Customer Reviews

Magellan RoadMate 5175T-LM GPS navigator

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

 

 

Electronics such as a GPS always have some good features. . . and then there are some which you wish it had. But unlike other electronics, with a GPS, the main thing is whether or not it can get you from point A to point B without a problem. I'm happy to report that the Magellan RoadMate 5175T-LM does that well. Some might say "duh. . . it's a GPS. . .of course it can". But that's not necessarily so. I've had four different GPS systems, and one, the Garmin Nuvi could not find its way out of a wet paper bag. From constantly telling me to drive the wrong-way down a one-way street. . . to taking forever to "recalculate" the route if you pass a turn. (You literally have to pull-over and stop and wait for it to recalculate. So far, the Magellan RoadMate 5175T-LM has not sent me the wrong-way down a one-way street. . . and it's very quick to "recalculate". Having said that, here is my take on some of the features of this unit:

Pros:
* Lifetime map updates. What a GREAT feature.
* Street names are spoken
* A bell rings when you're about to turn left or right (but you can change it in the options)
* You can both plug-in the unit via USB to update, or use WiFi to update
* You can operate in "portrait" or "landscape" mode. Though . . . quite honestly. . I don't know why you would want to operate it in "portrait" mode, but you can if you like.
* It's a very flat (skinny) device.
* Large 5" screen. Though the screen is 5" diagonally, the unit measures 5.5" X 3.5". There is a stainless steel "frame" around the screen, which looks good, and feels good also.
* Bright, crisp screen. . . though, like with many such devices, it's not all that easy to see in bright sunlight.
* When entering an address, you can start with the zip-code.
* Mini SD card slot. This is especially nice when using larger maps and when your unit becomes "full" due to lots of addresses and extras that you've added. My TomTom has a VERY small hard drive, and updates and such are "challenging" because there's no way to add additional storage, so I can really appreciate this feature on the Magellan.
* Attaches to any weighted dashboard mount. (Amazon has some nice, inexpensive ones)
* The booklet shows that it has a 2-hour battery life.
* QWERTY or ABC Keyboard

Cons:
* It doesn't come with a complete user's manual, but you can download it from the Magellan website.
* Your position on the map is shown as a little triangle, and there are no options to change that.
* You can't change the voice. On the one hand, that's not a big deal, because I've found that with other GPS systems, even if you can change the voice (and purchase additional voices) most of them cannot speak the street names.
* Web browser is really useless. I'm not sure what they were thinking on this. If you have another web-enabled device, such as a smartphone, iPod Touch, iPad/Tablet, etc. . .you'll a lot better-off using that. WiFi is nice to be able to update the unit, but it's really impossible to browse the web. It's very slow, you can't read it, most things you cannot tap, etc. It's just awful.
* Not as much information on the screen while driving as I would like. My TomTom has at least double the amount of info.
* I'm accustomed to tapping the screen to get to the menu on other GPS devices. Not so on this one. You tap the "Menu" button on the right.
* When you get into the menu, I haven't been able to find an easy way to get back to the "main" part of the menu or the map itself. You either have to keep going back. . back. . back. . back. . . or. . . just wait and eventually the map will pop back up.
* I haven't had a lot of experience with the traffic part, but I don't think it's as good as what I have on my TomTom. . .but. . you have to pay for traffic on TomTom (it's a bundled monthly subscription which also includes Google search, and fuel prices) and it's not offered on all TomTom devices. . .just the ones which offer "Live".
* There's no way (that I have found) to enter "map corrections", which is a great feature of TomTom.
* When you plug the unit into your computer, there's no "home page" like there is with other GPS devices such as TomTom and Garmin. I miss the "home page" because there are lots of things you can do from there to add things to your device and such.
* You can't "lock" the device.
* It doesn't warn you when you're going through a traffic camera intersection, as TomTom does.

FYI in the information with the unit it shows that there are two ways to charge the unit. Either by the "optional" AC adapter. . . or . . . when you plug it into your car. But, like with other devices, it will also charge when you plug it into your computer via UBS.

This is a good, nice, somewhat "generic" large GPS that will fit most traveler's needs. For the most part, it's easy to use. With "lifetime maps", it should keep you happy for years to come. If they would do a software update to make the WiFi browser work better, then I could give it 5-stars.

