extended coverage

[tobiwan]

is it worth the money. is it needed

on the 2730.

[VitesseLT]

A few observations that might help you decide:

1) All navs I ever purchased are still working and are Garmins and Magellans. They've all had online or DVD-ROM upgrades in their time, but I never sent one back for problems either during or past the warranty period.

2) The 2730 is nicely street-priced right now. It is out of line up, and as technology goes, you'll probably want to get a new model in a few years with the time-then features which will likely be more extensive for less money potentially making the warranty a little less interesting.

3) In the GPS business, I don't think it's too bold to say that Garmin has the reputation for the best customer service, both inside and beyond the warranty period. It ain't perfect, such as the sometimes vague email answers you get back to highly specific questions, but, on balance you'll be treated well enough depending on the exact problem that might crop up. Here, people have told some pretty amazing stories of Garmin accomodations; that coupled with poor Magellan customer service was in large part responsible for my last 3 nav purchases being Garmins.

So, I'd estimate you probably won't need an extended warranty too badly based on my experience. But, if the warranty price is incredibly attractive and you don't mind keeping track of all the documentation and enforcing your rights when something goes wrong, go for it.

[rdwalker]

Ditto.

My first GPS receiver was a Magellan - very poor performance. Never went back. Of course, this may be unfair, since it was a while back, when the handheld consumer-grade devices where just coming out; but I never had a need to look back.

Occasionally (particularly on overseas trips), when I am traveling short distances by car, I use TomTom Navigator on my Treo smartphone with a separate Bluetooth receiver. Fairly decent, even though it crashes sometimes and has a weird interaction with telephone functions. However, the main complain it that it is designed primarily with guidance in mind, it is very hard to get it into a mode where it only shows a running map.

This brings me to Garmin products. Outstanding. Over the years, I must have had almost every one of their automotive line. I still own and use for my bikes/cars a GPS V, StreetPilot i3, a 2610 and now a 2720 (can't have too many, can you?).

I like the ruggedness. The 2xx0 line is waterproof. The new display is nice. Mapping/routing features are still not as easy as I'd like, but you can accomplish almost everything.

As the other responder mentioned, their customer service is impeccable. I have occasionally corresponded with them by email, asking about features, shortcomings, map loading, etc. I always received an anwer (!), even if it took a few days, understandable with the volume of products.

So, my recommendation, it is worth getting. Currently there are good prices on the 27x0 units after the 2820 came out. Feature set is nice. Product quality great, support very good.

[jackd]

is it worth the money. is it needed

on the 2730.

IMHO extended coverage is an insurance policy that like most insurance is oversold. If you buy a name brand their repair policy is usually a $100 to $150 charge and you get a refurb one back. Probably not yours.

I have a StreetPilot III and I have had two problems.. a loose screw inside on a battery lead and the LCD screen developed 'dead' lines after I dropped it. I took it apart both times and reseated the LCD connector and found and tightened the screw.

If you buy some off brand you may not be able to get it fixed and you extended coverage will probably say if they can't repair/replace it or it costs too much to repair/replace they will give you your premium back... not a bad deal to hold your money...