Zumo vs 276c and I have 128 card and CN v8

[rfulcher]

I am trying to decide between a Zumo at about $650+ and a 276c at about $460+. I have a Garmin 128 card, City Navigator v8 with only one unlock used, and the Garmin beanbag for the car. As I understand it with this stuff I only have to get the RAM mount for the 276c and I should be good to go. I f I can't use the stuff I already have the 276c is less attractive. I have a 60Cx and like being able to define pages and data fields, just don't like the small map size. The 276c seems to have the same or more options. It seems like the ZUMO is simplified and the data it gives on screen is limited. I don't need or want the bluetooth and may or may not use the MP3.

So the options are

ZUMO with modern technology like improved reception and some cool stuff but not much flexability at $650+ or 276c with old tech but more flexability and just GPS stuff and $460 if I can use my memory and have City Navigator unlock left.

Anybody with experience with both?

 

[SPORT]

After your responses here, I'd encourage you to check the following.

Garmin Forum

or

ZumoForums

2 things I'd like to add.

1) I don't think the Zumo 550 is as 'simplified' as you might think.

2) Have you considered the Zumo 450?

 

[bramfrank]

I've had both.

1. The 276c display is the best thing out there. Period. Crisp, bright, sunlight readable, highest resolution.

2. The 276c is (and it's cousins are) the most configurable of Garmin's present line of automotive capable navigators.

3. The battery life on the 276c is 4 times that of the Zumo.

4. 128 megs is enough to load and route from New York to LA, but that price MIGHT be misleading, unless you have an available mapkey or mapping is included.

5. There's a rumor that a replacement is coming later this year or early next year, but the 276c is still current.

Zumo has the MP3 player (not that I use it), Bluetooth (for the car and for my Autocom) and the tracklog is humungous, though 10 times as large as it has to be - the 276 is much more than adequate in that department. It has the quick-release mount that means no fumbling with power connectors (remember to lubricate the plugs for the 276 with petroleum jelly if you plan to move the device a lot).

The touchscreen on the Zumo is 'OK', but it does 'miss' from time to time. typing on the ZUmo is more intuitive than 276, but the 276 is easier to type on while in motion.

Garmin offers Zumo in two versions for North America, the premium 550 (which is fully equipped) and the lower cost 450, which deletes the TTS (spoken street names), Bluetooth and XM functionality. It also deletes the car kit (mounting bracket and lighter plug) though these are available for purchase separately. The difference between the two makes the 550 a worthwhile upgrade if this is the series you want.

I wrote detailed reviews of both:

https://www.epinions.com/content_147941396100

https://www.epinions.com/content_406049689220

I've said it before and I'll say it again - I prefer the 276 for a variety of reasons, but Zumo is better for the non-technical user.

 

[SPORT]

bramfrank,

Thanks for your reviews!!! They've been very helpful.

What are your thoughts on the Garmin 2820 when compared to the 276c?

rfulcher,

Excuse me for the thread jack.

 

[Brody]

Zumo 450 for $305 click for link

Do you need to buy anything extra for this? (sd cards?)

Does it mount well on an FJR?

 

[bramfrank]

bramfrank,
Thanks for your reviews!!! They've been very helpful.

What are your thoughts on the Garmin 2820 when compared to the 276c?

rfulcher,

Excuse me for the thread jack.

It's all a matter of perspective. I prefer the portability and higher resolution of the 276c over the 2820 - but they are very different animals;

- If you want continent-wide mapping without having to swap memory cards then you are better off with the 2820 (or 478c)

- If you want Bluetooth, the 2820 has that

- If you have a boat, your decision's been made for you up front.

Essentially, the 276c is a better 'technical' navigator in that it has the higher resolution display and extra configurability, where the 2820 has a few more 'consumer oriented' bits. I don't particularly like touchscreens, so the presence of one on the 2820 isn't a positive for me. I think you might want to consider the 2820 slmost as a faster 2610 with Bluetooth.

