Garmin iQue 3600 PDA/GPS Handheld System with Americas Detailed Street Mapping

I've had mine since middle of August. I'll starte with the issues. In that time I've experienced the glitches mentioned elsewhere, but not enough to give up on it. I had 2 hard resets with data loss (static electricity I now realize), many soft resets with no data loss (mostly when syncing), a few times the speaker noise problem (soft reset fixed), and short battery life when power isn't nearby. That's most of the bad, and most of this is fixed with v2 of the software now available on Garmins downloads site.

Since the sw upgrade to v2, no hard or soft resets, no lost communications on syncs anymore. I've loaded many new applets and none of them have given me any problems. Be SURE not to use any that aren't specific for OS5!

What's great?

the screen is better than anything i've seen, more bright, more resolution, and is worth the tradeoff in battery life

the speed, fast processor to speed autorouting makes it fast for everything else, too

the integration with contacts and calendar for waypoints is very useful, really leverages the PDA/GPS into much more than the sum of its parts, more than what other (separate) packages can

so far it's robust, i've dropped it and still works fine

maps are very good. i took it to europe for 3 weeks of driving, including in italy (even rome), and it was painless with this device. it has every road in the country, like where i live. the system in my brother's car that cost $2K has no roads off the freesay where i live useless. it is truly FREEING to drive along and see all the possible roads you can take around you, updating in real time, if you're like me and like to explore. truly great.

I could go on for a month, I love it that much. So I'll switch to how to overcome it's shortcomings:

get the car kit, period

get a 256 MB SD card, i paid under a hundred, with that, i can put most of california, for most of a US region or to have room for MP3's, get a 512 card.

if you're not using it, cradle it. if you're in the car, put it on the car kit cradle whether using GPS or not. with these habits, i never have problems with battery life. and it charges very quickly, too. the v2 sw puts the default brightness at 50%, which is enough 90% of the time. i use about 30% when inside, and it's still brighter than many other and completely usable. don't enable waas, no satallites anyway and 20 feet is close enough for me, and helps battery. turn off IR receiver. set auto off to 30sec. it's instant on anyway. with these changes, battery life isn't an issue for me.

i got the small sync cable with the travel kit, but the aftermarket sync cables will also charge from the USB so might be better, check it out, targus and belkin, among others.

get a protective case. i got one for a toshiba pocketpc that's leather with belt clip. fits perfectly, and now i don't worry about dropping it

the antenna works best when the FLAT top face is toward the sky, NOT when it's end is pointed at the sky. used this way, it locks under a minute even when moving for me, and never loses when moving after lock unless i'm in a sea of 3+ story buildings.

i got the external antenna, and now i can take it off the car plate to use it and it still keeps the satellites, this is a nice to have but is not very expensive

people have said the maps are worth $100. in reality the autorouting map sets are $300. i know, i bought it for Europe, but i DO NOT REGRET IT.

sometimes it fails to find things that are in the database, but this is rare. r2 sw may have helped but haven't tested yet. there are a few map bugaboos, like a small break in the road that i routes you around, but these are rare.

don't load any apps that don't say OS5 compatible

use screen protectors the ones for Sony Clie NX70's fit perfectly (don't get sony brand, too expensive)

upgrade the OS to v2 immediately

have patience if you've not used a PDA or Palm before, you will get through it. the downloadable PDF manual is very good. there are dedicated sites like palmgear with lots of useful info on getting along with your PDA, as well as software reviews and downloads.

they have posted track log and waypoint conduits now, as well a map loader update. Garmin is seriously supporting this device, don't give up on it.

Bottom line is Garmin has realized the market for these is bigger than the combined market for all of their other products. So I do believe they will support the product, and will come out with even better ones in the future. But bottom line is it works great for me, it was a bargain considering what it does, and I wouldn't wait for an upgrade and have to live without it. It's a great GPS, and with the v2 upgrade, a great PDA. it's definitely the most useful device in my life today, moreso than my computer. i'm the kind of person that never gets lost, but i never leave the house w/o my ique now. it's fun, it's useful, and it makes life easier.

I installed the software per the user's guide and used it on the first day I got it (12/23/03). My wife was driving and I was reading about it in the car. I had the GPS on and was amazed at how the map moved (Track up mode) as we moved. It was accurate re: driving speed, location, odometer, etc. Then I tried the Que Route mode and tried reaching a destination. The thing kept saying "Off Route, recalculating" over, and over, and over again. I was pissed! Then I read some reviews and learned that I had to go to the Garmin website (http://www.garmin.com/support/download.jsp) to download "release 2" and "release 2 patch 1." After following the detailed instructions and re-trying the Que route, the navigation was perfect. No problems whatsoever. The unit is occasionally inaccurate as to street addresses, and is better with known intersections (gets you there within 10 feet accuracy). Some street addresses were right on the money, but others were a few houses off. Overall, however, it's a tremendous tool and a very fun toy.

Definitely get the 256 MB expansion card at a minimum and you absolutely need the Auto-Nav travel kit.

