Customer Reviews

Mio C310 3.5-Inch Portable GPS Navigation

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have updated my review for this unit since I have been able to use it extensively on several long trips. As stated in my previous review, I researched all GPs units for over a year. Two GPS's I have experience using, I spent countless hours researching on the Internet, and I played for hours in the store demonstrations.

Some generalities one needs to realize concerning "ALL" GPS units. You will not find any GPS unit that is 100% accurate 100% of the time. You will find that "ALL" GPS units at one time or another will not always take the shortest route or fastest route no matter what you try. This is due to many reasons which include the number of satellites tracking you, weather, map accuracy, etc..,. Another thing one needs to know is that in my research, I found so many people that are die hard NavTeq mapping fans. Personally, I have ran 2 different GPS units that used "current" NavTeq mapping and I was not impressed one bit. Locally I would find myself being shown off road with no roads existing while the roads I were on were major secondary roads and had been there for 10+ years and then while driving several long trips on major highways, I would be shown as being off the interstate driving ¼ to ½ mile off in the pasture somewhere. I have found just the opposite with the TeleNav mapping. I have run the TeleNav mapping in the same spots that I had trouble with the NavTeq mapping and I have not had one problem with its mapping navigation. Even running address look ups and points of interest in the demos at the stores, the NavTeq mapping did just not show updated information. Just the opposite with the demo of the TeleNav. "Personally", I like and support the TeleNav mapping over the NavTeq mapping, but please remember this is based on using the TeleNav mapping only with the Mio C310X with the note that this GPS unit comes with the most up to date mapping available (Aug 2006) to this date.

You will find that the majority of GPS units in the GPS market are Garmin and Magellan units. "Personally", I do not like the interface of the Garmin GPS units. In general, the public has Magellan units rated less "overall" compared to Garmin units plus Magellan is known not to have good customer service. "Personally" I do not know but that is the general consensus you will find when one researches. There are many brands out there now which are trying to compete with Garmin and Magellan GPS units. Some are rated pretty good and some are rated quite average or below. BUT there is now a unit that competes head to head with the best of Garmin and Magellan GPS units and depending on your taste, leaves them in the dust. Such a unit is the Mio C310X.

I was very impressed when I bought the Mio C310X and now after driving several long trips, it has not only lived up to its new reputation on the market but has even exceeded my initial review. Here are my thoughts and please realize when you read anyone's pros and cons that some pros and cons can be things that are not "NEEDED" but just nice to have.

Pros:

Uses 20 channel SIRF GPs satellite tracking
Uses TeleAtlas mapping. Has been accurate 99% of the time I have used it
Auto screen dimmer switch from daytime to nighttime use
Speaker is loud and clear
Can play MP3 while navigating
Small and lightweight unit
2D or 3D viewing with automatic angle viewing
Displays mountains of information for you to see on the screen to include your speed, distance to destination, and time remaining on trip. Also displays cameras at stoplights.
Power is provided by DC car plug, computer USB , or built in battery (approx 2 hours)
Superb windshield mounting bracket
Some units will have 1GB extra memory (check box)
Impressed with customer service (used twice to ask a general question)

Cons:

Comes only in white color
For some people......No built in wireless Mp3 transmitter (easily fixed by using headphones, cassette adapter, or wireless fm transmitter unit and do remember that the built in speaker is a pretty good speaker)
For some people.....does not announce the name of the road you are turning onto ( I don't find this a problem as it displays the name on the unit's screen)

You should be quite happy with this GPS unit. Its fast, accurate, and has lots of bells and whistles that only come with much higher GPS units. Good hunting deciding on which GPS unit that will fit your needs and budget.

This GPS is amazingly cool. It has just about everything you need off a GPS. Yes, there are some hacks that you can search and change this GPS into a more advanced electronic device, but this is not the place to discuss this.

This GPS does not have:
* Picture viewer
* Movie viewer

Some of the really cool features this GPS has (that others do not have in this price range) are:
* Option to allow / avoid - toll roads, ferries, permit needed roads, unpaved roads, cross-border planning, highways
* Option to get the fastest / shortest / most economical route
* Option to set your movement type (pedestrian, bicycle, car, taxi, bus, truck, emergency vehicle)
* Multi-lingual (16 languages - Cesky, Dansk, Deutsch, Dutch, UK English, US English, Espanol, Flemish, Fracais, Italiano, Norsk, Polski, Portugues, Suomi, Svenska and Turkce)
* Speed camera warning (you can add more to update)
* Speed limit warning (audio and visual) with tolerance setting option
* Option to set auto-recalculation when going off-route
* Option to display maps in 3D or 2D
* Option to synchronize GPS with satellite time (with option to auto-correct)

I purchased the Mio c310x on black friday not intending to keep it but to resell it because I got it at such a good deal.(I purchased a Navman f20 the same morning)

I was testing its features that morning and it got my attention. I also was testing the Navman but it was confusing to use and maps seemed out of date.

