Harman Kardon GPS-310 4-Inch Widescreen Portable GPS Navigator

Price:$299.99
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A solid unit, but beware, you are buying a product with outdated map data from
2007. You will get lost or mislead. I contacted HK about map updates, but they
had no definitive answer. Rumor has it, HK doesn't intend to provide any updates
to their customers because they've stopped investing in GPS. So now I'm stuck
with an out-of-date GPS. When using it for long-distance trips, be careful
because if there is a freeway interchange built after the 310 came out, it's not
going to be in there and you will get confused and possibly lost. In my view
this is not a reliable product for such uses.
Well I received it and set it up. Put in my address to navigate to and it gave
me spoken directions half way there and stopped and never came on again. I
probably received the faulty one. But other than that the screen was a nice size
the features seemed great.
I like the look and the features of this unit but very disappointed with it
right now because i am on the third unit which i hestatingly use. First unit did
not get GPS signal after some time and it gave bad directions. The second unit
took time to get signal and started freezing up gave bad directions too and now
using the 3rd unit which has frozen up once already. I am not happy with the
customer service becuase they will not refund me the money (reason being i did
not buy it from HK). It does not give the best directions and just to give you
an idea of what i have been through in 7 months below is my 'Harman Kardon
Experience' 04/09/08 Bought unit from a seller on Amazon 05/27/08 Just over a
month later the unit not getting GPS signal, contacted HK, they say they will
replace 06/03/08 Received replacement (2nd unit) 09/15/08 2nd unit not working
properly, no signal freezing up, emailed HK 09/22/08 Response from HK rep, cant
refund will replace again 09/24/08 I shipped 2nd unit for replacement 10/08/08
2nd Unit accepted at warehouse 10/29/08 Replacement not shipped out, contacted
HK, email ignored. 11/07/08 No response to email, 3rd Unit finally received.
Now using the 3rd unit, waiting to see how long it lasts while the warranty runs
out and no more replacement units.
Take time for intial set up and hard to use. Not really as good as it brand name
I don't like the product mainly because of two reasons: - It takes a very long
time (1-5 min) till it finds the satellite connection. - It cannot really
pronounce street names. It's not helpful to hear street names, but it's more
trouble. Also, it does not function if it gets sunshine for a while or is left
in the car when the temperature is around 60s. I do not recommend this product.
GPS-310 Harman Kardon Portable Navigation+Audio device offers a highly intuitive
user interface making it an easy to use portable navigation device. It features
Text-to-Speech in English. It also offers full playback of digital music files.
All access and control is via a high resolution 4" WQVGA touchscreen. In
navigation mode it offers easy-to-understand instructions and visuals in 17
languages. Turn-by-turn graphics with all vital information is displayed in 2-D
or 3-D and Maps of the U.S. and Canada are built-in along with a 12 million
point of interest database. The full blown MP3 player offers browsing by Artist,
Album, Genere, Song or Playlist. It will display ID3 tags for artist, title, and
album along with album artwork. All digital media is accessed via SD Card slot
(SD card not included) and will accept SD and SDHC cards.
High-end audio equipment manufacturer Harman Kardon's continues to combine solid
navigation with truly superb media player function in its GPS products, creating
a bar for navigator/personal entertainment system convergence devices. They've
improved their models this year with a fuller feature set. This Year's Models
With their first line of GPS navigators released last year, H-K wisely stuck to
the basics with their navigation. Perhaps that was the reason navigation worked
so much better on Harman Kardon's devices than on some other navigators produced
by manufactuer's whose core business was not GPS. With basic nav nailed down
however, Harman Kardon added a full feature set into this year's models. All of
the new models -- the GPS-310, GPS-510, and GPS-810, -- come with text-to-speech
for spoken directions with real street names, a photo viewer and MP3 player. The
GPS-510 adds a video player and traffic data capability (from TMC Clear
Channel). The GPS-810 has the same features you'd get on the top-end model from
any manufacturer, and some you may not expect, including Bluetooth connectivity,
traffic data, an FM transmitter that will deliver both directions and music
through an open channel on your car's stereo system, and a nifty little
Bluetooth remote. 4-inch WQVGA 480px x 272px high-resolution widescreen
touch screen (actual size) Navigation The main purpose of any car GPS device
is to take you reliably from point A to B. Here the GPS-310 performs nicely
indeed, providing several options for finding your destination. To get going you
can select either a street address, a specific point of interest such as a gas
station or restaurant, a recent or saved destination, a postal code, or an
intersection (if you're not sure of the exact address). To speed up text entry,
the unit employs an intelligent auto-completion feature that displays only the
letters that spell an item in its database. This greatly reduces the letters
from which you have to choose to tell it where you want to go. Once it knows
where you are headed, the device offers you the choice of shortest distance or
most use of freeways or other high-speed arterials. You'll also find a trip
planner that lets you lay out and save multiple destinations, as well as
avoidance choices for routing your trip away from borders, toll roads, unpaved
roads, ferries, and more. If you take a wrong turn or need to use a detour, the
GPS-310 will automatically re-route you and get you back on your way. And how
did the GPS-310 perform out on the road? In a word, admirably. The
responsiveness of the device and excellent user interface make it a joy to use.
