Garmin iQue 3600 PDA/GPS Handheld System with Americas Detailed Street Mapping

by Garmin

Product Details

Product Manual [1.95mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 12 x 5 x 1 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: B000087BXU
• Item model number: 010-00264-00
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (205 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #39,051 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
  • #95 in Electronics > Computers & Add-Ons > PDAs, Handhelds & Accessories > PDAs & Handhelds
• Date first available at Amazon.com: January 9, 2003

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Early Adopters Pick: August 2003. The first PDA to include integrated GPS technology.

With the power of Palm OS 5 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, MP3 player, voice recorder, infrared communication, and vibrating alarm.

GPS The differentiating feature of the iQue 3600 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 3600. 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 a configurable basemap of North America, South America, Europe, or regions in the Pacific Rim, 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. The mapping capability of the iQue 3600 makes it a versatile companion for the international frequent flyer who travels, for instance, between New York and London or San Francisco and Hong Kong.

Customizable maps mean never getting lost again

Powerful Organization
The iQue 3600 is built around the Palm OS 5 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. There's also a voice recorder for making memos, quick notes, and messages. With 32 MB of built-in memory and an expansion slot, you can even store your favorite MP3s.

The flip-up GPS antenna

High-Tech Integration
One of the key benefits of technology integration on the iQue 3600 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 3600 features the new Motorola DragonBall MXL ARM9 microprocessor, and boasts 32 MB DRAM. This handheld is powered by Palm OS 5, which offers the processing power to take on the most demanding mobile computing tasks, together with advanced multimedia and the wireless connectivity and security that enterprises require.

Display
The iQue 3600 delivers brilliant images with its 2.16-by-3.24-inch display. It has a 16-bit color display with 320 x 480 pixel resolution.

Expansion
Expand your iQue 3600 via its Secure Digital slot.

Software
The iQue 3600 comes with the following Garmin Que applications: MP3, 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 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.

The Nuts and Bolts

Included in the box
iQue 3600, protective display cover, metal stylus, USB HotSync cradle, A/C power/charging adapter, quick start guide, installation/application, CD-ROM with manual, and choice of MapSource configuration with full unlock certificate: either 1) North America City Select CD or Atlantic European City Select CD.

Product Description

CL) Ique Hand held PDAW/INTE

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

174 of 177 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars i find it indispensable, and i love it, November 9, 2003

By 

G. M. Matthews (Camino, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Garmin iQue 3600 PDA/GPS Handheld System with Americas Detailed Street Mapping (Office Product)

I've had mine since middle of August. I'll starte with the issues. In that time I've experienced the glitches mentioned elsewhere, but not enough to give up on it. I had 2 hard resets with data loss (static electricity I now realize), many soft resets with no data loss (mostly when syncing), a few times the speaker noise problem (soft reset fixed), and short battery life when power isn't nearby. That's most of the bad, and most of this is fixed with v2 of the software now available on Garmins downloads site.
Since the sw upgrade to v2, no hard or soft resets, no lost communications on syncs anymore. I've loaded many new applets and none of them have given me any problems. Be SURE not to use any that aren't specific for OS5!
What's great?
- the screen is better than anything i've seen, more bright, more resolution, and is worth the tradeoff in battery life
- the speed, fast processor to speed autorouting makes it fast for everything else, too
- the integration with contacts and calendar for waypoints is very useful, really leverages the PDA/GPS into much more than the sum of its parts, more than what other (separate) packages can
- so far it's robust, i've dropped it and still works fine
- maps are very good. i took it to europe for 3 weeks of driving, including in italy (even rome), and it was painless with this device. it has every road in the country, like where i live. the system in my brother's car that cost $2K has no roads off the freesay where i live - useless. it is truly FREEING to drive along and see all the possible roads you can take around you, updating in real time, if you're like me and like to explore. truly great.
I could go on for a month, I love it that much. So I'll switch to how to overcome it's shortcomings:
- get the car kit, period
- get a 256 MB SD card, i paid under a hundred, with that, i can put most of california, for most of a US region or to have room for MP3's, get a 512 card.
- if you're not using it, cradle it. if you're in the car, put it on the car kit cradle whether using GPS or not. with these habits, i never have problems with battery life. and it charges very quickly, too. the v2 sw puts the default brightness at 50%, which is enough 90% of the time. i use about 30% when inside, and it's still brighter than many other and completely usable. don't enable waas, no satallites anyway and 20 feet is close enough for me, and helps battery. turn off IR receiver. set auto off to 30sec. it's instant on anyway. with these changes, battery life isn't an issue for me.
- i got the small sync cable with the travel kit, but the aftermarket sync cables will also charge from the USB so might be better, check it out, targus and belkin, among others.
- get a protective case. i got one for a toshiba pocketpc that's leather with belt clip. fits perfectly, and now i don't worry about dropping it
- the antenna works best when the FLAT top face is toward the sky, NOT when it's end is pointed at the sky. used this way, it locks under a minute even when moving for me, and never loses when moving after lock unless i'm in a sea of 3+ story buildings.
- i got the external antenna, and now i can take it off the car plate to use it and it still keeps the satellites, this is a nice to have but is not very expensive
- people have said the maps are worth $100. in reality the autorouting map sets are $300. i know, i bought it for Europe, but i DO NOT REGRET IT.
- sometimes it fails to find things that are in the database, but this is rare. r2 sw may have helped but haven't tested yet. there are a few map bugaboos, like a small break in the road that i routes you around, but these are rare.
- don't load any apps that don't say OS5 compatible
- use screen protectors - the ones for Sony Clie NX70's fit perfectly (don't get sony brand, too expensive)
- upgrade the OS to v2 immediately
- have patience if you've not used a PDA or Palm before, you will get through it. the downloadable PDF manual is very good. there are dedicated sites like palmgear with lots of useful info on getting along with your PDA, as well as software reviews and downloads.
- they have posted track log and waypoint conduits now, as well a map loader update. Garmin is seriously supporting this device, don't give up on it.
Bottom line is Garmin has realized the market for these is bigger than the combined market for all of their other products. So I do believe they will support the product, and will come out with even better ones in the future. But bottom line is it works great for me, it was a bargain considering what it does, and I wouldn't wait for an upgrade and have to live without it. It's a great GPS, and with the v2 upgrade, a great PDA. it's definitely the most useful device in my life today, moreso than my computer. i'm the kind of person that never gets lost, but i never leave the house w/o my ique now. it's fun, it's useful, and it makes life easier.