So I decided to keep the Mio and return the Navman f20.

Now that I've had it for a couple of days and many hours of using, playing and testing it, here's my thought:

Good
*Many features found on higher priced gps'.
*Do not have to load map for different states.
*Has speed camera warning feature.
*Can be set to driving, walking, bicycling so not just for vehicle.
&Geat sound.
*Bright Lcd and changes to day or night mode.
*Plays Mp3's by alone or in backgound while navigating.
*Can be CUSTOMIZED to play VIDEO and MUCH MORE!

Bad
*A little difficult to use without reading manual.
*Interface can be better. Sometimes confusing
*Zooming in and out kind of weird.
*Had to reclibrate touchscreen sensitivity many times

Overall I really like this unit as I returned the Bigger name Navman for this one wich actually I've never heard of before.
Many things to say but can't think of anymore at this time but this unit should get a look at when you are searching for gps'.(If the price is not too high)

ok, so i got my unit on black friday. but even if i had paid twice as much as i did, i would still give it 5 stars.

i have a 2005 infiniti g35 coupe, with a factory-installed GPS system, which was around a $1000 option. i have stopped using it in favor of this little gem of a unit. i have also played around with a tom tom go 700, and a garmin c320, which are also great systems, but cost much more and aren't nearly as portable as the Mio.

PROS:
-- the screen is beautiful with extremely sharp resolution.
-- although the interface is a little complicated at first, once i played with the unit for an hour, it now seems quite intuitive. there are a lot of customizable options. one thing that is difficult to figure out was how to save my address book. you actually have to do it under 'My POI'.
-- it locks on quickly and gets a strong signal even inside my apartment.
-- the small size, and the fact my system came with a AC adapter. also the rechargeable lithium battery lasts a pretty long time between charges. this is one of the few GPS systems that i would not be embarassed to carry around while touring a new city on foot, because it is so thin that it looks like a PDA. It seems like that Mio designed this unit with this in mind because there is a "on foot" setting which takes into account the slower speed, and avoids freeways, etc. This is unlike most of the other units i have seen (Garmins, Magellan, Tom Tom), which are way too bulky to carry around. i have been carrying my Mio around on my waist in a PDA case. i plan to use it when i visit a new city to get around--it will also be extremely helpful to find stores, restaurants, hotels, gas stations (see next comment)
-- the Points of Interest function is awesome. i can search for nearby businesses by 'category' (for example, nearby japanese restaurants, or nearby gas stations, or nearby shopping malls), OR i can search for nearby businesses by 'name', for example, the nearest Best Buys, or Targets, or Disneyland. this is awesome, and is my favorite feature because in my Infiniti, i can only search nearby businesses by 'category'. (in my infiniti, if i want to find the nearest Best Buy, i have to choose 'shopping', and then scroll through tons of stores before i find it.)
-- the rerouting is almost immediate once it senses you have passed the suggested turn.
-- as the last reviewer mentioned, the zooming function also works wonderfully smoothly and quickly.
-- i have been using it in Los Angeles, and i have had no problems at all with the TeleAtlas maps. it has consistently chosen the best routes all over Los Angeles.


CONS:
I have to think long and hard to think of some cons...but there are a few
--when i turn on the unit, it sometimes freezes and becomes unresponsive while it is searching for the satellite signal for 15-20 seconds. at first i thought the system crashed. but just be aware of this.
--although there are 15 or so voice languages, there are two voices for English and they are both male! (one is an american accent, one has a english accent) it would be cool to have a british lady accent.
--the mount is a bit on the larger size, but it does work extremely well, so i guess i shouldn't complain.
--no bluetooth, but i don't think any GPS systems less than $300 have bluetooth.

all in all, an awesome little piece of equipment. i couldn't be happier with this baby.

I agree with most of the reviewer who reviewed before me. They've listed the features and shortcomings of C310X accurately. Like others I got it for 150 @ Staples on Black Friday. So far I'm extremely happy with my purchase.

