Map Detail

[osidak]

Have been using my 720 about a week now and for the most part I am very happy with it. I have come to realize that every GPS I have had, has had some feature that I really liked but no one else does........ But I am very happy with it so far.

One little thing that bothers me but is not really deal though the level of detail shown on the map. In 3d mode (haven't even used 2d) it deletes a lot of detail unless it happens to be a "major" road or you need to turn on to it. I like seeing all the roads and also the various street names. I really do not like to see a screen divided by a single line with an arrow on it while driving down the intrastate

Is there a way to increase the level of detail that the map shows you at all times

 

[baggss]

I've noticed this in 2D mode as well. I keep mine in 2D with North always up, but it would be nice to have more detail. I've had mine about a week or so and have been looking for a way to enable more detail also.

 

[Robm]

Id like to know that as well

 

[Buddharay]

I never really noticed a lack of detail on the 720 maps. I use the 3D look too and I always see adjacent streets (unless there are none or your on a highway and there's really no need to see the small streets except for the larger intersecting ones). I know you can change the settings to show different types of POIs, but I'm not aware of any changes you can make to the map side streets.

 

[nj_tt_user]

TT does this to help quicken the map refresh rate so your car icon is gliding instead of hopping and the map changes and rotates smoother. Only the streets that are relevant to your route pop up as you're driving along.

 

[osidak]

that's fine but i would like to be able to control that

 

[bwhite]

Even with the POIs off etc my refresh rate except at very slow speeds (and I'm not a fast driver) was often showing my car 500' or more behind where I really was, enough to miss exits or screw up on the one I choose when they were close together. Sent it back, looking at NUVIs.

 

[Boyd]

There is no way to choose the amount of map detail in either 2d or 3d mode unfortunately. That's one of the few things I miss from my Nuvi 650. Garmin lets you choose most/more/normal/less/least detail. TomTom behaves as if it's always set to "normal" on Garmin which is too bad since I prefered the "most" setting.

However, browse maps shows an amount of detail equivalent to Garmin's "most" setting. Unfortunately the screen doesn't automatically scroll in browse mode though.

Oh well, at least we can turn autozoom off and none of the Nuvi's will allow that.

 

[bwhite]

There is no way to choose the amount of map detail in either 2d or 3d mode unfortunately. That's one of the few things I miss from my Nuvi 650. Garmin lets you choose most/more/normal/less/least detail. TomTom behaves as if it's always set to "normal" on Garmin which is too bad since I prefered the "most" setting.

However, browse maps shows an amount of detail equivalent to Garmin's "most" setting. Unfortunately the screen doesn't automatically scroll in browse mode though.

Oh well, at least we can turn autozoom off and none of the Nuvi's will allow that.

Did your 650 lag behind where you truly were or was it pretty much dead on with your location. I'm not in to lots of bells n whistles; I just want a 4.3" screen with accurate routing and the gps to know where is really is so that the user can react and reconcile surroundings to the display.

 

[Boyd]

Yes, the "lag" on the nuvi 600 series has been discussed extensively... visit the Nuvi forums over at GPSPassion. However the lag is more noticeable with the screen set to to 3d mode. In general, the TomTom 720 and 920 update the screen much faster and motion appears much smoother than on the Nuvi. My nuvi moved in "jumps", and zooming/scrolling/rotating the map was not nearly as fluid as the TomTom.

But I suggest you do your own research on this because everyone has very specific likes and dislikes.

 

[bwhite]

Thanx Boyd,
I have been researching, the 650/680s seem to have great ratings or dismal, not much in between from the users, kinda like the 720. I guess I'll have to get my hands on one and just see. Boy, the Garmins are pricey though for what is apparently nearly the same thing many of their competitors offer for about 1/3 less. I guess that I'll be OK with some "jumping" if the screen repaints very quickly and the icon indicating my vehicle's position remains accurate, something that was not happening with the tomtom 720 along with other things that TT just didn't come thru on yet promised. I actually returned the 720 (for about 6 major reasons as I outlined in another thread) but now don't know what to choose. I'm just not going to drop $300-$600 for something that has mediocre performance. I wish they'd stop concentrating on the stuff like mp3s, talking books, and bluetooth and just get the basics perfected.