Customer Reviews

Lowrance XOG 3.5-Inch Crossover GPS Navigator

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I've waited to buy GPS for my vehicle because I wanted something that would provide good auto-nav for trip AND be useable on 4x4 trails and fire roads. The Lowrance XOG is, for under $250 street price, a super value. For those wanting a auto-nav vehicle GPS to use offroad, its optional maps make it the only game in town (unlike the competition who's detailed mapps are still vaporware).

I won't say much about the normal auto-nav beyond the onboard maps being accurate, a large base of points-of-interest, and easy to use. Voice commands are clear and the interface isn't complicated. Its "normal" use is probably par for units in its price range.

The BIG deal for the XOG is the ability to use optional maps from Lowrance's MapCreate software, and 1:100,000 BLM maps, close-up detail 1:25,000 USGS Topographic Quad maps (scanned), and even satellite photo images; all from Lowrance MapSelect webpage, and even Lowrance fishing maps of lakes for boat use. It overlays the road data over the option maps and you can turn them on/off with the menu. Its notable that Lowrance has a long and solid history in marine electronics.

The optional maps are loaded on a SD card (not supplied). Though at $5/map, they could get expensive for large areas, but two or three will cover a lot of trail country. I've used the USGS maps and they cover roughly 6x6 miles (in great topo and landmark detail). Anyone who has used USGS topo maps will instantly recognize the quality of the higher resolution details. Though they're scanned images, they don't look it. Satellite images are smaller area. The XOG records your track, which can be downloaded, and you can designate trip routes. I also found Lowrance support to be very good (and domestic). It also plays mp3s through its speaker (not exactly hi-fi) and will diplay jpeg pictures if they're loaded on a SD card.

Downside: for out-of-vehicle use, the battery is only good for 2-3 hours, though there are external AA battery packs; visiblity in bright sun is marginal (but par with similar touchscreen units), and the operating instructions though adequate and clear could provide more info.

Updated June 2009: My XOG has been dependable and I still think it's a great compromise for travel nav/offroad use. I've used other units and still think Lowrance control logic and screen content are superior. Alas Lowrance was bought by another GPS maker who wants Lowrance to make only marine products and dropped automotive GPS models.

This thing is great, It has the latest Navtec maps built in, Plenty of POI,s Auto-routing with voice but where this really shines is for off-road, You can load Topo maps from Lowrance onto an SD card or you can download Satelite images/USGS topo/BLM mapping from there website. It will allow you to save tracks and you can import tracks also, It will hold up to 100 tracks at up to 9,999 points in each track, Garmin only lets you load in 20 tracks at up to 500 points each. and their street units ( Nuvi, Quest, Street pilots etc), well forget it as they do not allow you to import tracks. Tracks are the best way to share rides or other type of adventures with others.
This also has a great GPS chip , it is very sensitive, maintains lock in heavy foliage and in other places my Garmin will loose it signal.
I have over 700 miles with it on my Dualsport bike and it is holding up great.
At this price and the things that this will do it is a very good bargain.

I gather from the online forums that people buy this device for its amazing map selection, either through the manufacturer's software, website or third-party mapping software (all sold separately... starting at $5 for a few square miles online). I've purchased satellite overlays and USGS topographical overlays for the XOG's standard maps, and am very pleased with both. Maps for fishing/hunting/four wheeling are also available. These mapping choices really make the XOG stand out.

Also, the device itself is quite tough: It's splash proof and appears to be able to take a fall. On the downside, it's screen isn't super-bright, or as beautiful (pixels/colors) as similarly priced units. And the battery life is under three hours.

My neighborhood in Washington DC has narrow streets, tall buildings and foliage. Unfortunately, the XOG struggles with these... taking a long time to locate itself (initial triangulation on both "warm starts" and "cold starts") and frequently incorrectly guessing which block I'm on, and even what direction I'm moving.

However, outside of my dense urban neighborhood, the XOG reception improves considerably and it works spotlessly in the suburbs.

Other well executed features include voice directions, quick re-routing, auto-zooming, saving/uploading of tracks/journeys and what I'll call numbers/letters-to-speech (the XOG does read numbered/lettered street names and exit numbers, but does not do text-to-speech).

In general, I am very pleased with the devise.

Choice was between Magellan Crossover and XOG. Bought XOG Because of other reviews and Lowrance good marine reputation. MP3 player does work while navigating, but file handling and screen interface is totally unusable, and, as you would expect, the small speaker is poor. Headphones work OK. Contrary to other reviewers, I find the NOT WAAS CAPABLE gps chip slow, inaccurate, and constantly wandering compared to my six year old Magellan 315 handheld. The unit has a wide assortment of options, routes, and preferences which appear to work as advertised, but are very tiresome to access due to multiple pages of options and menus. My unit will not reliably access the after market charts and Sat images downloaded from the Lowrance site @$5 apiece. (A nightmare in itself of failed attempts) The unit appears to only read the SD card if it is inserted while the unit is powered on, and cursor in area of the map, then it seems not to read any other chart on the card. I'm still working on this. Auto navigation seems fine and about the same as any low end gps without true voice directions. So far I am very disappointed.

