Strengths: It is good on directions

Weaknesses: Bewware I have had my unit for two years and still cannot get a map update. Question how many roads have been built in two years

Summary: Buywer beware at this time when you buy a Nextar the maps in your GPS is all you will get. There are no updates for any new roads after your purchase.

Strengths: Low price. SD card slot. The package includes stylus, remote control, carrying case... very nice!

Weaknesses: US map only (without Canada map). Cannot update maps. No Text-to-speech.

Summary: I got this GPS unit from Buy.com with a very nice price ($105.43 after coupon and rebates). This is my first GPS and so far I have not used any other GPS, so I cannot compare this Nextar C3 with other GPS units. The package contains a stylus which is very sweet. It has a remote control, although I have never used it. Another good thing is that you can insert your own SD card into the SD slot for MP3 playing. For me, the weaknesses are 1. this unit is loaded with only US map without Canada map, 2. you cannot update the map, and 3. there is no test-to-speech. However, if you consider the price I got, I will say it's a good deal.

Strengths: Not much

Weaknesses: Lots, including freeze ups, loss signal, low volume hard to hear in highway traffic.

Summary: I use this system a lot as I am a sales rep on the road all the time. This system gets me more frustrated then trying to read a map. Constantly loosing it's signal and if I hear "find the nearest road" one more time when I'm on the 401 I just might throw it out the window. It happens to freeze up at the worse times, trying to find your way around an unfamiliar city is not fun espically when your GPS is lost! Spend the money and get a "real" system. I can't believe that you can not get any updates at all espically when towns and cities are constantly changing. Don't purchase this one it's not worth it.

Strengths: Price, remote control, intuitive, quick signal lock

Weaknesses: No text-to-speech, only 1.6 million POI

Summary: I really like this GPS. I previously used GPS software in my PDA for a couple years, which was OK, but left a lot to be desired. The Nextar C3 locks onto a signal very quickly, even inside my house or garage which is very impressive. It has a 2D map view and three 3-dimensional views at various angles.Having the included remote control is also a very nice benefit. I have not seen any other GPS units out there that also include a remote control. With the unit mounted on my windshield, it can be inconvenient and distracting to press buttons on the screen while driving. The remote control solves that problem and allows you to keep your attention and eyes on the road, a very good safety benefit.The windshield mount is very secure and I've not had any problems with it. This unit has an SD slot allowing it to also function as an MP3 player, although I have no use for that function as I already have a dedicated MP3 player.Having the SD slot would also allow you to update maps when/if Nextar ever puts map updates on their website. This will be a great feature if Nextar ever allows us to take advantage of it. Some who have reviewed this unit have complained that the maps are out of date. I have not yet found this to be true. I have found that the maps included roads that were just constructed within the last 1.5 years. You can't really expect that roads constructed within the last 6 months to 1 year will be contained on this GPS, or any other for that matter. This is partly due to the map vendors and not necessarily the fault of the GPS manufacturers.The C3 has 1.6 million POI's and while that seems like a lot, some of the higher end GPS units out there have around 6 million. For me, this is not that much of an issue as I don't make use of the POI's that much. For those people who travel extensively and need or want to have the additional POI's, you may want to look elsewhere.When turning off the C3 with the front side power button or via remote, it doesn't really power off completely, it just goes into sleep mode which will drain the battery completely in a few days. When the unit is on, the battery will last about 3 hours. If not using it for extended periods of time, you can use the included stylus to switch off the power completely on the back side of the unit. Doing this will preserve the charge of the battery, however when turning it back on, it will require a boot-up which can take several minutes. The C3 does not have text-to-speech capability and the voice guidance will only tell you what direction to turn and how far off the next turn is. This is perfectly adequate for me as the screen will give you the same information in more detail. The routes it chooses are not always the best in my opinion but overall I think it does a pretty good job of routing and is very quick to re-route if you make a wrong turn or miss a turn.The low price of this unit and the features and accessories it provides make this an excellent choice as an entry level GPS. I am very satisfied with my purchase of the C3 and would highly recommend it.

Strengths: so easy to use - you hardly have to use the instructions

Weaknesses: screen can be hard to read in the sun, though it's usually not a problemit takes a while before it "gets" that you can't go the way it says (we met construction) and changes its directions.

Summary: Amazing little machine!You hear a voice telling you how you will turn, and how far you are from that turn. If you glance at the screen, the road you're looking for is displayed at the top, it tells you how far you are from that road, and has an arrow telling you which way you'll turn. In other words, you can hear AND see all the information you need.The voice is easy to understand.It's small and portable (they even include a carrying case). Actually, when you open the box and start sifting through what is included, it looks like they've thought of everything!I have a terrible sense of direction, and this little gadget is a life-saver.

Strengths: good price

Weaknesses: slow startup.

Summary: Got a problem with the car adapter, call support and waiting for 2 months for my new adapter still having arrive yet. Consider buy other devices.. Tired of hearing

Strengths: Sylish, Low Price (after rebate), Gets you in the GPS/NAV door, Accessories Included in box

Weaknesses: Outdated maps, Has Frozen up when trying to switch tasks,Short Battery Life (maybe 2-3 hours max)

