Good unit with issues

Author's Rating:

Pros: Menu navigation and display of current speed limit.  A free 2010 update download for maps/POI.

Cons: Bluetooth speaker/microphone could have been better engineered.

The Bottom Line: 
A very good unit for basic navigation at a resonable price.

Author's Review
I have two other GPS units, another Garmin and a Magellan, so I'm familiar with basic concepts and functions.  On a recent trip that started in the dark I was pleased that the black background was not distracting by being too bright.  As the sun came up it switched to a white background at just the right time.  All of the usual functions such as acquiring satellites quickly and rerouting were up to par as well as its menu navigation.

The only negative issue that I think is worth mentioning was the Bluetooth feature that allows you to answer/call through the unit (a great feature).  The "handshake" process was easy to set up, but it seemed to take too long to make the connection to my phone. 

One person that called me at highway speeds (65mph) said that there was so much background noise that he had a hard time understanding me, even with me yelling at the top of my voice. Holding the phone next to the GPS unit made no difference as opposed to leaving it in my shirt pocket. We were able to have a 30-minute conversation, however. While stopped, or driving very slowly he said he could hear me fine.  A second caller said that the call was breaking up and could not under stand me at all, however, that person is hard of hearing and has crappy AT&T service.

My vehicle is not a tomb quiet Escalade or Lincoln, nor is it a rattletrap.  The highway noise is probably average for an older SUV.

A really neat feature with the wide screen version is it displays the current speed limit as a little black and white speed limit sign in the lower left corner.  I can't tell you how many times, after daydreaming for a while, asked myself, "I wonder what the speed limit is here".

At my destination, which was in very heavy old growth woods the unit never lost its connection to the satellites.

For the price I believe that the Garmin 265WT is a good unit and worthy of your consideration.