30. Picture Viewer

Figure 120: Picture Viewer

Also located in the Tools menu, the Picture Viewer lets you view photos on the nuvi 760's wide-screen display.

Any images stored in the JPEG folder on the nuvi will appear in the Picture Viewer.

Figure 121: Viewing an Image With Picture Viewer

Images can be scrolled through, viewed full screen, or even set to replace the Garmin logo startup image.

31. World Clock

Figure 122: World Clock

For the James Bond in all of us: those of you who find yourself in Morocco on Monday, London Tuesday, and Monte Carlo Wednesday -- the nuvi World Clock is for you!

Figure 123: World Map

Tapping on "World Map" from the World Clock page brings up a world map that shows day/night zone information, as well as the current date/time in your own time zone.

32. Calculator

Figure 124: Calculator

The nuvi 760 includes a basic calculator that is accessed via the Tools menu.

33. Text-to-Speech Voice Quality

Text-to-Speech allows the GPS to speak actual street names instead of generic maneuvers. So instead of hearing "Turn left in 1 mile", you'll hear "Turn left on South Main Street in 1 mile".

Speech quality on the nuvi 760 is identical to that of previous nuvi models. In my testing, the nuvi did a decent job pronouncing street names and I didn't find the voice abrasive or irritating.

A cool unexpected feature I found is that the nuvi 760 will also perform text-to-speech on saved addresses in your address book. So if you save an address as "Work", when arriving at that location, the nuvi will announce "arriving at work".

34. Garmin Lock

Figure 125: Garmin Lock

The nuvi 760 includes a feature called Garmin Lock. Using Garmin Lock, you can set a PIN code and designate a "secure location". A secure location is a saved location on the map where you can unlock the GPS even if you've forgotten the PIN code.

Figure 126: Security Menu

Garmin Lock and Safe Mode can be turned on or off via the Security menu.

Personally this sounds like more of a liability than a help, but if you're into the idea of a password for your GPS, then GPS Lock might be just the ticket. To configure GPS Lock:

Figure 127: Setting a PIN Code for Garmin Lock

Once a Garmin Lock code has been entered, you must enter the PIN every time the nuvi is powered on. Be forewarned though: if you forget your PIN code AND the saved "Secure Location", you must send the unit back to Garmin to be reset.

35. Signal Reception Performance

Like the Garmin nuvi 660, the nuvi 760 uses SiRF's high performance StarIII GPS receiver. This chipset is extremely sensitive and able to maintain solid signal reception even when driving in challenging situations, such as dense urban environments (behind tall buildings), bridges, and canyons. In fact, in my testing, I was able to get a strong signal even indoors.

The integration of SiRF's chipset into the latest generation of in-car navigation systems has been a watershed event for GPS manufacturers.

Prior to the adoption of SiRF's chipset, line-of-sight to the sky was required to receive GPS signals, resulting in less than reliable GPS performance in many situations. SiRF's chipset has ushered in a new era of GPS performance, allowing signals to be acquired quickly and maintained while driving. GPS devices are more reliable than ever today, but be sure to buy a device that has SiRF's chipset. I'm always amazed that people continue to buy GPS devices that are old and outdated and cost even more than some of the newer devices with SiRF chipsets -- even from the same manufacturer.

It's worth noting that the nuvi 760 new design doesn't use of a fold-out patch antenna, as previous nuvis did (like the nuvi 350 and nuvi 660/680). In my testing, the nuvi 660 was slightly faster at acquiring GPS signals and did a better job tracking behind tall buildings when driving in Manhattan than the nuvi 760. Garmin says the nuvi 760's design makes it more sensitive to correct positioning on the dashboard, and that both the nuvi 660 and 760 use identical GPS receivers and should have similar performance.

36. Configuring System Settings

Figure 128: System Settings

The Settings menu is accessed by tapping Tools >Settings.

Figure 129: Changing the Map Settings

Tapping on Tools >Settings >System brings up the Map settings page shown above.

Map Detail allows you to configure more or less map detail. More detail will make map redraws take longer. I found this also varied greatly on your location. For example, on a small country road, setting more or less detail made no difference. In downtown Boston, however, setting to maximum detail slowed things down a bit. I ended up leaving this on its default setting.

Figure 130: Map View

Map View allows you to change the perspective of the map from 3D to 2D. In 2D mode, you can also set whether you want the map to show North at the top, or "Track Up", which shows your direction at the top.

Trip Log is a new feature that displays the path you've taken on the map, much like a trackback.

Map Info displays the currently installed map software version.

Figure 131: Usage Mode

The Usage Mode menu is accessed by tapping Tools >Settings >System >Usage Mode, and allows the nuvi to route using either Automobile, Bicycle, or Pedestrian modes. When set to Bicycle or Pedestrian modes, the nuvi 760 will adjust the estimated arrival times as well as the suggested path to take.

Note that the nuvi 760 also has an Off Road navigation mode, but that is accessed in a different menu and accessed by taping Tools > Settings > Navigation > Route Preference > Off Road > OK.

Figure 132: Route Preference

Tapping Tools > Settings > Navigation > Route Preference > Off Road > OK brings up the Route Preference menu, shown above. This menu allows you to specify how you want the nuvi 760 to calculate routes.

By default the nuvi ships set to Faster Time mode, which will choose routes that might be longer distance but have shorter estimated drive times (i.e. taking highways instead of shorter surface roads).

Shorter Distance will force the nuvi to pick the shortest physical distance, even if it will result in a longer drive time.

Off Road allows the nuvi to route off road.

Figure 133: Selecting Avoidances

The Avoidances menu allows you to specify things the nuvi should avoid when choosing a route. By default U-Turns and Traffic are checked.

The Avoidances menu can be used as a round-about way of forcing the nuvi 760 to exclude highways. For example, if you're driving at rush hour and know the highway will be backed up, checking the Highways avoidance will force the nuvi 760 to take surface roads instead.

Unfortunately there's no way to avoid, or exclude, specific roads or highways - a feature sorely missing from Garmin's entire nuvi product line.

Figure 134: Keyboard Layout

Thankfully Garmin has added the ability to switch between a QWERTY or ABCDE keyboard. Personally I like the default ABCDE keyboard layout, but I know many customers strongly prefer a QWERTY style keyboard and will be pleased to see this feature included in the nuvi 760.

37. Screen Brightness

The nuvi 760 uses a new, ultra-bright LCD display that's noticeably brighter than any previous Garmin nuvi, including the 660 and 680. The bright, crisp new display is one of the best enhancements Garmin has delivered with the new 700-series nuvis.

38. Keeping the nuvi Up-To-Date

Figure 135: Garmin's WebUpdater Software

Garmin provides an easy utility for updating the firmware/software on all their GPS units. Garmin's WebUpdater software can be downloaded from Garmin's Website. The utility automatically checks the model number connected to the computer (via USB), the version of software currently installed, and the version available for download. If a newer version is available on Garmin's website, the WebUpdater will ask if you want to install the new version. Of course, if you prefer, you can still download the individual updates for the nuvi manually.

There's no official rule on how frequently Garmin makes mapping updates available for their products. Their map supplier, NAVTEQ, generally releases map updates 6 times per year. However, you can expect to wait around 1-2 years for updated map data to make its way into your device.