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Garmin Nuvi 200 Series Video FAQ Netcast of the most Frequently Asked Question from this site, about the Nuvi 200, 250, 260, 270 and W versions.

Check out this video for Solutions to Common Problems!

I just purchased a Garmin 260w. Unit will not speak street names. Is there something I need to do with the setting to activate? Scott.

Contact Garmin.

What Garmin Sat Nav models can detect all types of Mobile and Fixed Speed Camera Sites? Bill.

No GPS Sat Nav of any make "Detects" Speed Cameras. They are passive devices and use an internal map of where the cameras are to warn you as you approach one.

This means that any device is only as good as the Speed Camera Map, and how often it's updated.

It also means that if the Police set up a truly random mobile speed-camera, or install a new fixed one, it won't be on the map until it gets reported.

I've heard good things about the Garmin speed camera files (they use Cyclops), but a really popular one in the UK is the service offered by PocketGPSWorld.com.

I just bought a new Garmin nuvi 260 GPS. Do I need a SD card to get updates. If so, what size would you recommend.
Thanks,
Ken, Alabama USA

You could use the SD for speed cameras, but map updates will go to the internal memory. If you want to add additional countries, then, yes, you'll need an sd card. 2gb is big enough for most things.

Just bought my Garmin and im a bit of a technophobe, your video was the bees knees thank you very much.
Kev in Leicester.

Great!

In my business I cover Northern Ireland and part of the Republic of Ireland.  Just having changed my car I bought the nuvi 200, fantastic bit of kit.  Thanks for your video instructions, very well demonstrated and easy to understand.  Henry..

Cheers!

i am being given a nuvi 200, can i download or get US maps for my trip to florida?

You'll need to buy a 2gb SD card and the North America City Navigator NT maps, on DVD or download them from Garmin.

Just got a Nuvi 200. Very impressed. Is there a way to see which street i'm on? I know the screen will occassionally say "Driving on.... etc" but I would like this feature on all the time. Jon.

I don't think so.

Just wondering if the garmin speed camera database is any better than the one supplied by GPSworld.com as its 10 quid cheaper at GPSworld.com.
Thanks for great Tutorial. Dave.

My Dad uses the GPSworld one, and he's pretty happy with it.

Can I use topo maps on my nuvi 200? Paul.

It has been done, but I'm not sure how much detail shows up - less than on a hand-held gps.

I was downloading on my nuvi 260. Now the only thing the screen will say is, No detailed maps found that support routing. The Nuvi cannot be used without them. I have tried to reset it and no luck. I have been on hold with Garmin for 74 minutes so far... Please help. Jennifer.

OK, always back-up your device before doing anything. Too late now, but have you tried a hard reset? See this link.

i have a nuvi 200. can you edit directions if you want to use a different route(like you can with google maps where you just drag your route to a different road and it recalculates the trip for you?)

-or can you save directions off of google like you can with single locations on google?

-and is there a way to show poi while driving in the first person view? (like resteraunts/atm's/gas stations that you drive by)

Nope! - You ask it to find an alternative route though!

Just bought a Garmin Nuvi 200. Everythings OK, except from when I zoomed right out - I saw the whole of Europe when its supposed to be UK & Ireland only! Any advice?

Don't panic Capt Mannering! They're all like that!

Hello, I have a Garmin 270, my husband has a 700 series. We're in Europe and have to travel a lot for work. When connected to the PC, His Garmin has a favorites folder, mine does not. I can select favorites when I click on the GPS screen, but there is no folder for favorites when its connected to the PC. I wanted to copy his saved favorites over to my Garmin 270 so we can use the same favorites, is that possible? Susan.

Not easily, without potentially ruining your system, so, no.

A seller on ebay selling the Garmin 200 states that the satnav has "Preloaded City Navigator Southern Europe NT MAPS" and when asked whether it has UK road maps, the seller replies that the unit has "UK road maps only". What does that mean? Would it be able to do postcode search of UK roads? Sha.

No. Avoid.

how do i use my garmin 200w for walking does it need to be set up? Alistair.

Use shoes instead, its much cheaper.