The GPS-310 also has an extremely fast and accurate GPS signal processor, so it
locks, calculates and recalculates routes, and responds to commands quickly. One
of the hardest things for a manufacturer without a long history in building GPS
navigators is getting the routing algorithms correct, so it was nice to see that
Harman Kardon seems to have gotten this right. In most cases, the device decided
on logical and efficient routes, too--something that can't be said of all GPS
devices out there. Intuitive interface is easy to operate. See route
planning details. Setup and Interface Setup is as easy as turning the device on,
since it comes loaded with maps of the U.S. and Canada. On first bootup, choose
from English, Spanish, or French language options for the spoken directions and
interface menus. Interacting with the GPS-310's touchscreen is delightfully
intuitive and reliable; there's really no need for a stylus or navigation
buttons, which simplifies things on the road. The division of the main interface
into four main quadrants is a helpful touch, and it's refreshing to see
manufacturers moving away from awkward icon-based menus. Instead of drilling
down through lists of icons, all of the GPS-310's options are presented on
simple, color-coded shapes. That said, we were a little puzzled by the use of
the "Source" menu key, which takes the user back to the main menu from any point
in the interface. It's a useful feature, but why not call this the "Home" button
instead? The screen itself is sharp and clear, offering great resolution and
clarity in all driving conditions. The map screen is a sight to behold, offering
delightfully crisp 3D images, as well as excellent responsiveness when zoomed
and panned. Likewise, the interface for music playback ispleasantly uncluttered,
responsive, and well thought-out. One problem in our unit, though, was the lack
of a sleep mode. The device's screen will stay on at full illumination when it's
left idle--even when running on battery power. There's also no sleep button on
the device. Accurate, detailed 3D navigation, and turn-by-turn
directions. Use the unit's touch screen to enter address locations. An
intuitive menu lets you switch quickly between music, video, and navigation
options. Multimedia The GPS-310 strives to be much more than just
another GPS device in a crowded market, and that's likely why Harman Kardon has
polished the multimedia features of the device so well. With support for MP3 and
WMA music files, the music player has a refreshingly intuitive user interface
and good sound quality. It's a cinch to browse music on your SD card by artist,
album, genre, playlist, and song. Another nice touch is that you can keep the
music playing while the unit is in navigation mode. Design The
GPS-310 is solidly built--something we expect from Harman Kardon--and it
instills a sense of confidence that it can survive the bumps of bruises that
come with the mobile lifestyle. Measuring approximately 4.5 inches wide by 3.5
inches high, and a little over half an inch thick, the device is only a little
chunkier than your average PDA or Smartphone. The clean lines of the GPS-310 are
enhanced by a complete lack of buttons; all interaction with the device happens
between the touchscreen and your finger. In the interest of simplicity, there is
not even a stylus that can fall to the floor and roll under the seat of your
car. The only button you'll find on the device is the recessed power button on
the top, right next to the SD card slot. The slot accepts cards with up to 4 GB
of capacity. There's also a small jog wheel on the right side for volume and
display brightness control. Below this dial you'll also find a mini-USB port
that serves double duty for both charging and PC-to-device data transfers, as
well as a standard 3.5-millimeter headphone jack. Meanwhile, you'll find a
pinhole reset button on the bottom, as well as a hold switch on the left side
for deactivating the touchscreen. Lastly, the back of the unit sports a small
audio speaker and a port for an optional GPS signal booster antenna. Pros
Excellent user interface Fast, accurate GPS performance; good mapping
capabilities Polished, user-friendly music playback Cons Minor lag during
some operations No sleep or low power standby function What's in the Box
GPS-310NA portable navigator, 5-hour lithium-polymer battery, USB 2.0 cable,
carrying case, fold-flat windshield/dashboard mounting bracket, car charger,
quick-start guide





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