Navigon 7100 4.3-Inch Widescreen Portable GPS Navigator

Navigon 7100 4.3-Inch Widescreen Portable GPS Navigator Features

Additional Navigon 7100 4.3-Inch Widescreen Portable GPS Navigator Information

The Navigon 7100 offers a premium navigation experience in a sleek package.

Intuitive, animated menus offer predictive text input, helping you select your destination quickly.

The lane assistant provides guidance to the optimal lane for your route.

The reality view guides you with photo-realistic 3D images of junctions.
Packed with Features
When you stop ogling the outside and really start using the 7100, what you notice is that Navigon has decided to avoid media support and instead has focused on navigation-based features. This means the 7100 is packed, offering an array of features that are, at the time of this writing, unmatched at this price point. It provides you with turn-by-turn directions, including actual road names via text-to-speech. It includes built-in Bluetooth technology that enables hands-free mobile phone integration, which not only increases driver safety, but is fast becoming a necessity as states pass laws against talking on a cell phone hand set while driving. It warns you when you are exceeding the speed limit. It offers 2D and 3D map views with incredibly precise road visualizations (more on that below). Its Navteq data contains millions Points of Interest (POIs) such as restaurants, hotels, golf courses, gas stations, banks, etc.

Reality View and Lane Assistant
The 7100 has two features that are a great help in negotiating unfamiliar or complicated road systems. Lane Assistant recommends the best lane for you to be in relative to the proposed route, so you won't find yourself trying to move over three lanes when the freeway splits.

Reality view guides you with photo-realistic 3D images of junctions, complete with actual sign text and exit ramp guidance. This makes translating what the navigator is telling you to what you see on the road instantaneous.

Free Traffic for Life
This is a biggie. The Navigon 7100 comes is the first GPS device to offer subscription-free, real-time traffic information via the integrated traffic receiver with no additional fees or setup for the life of the product. Be advised on traffic flow and incidents, as well as the best alternate routes. The traffic info starts working as soon as you get the 7100 out of the box.

Zagat Ratings and Branded Icons for POIs
All of Navigon's gps navigators offer Zagat ratings and reviews for their POIs, so while this device may not get you a beer, it can tell you where to find the best one. Branded icons displayed on your map make it easier to navigate to a familiar location of your choice.

Superior Software and Hardware
The features and functions of the Navigon 7100 are controlled via intuitive, easy-to-use animated menus that use predictive text input to quickly and easily select your city, state and address. Maps and menus appear on its extra-large and elegant, high-contrast 4.3-inch, full-color touch-screen display with an easy-to-read 16:9 aspect ratio for an exceptional view of the road. The Navigon 7100 includes a powerful Samsung 400 MHz processor, a fully integrated SiRF Star III GPS chip, 64 MBs of both RAM and ROM built in, and a rechargeable 1,200 mAh lithium ion battery that is rated for 4.5 hours of continuous use. All this is housed in an ultra-thin, sleek piano black housing that weighs only seven ounces, and measures just 5.1 x 3.5 x 0.9 inches (W x H x D). The Navigon 7100 even comes pre-loaded with complete maps of the U.S. and Canada, providing you with superbly accurate, seamless door-to-door directions wherever your vehicular travels might take you.

Note that the 7100 runs on the Microsoft Windows CD Net 5.0 operating system. A PC is required to use additional map data, and in such cases users require Windows 2000, ME, XP or higher, as well as a CD ROM drive and a USB port. An SD/MMC card reader is recommended as the 7100 not only uses SD cards, but also comes with a 2 GB SD card in the package.

What's in the Box
The Navigon 7100 preloaded with North American maps, 2 GB SD card, car charger, wall charger, car mount, USB cable, CD and user manual on DVD, quick installation guide, and warranty information.

About Navigon
NAVIGON has been a leader of GPS navigation since 1991, and has a long history of industry innovations. NAVIGON created the world's first dynamic personal GPS product in 1996, launched the industry's first navigation software for the Pocket PC in 2000, and unveiled the first Traffic Message Channel-based (TMC) avoidance feature on mobile navigation product in 2002.

