Garmin iQue 3200 PDA/GPS Handheld System with North America Detailed Street Mapping

by Garmin

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 8.2 x 5.5 inches ; 5.8 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S. and to APO/FPO addresses. For APO/FPO shipments, please check with the manufacturer regarding warranty and support issues.
• ASIN: B00026VT7K
• Item model number: 010-00297-00
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: July 19, 2004

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

From the Manufacturer With the power of Palm OS 5.2 and the dependability of Garmin GPS technology, this super PDA redefines multitasking. Its integrated software not only allows you to look up appointments and contacts, it also locates and routes you to them with voice-guidance commands. Feature highlights include: GPS receiver, internal speaker, infrared communication, SDIO and vibrating alarm.

GPS
The differentiating feature of the iQue 3200 is its integrated GPS capabilities. Garmin's innovative Que technology delivers location awareness, electronic mapping, automatic route calculation, turn-by-turn voice guidance, and map data interface to the iQue 3200. Que technology enables users to see where they are, find a street address, know where the next turn is via visual and voice guidance, get back on track when they’ve strayed off course, and navigate efficiently to their desired destination.

Detailed Mapping
Users can choose between three different basemaps, with generalized information on highways, major city streets, highway exit services, railways, rivers, lakes, and state, provincial, and national borders. The iQue also has the added benefit of detailed street information on the included MapSource® CD-ROM, giving users the capability of looking up restaurant addresses, hotels, local attractions, transportation hubs, emergency services, and much more. Once a desired point of interest is chosen, you have the capability to view more info or even show it on the map screen.

Powerful Organization
The iQue 3200 is built around the Palm OS 5.2 platform and offers standard Palm applications, such as Address Book, Calculator, Date Book, Memo Pad, and To Do List. And there’s enough processing power to search large databases of stored information and to enhance display graphics with easy-to-read fonts and crisp electronic maps.

The flip-up GPS antenna

High-Tech Integration
One of the key benefits of technology integration on the iQue 3200 is its patent-pending contact-locator feature. Enabled by Garmin's Que technology, this feature connects the Palm Address Book and Date Book to the GPS electronic map to give the user the ability to navigate directly to a specific address within the user’s contact database.

System
The Garmin iQue 3200 features the new Motorola DragonBall MXL ARM9 microprocessor, and boasts 32 MB DRAM. This handheld is powered by Palm OS 5.2, which offers the processing power to take on the most demanding mobile computing tasks. Display
The iQue 3200 delivers brilliant images with its 2.12-by-2.12-inch display. It has a 16-bit color display with 320 x 320 pixel resolution.

Expansion
Expand your iQue 3200 via its SDIO slot..

Software
The iQue 3200 comes with the following Garmin Que applications: GPS Clock, Address Lookup, Electronic Mapping, Track Log, Trip Computer, Automatic Route Generation, and Turn-by-Turn Voice Guidance, as well as these Palm OS 5.2 applications: Address Book, Calculator, Date Book, Expense, Mail, Memo Pad, Palm Reader, and To Do List. In addition, it includes these third-party applications: Astraware Game Pack, Documents to Go, powerOne Personal Calculator, StarCaddy, SplashPhoto, and Vindigo.

Product Description

The iQue 3200 joins the award-winning iQue 3600 as the only Palm PoweredTM personal digital assistants (PDAs) that offer fully integrated Global Positioning System (GPS) technology. These products combine the portability of a PDA and the utility of an automotive navigation system in a sleek, lightweight design. The iQue 3200 is designed for business users who want an affordable device that can manage their personal information and deliver personal navigation in a single unit. Beyond organization and navigation, the iQue 3200 boasts a bright display, long battery life, and Secure Digital Input/Output (SDIO) capabilities for added functionality - at an attractive price. The iQue 3200 uses Que technology to help users navigate. Que technology enables users to see where they are, find a street address, know where the next turn is via visual and voice guidance, get back on track when they've strayed off course, and navigate efficiently to their desired destination. What's in the Box: iQue 3200 Protective flip cover Metal stylus USB HotSync® cradle AC charger Auto navigation kit with windshield mount* Que applications guide Installation CD with manual and MapSource® City Select® data with full coverage Basemaps (included on CD): Americas Autoroute