I bought the XOG primarily for use on my motorcycle and car. I've had it for a few days now and am very impressed with the unit. The unit came with version 1.5 software. Lowrance had 1.7 download on their site. So the first thing I did was to upgrade. The satellite lock is very fast. It takes me right to where I asked to be every time. It gives you plenty of warning on turns and is very accurate as to where the turn is. I got the RAM mount for my bike and it worked just as well there as it did in the car. I had loaded a SD card with some of my MP3 music. While riding the bike I used the head phone jack to my helmet speakers to listen to music and navigation messages. When the unit needed to give me a navigation message, it halts the music, tells me what it needs to tell me, and starts the music again where it halted. Very seamless. The directions are clear and easy to follow even if you are not looking at the screen.
The cons for this unit: The battery does suck. About two hours is all it will carry the unit. Not much of a problem for me as most of my use is with external power connector. The screen does wash out in bright sunlight. Its still viewable, but you'll have a hard time reading the fine print. Overlays are configurable as to print size, which helps a lot.
As to performance and price. I would recommend the Lowrance XOG.

I've been a boater for 50 years and this is the best device I have ever had. For a long time I used the Garmin Mariner for by boating navigation which is fine, but a minimal device with no marine charting capacity. I wanted to upgrade, but found marine chartplotters outragiously expensive. The new marine mapping Garmins are nice but also very expensive and so are the charts, one would have to spend ~$600 to get set up with Garmin. With this unit I paid $160 for the XOG and found Nautic Path West Coast Marine charts SD card for $87.

The XOG has unique software and when accuracy was compared side/side with a Garmin Legend, the XOG was as good or better than the Garmin. The Nautic Path Marine charts are very complete and clear. The XOG has a bright adjustable screen, and while it is not good in direct sunlight I bought a sunshade for $9 and it works perfectly. The unit has many, many features. for example after navigating to port, one can go to the information key and find any kind of facility in the nearby town -- restaurants, hotels, repair places -- anything.

I run if off a cigarette lighter type plug in my boat. I mount it on a sandbag type rest and can use it anywhere in the boat. Except for the screen not readable in direct sun without shading, I have not had any of the problems or objections listed in the low review posts here.

Very happy with this unit. The roads seem to be up to date. I also bought a Lakemaster Gps chip. That is very cool, it shows you exactly where you are on the lake and at the exact lake depths. The only thing that would be nice for a updated model would be able to choose the shortest route verses the route that takes you out of the way just to use more state and interstate roads. Other wise very happy with the Gps.
Tim

I bought the Lowrance XOG about a month ago. The main reason I chose this model is because of the SD memory card slot, which I wanted for topographical info. Eventually I'll buy the topo memory card, but until then, I'm happy with the XOG as is. In use, the unit brings me to my destination every time. The only gripe I have concerns the battery life, which lasts 3-4 hours. It's no problem to just leave it plugged in to an accessory outlet, so it's a minor gripe. Also, the suction cup mount is very well made and sturdy. It has 2 pivot points which adjusts nicely.

We purchased the XOG to use as a cross over unit, for my car and for our boat. My husband purchased a Lowrance GPS/Fish Finder combo unit and we do a lot of fishing in Western Washington. We wanted a secondary GPS just in case something happens to our main unit on our boat, so we can get back home. We have the Nautic path Marine SD Card and when placed in the XOG it gives us great detail of the ocean bottom, depths and any sunken hazards we need to be wary of.

The mapping system for my car is surprisingly easy to use. After a few minutes of going over the manual and playing with the touch screen, I had it up and running and it is GREAT!

I recently went to Tucson, AZ. I had never been there before, but with the XOG, I had no problem finding where I needed to go. It comes standard with lots of maps and detail and I am so pleased. I recommend this unit to any one. The only draw back is it does not have voice activation nor is it blue-tooth enabled.

But for what I use it and need it for, it gets 5 BIG STARS!

This is my 3rd lowrance. I love the way it works and the configurability. In every one of my units the battery has quit charging so there is no way to use it without having it plugges in. Its obvious they have a problem with the charging circuit. If it wasn't for the charging problem, I would have givin it 5 stars. But this is definitely a major problem. Even if you only use it in a car, if the source of power is switched, every time you turn the switch off, you will have to wait for it to acquire a signal again (which can take siginificant time some times). At least the first time it quit charging, it was under warrantee. But the repair cast was almost the same as buying a new unit, so I just bought a new one after the second unit quit. Now that one has quit charging. Its a shame. I played with several different models my friends have and none were as full featured as the lowrance. But without a battery, the unit is much less of value.