Plenio VXA-5000 4.3-Inch Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator Review

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(More customer reviews)This review may help someone like me who is not knowledgeable about GPS and is looking for basic functionality. I was looking for a unit that is portable (so I could also use it for walking or switch cars) and has a widescreen display, so I settled on comparing a Garmin Nuvi 650 Personal Travel Assistant for North America and a Plenio VXA-5000 4.3-Inch Touch Screen Car Navigation System with Bluetooth.
1.Audio - The Plenio does not have text to speech functionality, meaning the Plenio will announce "Turn left in 500 feet," while the Nuvi 650 will announce "Turn left on Main Street in 500 feet." I found the Plenio confusing if there were two possible left turns close to each other, and the display didn't always help. (See "Display").
2.Display- The Plenio display appeared dim and difficult to read on bright days, even at the brightest setting. The Nuvi had a brighter, easy to read display even when driving toward sunlight. When a turn is announced, the text of the street name on the Plenio is small and difficult to read; on the Nuvi the street name is announced and the visible text is larger, bolder and easy to read. This also makes it easier to keep track of cross streets when operating in "tracking mode" rather than inputting a destination.
3.Portability- The Garmin is thinner and lighter. The Plenio's suction mount is more substantial, but it has to be to hold up the device.
4.Controls- The Plenio has volume up and down controls, on the Garmin these are only accessible with some difficulty through the touch screen.
5.Accessories- The Plenio includes an FM transmitter, (sound can play through your FM radio) and Bluetooth; to get this functionality with the Garmin, a trade up to the Garmin Nuvi 660 Pocket Vehicle GPS Navigator and Personal Travel Assistant is necessary. The Plenio includes an AC charger, a useful tool in a portable GPS. If you have a mini USB AC charger, you can use it with the Garmin.
6.Waypoints- The Garmin allows only one waypoint (stopover on the trip); multiple waypoints are available on the Plenio.
7.**** Satellite reception- The Plenio has an internal antenna while the Garmin has a foldaway flip up antenna flap. The Plenio was totally incapable of getting a satellite fix, and therefore useless, while in my wife's car (she has a metallic layer in the windshield as some cars do); the Garmin had no such problem. The Garmin also could fix while indoors. The Garmin allows the user to turn on "WAAS" which is a combined satellite and ground GPS mode that is more accurate than satellite alone; I haven't seen that WAAS makes a difference to a basic user like me. The Garmin seems to get a fix from a cold start about 25% faster than the Plenio.

8.Points of interest and maps- The Garmin maps (v.8) seemed "less out of date" than the Plenio. (maybe 2 years out of date versus 3-4 years). The Garmin has a more substantial list of points of interest (POI's). The Plenio allows you to program the unit to show your choice of POI's (such as all gas stations and/or restaurants) as icons on the map, and bring up more information ( name, phone number) by touching the icon; the Garmin will provide this information from a separate search menu.
To summarize, the Plenio had more bells and whistles which I willingly traded in for the much improved basic functionality of the Garmin.

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The Plenio VXA-5000 GPS, with its generous 4.3-inch wide, touch-screen navigation offers a broad, clear view to guide you to your destination. All the key functions are but a single touch away! The Plenio VXA-5000 offers turn-by-turn voice guidance available in several languages. The entire US map is included in the provided SD card and there is no need to download mapping information from your computer. Bluetooth wireless technology, built-in microphone and speaker enable you to use your Plenio VXA-5000 to make hands-free phone calls by synchronizing with your Bluetooth-enabled mobile phone. The handsome, lightweight Plenio VXA-5000 boasts a built-in media player that provides a powerful entrée to a number of multimedia functions such as picture viewing, playing videos, games and music. Couple this with the wireless FM transmitter, and you can enjoy video and music files stored on your SD card over your vehicle stereo speakers. Just set your FM radio to a predetermined frequency.

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