Strengths: TTS - Speaks turn directions & street names. Locks on satellites fast. Accurate. Brilliant touch-screen with adjustable brightness & automatic day/night colors. Loud speaker. SD card slot.
Summary: For the serious pocket GPS aficionado : New big brother of the nuvi 2xx line now has TTS + US/Alaska/Canada maps in a sleek charcoal-black case. My personal favorite pocket GPS. (*Note: The nuvi-260 is now available under $250. [street price]. ** If you don't need Alaska/Canada & TTS consider buying [2] nuvi-200 US-48/Hawaii/Puerto Rico [no-TTS] units for you & yours for a little more than [1] nuvi-260. Also the nuvi-200 comes with a $5. USB cable). However the nuvi-260 is well worth the higher price if you like having TTS and the extended North America maps. (TTS = Text to Speech which announces the street names, Interstate numbers, exit numbers and P.O.I. names). .. Excellent easy to learn touch-screen interface and very rugged, includes a simple easy to understand getting-started manual. Garmin has released several new software updates available on their web site and also a flash update for the WAAS enabled Bravo/SiRFstarIII satellite chipset available through their new web updater, along with many new voice languages & new vehicle icons. The unit locks on satellites anywhere in the house quickly now. Streets, direction and ETA are clearly marked on the main map screen. Tap the position indicator anytime for current lat/long/elevation, or enter lat/long coordinates for simple geo-caching or even [dry] boating (has an off-road mode). Customizable .jpg splash screen. Has handy .jpg picture viewer you can load pics from your PC via a USB mini cable or use the SD card slot on the GPS unit. .. The nuvi-260 unit comes with (updated) Navteq NT-2008 maps for US/Canada/Alaska + TTS. (The baseline nuvi-200 has US-48/Hawaii/Puerto Rico only [no-TTS]. The nuvi-250 has US/Canada/Alaska [no-TTS]; or the nuvi-270 which has US/Canada/Alaska + Europe [no-TTS]. The nuvi-260 unit comes with a dash/window mount & car charger only. (I put some stick-on velcro on the back of my unit and on my upper dashboard and it works great!) You can buy online an (optional) Garmin 5v AC home adapter/charger $15., must-have Garmin USB mini cable $5. (for updating with your PC); and nice Garmin leather case $15. (recommended). (Check eBay - cheaper). .. Long 5 hour battery life off a 3-4 hour charge. Compact size, about the size of a deck of cards; fits easily in a pocket or small purse. Solidly built, clean looks and simple to learn and use right out of the box. Highly recommended, exceeds expectations. Very useful and accurate GPS unit, one of those few truly worthwhile acquisitions. Makes the ultimate gift.
Reviewed by: bretclancy on 04-Dec-07Rating:
Strengths: Text-to-speech, easy to use touchscreen, great point of interest database, and loud voice directions are clear even with the windows open or radio on
Summary: The Garmin Nuvi 260 definitely delivers. I'm a first-time GPS buyer and after looking at the Nuvi 200 (which doesn't do text-to-speech), I realized that I needed TTS and the 260 is the only model in the line that does that. It is one of the newest and is incredibly easy to use. It picked up a signal almost immediately from a cold start. Definitely recommended to anyone looking for a regular, affordable GPS without excessive features. This is 100% solid and you can get a great price online.
Reviewed by: raider73 on 10-Dec-07Rating:
Strengths: Text-To-SpeechFast route calculationVery good signal strength
Summary: Very good basic GPS w/ TTS. The higher models have more features but this one suffices. I love how small it is because I can just put it into my coat pocket when I leave the car and not worry about thieves. GPSes are a very popular items w/ thieves nowadays. This is my 3rd different GPS and Garmins is still the best. It's slighter more expensive than the no-name brand but it works way better.