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best purchases I've ever made!, January 25, 2005

By 

Indulgent Dad (Mpls., MN) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Garmin iQue 3200 PDA/GPS Handheld System with North America Detailed Street Mapping (Office Product)

The Garmin 3200 isn't perfect, but it's close. If you need a new PDA and want to add a GPS system to use in the car, this is the way to go (if you don't want to spend the extra $150 or so for the Garmin 3600). I've had mine for about three weeks now and I love it. The PDA has features similar to most Palm operating system PDAs. The GPS is very nice, but with all of the features available it takes some time to figure it all out. It has voice commands for directing you along your route, will tell you when you're off-route , and quickly recalculate a new route. As others have mentioned though, battery life goes rather quickly when in GPS mode. Because of this, it's really a car GPS and not useful for hiking.

The PDA is linked to the GPS through the Address Book. This means you can locate any address in your address book on the map and calculate a route to it. The 3200 also comes with a suction cup windshield mount that works well - but I found that in one of our vehicles that has a longer sloping windshield the unit ends up being a ways away from you while you're driving.

The screen on the 3200 is smallish, 2-1/4 inches square because the Graffiti 2 data entry pad is permanent at the bottom of the screen (you can use the keyboard though for data entry by tapping on the "A" at the bottom left corner of the Graffiti pad for letters or the "1" in the lower right corner of the Graffiti pad for numbers). The 3600 has a bigger screen because the Graffiti pad is not permanent - it can be hidden and brought up when needed, giving you an additional 2-1/4 by 1 inch screen space. The 3600 also has a built in mp3 player. However, I couldn't go the extra $150 for the 3600 considering the extras you need for both the 3200 and 3600 (see below), and unless you buy the bundled version of the 3600, it doesn't come with an automobile mount.

Despite the shortcomings, I rated it 5 stars because at the $351 I paid for it through Amazon, it's a great value.

As I mentioned, though, there are some extra expenses to consider before you buy either the 3200 or 3600:

1) Buy an SD card at the same time you buy this unit.

32MB is not enough memory to hold the Palm programs you want and the maps you need. Without the additional memory of an SD card, you will only be able to load detailed maps for a small area, which means if you travel over a wide area you'll be continually deleting maps to free up memory and loading the new ones you need. I went with a 512K SD card for about $50, loaded detailed maps for 5 Midwestern states on it and still have 325K of free space left. You can get SD cards with less memory, a 256K Simpletech card is about $25.

Also, not all SD cards are created equal. I've had very little experience with SD cards, so when I look at the reviews of PDAs and other equipment that uses SD cards, if they complained about SD card problems I paid attention to the brand name of the card if they mentioned it. I also looked at the reviews of the SD cards themselves. After looking at all of this information, I went with the SimpleTech card, it cost a little more than other brands, but I popped it in and have had no problems. It's possible that some of the SD problems mentioned could be due to the card and not the unit.

2) Staying with the provided Document/E-mail software will cost you

For the PDA document and e-mail sharing with your computer, Garmin includes the DataViz Documents To Go software. It's great software for moving Word documents and e-mail (including attachments!) between the PDA and your computer. However, this s a trial version that's only good for 30 days. After that, you'll need to pony up $30 for the registered version. DataViz also offers two other versions of this software with additional features - I ended up going with the next step up version for about $50.

3) You will need to buy a case for it

As with almost all PDAs it seems, if they provide any kind of cover or case for it, it's usually junk. Same with the 3200. The unit comes with a leather-covered flap that is hinged at the bottom of the unit and does not attach at the top, which means it flops around a lot. While the flap does fold backwards to lay against the back of the unit while you're using it, you can't put it in the cradle this way - instead, it will sit in the cradle with the flap laying out in from of it, very annoying. There are lots of cases available, some specifically for the Garmin 3200 & 3600.

