My 8 year old Garnin unit "Bit the Dust" last week, and after checking all of the possible Outlets here in Kalasin with no Luck, I am wondering if they are available  anymore, based on the fact that most Smart Phones come including GPS features,,,  Hoping to find somewhere in either Khon Kaen or Rot Et that might sell lower end models...

 

Pianoman

have one for sale in Kalasin   chinese generic  pm if of interest

Not answering your post, having had both GPS and Smart phone apps, I much prefer to use my phone which has only let me down twice due to overheating.

Have a look here they are the Garmin Distributor for Thailand

 

http://www.gpssociety.com/EN/Pages/product.aspx

 

The cheapest one on there is the Nuvi57LM (Where LM stands for Lifetime Maps) priced at 4190 THB

 

http://www.gpssociety.com/EN/Pages/productdetailfeature.aspx?SiteName=EN&Category=PND&ID=38

 

Ps: You can order online.

 

 

prices in Thailand are almost double what they are in the states,

Brought a Etrek 20 an had it brought over an saved a bundle

17 hours ago, phuketrichard said:

prices in Thailand are almost double what they are in the states,

Brought a Etrek 20 an had it brought over an saved a bundle

 

Yes unfortunately that is true, but it's mainly due to Import Duty which you handy didn't have to pay.

 

But a GPS I would buy here (even with the higher price) mainly  because of

A- Included are Thai Lifetime Maps (oke you can download them from "shady" sites but id rather stay legal)

B- Warranty issues, it would be rather expensive to fly to the States to get a replacement if the GPS fcuks up in the warranty period.

Se-ed bookstores usually have a small glass display stand near their entrance with a variety of GPS for sale.

22 minutes ago, Farma said:

Se-ed bookstores usually have a small glass display stand near their entrance with a variety of GPS for sale.

 

Good one, but they are Garmin "Dealers", but maybe they sell "older" Garmins which Gps Society doesn't sell anymore. Worth a try.

 

Here a list of which they sell https://www.se-ed.com/product-category/อุปกรณ์สำหรับรถยนต์/GPS.aspx?nc=8483&mid=5678

 

For example this one: https://www.se-ed.com/product/GPS-Garmin-รุ่น-Nuvi-2467LM.aspx?no=5522271000503

priced at 3523,- THB

they dont add that many new roads/year   LOL:

Plus u have open source maps for free.

if it <deleted> up,i send it back,  why would i have to fly back?
whats the dif if send to bangkok or send to the states> an extra week??

OpenstreetMaps are good but absolutely not Up Country.

Ps: Garmin Thailand doesn't repair, repair will have to be done in Garmin Taiwan

 

Edited August 7, 20169 yr by MJCM
Removed Quote

Has anybody had any luck with a bigger screen GPS in Thailand, or is it best to just buy an Android Pahblet?  Preferably 7" or 8".

Has anybody had any luck with a bigger screen GPS in Thailand, or is it best to just buy an Android Pahblet?  Preferably 7" or 8".

I have a Garmin Nuvicam it's display size is approx 5.4", I have never seen a bigger one.

 

One question though, as I have no idea, if you buy that Phablet where do you put it ? Do you stick it to the windscreen ?

 

What about sun exposure on a long drive, for example my Garmin gets bloody hot (when in the Sun) on a long drive but no ill effects yet.

 

Edited August 7, 20169 yr by MJCM

when you use a mobile/phablet for gps it is not reliant  on satellite recognition    the phone signal ie microwaves   used in  all mobiles  so really you could place out of direct sunlight 

Edited August 7, 20169 yr by Lamkyong

Even Garmin offers a 7" model in the USA.  Not available in Thailand, so I assume Thailand maps would be problematic.

 

There's also some Chinese branded 7"'ers available on Lazada that come with mounting brackets, but I don't trust their operating systems, nor their maps.

 

My best bet is probably the Garmin on the dash and a phablet on the passenger seat.  The eyes just don't focus on a 4-5" screen like they used to, and I am lost in Thai traffic without a good GPS.

5 minutes ago, Lamkyong said:

when you use a mobile/phablet for gps it is not reliant  on satellite recognition    the phone signal ie microwaves   used in  all mobiles  so really you could place out of direct sunlight 

 

The problem with using the towers is that it shows me skipping around up to several hundred meters at a time.  Great to know what neighborhood I'm in.  Not too handy for showing which of the 3 parallel roads I'm on.

i agree however my post was advice of how to keep a mob/phab out of direct sunlight

Cheap bastard that I am, I'm more interested in how to keep from paying yet another monthly SIM bill for my large format GPS.  