They both use the same maps and have the same points of interest. Don't forget to buy the 'car kit' or appropriate bits if you opt for the 276 or 376.

Zumo 450 for $305 click for link


Do you need to buy anything extra for this? (sd cards?)

Does it mount well on an FJR?

No cards needed to use the 450 - and the unit comes with a mount that allows you to clamp it to the bars using the screws that attach the switch clusters, but if you want to mount it on the stem nut you'll need to get the appropriate bits from 'he who cannot be mentioned'.

IMO you give up a fair amount when downgrading to the 450. In particular the car mount, Bluetooth support and the spoken street names. Then again, you can always spend the difference and buy a separate 250w for the cage.

 

[rfulcher]

Just Googled techondigital.com and the price is to good to be true. The reviews said they are really bad actors. DON'T DO IT!

Zumo 450 for $305 click for link


Do you need to buy anything extra for this? (sd cards?)

Does it mount well on an FJR?

 

[05fjrBluedevil]

Personally, I like the 550-

I like that it was really easy to use.

I like that after letting the car mount set in the box for close to a year, i was able to place it in the truck and just clip the 550 in and go, as soon as power is applied, it fires up. i really like the hands free blue tooth phone feature, do not really use it on the bike, but while in truck mode, my phone connects, get a call screen displays caller phone number-choice to accept or ignore. really do not use that feature since i have auto answer mode selected.

callers state clear and crisp call quality.

On the bike, I like that i can remove it and toss it in my pocket or locked case, i like the auto shout off feature, count down from to off when acc, power has been removed.

mp3 player very easy to use and options for picking play all tunes or search and play by artist etc is a plus......

I have a 2 gb micro card that i switch between it, my cell and my portable mp3 player, using the adapter for the garmin and mp3 player.

haven't used another type that was automotive series, but this one is fine.... plus water proof and screen hasn't fogged and I can see in sunlight or night...

mounted with bar mount at first, but moved to stem mount.... will put bar mount on cyclocross for road riding and such....

hope this helps... i sure other have writen more detailed reviews, however basic use it is works for me.....

 

[k7lvo]

1. Garmin is NOT giving 2 unlocks anymore, however, AFAIK, all the models being discussed here all come with unlocked maps, so it's not really a consideration in this case.

2. Take another look at the 2820, available on Ebay for ~ $450. (This Ebay seller is on the up and up. I just got mine from them today and have already registered it and downloaded v2009 from Garmin.) Last week Amazon had it for about the same price, but they're up to $470 now.

I'm currently using a 376c. The fisherman weather package that displays weather radar on the GPS screen is great, but the $30/month is too high for my tastes, plus the Bluetooth interface on the 2820 was very appealing, since I need to be in phone-contact with work exactly 50% of the time. Tiring of the $30/month wx package and finding the 2820 for $450 was tempting; when the USB connector in the 376c pulled out, (and I've always been very gentle with the connectors) I decided to make the jump. (The 376 is out of warranty, but Garmin will r/r it for a flat $175.)

 

[rfulcher]

The 276c has the older electronics. Does this make a significant difference on reception or start up time compared the the newer technology?

 

[bramfrank]

The 276c has the older electronics. Does this make a significant difference on reception or start up time compared the the newer technology?

Startup on my Zumo is longer than the 276.

Sensitivity on ther Zumo? It is too dumbed down to tell me, but empirically, if I'm under an overpass the 276 will lose the satellites. The Zumo won't. Is it a hardship? No.

 

[Qwindelzorf]

<snip>I do miss not having an altimeter tho.

Slightly off-topic:

I too, thought that ithe Zumo had no altimeter, until my most recent trip. While crossing the continental divide, I wondered just how high I was and tinkered with it a bit more. It turns out that it does have an altitude readout. From the main map screen, if you press the mode change button (the second to last on the left, with the square on it, seen in pic), it should take you to a compass. On the right should be various useful stats, including speed, elevation, GPS accuracy, and time of day.