GPS navigation devices have come a long way. What used to be exclusive gadgets that only a few could afford has become nearly as ubiquitous as the car stereo. In recent years this trend has only accelerated with the introduction of GPS navigation capabilities to the smartphones. Some of these smartphone GPS solutions are really impressive and give the standalone GPS devices run for their money. However, there is something to be said for having a dedicated device that will do one thing and do it well. That's why I have continued to use the standalone GPS devices, and will likely do so for foreseeable future.

Two of the most attractive features of this RoadMate are its size and design. It is very thin and light and yet it sports a fairly large screen. The front of this device looks very stylish and contemporary, and it's one of the best-looking GPS devices that I've seen.

The windshield mount is very functional and it attaches securely to the windshield thanks to the very solidly built suction cup. One annoyance with the mount, however, is that you need to attach the charging cable to it before you can attach the GPS navigator to it. I've had many situations over the years where I would start with a GPS navigator mounted on the windshield running on its battery power alone, and then I'd be able to switch it to charger later on. The Magellan's mount design precludes this. On the other hand, it helps make the GPS unit attach more securely to its cradle.

The Magellan GPS navigators seem to be built upon Windows CE operating system. This is probably the reason why they don't work with Macs and non-Windows desktops. I probably would have never known about this were it not for a Windows-like error message that popped up one day while I was driving. Now if you've had your share of Windows errors and annoyances, you would be very disturbed by this. Fortunately the error message was easily dealt with, but it makes me weary of trusting Magellan with "mission critical" travel navigation.

The screen brightness of this GPS navigation unit leaves a lot to be desired. The screen looks distinctly washed-out, and in bright sunlight you will have to deal with a lot of problems with glare. Under such conditions unless you are directly looking at the screen you will not be able to see almost anything. It is definitely inferior to my Garmin. The screen uses the resistive touch technology, instead of the more expensive capacitive technology that is found in most today's tablets and smartphones. This means that the touch sensitivity is very low, and you have to press fairly firmly before the screen detects the contact. The touch response time is also not very good, nor is the precision. All of these things become very annoying when you are starting your trip and want to get going as fast as possible. If you've never used a GPS navigation unit and are familiar with smartphones, you may be very frustrated when you first start using it.

The voice of the announcer is very mechanical and not very loud. The instructions are oftentimes on a bizarre side, like when hundred is pronounced "one zero zero". You really get a feeling that you are interacting with a machine.

When it comes to the actual GPS navigation, this is definitely an inferior product to Garmin's line of navigators. The good news is that it always found the destination that I was looking for, and I was taken there reasonably quickly. However, there have been too many instances of having to take suboptimal routs. This is particularly the case away from the major roads and highways. Furthermore, the amount of useful information on the screen is rather sparse, and the twists and turns of the road are not as detailed as I would have liked. When you go through an intersection the navigator momentarily loses its sense of direction, but fortunately it also recovers it as soon as you are back on the straight road. If you miss your turn there is a bit of a lag before the RoadMate realizes that. The traffic data is for the most part accurate and useful, especially if you are driving through major urban areas. In smaller towns and rural areas it's usually not accessible, but for the most part these places also don't have serious problems with traffic. The navigation software also has the ability to present pseudo 3D views of off-ramps and onramps in major cities, but this is more of a gimmick and is essentially a slightly souped-up regular navigation.

One really nice feature of this RoadMate is the lifetime map updates. These used to be fairly expensive and required almost yearly updates. I have not used this feature yet as I just got this unit, but I'll post updates here in the future.

One feature of this RoadMate that I didn't care too much about is its WiFi connectivity. Getting connected to a WiFi network was a bit clunky, and the web browser if fairly rudimentary. I guess it is nice to be able to update your device wirelessly, but this connectivity is almost useless if you are away from your home network or a very accessible public WiFi spot.

Overall I would rate this GPS navigator as 3.5 stars. The washed-out screen, the somewhat finicky navigation, and the mechanical voice leave a lot of room for improvement. I would definitely recommend that you take a look at some of the Garmin navigators. You can get much better functionality for a much lower price.

For the last thirteen or so years, I've relied on GPS to navigate where I am going. I've used everything from DeLorme Maps with their Earthmate GPS connected to a laptop, to Magellans, Tom Toms, Nextars, HP iPaq with GPS built-in and my favorite, my Navigon 7200T 4.3-Inch Portable GPS Navigation with Bluetooth, Text-to-Speech, and Free Traffic Alerts.