NAVIGON has helped revolutionize how consumers get from place to place with software products for practically any navigation-ready hardware. Personal navigation devices (PND), smartphones, and in-dash navigation systems directed by NAVIGON's award-winning MobileNavigator (MN) software delivers reliable information on millions of destinations in an intuitive, easy to use format. NAVIGON is a valued partner to the automotive industry, and in 2006 strengthened its category competency by acquiring NAVTEQ's navigation software business.

NAVIGON is a privately-held software company based in Hamburg, Germany, with NAVIGON USA headquarters in Chicago, IL.

What Customers Say About Navigon 7100 4.3-Inch Widescreen Portable GPS Navigator:

Our first arm, which needed to be replaced, would constantly fall--creating a decent hazard while driving--and finally cracked on impact. When we are leaving from home, that isn't a big deal, but when we are leaving from a new location, we are often sitting in the car waiting for it to tell us the first direction to go or the first turn to take. There is too much weight hanging because the device, particularly the 4.3-inch model, is heavy. The suction has never worked properly, I think because of the unique, elongated design of this device's arm (see the photo). I went with this device despite the expensive price tag because of the many features, including the free traffic updates. They do not update fast enough, and I still rely on satellite radio to get my updates. Also, the satellite connection often takes a very long time to link when we set out on our trips. The touch screen requires significant pressure before registering, which is difficult while driving.

In two years, I have received only a handful of traffic updates, perhaps six. And Navigon has been very unresponsive to our issues. Unfortunately, it was a big mistake.As for the ease of use, the device has been very problematic, particularly the "arm" that attaches it to the wind shield. And it often doesn't link until we drive around for a while, aimlessly, making the effects of this problem worse.Finally, the traffic updates, which were the selling point, are non-existent. The second arm has broken where it connects to the device. You cannot even call them on the phone, and their North American customer support is quite limited.Other features are problematic. Yet, I live and primarily drive in the NYC metro area and throughout New Jersey. To give it credit, it is not "on" every time I drive, but often on the weekends.I would pass on this product a second time around, and I would go with a cheaper, more well-known brand with better customer support, both over the phone and in major stores.

Driving D.C. One rep telling me to fill out the form and sending me a new memory card (which didn't fix the problem), another telling me essentially "tough luck" because THEY NO LONGER SERVICE THEIR PRODUCTS IN NORTH AMERICA. I attempted to fix the problem at motel stops along the way, but having an online account isn't sufficient - you have to remember your authorization code. Unfortunately, in August of 2009 the GPS was overloaded with traffic alerts from Chicago (along our route) and essentially imploded. Upon the recommendation of a friend who did extensive research on personal GPS units -- and having used hers for a day -- we purchased the Navigon 7100 in August of 2008. DO NOT PURCHASE ANYTHING FROM NAVIGON. What followed was a customer service nightmare. not down enough that I didn't get a reply at one point in time.

It was returned today. Despite repeated email pleas for assistance, nothing happened. It worked well 99% of the time - including taking me directly to an obscure driveway off the beaten track in New England (which I never would've found on my own). Eventually, after yet another memory card failed to work and my repeated requests for an authorization code were ignored (despite supplying proof of purchase), I had to send my GPS to their service department. without the GPS was hell. Three weeks after my initial contact I was told their server had been down. Packing slip said "no fault found" and the damn thing still DOES NOT WORK. If something goes wrong, you will be left holding a worthless product and their customer service department doesn't care.

SO I was on the market for a GPS that would help my wife to get around without a problem. and I was looking for a GPS that had great graphics and self explanatory with the turns and that the prompts were accurate as well as understandable. I came across this GPS while reading a review from PC Magazine and it helped with my decision. it is very easy to operate and the graphics are amazing.

The 1.2 patch for the 7100 model came out well over a year ago. Shortly thereafter we saw this notice:"In the 7100 1.2 software update only, when POIs are saved asFavorites or Recent destinations, the data for these POIs is notstored correctly after the device is reset. This is an issue we'recurrently examining. We suggest that you only save addresses/points onthe map as Favorites and not POIs."Well that still hasn't been fixed after all this time.

However, I can now unequivocally state that you should NOT buy this product. I bought my Navigon a little over a year ago. It's performance has been mixed, in line with much of the reviews here. Navigon has abruptly left the North American market, leaving customers, even those who purchased a device and map updates within the year, almost completely without support. If you buy one of these, you're buying a dead device with no hope of updates.