Garmin nuvi 760

Boasting a 4.3in widescreen display, a compact design and including features such as a built-in FM transmitter, Bluetooth handsfree and text to speech technology, Garmin's nuvi 760 is simply an outstanding GPS unit.

Garmin are well renowned for its ease of use and the company's latest model is no different. The user interface is simple, bright and extremely effective. Menu items are accompanied by either large boxes with text or clearly labelled graphic icons. The 4.3in widescreen display is extremely effective and it encompasses an excellent viewing angle and performs well in direct sunlight. The unit is compact and slim and this also carries over to the window mount – it's small and easy to remove. Conveniently, the Nuvi 760 remembers its exact location automatically when you remove it from the window mount.

The design falls into line with most other Garmin units – sleek and compact. A highlight is the window mount. It's easily detachable and is quite small, so taking it from car to car isn't a hassle. An SD card slot allows extra maps or other data, and a regular mini-USB connection handles charging and synchronising.

Navigating to an address couldn't be simpler. The nuvi 760 filters street names by suburb, reducing the list to a manageable number. Unfortunately, Garmin still hasn't corrected the search order – searches must be made in order of suburb, street number and then street name, where logic tells us that you should enter the street number after selecting the street and not before.

Following Garmin's simplicity theme, the main menu is very straightforward, with large icons for 'Where To' and 'View Map', in addition to smaller icons for phone, volume and tools. The nuvi 760 can navigate to a specific address, a Point of Interest (POI), a recent location, a specific intersection and your favourites. The nuvi 760 also allows you to directly input a specific GPS coordinate and features "Where Am I" – a convenient menu that shows your exact latitude and longitude coordinates as well as the nearest address and junction. You can also quickly find the closest hospitals, police stations and petrol stations in case of emergency.

The nuvi 760 doesn't use the popular SiRF Star III GPS receiver found in almost every unit on the Australian market. Garmin simply lists a receiver without providing further details. Thankfully, the units GPS performance is solid and re-routing times are in line with most other units. Our main complaint is reserved for the sluggish start-up time when you turn on the unit – an issue common with recent Garmin models.

The nuvi 760 comes preloaded with City Navigator Australia NT, using WhereIs v.14 maps. The preloaded map data has over one million points of interest and offers text to speech technology. Volume is perhaps the 760's weak point as it's not quite loud enough, even at full volume. In somewhat of a saving grace, the built-in FM transmitter means the nuvi 760 can send sound wirelessly through your car stereo.

Speed and red light camera warnings (with voice commands) aren't preloaded onto the unit but they are available as a free download from the Garmin Web site. Bluetooth is included for handsfree calling and once paired you can browse your phonebook, read and send messages, use voice dialling and access your call history – all through the nuvi 760's touch-screen display. Garmin once again includes a multitude of travel features – a language guide, MP3 player with playlist support, an audio book player, picture viewer, currency converter, world clock and calculator amongst them.