Sorry, go into the settings, system, usage mode, pedestrian.

I have a Nuvi 250, How do I delete addresses I do not require .. used them once , will not use again?

Check out my Garmin Nuvi FAQ vid, and do the reset.

Hi, updated camera database on my recently aquired Nuvi 200W and now proximity points have disappeared from the settings list and cameras are not detected, otherwise unit performs well. Jim.

Check that in the settings, in proximity warnings, that speed cameras are ticked. Also try a reset.

I purchased a used Garmin nuvi 260 from a friend who needed the money.  He forgot his password and told me to just reset by using the reset button...NOT
I can't get by the Enter PIN screen.  How can I erase his original pin and put in a new??? Gary.

He'll have to remember the PIN, or at least the Secure Location (where he entered the PIN), otherwise you'll have to send it back to Garmin.

Just bought a used nuvi 260.  I don't have the password of the previous user and can't get by the opening enter pin screen.  How can I delete all and start new?? Gary.

You need the PIN or the Secure Location. Without those you'd have to send it back to Garmin, and I guess they'd want to see an original receipt...

How can I set my garmin 200 to take me on main routes to my destination. I set it to get me from Bristol Airport to Salisbury. It took me driving through rural Somerset on lanes little wider than a Land Rover and often covered in cow manure. I finished up turning it off an looking at the map. Is there a setting to stay on main roads rather than shortest routes? Alan.

It could be you've got the unit to take you on the shortest routes (never a good idea). Press the spanner, settings, navigation, and make sure "faster time" is enabled. While in that setting, in the avoidances make sure that "unpaved roads" is ticked.

Hi just brought a Garmin Nuvi 200 and would like to know if i can program it not to go on motorways. Im a community nurse so need to travel on the A roads however dont want to go on the motorway? Sarah.

If you press the spanner, settings, navigation, avoidances, you can tick "major rds" which includes motorways and big a-roads.

If you want to use Nuvi while charging from USB then see this link, it worked for me.

Great Link! Thanks!

Thank you I really enjoyed the videos. The Garmin "Getting started guide" supplied with the nuvi 200 leaves much to be desired. For what it's worth I thought I'd mention that according to Garmin's description and ads I've seen the nuvi 270 has text to speech audio which includes street, highway, etc name in the spoken audio. I didn't noticed this mentioned in the videos so please disregard this email if I just missed it. Robert.

Good point!

I just bought the nuvi 250 and I have been trying to input the address of an apartment in Portugal that we will be travelling to in a couple of weeks time.  The area is about 6 years old, and although I have tried differents ways to find the address the gps does not recognise it.  I understood that the maps were up to date, so it should have the area included.  Can you advise of how I can include that particular area in the GPS?  I have found the address when looking at the Google maps. Olga.

OK, GPS Sat Nav maps are not 100% reliable or complete, but there are a few ways to get around this. Obviously, first try the road name that the apartments are on. Then try the town. If the town works, find the address on Google Maps, then with the Nuvi in your hand use the map browser (by dragging your finger across the screen) to pinpoint the location on the screen, then save that location, and use that as your navigation point.

just bought a garmin 200 and used the reset option it just keeps reading locating satalites for longer than an hour in some cases do you think it is faulty ? Gary.

Maybe. Reset it again, then leave it somewhere where it has a good view of the sky for 10 minutes, so it can build another GPS Almanac, then test it out. If its still duff, take it back.

Excellent little overview and valuable details/hints included.  You are the man! (and manual).

Cheers!

Thank you I really enjoyed the videos. The Garmin "Getting started guide" supplied with the nuvi 200 leaves much to be desired. For what it's worth I thought I'd mention that according to Garmin's description and ads I've seen the nuvi 270 has text to speech audio which includes street, highway, etc name in the spoken audio. I didn't noticed this mentioned in the videos so please disregard this email if I just missed it. Robert.

