Motorola Motonav TN765T 5.1-Inch Widescreen Bluetooth Portable GPS Navigator with Lifetime Traffic

June 14, 2010 by admin
Filed under Motorola GPS

Product Description

Product Details

5.1 Cinematic Display
2 Watt Hands-free speakerphone with noise cancellation technology
Live traffic with re-routing options
3 months free MotoExtras service package (Google Search, Weather, Fuel Prices, Flight Status)
Voice Recognition

Customer Reviews

The most complete PND that I have ever used!!

Review Date: March 12, 2010

Reviewer: Irwin M. Fletcher, Valkenvania

I would like to start off by saying that I feel bad that this device has received some bad marks. From what I have gathered over the last week, it either has to do with the user not installing the two updates that are available, not understanding how to function the device or a niche feature that has been left out. Or about things that are minor and probably correctable with a map and/or software update. Ultimately it is all opinion (just like I'm writing here) and based on wants/needs, but I thought I would throw that out there.

This will be a fairly long but thorough and unbiased review. I am not a fanboy of any one particular PND company other than Navigon, but they are long gone from North America so that doesn't count. My Navigon 7200T was stolen about a month ago which made me a PND free agent. In my search, I simply couldn't find anything to match the Navigon so I purchased a used one from Amazon Warehouse Deals. Then not even a week later, the Motorola Motonav TN765t was released. And now? Goodbye Navigon, it was a great run while it lasted!

This Motonav is quite simply the most complete and beautiful PND that I have ever used. Is it perfect? No. That doesn't exist. Is it perfect for my needs and wants? Yes, hence the 5 start rating.

Right out of the box what is better than most PND's in the market today? The 5.1" cinematic widescreen display (which I will touch on later) and the beautiful graphics. Next would be how well they utilized the extra widescreen with their slideout panel on the left which houses a wealth of information. But enough of that, let's dive into my pros and cons.

Pros:

1. The screen: Cinematic widescreen display & resolution is superb. Better than anything on the market.

2. Map detail: The map graphics are gorgeous and the detail is superb. Better than anything on the market. Doesn't have that cartoonish graphic look like most PND's today. It is very detailed and very easy to read. It's very easy on the eyes and the street names are big and in a balloon for easy readability. It also shows overpasses, train tracks, etc.

3. Map smoothness: While navigating the map moves as smooth as butter. Best refresh rate that I've ever seen.

4. The layout: The left slideout is genius and works extremely well with the cinematic widescreen display. It was utilized perfectly.

5. The TTS: It is super clear and almost flawless in pronunciation.

6. The turn warnings: It is the perfect balance of giving you enough reminders but not too chatty like some PND's. It's a perfect amount.

7. Turn warning detail: I love that it says the exit number and the exit name together. For example it will say "take exit 23b, Sea World Drive". Also while driving in the city at 0.5 miles away from your next turn it will say "prepare to turn right in half a mile". Then at 0.25 miles away it will say "in a quarter mile, turn right on Main Street". Then at 100 yards and less the turn icon turns blue to let you know that you are very close to your turn. Then about 30 yards or so away it will say "turn right on Main Street". It's truly excellent.

8. Satellite acquisition: It's phenomenal. This unit is always in "sleep" mode unless you hold the power button for 10 seconds or you don't use the unit for 4 days. So if you use your PND frequently you will always get a lightning fast acquisition. When I mean fast, I mean fast. As in under 10 seconds fast. Actually the fastest that I've ever experienced with any PND that I've used.

9. Entering a destination: It is very easy and intuitive. There are many different ways and it's super fast and easy. Want to find 123 Main St.? Just type in 123 Main and it will find it in no time. It has predictive search so each number or letter you are entering, the device is looking for the best probability as you type it.

10. Lane Guidance and Junction View: They are both very well done. It doesn't flash a full screen graphic either, so it's not obtrusive. It's very helpful and implemented well while still keeping your map and navigation screen as your priority.

11. Photo enforced traffic light warning: This is a superb feature. Whenever I come close to a photo enforced traffic light it gives me a nice graphic on the screen of a photo enforced light icon.

12. Speed trap warning: This is a great feature too. If you are in a speed trap area, it will notify you and then your current speed shows up on a graphic on the screen in red.

13. Sending a route from Google Maps: This is super intuitive and a very cool feature. You just send a destination or POI, turn on your GPS, go into the "Favorites" folder, then the "Google" folder and press update. It syncs every destination or POI that you have sent since you last updated.

14. The left slideout panel: It is one of a kind and works extremely well. This is where the extra wide 5.1" cinematic display really comes into play and shines. While navigating you can have this slideout panel open and still have plenty (about 2/3) of map view on the screen. In this slideout panel you can choose aerial view, nearby POI's, dashboard (current location, speed, altitude, etc.), turn by turn directions, way points, trip info (your destination address, estimated arrival time, distance to destination, time remaining & elapsed time) and traffic. It is truly an exceptional feature and implemented perfectly.

