Garmin Nuvi 3790 : Reviewed

Next time someone tells you to get lost, say "why not?" It'll give you a great opportunity to bust out the sleek and unbelievably slim Garmin Nuvi 3790 GPS.

MIND YOUR LANGUAGE : Never swear at a voice command-enabled GPS, unless you really want to "go to hell".

When we were asked to review a new GPS device, the first thought we had in mind was "road trip!"

We hopped into our car headed off to random and unfamiliar destinations, and the only companion we had to point us in the right direction was the Garmin Nuvi 3790.

It's a good thing that this incredibly slim, well-designed GPS device works so well - 

Standard Nuvi-gation

If you've ever been in market for a navigational device - and assuming you didn't get lost on the way to the shop - Garmin's products would've been among the top items on your shopping list.

Garmin's GPS devices have generally been very reliable and user friendly, and if you've actually used a Nuvi device recently, you'll already be familiar with the quality and functionality that the 3790 has to offer.

Like its Nuvi siblings, the 3790 comes with a slew of standard but handy features to get you from point A to point B.

This includes a "points of interests" system which marks nearby petrol stations, restaurants and such on the map; a 3D view which shows the map contours (in case you really want to know how the terrain around you looks like); and, our favourite, the junction view feature which reduces amibiguity ("which 'left exit' are you talking about? There are three!") by graphically rendering upcoming turns/exits.

WHICH LEFT?: The Junction View is one of the most useful navigational tools, letting you see which turn you're actually supposed to take. Much better than wild guessing.

That's all nice and good, but what really sells the 3790 is the sleekness - and slickness - of the package.

The 3790 is an unbelievable 0.89cm thin; combined with its generally smooth, flat and black design, the 3790 could be mistaken at a glance for a rather wide iPhone or iPod.

It's strange to say, but the new Nuvi's design makes it feel more like an "everyday" device that you'd keep in your back pocket instead of your car, assuming that you don't mind a voice going "please drive straight and enter tunnel" emanating from your pants.

At a touch

The physical sleekness isn't the only leaf that Garmin took from the iPhone's design book, however.

The 3790 also benefits from a highly responsive capacitative touchscreen, multitouch features and the ability to auto rotate the screen when turned horizontally or vertically.

The upshot to these new additions is that this Nuvi has a very friendly user interface: Typing an address or navigating through the menus on the 3790's screen is way easier compared to older models.

Information - such as car speed or time to destination - is quickly accessible from the map screen, which counts for a lot when you're on the road.

We particularly liked the option to easily switch from seeing the area around us to the road ahead of us by tilting the display from horizontal to vertical.

We think that the Nuvi 3790 is an excellent GPS device thanks to its interface, design and solid navigational functionality, but it still has some flaws worth mentioning.

In our experience we stuck to the touchscreen most of the time, but we thought it was cool that we could say "Voice command... find by category... gas station" to get a list of all nearby refuelling places.

Conclusion

Despite its quirks, we have to say that overall, we like the Garmin Nuvi 3790. It's got a slick user interface, it's packed with features that helps us find our way, and, gosh darn it, it looks good.

Whether you're set for an adventurous road trip or just trying to get to somewhere unfamiliar, the Garmin Nuvi 3790 is one of the best companions that you can have on your journey.

Just don't try to hold a conversation with it.

Pros: Excellent GPS in a slim package; friendly interface.

Cons: Voice-activated features can be hilarious.

Nuvi 3790
(Garmin)
GPS car navigation unit
Display: 4.3in multitouch capacitive screen
Storage: MicroSD slot
Battery: Rechargeable lithium-ion
Other Features: Car mount with speaker, voice activated commands
Dimensions (W x D x H): 12.2 x 7.5 x 0.89cm
Weight: 113.4g