namvet66

WHAT EXTRA DO I NEED FOR 255W OR 265WT NEW ?
Would someone please tell me exactly what come out of the box when you purchase a new 255W or 265WT?

I want to find out what I need to buy beside the unit itself.

I will purchase a carrying case, need to know about UBS cable for my Mac.

Thanks folks

Max

Hey namvet, you can find out all that info on the Garmin website , click the "in the box" link at the page below.
https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?...30#inTheBoxTab

In the meantime, yes there is a USB cable included that you can use with Mac or PC:

nüvi 265WT
Preloaded City Navigator® NT for North America or Europe (full coverage)
Lifetime traffic¹
FM traffic receiver with vehicle power cable
Vehicle suction cup mount
USB cable
Dashboard disc
Quick start manual

btw welcome to the site

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Nothing free is good, nothing good is free.

HumVee

namvet66, first off, I want to thank you for your service. I'm half-Vietnamese, and left South Vietnam when I was four. I'm sure you don't hear thanks enough.

The Garmin nüvi 255W and nüvi 265WT are nice units. As Max has already stated, the 265WT comes with Lifetime Traffic (minor, unobtrusive ad based). The 255W does not come with traffic receiver, so you'd be looking at purchasing a GTM 25 or GDB 55 if you're interested in that feature. The GDB 55 (MSN Direct Traffic) can also be used with the 265WT, if you decide you like its traffic & services features better (but you need to pay annual subscription fee or spring for the lifetime subscription - I'd opt for the latter, which pays for itself in a couple of years).

Neither of those units gives you the ability to plan and store Routes on your GPS (handy for vacation travel or other trips). You'd have to step up to an nüvi 500 or nüvi 550 for that feature (or a nüvi 765T if widescreen is important to you) if you decide you want it. PC users might purchase a City Navigator North America NT DVD so that they could get MapSource and load the road map onto their PC. As a Mac user, you'd most likely just content yourself with using the free Garmin Communicator Plugin for Mac, and then using MapQuest (on Safari or Firefox web browser) to plan your trips and download them to your GPS.

I like the 500/550's, because they are so versatile. They have user replaceable batteries (no battery lasts forever, and the sealed units are a pain to replace batteries). They also are IPX7 waterproof (which is more like very water resistant), so they can be used for motorcycling, kayaking & even light hiking as well as in the car. As Andy is fond of saying (& which happens to be true), the IPX7 rating also means that these units are dust-proof...handy for motocross/dirtbike/ATV/4-wheeling! the 765T comes with lifetime traffic, but the 500/550's would need it as an additional purchase (again, either the GDB 55 or the GTM 25).


The only other accessories you might want for any of these GPS units are:

• Additional maps if you want to travel outside of the US (or in the case of 500/500's, want to use them on water or for hiking)
• Alternate mounting options -
  • Some states don't allow window mounting, and you may not care to have an adhesive backed disk semi-permanently stuck to your dashboard. I like to use a weighted base that I can easily transfer between my car and my wife's car (& hide when not in use, so there's no evidence that a GPS unit might be in the car). Note: Don't leave your GPS on your dashboard when not in use. Not only is it a target for theives - but the heat on hot days can prematurely destroy your GPS's battery.
  • If you opt for an n500/n550, it's likely because you want to use it for your other outdoor sports. RAM Mounts is the OEM that Garmin uses for their marine and motorcycle mounting parts. I'm also a fan of GPS City, and their prices on RAM mounts and other accessories are often lower than MSRP (find the RAM mount you want on RAM's site, then search for the part number in GPS City, Amazon.com, etc.).

namvet66

Thanks for all this info HumVee, I may take a look at the 500,550 and 675T.

You folks make this gps purchasing a lot easier.

Max thanks for the "out of the box" inventory

namvet66

Looks like I will need to purchase an AC Charger also, but thats not big deal.

Max

You planning on using the unit off (charging) base for long periods? You will get about 3 hours or so with the backlight turned down and no bluetooth, with the unit just hanging out doing it's thing.

I use the a/c charger for either my blackberry or Motorola phone and it seems to do the trick just fine, I just can't remember which one it is that works better, but likely cheaper than the regular Garmin ones.

Just put together the name...im slow in the early AM hours. Thanks for your service as well 'vet

__________________
Nothing free is good, nothing good is free.

Max

This site was started after I got tired of answering people's questions at work, from the family, etc...I said I really need a forum for this, of course I said this to Keith, and he agreed - so voila we have a forum

I give all the credit to HumVee for your above statement though, his detailed replies are certainly praiseworthy

Thanks for joining us namvet

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Nothing free is good, nothing good is free.

namvet66

Thanks MAX I have extra chargers I wil try them before I buy one.

I"m proud to have served for my country. This is something I would do again and again if I was needed, just like hundreds of thousand of other vets.