15. Bing: The Bing service is a pretty neat feature that isn't vital but definitely can come in handy. I searched movie times with it the other night. You can also search stocks, news, sports scores, etc. I searched by saying "NFL" last night and it gave me all the current NFL news. Cool feature.

16. 3D landmarks: 3D landmarks is a cool feature but also not vital. I've already seen some major attractions in San Diego on there (stadiums, etc.). Doing a simulation route in Las Vegas was cool to see all of the hotels and such.

17. MotoExtras: The MotoExtras are very cool in my opinion. The fuel prices, weather, flight status and Google Local Search are cool. The Google Local Search is vital to me. It makes the POI database limitless and it's implemented well. You would be surprised how useful it is to have unlimited POIs at your fingertips. I will be using this extensively when we got out of town.

18. POI: The pre-installed POI database is extremely robust. Motorola confirmed 7 million POI and it shows. It has been finding almost anything that I can throw at it. Then if it doesn't, which is true for every PND, there is always Google. A win-win.

19. Traffic: The traffic feature works very well and I haven't had a problem with it yet. I haven't been in too many traffic situations yet so I can update more as I use it. But it has worked well for the couple of times that I was in that situation.

20. Build quality and design: The build quality and design are superb. The device is very well built and solid. I also love the frameless design of the screen. I love how the traffic receiver is built into the cradle as well. The cradle and mount are very sturdy and work great. The device is super easy to pop on and off of the mount. It's one button push on the bottom.

21. MotoExtras cost: I think $49 for one year or $99 for 3 years (best value at $2.75 per month) is very fair and less than competitors.

22. Route calculation: This is another area where this unit shines and pulls away from the competition. It calculates routes extremely fast and if you make a wrong turn or move, the recalculation is insane. In most cases it has updated the route before TTS can even finish announcing that it's recalculating. It's amazing.

23. Routing: It has done a perfect job for me thus far. No issues to report yet.

24. Bluetooth: The Bluetooth functionality works seamlessly and is the best of any PND I have used to date. It easily connects to your phone and syncs your contacts, recent calls and text messages (if you have a compatible phone, mine is not). It is easy to use and the call quality is good. My girlfriend has said I sound good on the other end and I can hear her great. It will also read text messages to you as they come in and you can respond as well (if you have a compatible phone, mine is not).

25. Voice command: The voice command features work surprisingly well. I've had issues with other PND's in the past with this feature, but not with the Motonav. You can command a ton of functions with your voice and for the most part it has understood me. I am amazed about how many commands you can give it. Very well done.

Cons:

1. Speed limit info: The speed limit icon doesn't show up enough. It definitely shows up on all highways and freeways, but not much on city streets. I assume this will change with a map update.

2. Current street: I don't like that it doesn't show you which street that you are currently on. It just shows the next street on your route. I'm sure this can be added with an update?

3. Map update: My device shows Q1 2009 but according to Motorola's website, they are up to Q4 2009. The device is supposed to give you a free map update within 60 days of purchase. I can't seem to get it. I contacted Motorola and they said there must not be an update available for the device, which there should be.

4. Customer support: It seems lackluster and when I did talk to someone he didn't seem very well versed on this device. He had to put me on hold to get information.

5. Current speed: While your current speed is available in one of the left slideout screens, I would really like to see it on the main navigation screen next to the speed limit icon. Otherwise you have to be on that specific slideout screen to see it which isn't ideal.

That is honestly all that I can complain about so far. This is the most complete GPS for my needs that I have ever used.

I will try to update this review as I use it more.

Bottom line? I highly recommend this unit. It does what it's supposed to do and should fit right in with a market who wants a full featured PND that acts like an in-car GPS (Ford Sync, etc.). A car integration kit is coming out in May that will mount the PND, keep it constantly charging without a cigarette adapter, pass the audio through your sound system and it will have an iPod/MP3 connector. It's not a needed add-on, but good to know it's available.

Overall this PND is amazing and has HUGE potential and upside. When Home Shopping Network debuted this device, the host said that Motorola invested over a year just designing this thing. And it shows. Everything is well done and implemented. For a device only over a week old, the sky is the limit. I'm sure they will iron out the wrinkles and make this device even better than it already is. The MotoExtras website shows a lot of features that aren't available yet, but they sound promising (Maps, safety cameras, POIs, free PC extras, skins, 3d extras, traffic information, service bundle, guidance voice and backgrounds).

And if it sounds like I know too much about this device, it's because I do. I did a ton of research over the past couple of weeks and I have been very active on [...]. If you're looking for a new PND, this has to be on your short list.

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