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Much better than expected, February 18, 2005

By 

Doc "Lots of Gadgets" (Bay Area) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Garmin iQue 3200 PDA/GPS Handheld System with North America Detailed Street Mapping (Office Product)

I have to say, when I first played with this model's sibling, the iQue 3600 at the store, I really wasn't that impressed. The reality is that none of the GPS units work in stores and you have no idea what the display is going to look like in real lighting situation, how well it's going to track, or if you are going to be able to hit the tiny icons on the screen while driving.

The unit was much, much better than I had hoped for. I bought it with a 256MB SD card, where I was able to load in maps of Northern California, San Diego area, Chicago, and a couple of other mid-sized cities that I visit often. The display is excellent, clearly visible during the day. I thought the display would be too small, but the device automatically changes the scale as necessary very intelligently. The initial localization takes less than a minute, and will continue to track even with the unit on my lap, without a clear view of the sky. The holder is decent and plugs into the cigarette lighter, where there is an external speaker. I'm not sure if the unit uses its own battery when plugged in or not. There is an extensive list of pre-programmed businesses so I have rarely had to enter an address or intersection.

The instructions that the unit vocalizes are easy to understand. I was shocked to find out that the unit knew that I couldn't turn left accross a median and it guided me around the block. I also can never tell if I'm suppose to be in the left lane or right lane to enter onto the freeway, a real hassle when there is heavy traffic, but now I do! The battery life is excellent. The GPS is well integrated to the PDA, so you can ask for directions to a specific contact, or take one of the thousands of pre-programmed businesses and add it to your list of contacts.

I'm glad I got this unit, rather than a bulkier, dedicated GPS unit. No real complaints so far. I usually don't write reviews, but I feel so strongly about this thing I thought I'd share my thoughts.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Garmin IQue 3200 fits the bill..., October 25, 2004

By 

Dnaught Smith "Jethro Bodine" (Southwest PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Garmin iQue 3200 PDA/GPS Handheld System with North America Detailed Street Mapping (Office Product)

What a great unit! I traded in my 2000 german luxury car with integrated GPS for a shiny new pick up truck a month ago. The truck didn't have a factory GPS as an option and the aftermarket GPS units were well over $1,500.

I don't regret the change in cars but I was lost without my GPS! I also recently changed jobs and had to give back my Palm Pilot - Didn't miss that too much but you get used to things.

I started looking for a portable GPS unit and came across the Garmin IQue 3600 and 3200 models. I decided to buy the 3200 because I didn't need the bells and whistles (voice recorder and MP3 player) on the 3600 plus the 3200 came with the auto mounting kit (the 3600 sells the auto mount kit separately).

Got my 3200 in 2 days after ordering. Charged it overnight and installed the software on my laptop and downloaded everything to the 3200 in about an hour. Set up was simple with the enclosed directions. Follow them step by step and read them first! Syncronized the PDA with my Outlook Program and was set to go.

Before I bought the 3200, I thought that all that I would have to do is point the GPS program to my Outlook or Palm contacts and go. There's one more step... you must select your contact on the PDA and touch "locate". If your address input is correct for your contact, the 3200 creates a "waypoint". From the separate GPS menu you "route to" any previously created waypoints.

I had a 512MB SD card left over from my old PDA to store maps. The 3200 unit only comes with 32MB of storage memory so more memory is mandatory if you travel to different areas of the country. Depending on how much or how little map storage space you need, you should buy an SD card. I got the entire East Coast of the US on the 512MB card plus 8 other major cities where I travel the most.

How does it work in the car? Brilliantly! It is better than my old factory installed GPS. With my old system, you needed to know the township as well as the city. With the 3200, all you need to locate a waypoint is address and zip code. The 3200 routes and reroutes very quickly if you choose not to follow directions exactly. It also provides you with over all time to destination, time and distance to next turn, speed, and exact address location. The auto kit works very well, with a strong suction mount, power cord/charger and voice amplifier.

Could it be better? Yes. It is a little hard to change the scale of the maps without using the PDA stylus - which is difficult while driving. I would like to see a small toggle to change map scale easily.

Would I buy it again - definitely. It's a great product, much more than I hoped for.