When I bought my Navigon, all of the other GPS manufacturers were still charging for every map update. One of the things that attracted me to Navigon was the option to purchase a three-year map update subscription at a very reasonable price. With that subscription about to expire in January, it was time to start looking at other options. I don't like driving without the newest maps available for my device - at least not to unfamiliar destinations. It is one thing to do it in town where you know the roads better but when you are driving out of town and are very reliant on the GPS, it can get tricky. I've encountered situations where a street had been renamed within the last year and other changes that make map updates very important to me.

Luckily, most GPS manufacturers now offer devices that come with both lifetime map updates and traffic updates. I never had traffic updates until the Navigon model, but I have come to rely on them as much as I do the navigation options. Because of the traffic updates, I now use my GPS almost every time I drive anywhere so that I can be on top of when my route might have issues and easily detour.

A few weeks ago, I picked up the Magellan RoadMate 5175T-LM GPS navigator. I was drawn to its 5-inch size, the lifetime map and traffic updates and also its ability to connect directly to a wireless network.

I found the Magellan 5175T-LM to have a pretty intuitive interface, for the most part. As an experience GPS user, I was able to figure out how to perform most tasks without referring to the manual. Once I got a feel for it, I then went bac and read the entire manual to fill in the gaps on things I may not have noticed. The manual was very well put together and easy to understand - mostly.

The wireless connection was the one glaring omission all around. Not only is it not an intuitive configuration, but it is not well documented in the manual. It is almost as if they added the Wi-Fi functionality as an afterthought and didn't give it much attention. On top of that, it is truly the trickiest wireless configuration I have ever seen in all my years doing this both personally and in my IT career. For the first few days after I got this GPS, I thought the wireless function was broken and almost sent it back. One of the first issues I noticed that the MAC address for the unit is not displayed anywhere on the device, neither on a sticker externally nor in the software. This is the only network device I have ever seen that does not make the MAC address easy to find. Logging a ticket with Magellan's support proved unsuccessful - they said it wasn't possible to get it. At home, I use MAC address filtering to prohibit any device from connecting to my network unless I allow it, so this is a big deal to me. I finally turned off MAC Address filtering on my router and tried again. Once I finally connected the GPS to my router, I was then able to get the MAC address from the router's list of DHCP clients and enter it in my MAC Address filter. However, even though I was able to connect to the wireless network without MAC address filtering on, I was not able to do so when I re-enabled it, even though I had allowed the MAC address for the GPS.

It is also important to point out that even without MAC addressed filtering turned on, the wireless configuration is not simple, unless perhaps you are using the old WEP encryption instead of the modern WPA2. The device assumes you use WEP and is not smart enough to figure out what encryption type your network uses automatically, as other modern wireless devices do. If you use anything besides WEP, you must manually drill down into some extra settings to configure this, and the menu and command names are not intuitive, nor are they detailed in the manual. It took me several tries to get it connected both to my home and work networks, and I'm not sure why it finally worked as I had tried the correct settings several times before it finally took.

Once you have the wireless configured, you might wonder what in the world to do with it on a GPS. Primarily, it is for software, firmware, and map updates. Pressing the command for this option quickly checks the Magellan server for an update. So far, it has reported no updates available for me, so I haven't yet been able to apply an update this way. I will update this review once I have experienced an update.

You can also browse the internet on the GPS, but the manual cautions that many technologies are not supported and will not work (no Flash, most browser plug-ins won't work, and no downloads). It recommends using it to access Yelp, CitySearch, and Zagat to download points of interest to use in navigation. I've visited those sites on the GPS, but found it so tedious to use I never got to the point where I could download any POI information from these sites.

On to the most important part - navigation. I have another Magellan GPS and found that the position was always behind by about 500 feet or more. This can make navigation in unknown areas tricky and I didn't use that model very long. The 5175T-LM model, however, is right on target regarding my position, agreeing with both the GPS on my HTC Evo 3D and my Navigon GPS, as well as my own eyes. With accurate positioning, it gives timely warnings about upcoming turns.

I've been running both my old Navigon GPS and the Magellan 5175T-LM side-by side for a few weeks now and I do have to say that the Magellan doesn't always recommend the best or shortest route, but it does always give a route that works. My Navigon often suggests a route that is anywhere from 2-5 miles less in distance than the Magellan. One thing I have found, however, is that if I drive a slightly different route than the Magellan expects, it does an admirable job of recalculating the route quickly.