39 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great GPS. Need Version 2 of the software though!!, December 29, 2003

By 

Robert Willard (clarksville, TN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Garmin iQue 3600 PDA/GPS Handheld System with Americas Detailed Street Mapping (Office Product)

I installed the software per the user's guide and used it on the first day I got it (12/23/03). My wife was driving and I was reading about it in the car. I had the GPS on and was amazed at how the map moved (Track up mode) as we moved. It was accurate re: driving speed, location, odometer, etc. Then I tried the Que Route mode and tried reaching a destination. The thing kept saying "Off Route, recalculating" over, and over, and over again. I was pissed! Then I read some reviews and learned that I had to go to the Garmin website (http://www.garmin.com/support/download.jsp) to download "release 2" and "release 2 patch 1." After following the detailed instructions and re-trying the Que route, the navigation was perfect. No problems whatsoever. The unit is occasionally inaccurate as to street addresses, and is better with known intersections (gets you there within 10 feet accuracy). Some street addresses were right on the money, but others were a few houses off. Overall, however, it's a tremendous tool and a very fun toy.
Definitely get the 256 MB expansion card at a minimum and you absolutely need the Auto-Nav travel kit.

58 of 61 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good, but not Garmin's best GPS, August 1, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Garmin iQue 3600 PDA/GPS Handheld System with Americas Detailed Street Mapping (Office Product)

I have been awaiting the release of this unit for a long time. I even sold my Streetpilot III to buy this so that I could integrate my PDA with GPS. You have heard all the positives, here are my list of negatives:

1. The biggest disappointment is that there are a LOT of addresses that cannot be found by a simple search. I have not been able to find some very popular roads. Yet, when you zoom in on that road manually, there it is, name and all. That is bad, bad, bad. That MUST be fixed on this unit. With my job, there are many times I go to an address or street I have never been to before, so I cannot manually go there by the map. I need the unit to find it for me and send me there.

2.You have to use your fingernail to open the GPS antenna. The hole is too small to even use my pinky to open it.

3. The stylus is very hard to remove. I have to pry it out with my fingernails, as well.

4. In many instances, you have to save a POI or address that you enter as a waypoint before you can route to it. On the Streetpilot III, the GoTo feature routed right to it from the search menu.

If you need a PDA and GPS in one unit, this one will work for you. If you need a really good GPS, though, I would recommend that you wait for the new Streetpilot coming out in late summer 2003. The iQue is missing too much information to be effective as a standalone GPS. There are still more positives than negatives for this unit, though. Just be aware of the shortfalls before you fork over that green!