Good point!

just an update about using topo maps with the garmin car sat navs nuvi (topo maps display hill contours etc for hill walkers)

garmin have told me they are compatible but only basic info is displayed on sat nav (dont know what that is)- computers display more

have loaded a map from the scotish mountaineering club http://www.smc.org.uk/ContourMaps.htm which is free and displays contours only - (need to follow instructions) would like to see paths but i think these will be on the topo maps which cost about £70.

neverless you can add points such as hill tops etc using poi & garmins poi loader (add them in mapsource as waypoints or show on map by going to edit -preferances - services - on

with the above you should be able to get your location so with a paper map you may be able to find your location and find your way etc - only slight problems battery life and water (nuvi not waterproof) and cold might effect battery?

hope this may be of interest or help to someone

thanks

kev

Great Info! Thanks!

Hi My garmin 200w doesn't beep as I approach cameras.  I've had it 4 days, and on the first night I tried it did.  Then I downloaded POIs and now it doesn't beep.  It shows the camera icon on the screen - can you help.  I've checked the settings and the Garmin safety Alerts is ticked.

Haven't heard of that before, you should contact Garmin.

When I type an address (to save to favorites, for instance), how to I insert the spaces between words. It comes up in favorites as Bunrattyfolkpark instead of Bunratty Folk Park.

Your website has been SO helpful as the booklet provides the bare minimum. I need to purchase a Garmin Nuvi 270 for Dummies :-)  Does one exist? Elaine.

The space is the little character that looks like a square bracket on its side.

how do i key in toulouse airport france? Michael.

Look in the Points Of Interest, under transport. Select airports, then I think you spell it out.

With regard to AC mains chargers, it is important to ensure that the unit will deliver enough current to operate the Sat Nav as well as charge at the same time. If the battery is completely discharged, then the unit will need to supply about 1 amp at 5.0 to 5.5 volts, in order to simultaneously operate and charge. The car charger can do this, this is why some generic chargers cannot operate and charge simultaneously. Alfred.

They may be true, but I think Garmin make things even more difficult by moving some of the pins around in the connectors, meaning you've got to use their leads and chargers.

hello i just bought a nuvi 200 series, and was wondering if you could rid of the speedcameras cause we travel a lot in holland and switzerland and it is illegal there. know some ppl who got a fine and lost their gps. thanks. Davy.

Not sure if it comes with speed cameras for those countries.
Turn your Garmin on, press the spanner, settings, down arrow, proximity points, change, then untick the box. Not sure if this gets rid of the icons on the screen though. You may have to attatch your Nuvi to a PC, then go in and delete the POI file, but this could get rid of your other POI's too. Do with extreme caution.

I have just purchased a nui 760. i have entered my home post code in favorits. on approaching my home it instructs me to turn in the wrong dirrection.
how can i put this right? regards
vin.

Try reporting the problem at
Navteqs Map Reporter Page

Great video; much better than manual for nuvi 270 which is too brief.  Question: I live in the US and recently purchased my nuvi 270.  I am attempting to save some addresses in Italy which I am visiting in June.  I can find the addresses but when I try and save them as "favorites" they are not saved there but do appear in "recently found." What am I doing wrong.
Thank you, Harold.

The process for saving favourites is to use "where to", enter the address, then "save" and give it a name.
Now, with an address in Italy it will be right at the bottom of your favourites, so scroll down using the arrow keys.
Tell me how you get on.

How do i update nuvi 200? Jim.

Read my Garmin Nuvi Update Guide.

hi i just got a garmin nuvi 250 and as soon as i start it up it goes in to a (enter pin) screen is there some sort of factory pin code to enter in? Ed.

You'll need to get the PIN or "Secure Location" off the person who sold you the unit, otherwise it's locked

Sorry, a quick question. My Garmin 250 was won in a contest at one of our coffee shops. It starts up with the coffee shop logo and then boots normally. Can I get rid of the logo screen and just have the normal Garmin splash screen?
Cheers and Thanks. Andrew.

The easiest way is just to load the jpg you want onto a spare SD card, put it into the slot in the side of the unit, turn the Garmin on, press the spanner, scroll down to the picture viewer, find the image you want, the tick the "display on start-up" box. You may find that the coffee-shops logo appears in the picture viewer. In that case just untick the box, and your GPS should go back to the normal Garmin logo.