Summary: I was very excited to get my first Navigation GPS, especially given the spec sheet, all the included accessories (AC Charger, Car Charger, Remote Control), and the overwhelmingly positive reviews available on-line. I thought about refusing shipment of the Nextar C3, as I came across some reviews that had some bad things to say about this GPS unit. I decided to go ahead and give it a shot. Now I am thinking back to high-school tests. Remember the advice "Your first instinct is ususally right"? I wish I would have gone with my first instinct and sent this back before I opened it. The Nextar C3 will get you in the door of GPS Navigation. However, I find myself wishing I had held off or spent $50 to $100 more and gotten a better brand with better features(and better support). I have experienced several glitches / freeze-ups with my C3 unit. Some times the unit will get caught in a infinite loop of saving your current location to your favorites. This requires a hard-restart to escape. Also, my Nextar C3 has locked up a couple times when running the demo route, then trying to switch tasks. This also occurred when trying to use the avoid road feature on a long road trip. Trying to avoid I-5 going from Arizona to North Bay California caused the unit to come to a stand-still. To be fair, I don't think there is a way to totally avoid the I-5 ( I prefer CA-99) as you have to get on the 5 for a few miles to get over to I-580 et al. Most importantly, this unit has gotten me lost (and tried to) a couple times due to the out of date maps. This has caused me a few miles of backtracking and guessing when the C3 doesn't have any clue. After experiencing these problems, I decided to check out Nextar's website, to see if there were any updates available. Nothing. Nada. Zero. I wouldn't expect any firmware or map updates out of Nextar. Go with a name brand that actually has a reputation to uphold. Another complaint I have with the Nextar C3 is the short battery life. Coming in at only about 2 to 3 hours, and taking about 4-5 hours to fully charge (w/ car charger), the C3 really leaves something to be desired in this department. Save up just a little bit longer and get yourself a name brand GPS with better features (TTS, Traffic-option, etc.) and a chance of having some product support.

Strengths: it's very accurate, poi's

Weaknesses: does not say street names only major highways

Summary: I think this is a good buy and a good quality product, so far. But there is a 1 year also which attracted me to this product although I am not familiar with the brand. This device is very cool, you can look up restaurants, malls, hospitals. You can program your favorite places, and there are many options for your trip such as avoid tolls, fastest, shortest distance. It keeps track of your distance on the trip and gives you an eta which I like. It tells you when the turns are coming up, it will say turn left in 0ne mile etc, it does not say the street names but it does say the highways. Once you are at your turn there is a distinct beep, if you miss your turn, it simply tells you the next turn to make. This is going to help me out a lot and for the price and a 1 year warranty I had to try itUpdate: It stopped working after about 2 weeks. It is stuck on updating GPS signal. Called Nextar and they told me to return it to the retailer. Tech support offered no update or even troubleshooting options. When it did work, I began to notice that it was taking way to long to find a signal and maybe that was part of the problem. I am going to get a replacement, will see how that one works

Strengths: price, full accessories, easy use

Weaknesses: outdated maps

Summary: For a entry level GPS, it works exactly as expected. I followed its guidance in a 4 hours drive from Boston to Trenton, set up a detour to avoid ny city, and arrived at my destination with no problem at all. The sound is crystal and loud. The screen is bright and clear. Sirf III chipset provides stable and prompt communications to satellites. the map system is the same as iguidance 2.x, which doesn't have TTS. However, it recalculates route fast, and tells you the destination is on the left or right.

Strengths: the price

Weaknesses: none yet

Summary: I BUY THIS GPS FIRST FOR THE PRICE 159.99 LESS 30 REBATE ONE GPS FOR 129.99 AND WHAT YOU HAVE .. TOUCHSCREEN MP3 THE SCREEN IS ACEPTABLE , AND IF YOU WANT A BASIC BUT BASIC GPS FOR THIS PRICE BUY THIS IS GREAT

Strengths: PRICE(from buy.com on sale $129 after rebate), small, light, clear screen, nice software, MP3, home charger, carrying bag

Weaknesses: none so far, hope it lasts

Summary: My old gps FineDrive400 stopped working after 7 months, the support number won't even work, so i go ahead got this one, it's much cheaper and a whole lot better. This has the best price to value ratio, in my opinion. I don't care about TomTom or Garmin, all i need is just a basic GPS gets me from A to B. Very easy to install and use, i didn't even read the manual. All NavTeq interfaces look kinda same.

Strengths: the low price(you can't beat it), Navteq map, basic functions for a GPS and MP3 player

Weaknesses: no TTS, outdated map

Summary: I bought this GPS from buy.com for $120 after rebate. It took several minutes to start for the first time. This is normal for any GPS, because it need to update the satellite information for the first time start, after that it will start much faster. It seems that it's running Intellinav software version v1.1, and the map data is for 2005 which is a little too old. Well, as for the relatively low price, this unit did do very well after a road test. With Sirf III chipset and Navteq map, it's very fast to calculate route. The sound for the guidance is very clear and map display and driving directions are pretty good. It can also tell you on which side of the street your destination is. But it does not have TTS (Text-To-Speech), so it can't tell you the name of street at which you need to turn. The most weird thing is that although the product specification on every retailer's website says that it uses SIRF III chipset (the best one used on GPS), I couldn't find anything about the chipset on the box. Besides I called the custom service, and they said they didn't know what kind of chipset it really uses. But for $120, it's a great bargin!

Strengths: Like everyone else says. The price is very low for GPS units. It has a nice turn by turn voice function.

Weaknesses: Not sure yet....

Summary: Haven't had this too long so not sure if it will last, but otherwise meets my needs and is easy to use. I don't travel too often, but has worked for the trips I've needed and helped me right alternative routes.

Strengths: no

Weaknesses: update limitation

Summary: That's awesome with such a low price. I cannot travel without it now. It also offers mp3 player, a nice accessory. It is also a good gift for my friend. Overall, it is an impress GPS unit for its price!

Strengths: User friendly interface, smart AI, GPS + MP3 player

Weaknesses: None so far.

Summary: The unit is very impressive. I tried it on a trip two days after I got it. In use, I found the Nextar to be very responsive and accurate. It recalculates routes very quickly even if you take a wrong turn. The display is very clear even in bright daylight. The mounting system is very well-designed and very reliable. On top of all the great features, it has a SD slot to put all your favorate songs in it and take it with you on the road.