I absolutely love the background MP3 playback. SD card can be used to save the maps in addition to MP3 songs. I like that they've provided both home/car charger with the unit and that the unit can be charged by usb connected to the computer/laptop. The home charger is 110-240V. Battery life seems to be good as well, I've been using the MP3 player for last 4 hours and GPS was used probably for 1.5 hours and it's at 50% right now.

Don't forget to register your Mio, I hear they will provide free map updates in 2007 to the registered (may be unregistered as well) users.

I got this as a Christmas present on black Friday from Staples for $150, and it is the best $150 I've ever spent.

I always get lost when driving to new places, but not anymore. No more getting into fights over whose fault it is that we're lost -- we never get lost anymore.

The built-in maps are astonishingly accurate. You can tell it to avoid the highway and take sidestreets if you don't want to sit on a traffic-jammed highway. You can plug in earphones and ride your bike with it, having it guide you to your destination (via a pleasant non-robotic voice).

We took this on a long road trip from SoCal to Texas, and it guided us through the most obscure, abandoned, non-civilized parts of the country without a problem. I would have been quite nervous without it. And it told us how many more hours we can expect to drive until we reached our destination (it averages your speed, the speed limit, and distance to figure this out, I think).

The only thing I wish this came with was a carrying case. I don't like to leave this criminal-magnet in my car, so I take it with me wherever I go. To protect its touch-screen, I found that the Nintendo DS carrying case (sold at Best Buy, and probably here too) fits it perfectly.

Excellent GPS for its price. It delivers what it promises, has several features that you might not use also. With price around 200$ I dont see a reason why I should pay more $600 for anyother GPS.

I am greatly satisfied with the buy and highly recommend this for anyone who wants a handy tool to get them going

I purchased this instead of the magellen or garmin due to the price. It is an excellent unit in terms of quick response and recalculation of routes if you decide not to take a turn it suggests. This system beat Tom-Tom in terms of mapping in some of the outskirts of Connecticut where Tom Tom got lost. This one was able to discriminate betweetn towns like Sherman CT and Sherman turnpike
I did find downloads available on their site and was pleased with the software.
May want to purchase vacuum mount instead of one included in the box so it is easier to remove
Battery life without using power cord is about 2 1/2 hours, volume of unit is strong and clear

Overall very satisfied with the unit

This is not just a "value" product its a very solid gps with great
features. I wanted to hate it, the price was very low compared to the
other gps units with the same features so I was expecting a bad mapping,
slow response unusable features. How wrong I was, I was totally blown away
by how good this unit was. I would recommend this product to anyone!
I tried to fool it and confuse it by driving as fast as I could in the wrong
directions and at high speeds. It would quickly generate re-route paths without
freezing or creating defective routes.
Bright display, even in sunlight, new surf GPS receiver lots more sensitive
than the old receiver, easy to program. Has resent maps of freeways and
highways in my area that have changed in the last 4 months.
If you look around you can buy them for under $200.00 NEW!!!

The only thing I wish it came with was a carry case so when I'm walking around
with it, it could be Simi protected. oh ya, it's battery powered so you can carry
it down the street with you. Its good if your biking or riding the bus too!
This is not a gps for trail hiking its just for road and highway use.

Got this from Staples, unfortunately, it's *always* true that you get want you pay for.

1) The unit is really slow, compared to Sony, Garmin, TomTom. Sometimes it lags behind your driving which can be frustrating *AND* dangerous. (Imagine, driving past an exit only to be told seconds later that you missed it and you started panicking.)

2) It uses the TeleAtlas database which is inferior to the Navteq one. A lot of people have said that streets that are 5 years old can't be found in TeleAtlas but can be found on all the online mapping sites (Live, MSN, MapBlast, etc.) Many review sites also claim that TeleAtlas routes less efficiently than Navteq, and it's certainly been my experience as well.

3) Ugly design. This almost looks like an Archos portable AV player I had a few years ago. Probably made by the same OEM. The design is really ugly, period. The button locations are annoying.

4) The updated C310x, which is usually what's being sold in stores now, is actually *worse* than the original C310 in some aspects. For example, the C310 supports Outlook contacts import but not the new C310x. The C310 had 2GB of ROM storing the maps but the C310x only 1GB. This is probably why you see the new C310 advertised for $200 or less - it's got less "meat" than the old C310!

The real deal killer for me are the slow processor and the TeleAtlas database. It's nice this has the new SiRF satellite receiver, but the use of an inferior database -- potentially sending you off-route -- is very disappointing.

Of course, this now goes for $150-$200, so if you are willing to use it in conjunction with pre-trip planning with a major online mapping site (MapPoint, Local Live, etc.) you might like this for its affordability.