Back on-topic:

As for the device itself, I am pretty satisfied. I didn't want the bluetooth, or car mount, and could live without the TTS, so the 450 won out over the 550, making it a less expensive proposition. It has pretty good maps, and has only given me stupid directions ("Make four lefts, then a right") once. The daylight visibility on the screen is good, and the mp3 player works well with my Starcom1 system. My only gripe on that front is that the sound's ground is not isolated from the bike ground, and thus makes various wierd noises as the bike throttles up and such. The starcom1 folks wanted $50 for a cable to fix it, but a cheap isolation transformer fixed it.

A side note, if you want to use the bluetooth on the 550 to link to a bluetooth helmet, be aware that you will get only mono sound. The 550 does not support the A2DP stereo sound profile, only the mono Headset Profile. At the moment, there's not really a good solution to get stereo bluetooth sound to a helmet.

 

[Phugedaboudet]

From the main map screen I get from the first press of the square, a panel giving me a speedometer in the middle, estimated fuel guage on the right. It shows trip odo and max speed.

next press is the MP3 player control

press square again brings me back to the map. My 450 has no compass display that I can access.

I don't see any firmware revision number but a basemap 3.00 is displayed.

Got it right here but no combination of buttons gives me a compass. Maybe that was a 550 only feature?

<snip>I do miss not having an altimeter tho.

Slightly off-topic:

I too, thought that ithe Zumo had no altimeter, until my most recent trip. While crossing the continental divide, I wondered just how high I was and tinkered with it a bit more. It turns out that it does have an altitude readout. From the main map screen, if you press the mode change button (the second to last on the left, with the square on it, seen in pic), it should take you to a compass. On the right should be various useful stats, including speed, elevation, GPS accuracy, and time of day.

Back on-topic:

As for the device itself, I am pretty satisfied. I didn't want the bluetooth, or car mount, and could live without the TTS, so the 450 won out over the 550, making it a less expensive proposition. It has pretty good maps, and has only given me stupid directions ("Make four lefts, then a right") once. The daylight visibility on the screen is good, and the mp3 player works well with my Starcom1 system. My only gripe on that front is that the sound's ground is not isolated from the bike ground, and thus makes various wierd noises as the bike throttles up and such. The starcom1 folks wanted $50 for a cable to fix it, but a cheap isolation transformer fixed it.

A side note, if you want to use the bluetooth on the 550 to link to a bluetooth helmet, be aware that you will get only mono sound. The 550 does not support the A2DP stereo sound profile, only the mono Headset Profile. At the moment, there's not really a good solution to get stereo bluetooth sound to a helmet.

 

[Qwindelzorf]

From the main map screen I get from the first press of the square, a panel giving me a speedometer in the middle, estimated fuel guage on the right. It shows trip odo and max speed.next press is the MP3 player control

press square again brings me back to the map. My 450 has no compass display that I can access.

I don't see any firmware revision number but a basemap 3.00 is displayed.

Got it right here but no combination of buttons gives me a compass. Maybe that was a 550 only feature?

<snip>

Hmmm. Mine's a 450. I don't think I turned on any extra super-secret features or anything. I'm tinkering with mine right now, and it appears that from the main map, if I tap the screen in the bottom-right corner where it says what your traveling direction is, it goes to the compass screen you see in my previous post. You might give that a shot. The only version related stuff I can find is that the map info window says that I have "City Navigator North America NT v8", whatever that means. That may be the map version, or the mapping software version.

To respond to another comment that I noticed:

Sensitivity on ther Zumo? It is too dumbed down to tell me

From the main map, if you hit "menu" at the bottom, it takes you to the same screen you get when you turn the unit on. In the upper left corner of that screen is a signal strength meter, as well as battery remaining in the upper right.

 

[Charlie Hoss]

<snip>I do miss not having an altimeter tho.