Buy Garmin iQue 3600 PDA/GPS Handheld System with Americas Detailed Street Mapping Now

The new iQue 3600 from Garmin is truly amazing. For a very attractive price, you get a powerful Palm OS 5-based PDA that sports a screaming 200 MHz Motorola DragonBall MXL ARM 9 processor, 32MB of memory (some of which is reserved for system operations), and a nice 320x480 high-color screen, the highest resolution I've seen on a palmtop. The iQue 3600 weighs in at a little over 5 ounces with the built-in LiIon battery, and it's only slightly bigger than a Zire 71, and feels good in either hand.

So you can use it as a fast Palm PDA, but the true beauty of the iQue is its built-in GPS function. When you are out in the open -GPS won't work indoors or in a dense forest since the satellite signal can't get to you -the iQue picks up both GPS and WAAS signals (WAAS is a system that supplements GPS, the way I understand it) and, in less than a minute, tell you your early coordinates. Coupled with a mapping program (a very basic one is included), the iQue will tell you where on earth you are, accurate to about 10 feet! For a first-time GPS user like me, the result simply blows me away. Obviously if you don't travel a lot, or live in a big city like New York, GPS is of very little use. But for the road warrior as well as fancy gadget lover (I'm the latter), this is a must-have.

Both the GPS and the bright, large color screen suck battery juice like a puppy in Houston, so battery is weak on the iQue, about the only gripe one would have about this wonderfully implemented product. With GPS on continuously and screen set to mid-level brightness and running a mapping program off the secure digital card, you'll run out in about an hour! That's not a typo or exaggeration. If you can do without sophisticated map software and turn off backlight, you can probably manage for about 3-4 hours. If you don't use GPS -but you got this really for the GPS, didn't you? -using the Palm part for an hour a day will last you about 3 days with backlight on. Which is not totally bad compared to Pocket PCs, hehehe...

In short, the iQue does exceptionally well what it was designed to do. Granted GPS as a whole can be improved, but Garmin has done an admirable job with a well designed, well made product and the price should tempt every GPS user out there.

Read Best Reviews of Garmin iQue 3600 PDA/GPS Handheld System with Americas Detailed Street Mapping Here

I don't know how I lived without this unit, well, after I figured it out anyway. I was amazed how the Ique 3600 worked in my car, boat and on my desk, it's even a Palm Pilot too. Now I plan my vacations, not by computer/web maps, but on my Ique 3600. OK, it did take me about 1 hour of fast reading to figure it out well enough to get me to work and back the same day. Now I can navigate at nite and in unfamiliar territory. When I go off-route on purpose or accidentally, it will w/i one block reroute me generally w/o sending me back to the old route and often picks a better route.

The manual is a little sketchy and vague, like no description of the location of the on/off button! But otherwise written so a computer geek would understand. I am still struggling with it.

Garmin has a help line and e-mail which helps too. For example I did not know how to keep my location on the screen without constantly dragging the map with the stylus. Now I just hit the black triangle (lower center) and the map now always shows my location in the center of the screen. Garmin has new software updates for the maps and the Ique system on their web site.

The voice command is the main selling point for me since my wife can't read maps too well, now I have another female voice in my car saying: "In .2 of a mile turn right." Shortly thereafter the female voice says: "In 200 feet turn right." At the same time at the top of the screen, it says: "Turn right on 5th Street." Wow, how do it know?

This device also gives you the time of arrival at your destination, altitude, and many other geeky items we need to know and wish we had know all these years. So far I am just practicing, but next week it's off to unfamiliar Seattle and a fun adventure with my new toy. Oh, it also is programed with restuarants, hotels, etc, not only their locations but their phone numbers as well! Get the extra memory chip, you'll need it and the auto navigator kit for your car/boat. I give it a 5+.

Want Garmin iQue 3600 PDA/GPS Handheld System with Americas Detailed Street Mapping Discount?

The previous reviews cover most of the bases, but I had to chime in. I bought mine from Amazon and just finished a drive across the country with it. The unit is not perfect, but I just love the look-and-feel and the dashboard mount, and the GPS functions are hugely more useful than I ever imagined...even if I know where I'm going. We needed a couple of resets here and there, found a few instances of old or missing map data, found some undocumented clumsiness in the interface, had to buy an SD card to store the maps, mysteriously lost voice navigation for awhile, and a few other minor annoyances. But it is immediately apparent that GPS handheld computers are the future, and this product is a killer if Garmin keeps working on the software and maps. This is my first use of a GPS, and I have my own wish list:

Add a plug-in interface so third parties can integrate patches and useful info (e.g., restaurant ratings, road construction points, route descriptions) with the maps.

Find points of interest along my route, not just near my current location or destination.

Show distances to selected locations by the shortest route, not as the crow flies (very dangerous for estimating when you need to get gas).

I could go on. But for a first-generation product, the ique is awesome. Garmin is serious, and it will only get better from here, especially if they take the critical steps to create a competitive market for map patches and extensions. The maps are the weak link, since the US does not yet have the full infrastructure needed to maintain accurate maps in a timely fashion (e.g., as roads are built and businesses come and go).