 

Though I admit I've grown fond of the Google Maps traffic colors, I'm pretty sure I can get those tethering to my existing cell phone without having to pay another monthly bill.

Get Sygic app better with live traffic

I mostly use my phone to navigate around places that I've been to so as to get an idea of the best route that I should be taking. 

 

I also keep a garmin on my dash for places where I've never been to before, if the phone isn't getting good reception that day and that I do not mind taking a route that may be filled with traffic. 

 

My garmin has not failed me, even though I hope that it would support traffic condition by default.. 

 

Am looking for a customised dash, by Mirage Audio powered by Android since I really like the features on Google Maps. 

I was very fortunate to get a Nuvi 55 with free lifetime maps. It has a bigger screen than most and I paid 3990 baht. Unfortunately that model is discontinued.

 

I bought it from Eagle GPS and it was delivered to my house. Yes, I have tried my phone. Once you have used a Garmin with the ESRI map the phone looks pretty pathetic, at least in my eyes. You need the Internet for Google maps and the battery life using any of the available maps is horrible not to mention if you get a phone call.

 

My Isuzu has an in dash GPS and the little Garmin on the dash is much better.

 

the only hassle with keeping with only a phone for your GPS needs, is the A-GPS.

 

many Mobiles will be useless, even for the GPS function, when 3G goes out the same way as 2G.

 

3G is already being mooted to disappear in OZ in a matter of years - Malaysia always follows OZ trends,

so maybe Thailand will lose 3G soon too?

On 8/5/2016 at 4:08 PM, phuketrichard said:

prices in Thailand are almost double what they are in the states,

Brought a Etrek 20 an had it brought over an saved a bundle

 

I still have a Nuvi 855 that works well. The reason I bought a new Thai Garmin is because there are some map features the do not work on US models. Another reason is that if the US Garmin has  Garmin Thailand map on it, you will certainly be disappointed.  I wasted a hundred dollars for the US Thailand map to find that out. The first time I used the US Thailand map, it wanted me to turn right on a road that wasn't there. The next road it wanted me to turn on was a dead end road. I had to go back to my outdated ESRI map.

On 10/2/2016 at 8:51 AM, Gary A said:

I was very fortunate to get a Nuvi 55 with free lifetime maps. It has a bigger screen than most and I paid 3990 baht. Unfortunately that model is discontinued.

 

I bought it from Eagle GPS and it was delivered to my house. Yes, I have tried my phone. Once you have used a Garmin with the ESRI map the phone looks pretty pathetic, at least in my eyes. You need the Internet for Google maps and the battery life using any of the available maps is horrible not to mention if you get a phone call.

 

My Isuzu has an in dash GPS and the little Garmin on the dash is much better.

 

Look grandpa you charge the phone from the cigarette lighter with an adapter and connect it to the car speaker system via bluetooth. Seriously its not that hard.

7 hours ago, BudRight said:

 

Look grandpa you charge the phone from the cigarette lighter with an adapter and connect it to the car speaker system via bluetooth. Seriously its not that hard.

 

Up to you. I prefer to start my vehicle and the GPS turns on. No SIM card to worry about. My phone is normally turned off when I am driving.

I switched from a dedicated GPS to my phone. I got lifetime maps on the NUVI but the phone with google maps that shows delays is just much better. I bought a ram mount so i can put it on the dashboard. The screen is of better quality than any GPS and google's extra updates are faster available then on any dedicated GPS.

 

Yes you will have to charge the phone but that is not much of a problem. Also many sites just use google map links and you can just copy them to your maps. Sharing and adding places is much better as on a GPS.. bye bye GPS.  Hello phone (of course you do need a good phone) 

On 07/08/2016 at 5:34 PM, Lamkyong said:

when you use a mobile/phablet for gps it is not reliant  on satellite recognition    the phone signal ie microwaves   used in  all mobiles  so really you could place out of direct sunlight 

Balderdash. GPS is dependent on satellites and that's what my phone uses. About 15 years ago it was navigation from one mobile tower to the next but that's long gone for most people. The Global Positioning System (GPS), also known as Navstar GPS or simply Navstar, is a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) that provides geolocation ...