13. Navigating to a Set of Coordinates

Figure 104: Routing to A Set of Coordinates

Garmin has included the ability to input a set of longitude/latitude coordinates as a destination address. Some locations may not have an official street address and need to be input as a set of coordinates, or this feature can be handy for Geocaching as well.

To route to a set of coordinates, tap Where to? on the Main Menu, and then scroll down to see the Coordinates icon.

Figure 105: Entering the Coordinates

Use the on-s screen keypad to input the longitude and latitude coordinates.

14. Using the nüvi 885T in Pedestrian Mode

Figure 106: Accessing the Tools Menu

It's a little buried in the menu system, but the nüvi 885T can be put into pedestrian mode if you want to use the GPS on foot to walk to a destination. To switch the nüvi into pedestrian mode, tap Tools > Settings > System > Usage Mode > Pedestrian > OK.

Figure 107: Tools Menu

Tap Settings from the Tools Menu

Figure 108: System Settings

Tap System from the Settings Menu

Figure 109: Change the Usage Mode

Tap Automobile to change the "Usage Mode".

Figure 110: Setting the Usage Mode

Nüvi 885T can be set toe Automobile, Bicycle, or Pedestrian mode.

When set to Pedestrian mode, the nüvi 885T will adjust the estimated arrival time accordingly, and allow routing across sidewalks and footpaths that would not be permitted in a vehicle.

NOTE: The nüvi 885T also has the ability to navigate off road, although that option is hidden in a different menu. To use the nüvi 780 in off-road mode, tap Tools > Settings > Navigation > Route Preference > Off Road > OK.

15. Canceling A Route

Figure 111: Canceling A Route

Tapping on the Menu button while navigating to an address brings up the Main Menu, shown above. From here, you can stop routing to the destination by tapping on Stop, or detour around a problem area by (such as a traffic jam or closed road) by tapping on Detour.

Including the Stop button right on the Main Menu is a nice feature. I've tested a lot of GPS devices and have found that canceling a route can be a surprisingly difficult task. For example, TomTom's GPS units don't have any way to cancel the route (you can make it appear by switching the TomTom to "Advanced" mode, but under the default menu there's simply no way to cancel the current route).

In my testing I found the detour function worked adequately, although there are no options for how far you want to avoid the current problem, or ability to choose from a list of alternate routes, or exclude specific roads from the trip. But it does provide a quick and easy way to get off the current road if you run into a problem.

16. Saving Your Current Location

Figure 112: Where Am I / Save Current Location Screen

Tapping on the vehicle icon on the map brings up Garmin's updated "Where Am I" screen, shown above in figure 107. This is a great feature that provides one-touch access to your current street address (or closest valid street address), nearest intersection, and exact coordinates.

Garmin's well designed location screen also provides one-touch access to nearby hospitals, police stations, and gas stations.

Tapping Save Location Saving your current location adds the current position to the nüvi's Address Book, and allows you to assign a name the location.

17. GPS Sensitivity

Figure 113: nüvi 885T vs 660 GPS Signal Strength

Garmin has stopped disclosing which GPS receiver it uses in its products, however it's a fairly good bet that the nüvi 885T I tested is using SiRF's high performance StarIII receiver. In a head-to-head test against the SiRF StarIII-equipped nüvi 660, the nüvi 885T achieved identical signal performance.

Throughout the testing process, I was especially interested to see how the nüvi 885T's new, slim case design would compare to the older fold-out antenna nüvi 300 and 600 units. Thankfully the nüvi 885T exhibited none of the GPS performance issues that many nüvi 200-series owners have reported. Signal performance on the nüvi 885T also appeared to be better than the 780, consistently achieving identical GPS signal strength to the nüvi 660.