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Garmin unveil nuvi3700
Article by: Darren Griffin
Date: 20 Apr 2010
 Garmin chose London Alternative Fashion Week to unveil their new nuvi3700 series satnav.
Meanwhile a quick glance at the pics floating around of the iPhone 4G would suggest the two were separated at birth.
 The nuvi3700 series comes encased in a new, svelte, 8.7mm thick case. Sporting a multi-touch screen, Garmin's ecoRoutes and nuRoutes tech, Bluetooth hands-free, PhotoReal Junction Views and 3D Terrain, Traffic, Park Position recall and even Excel expence reports it ticks most of the boxes.
The premium 3790 model adds voice activation which, uniquely, can be activated by a code word which you can configure. For example, give it a name and you can wake it up by saying that name. That's a neat feature and one to be applauded. Other systems require you press a button or tap the screen which makes the whole voice activated moniker rather pointless.
We've heard and seen multi-touch before, Apple's iPhone touted it long ago but it is a great feature which makes zooming in and out of maps much easier and more intuitive. It's worthy of note that this new model can also be operated in landscape or portrait modes with the screen re-drawing on the fly. That is an option sure to please the traditionalists.
So all in all an interesting and attractive new model. RRP is Nuvi 3760T £279.99 and nuvi
3790T £319.99. For more information visit www.garmin.co.uk/3700 .
   
Portrait and Landscape, 3D Terrain and detailed Reality View
(Click image for a larger version)
| Comments
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 Posted by NickG on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:21 am |
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Any chance you guys can sort out zoomable pics in articles like this? PGPSW stories always seem to have tiny thumbnails, where other news sites have large zoomable pictures. Thanks!
Oh and the link is broken... you forgot the http:// so it doesn't work. 
Twitter: @nickg_uk |
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| Posted by Matt865 on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:23 am |
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Small point, but wasn't it Gizmodo, not Engadget, who gold hold of the 4G?
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| Posted by Darren on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:25 am |
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| Matt865 Wrote: | | Small point, but wasn't it Gizmodo, not Engadget, who gold hold of the 4G? |
You are indeed 100% correct. I'll correct the original item, thanks.
Darren Griffin |
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| Posted by zebsogo on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:36 am |
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I'm confused as to why you have sandwiched theses stories together they are totally unrelated and the Apple 4G story has more column inches then a 2 liner comment
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Navigon 92 Premium Live,TomTom Go 6000,Garmin 2699 LTM-D and a TomTom Go 1005 Live ( For the wife )
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| Posted by dhn on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:37 am |
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Thread on the same topic in a US forum is here
David |
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| Posted by matthewj on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:41 am |
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Very nice devices. I hope TomTom respond to this sort of competition instead of just repeating the same devices each year.
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| Posted by Darren on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:41 am |
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| zebsogo Wrote: | | I'm confused as to why you have sandwiched theses stories together they are totally unrelated and the Apple 4G story has more column inches then a 2 liner comment |
I made mention of the iPhone 4G as the model found in the US shares a remarkable similarity of design to the 3700 and thought it worthy of comment.
The actual iPhone story has been done to death elsewhere and we're really not in the business of covering such issues in detail here.
Darren Griffin |
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| Posted by darrengsaw on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:44 am |
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Very slick looking devices indeed.
These look like the first PND's to surface after the big companies have finally realised that the devices are lacking desirability in the face of the smartphone onslaught.
They certainly need to have a powerful processor rather than the slow over-taxed things we have come to expect.
Interestingly there is no sign of a connected device, not sure that would be possible in a case that thick.
If traffic is going to be through the tired old RDS-TMC i'm not sure that is a great step, though the introduction of what I assume is Navteq traffic patterns is welcome and a long overdue catch up on IQ routes.
I'm beginning to look at my next device, and with a new mobile due in a few months i'm wondering whether a PND would be a cost effective purchase or should I join the smartphone brigade?
These new iphone-esque devices look great, but I would still need to carry two devices around.
Is this still a better option than an iphone or android with TT, Sygic or Co-Pilot??
Hmmmmm..................
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| Posted by zebsogo on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:46 am |
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Not really worth mentioning at all then really was it
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Navigon 92 Premium Live,TomTom Go 6000,Garmin 2699 LTM-D and a TomTom Go 1005 Live ( For the wife )
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| Posted by Darren on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:49 am |
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If I were in the market for a smartphone then one that offered a decent satnav option would be a no-brainer. It would be difficult to justify the purchase of a dedicated device in that case.
To have a new device without connected services is a major omission but there is a huge market who have no interest in such features and don't want a device that requires yet another subscription in order to use the fullest.
It's nice to see the return of portrait view, many prefer it. We shall have to wait and see if these new models live up to the promises.
Darren Griffin |
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| Posted by Darren on Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:50 am |
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| zebsogo Wrote: | | Not really worth mentioning at all then really was it |
Perhaps not but then your questioning it has wasted more space than my original comment so why make it.
Darren Griffin |
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