The Magellan RoadMate 5175T-LM comes with traffic updates. It is important to note that you must have the car charger plugged into the GPS in order for the traffic updates to work as this cable is the antenna. This was also true of my old Navigon unit and I expect it is probably true of many GPS devices with this feature. The traffic updates are well done, with a symbol to the left of the map screen warning when there is an issue and offering detours for your drive. The device also detects when you are driving only 20% of the speed limit on a freeway, assumes you might be in a traffic jam and offers detours. This is a feature I had not seen before and I like it.

There are a variety of ways to enter a destination address. You can addresses you use frequently in an address book or on the One-Touch menu. For addresses you use rarely, you can enter the address manually or use the POI feature. There is also a Tour Director feature that will help you find interesting places to go around town. Another couple of features that are new to me is the ability to route to an intersection instead of an address and also the ability to route to a city center. All address input methods are pretty easy to use manually and are adept at predicting what you are trying to type based on the current location and the keystrokes you have entered.

One glaring omission, at least for me, is the inability to synchronize or import an address book from your computer to the GPS. My Navigon and my old iPaq both let me synchronize with my Outlook Address book, and it is a feature I find invaluable. My HTC Evo 3D also uses the native Android address book, which is synchronized with my Outlook. The Magellan GPS only allows manual entry. With the wireless connectivity, you would think it would be a no-brainer to allow synchronization with a computer or an online address book. If Magellan gave their GPS customers an online account with an address book that allowed imports of CSV files and then downloaded automatically to your GPS, this would be a tremendous improvement. I can't for the life of me understand why Magellan has not implemented such a feature, but it is a source of aggravation to me.

One other disappointment is with the device's ability to report the current speed limit. Several times I have found it has mis-reported the speed limit by a significant amount. In each case, I know the information is available to GPS devices because my Navigon GPS matches what the speed limit signs on these roads say while the Magellan does not. In each instance, I've been on roads without school zones, construction or any other scenario that might cause the speed limit to be temporarily less than the posted signs state. On a section of one highway the Nashville area, the speed limit is 55 MPH, and the Magellan GPS reports it is only 40 MPH.

The package includes the GPS, a USB cable that charges the unit from a PC USB port, a car mount, and a car charger. If you want a charger for the house, they are available for separate purchase, but while I've seen them on the Magellan site, there is currently not an option to buy them.

All in all, the Magellan RoadMate GPS is a good GPS, but not a great GPS. The wireless feature is very poorly done and I miss the ability to import an address book. Navigation and POI information is very good, as is traffic alerts and positioning. With the bonus of lifetime map and traffic updates, this unit is worth its price, if you aren't expecting much from the wireless connection.

The Magellan RoadMate 5175-T-LM works fine as a GPS and will get you where you are going. It has a large 5" display easily readable. But there are problems galore:

1) Magellan does not support the Macintosh format, so if you are planning to update software or maps you are out of luck unless you have a Windows® machine.

2) In bright sunlight the 5175T-LM is very hard to read, nearly impossible with sunglasses. And I had the brightness turned all the way up!

3) Wi-Fi and useless browser included. If you have a smartphone, iPod or similar device, these features are a duplication of what you have on your other device. Why would you need a browser on your GPS unless you have Wi-Fi access or no smartphone available?

4) No Bluetooth included. At this price point, you would expect Bluetooth to be standard, but not so on this GPS.

The 5175T-LM's functions can be found on less expensive GPS devices. Compared to my current Garmin 3750, this Magellan needs a lot of work to be a flagship model in their lineup.

Ok, let's get this straight. I do not believe this GPS (or any really) is worth spending $300 on (as of Dec. 2011). I picked this GPS up for my wife for x-mas for $189 with free shipping, she travels for her job to new locations, so points of interest were key. The feature I was looking for was the traffic alert.

The two biggest surprises on this unit were... 1. The design: it is a well-built surprisingly very thin and light unit (feels like a smartphone/tablet in your hands). The touch screen is matte (instead of annoying glossy) and some how they finger prints do not show, love that part! The unit is a polished design with a great HD display! 2. The traffic capabilities, I've never had a GPS where it could re-route because of traffic, very nice how this operates.

Other than that, if you can pick this up for around $200, you won't be disappointed. A great little unit. BTW, the wifi feature, is great for wifi updates, but utterly worthless for browsing, just use a smart phone.