Slightly off-topic:

I too, thought that ithe Zumo had no altimeter, until my most recent trip. While crossing the continental divide, I wondered just how high I was and tinkered with it a bit more. It turns out that it does have an altitude readout. From the main map screen, if you press the mode change button (the second to last on the left, with the square on it, seen in pic), it should take you to a compass. On the right should be various useful stats, including speed, elevation, GPS accuracy, and time of day.

Just a comment of interest on your slightly off topic: The Elevation screen was added last year with an update. It crapped out with only 4 digits at 9999 ft of elevation. A very recent update will give you the 5 digits you need to ride in some serious mountains.

 

[Qwindelzorf]

<snip>Just a comment of interest on your slightly off topic: The Elevation screen was added last year with an update. It crapped out with only 4 digits at 9999 ft of elevation. A very recent update will give you the 5 digits you need to ride in some serious mountains.

Well, that explains it. I've never been very good about reading the release notes on updates and such.

 

[rfulcher]

Thanks for the feedback. Got my 276c yesterday and liked everything a bunch except for startup was slower than my 60Cx and the power plug is a bitch to unplug. If the Zumo is slower to start up I am glad I got the 276c. I plan to make an inline connecter for the powerline (maybe using Anderson Powerpole connectors from my RC stuff) so this will fix the problem with the power plug at the unit. I was able to use a fair amount of old Garmin and ram stuff to keep the cost down.

I was able to use a second unlock from City Navigator V8 but it was a pain. It turns out that Garmin went to only 1 unlock towards the end of City Navigator V8. Some people got 2 unlocks and some got only 1. Garmin is definitely 1 unlock for all their road products now. I was only able to get this worked out after talking to 4 different people on 2 different days. Every one of the service reps was 100% certain of their position and would not bend. On my last call the Marine Product guy said only 1 unlock. I then asked to talk to an automobile guy to discuss my upgrade path with City Navigator and what to buy. The auto guy looked up my old service records and reversed the position and gave me my second unlock code. I came within seconds of buying new software, luckily I asked "one more time" just to be stubborn and got the answer I wanted.

The 276c has the older electronics. Does this make a significant difference on reception or start up time compared the the newer technology?

Startup on my Zumo is longer than the 276.

Sensitivity on ther Zumo? It is too dumbed down to tell me, but empirically, if I'm under an overpass the 276 will lose the satellites. The Zumo won't. Is it a hardship? No.

 

[bramfrank]

There are 9 conductors in that power cord. Mine mounted to the bike using the marine (unterminated) cable and (obviously) to the car with the speaker cable included with the car kit - note that the speaker is in the lighter plug. For the bike it wired to my Autocom using an isolated cable.

I used Vaseline to lubricate the connector and have in almost 4 years only managed to break one.

You'll love the 276. That screen is second to none. If you're a gadget person - lots of configurability plus the ability to set up a proximity POI on the fly (to warn you of speed traps and red camera lights), though without the 'speed' option that the non-marine units have and it won't doesn't work with POIloader so it won't accept those that are posted on the web unless you manually regenerate them.

Have some fun with ximage - allows you to grab screens, set the splash screen and design waypoint symbols.

 

[rfulcher]

There are 9 conductors in that power cord. Mine mounted to the bike using the marine (unterminated) cable and (obviously) to the car with the speaker cable included with the car kit - note that the speaker is in the lighter plug. For the bike it wired to my Autocom using an isolated cable.
I used Vaseline to lubricate the connector and have in almost 4 years only managed to break one.

You'll love the 276. That screen is second to none. If you're a gadget person - lots of configurability plus the ability to set up a proximity POI on the fly (to warn you of speed traps and red camera lights), though without the 'speed' option that the non-marine units have and it won't doesn't work with POIloader so it won't accept those that are posted on the web unless you manually regerate them.

Have some fun with ximage - allows you to grab screens, set the splash screen and design waypoint symbols.

It has 9 leads but only 2 are used for power.

I have ordered the DC power cord without speaker. When it gets in, maybe today, I will put the connector inline but will only connect the red and black power leads. Wish me luck.