many reviews, SmartST is better than Tom Tom. I just upgraded to SmartST V3 and the new features are incredible. The only downsize if any, is that updates are not free. It's $99 every year or so for the latest version of SmartST. In SmartSt V2 you cannot add stops, which you can with V3. Great improvment.
br /I strongly recommand Navman PiN100 over any other GPS now available.

I bought the PIN100 because it was a fairly affordable system. However, it seems like you get what you pay for. The hardware is ok, except for the tiny SD card that doesn't even hold the maps of a single state. The SmartST V2 software on the other hand has lots of shortcomings.
br /One of the problems is that you cannot back up your data files. That means when the battery dies, you loose everything. You need to enter all you destinations again. The only thing worse than that fact is the attitude of their tech support. Their answer was: "Unfortunately this is not a feature offered on the PDA version of SmartST .. sorry for the inconvenience. Keep that PDA charged!".
br /Another thing that sucks is that they don't offer any upgrade to version 3, which fixes most problems. If you want it, you have to pay full prize. I don't understand why they still sell the PIN100 with such a low-capacity SD card and their old crappy SmartST V2 software.

I for the longest time wanted a pocket pc and a gps system. Figured a pocket alone will cost me $200-$500. Then I wanted to get a gps system, but I was going to get the in dash system, which is about $1200+. So I was figuring to spend around $1400-$2000 I'd guess total. Knowing I didn't have the extra cash to throw around right now, I decided to try out the navman pin 100.
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br /So far I've had it probably a month or two, and I have only a few ocmplaints, which are software related. Sometimes its hard to enter locations, but once you know the software, you get a hang of it. And my biggest complaint is, this system is made in the UK, and if you go to the companies website, they have already released pin 300, and now some version of pin 500 with updated software and maps. I plan to just maybe later upgrade the software so I can get updated maps/navigation options...but all in all this is a great buy! It locks onto the gps quick (when your not moving) sometimes it takes a little if your moving, but gps is made to locate at a stop from what I know.
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br /The gps is sometimes behind, and sometimes makes some odd routes. And the lack of an option for picking least use of expressways, fastest time, shortest route, etc is something I'd like to have. And most other gps I have dealt with, if you put in an address it will take you too the house. this one just says destination when your by the area, not letting you know if its on your left or right which can be a pain. Sometimes the gps is a little behind, like when u make a turn right, it may take a second for the screen to show it. My friends new land rover has built in gps, and its dead on. But you get what you pay for I guess...
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br /All in all this is an amazing combo if you've wanted a pocket pc and a gps system. And its portable which is very nice!

You have to input your address search twice to get this unit to make it work; there have been a few times it will not find the address that you may be looking for in its database.
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br /If you try to run both the navigation software and all the other database software it seems to slow down its processing speed.
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br /If you ever lose battery power completely you will have to reload the navigation software all over again! I do NOT particularly recommend this unit (even though I own one!)

I completely feel disappointed about this product. First it took at least 3 minute to locate GPS satellite. This product can direct you to the destination you selected and only to the street but not to the house number. Many time this product brought me 2miles off the house number. By the way, the address is not US format which made you feel very annoying to select right address. I recommand to return for refund if you can. I have sent questions to this company but got a strange reply.

First of all, I just have to say that this is not one of those "handy" gadgets that are more trouble than they are worth and end up in the "junk drawer". The price is more than reasonable and you do not have to spend a lot of time prepping it or programming it. It is more of a grab and go product. This product works for YOU....not the other way around like with some PDA's!!!!
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br /My company purchased these GPS/PDA's for all of our outside sales reps. I can't begin to say how much it has helped me out. Both the PC and the navigation are very simple to use. My business trips are more organized, more efficient, and much more enjoyable. I spend a lot less time being lost, reading maps, and searching through tons of notes for customer info, hotel location or scheduling information. Not to mention, I use it regularly on my own time as I live in a large metro area and normally carried a Thomas Guide... which I have since, retired!!! No more torn or missing pages, tiny, tiny print, and bulkiness. More importantly, no more "near misses" trying to read a map and drive! The PiN tells me right out loud exactly what to do and when to do it!!! I don't even have to look at the unit it after placing it in the holder!
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br /Being that I travel a good deal on business, I am often in a new city every other week calling on new or potential accounts that I have not yet visited. If you are a businessperson, I do not have to tell you how unsettling it can be to be late for an appointment all because you didn't know where you were going. With the Navman PiN, I just pop in my destination and start my engine! The Navman does the rest of the work. And because it is transferable, I am never without it...no more hoping my rental car comes equipped with navigation/GPS ....Amen!!! Not to mention, as a woman traveling alone, I feel much safer knowing I won't miss a turn and end up in a dark alley!! And if I do have to detour, the Navman Back on Track features gets me right back on the road!
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br /When out making calls, I am able to use the PC portion of the unit to make notes or write email regarding my sales calls, look up information, etc.; then I am on my way to the next appointment and not juggling local maps or pages upon pages of map quest directions. And just as good, no dealing with handwritten notes throughout the day to enter into my laptop later. I just input everything into the unit and sync up when I get back to my room! The rest of the evening is mine. This has made a huge difference in my travels, as now I am often able to actually enjoy the city I am visiting instead of caving up in my hotel room sorting through the day's paper trail or dreading the next day's adventure.
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br /My favorite features are the Points of Interest and the portability. With the points of interest I never have to wonder where my favorite establishments are when in a strange city because the Navman tells me!! Plus, since this device is not hardwired to a vehicle, you can use it when you are on foot say in a downtown area, or in any vehicle.
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br /I have had nothing but good experiences with this product and plan on purchasing at least one as a Christmas gift. Talk about the gift that keeps on giving!!!!
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I do not recommend this product at all. sigh. It made me missed my job interview today!!! The SmartST map and nav software suck!! my interview was at 2pm today in Boston. I live in New York. I left my house 6 hours prior to my interview just in case sumthing might happened, which it did!!! At the beginning, i was using paper directions that i printed out from Yahoo, which completely sucks too. I would never use Yahoo maps anymore. I am going back with Mapquest!! Yahoo threw me off completely that I could get to I95 north by taking this highway, I didn't end up on I95 N but ended up in front of a state park. I approximately wasted 30 mins getting lost there. With nothing else I could rely on, I decided to trust Navpin to get me there for my job interview. the stupid thing kept telling to go in circles getting off and on the same section of the highway. it tells me to get off that highway, then go some local and get back on the same highway again, in circles and more circles. Also, it does not have the updates roads. I punched in my interview address. it says the address couldn't be recognized. the employer gave me the EXACT address too!! itz not like i was only entering a zip code and that's it, exact address!! it kept telliing me that Investors Way couldn't be found. then I punched in Norwood, MA. the pocket pc gave me stupid craps like "Norwood, MCD, MA" sigh. so I had to enter the closest intersection of the nearest two roads, and it still didnt work. Knowing that i would get to the interview place after 5pm, i had to call the lady that i was lost on the road for 2 hours and would like to reshedule my job interview. I am sure the company's not so happy about me cancelling the interview couples of hours before the interview b'cuz two managers was supposed to meet with me and now.... so yea, i am very disappointed and frustrated. Thanks to the pocket Pc now i lost my interview and the lady hasn't emailed me back about an alternate interview. =(