For over a decade I've been using old fashion JIMAPCO road maps to find places. Two years ago I decided to get a GPS. I went with Magellan mainly because the road map resembles a paper street atlas at first sight. I've used the Maestro 4700 and RoadMate 5045T-LM. Traded both to get the 5175T-LM. This one is significantly faster on all fronts (faster CPU than the previous 2), as well as having a few extra functions to play with. Better screen resolution (VGA). Allow portrait view also (if you want to see more roads further ahead) just by tilting the device vertically.

I always like the bell sound before each turn (you have the option of selecting different sounds or turning it off). Rerouting is quick. I haven't tried the WiFi capability yet. Tour Director is great. I found out with the help of a Magellan rep that you can add personal addresses to a tour by creating the tour with predefined places first, 'optimize' it, then click 'GO' to begin your journey. Then go to the Main Menu and click on 'Edit Trip'. Now you can add any personal addresses or personal entries saved in the Address Book and 'optimize' the tour again.

I have no problems with the accuracy of the maps, so far. It always got me to where I wanted to go, so far. Be aware with the option(s) you select to get you to your destination ('avoid toll roads', 'shortest path', 'fastest time', etc.) as those particular algorithms will be used throughout your journey unless you go in and choose a different option.

Remember to also buy a separate charger (not included with the GPS) so you can plan your trip at home. Bon voyage and good luck with finding the right GPS for you.

I love this GPS with lifetime map and traffic updates this is GREAT. the only thing is the wifi capabilities the internet is so small the u can't hardly see it. Still worth the money but save some money and just get it without the Wi-Fi.The 5" screen is real handy good view but not to big.

Excellent gps. Way better than the really old garmin I have or the new garmin that came out. I've tested all of the GPS units in this category. I wouldn't recommend the garmin 800 series if you have fingernails. It mostly responds to finger pads, same thing with the tomtom. The magellan responds well to any touch. The garmin and tomtom also seemed to have a delay when you would tap a button. This one didn't. I also really like the multi-destination and the optimize button. This will save me a lot of time and money when I'm plowing as I can type in all of my address at once and it will find the shortest route between all of them. This gps is also very intuitive, as compared to its counterparts. The layout is very nice and easy to understand and very easy to get the unit to do what you want. The wireless WiFi is so nice. Keeps it updated whenever I park at home and if I need to find an address from my email, I just have to find a McDonalds or WiFi hotspot to find it on the browser. I don't have any qualms with this product. It connects to satellites quickly and recalculates very very fast compared to anything else I've used. I would recommend it to anyone. I was expecting to have to pay way more to get these features out of a gps.

Update: So worked really well for all of 3-4 months light use. After you go a few places it seems to get bogged down. What I mean by that is, the screens take awhile to load, you hit a button and it can take 10+ seconds to respond sometimes. I tried resetting it back to factory settings and removed the live traffic updates, since they're essentially useless, and still the thing is slow. Its also getting slower to connect to satalites where when it was new it was almost instantaneous. Initially, I was very impressed, but with use, it seems to be quite inferior to my garmin and tomtom. If I was buying another one I think I would go with a Garmin then tomtom. I really wanted to like this one since it is very intuitive and easy to use, but it's just not holding up.

Please note: You will need a PC with Windows. It is NOT Mac compatable for browser updates.

I have owned several GPS units. I always think the grass will be greener if I get a new one. I was thrilled to give this one a try. There are definitely pros and cons here. The 5 inch size is great for navigation, the text to speech works great too! The lifetime updates for maps is great as well. I found the browser to be painfully slow and it was much faster to pull out my phone and find what I needed. If you do NOT have a smartphone, then this might be okay with you. It does give some great information, but I wanted it faster! Overall, this GPS will be a lot of fun for someone who needs a browser on the go! It's great to find AAA rated restaurants and hotels.

I have now tried 2 different units to get them to connect to windows. Neither one will. Magellan customer support could not get it to work either. Since they have no replacement for it, I will be sending it back very disappointed in Magellan. It appears they left out of the microcode the device identifier so windows would know what type of device it is and what driver to load. Without windows recognizing it, Content Manager won't recognize it either. So much for lifetime maps and software updates. They both require Content Manager to work.

If you are wondering if it is my system, I have a roadmate 1700 as well. It works just fine.