Great video, enabled us to reset our Garmin 200 as it didn't seem to be working properly, will test it out going to Cornwall next week.  Enjoy your pint and could you please tell me where you can still get a pint for £2  :-)

Cheers!

My Nuvi 250 ha frozen for the second time, on this occasion i the reset button did not work.! Any idea's regards john.

Have you tried a system reset? Turn it off, put your thumb in the bottom right of the screen, turn it on (keeping your thumb where it is) and answer yes to the question. This will clear any user data and put the unit back to factory settings. Make sure you visit the Garmin site and download the latest updates.

Thanks for the videos, now I can use my Sat/nav. I'm usually good with techy stuff but the instuctions, well.....my mate Robin sent you a contribution cuz I ain't got Pay pal and it was well worth it.
My question, why does it take so long to find the satelites, when I try to set my garmin to find it's way home from a trip out, it takes forever; 15 mins yesterday I was almost home by the time the voice came through. Much to the amusement of my passengers. I've got Tom-tom on my phone and I've just taken Route 66 back to Halfords and neither of the other systems took any where near this long. Does it make any difference if your moving and looking for the satelites at the same time. This point and the instructions really lets a good system down.
Best Regards Steve.

You're right, the GPS has to be stationary and have a good view of the sky for it to get a quick GPS fix, if the vehicle is moving then it will get confused. In order to ascertain its position, the Nuvi locks onto Satellites one at a time, until it gets 3 or more for a two dimensional fix. If it loses lock on a satellite during this process it has to start again. If the unit hasn't been used for awhile then it will take even longer to lock on. Make sure you've visited Garmin and downloaded the latest updates. Also, if your unit keeps taking too long to lock, and it may be worth resetting it. If it’s a Nuvi 200 series, turn it off, hold your thumb on the bottom right of the screen, keep it there, turn it on, then say "yes", this resets the unit and clears any old logs. If the problem persists contact Garmin.

Many thanks for the beer, looking forward to a nice pint! Cheers!

Great Video. How do you load speed camera warnings on your nuvi 200 and where do you buy or subscribe to it. Chris.

Try this link.
Couldn't find any data for USA speed cameras though - just Europe.
This site has red light camera files.

Also check out my guide to installing the Garmin Speed Camera Trial.

Do you know if there is a problem with the Garmin web site. I have been trying to set up a subscription for safety camera data (my trial period has just finished) but the links on the site do not seem to work. Any suggestions? Chris.

At busy times the Garmin website does break down - they need to improve it. Keep trying is about all I can say!

Thanks...your video more than makes up for the scant info from Garmin. I tried to send you a pint but there seems to be a problem with Paypal updating my card. I'll sort it soon.I was a bit disappointed to find there was no audible warning on approaching our local "safety" camera. On the couple of occasions I have use nuvi250 it seems a lot less distracting to listen to the spoken directions than keep looking at the display. Is there an audible warning option that I haven't found yet? Kevin.

Your Nuvi should beep as you approach the camera, then keep beeping if you're going too fast. Does the Speed Camera Icon appear on the screen? If not, it could be that your POI file needs updating, and you can get 30 days of updates free, see this guide.
The guide also shows you how to add cameras to Garmins database if it is missing.
If the Speed Camera icon is on the screen, but there is no beep, turn your unit on, press the spanner, press settings, press proximity points, press change, and check that "Garmin Safety Alerts" is ticked.

Brilliant video thanks - very helpful. I have bought a Nouvi 200W and I am very pleased with it. It didnt come with an AC charger so I bought one on EBAY - brand new and Garmin approved (it said). However it will not let me use the unit while charging. You said that you could not use the unit when charging via USB but inferred I think that I should be able to use it with an approved AC charger - does this mean that the charger I bought is not really Garmin aproved. Would value your advice. Thanks

I think that the only way you can use your Garmin and charge it at the same time is in the car - but I could be wrong...

Just bought a Garmin Nuvi 200. The system seems very good. Excellent video. It is nice to see someone using the internet for a really useful purpose - keep up the good work.

Cough... Thanks!...... Cough..... it's just such thirsty work.... cough......

Very good video, but what have squirrels got to do with it? Tufty.

Everything....