Garmin Portable Friction Mount
by Garmin
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List Price: Our Price: $17.69 You Save: $22.30 (56%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: GPS or Navigation System See more product details |
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Garmin Portable Friction Mount
Customer Review: Buy it...it's a "no brainer."
Summary: 5 Stars
I had just purchased a Garmin 855 GPS and wanted an alternative to the windshield method...for all the reasons listed by a gizillion reviewers. However, it's amazing to me that there is not a better explanation and pictures with the product description to let the buyer know exactly HOW the GPS unit ATTACHES to the the mount. I was a bit confused about this, as I had read some reviews which said you can (or can't!) use the plastic arm that came with your new unit...making it sound like you simply take the plastic arm that came with your GPS and use it with this "friction mount." Well now, I ended up going to the Garmin site and discovered that their part number for this unit ended in #2, whereas the unit on Amazon ended in #0. Hmmm. So I emailed Garmin, asking for an explanation as to the different numbers...wondering if there were actually two different products. I did get an email reply from from Garmin within 48 hours (good thing). However the reply (bad thing) was: "Thank you for contacting Garmin International. I would be happy to help you with this. The part you want would end in 02, some sites sell the mount without the arm. Just to be safe I would use the part number from our site. Have a good day." (Didn't seem like a definitive answer to me!)
In any event, I bought the unit ending with #0 through Amazon, but from the vendor named "Beach Camera" for $23 and change (free shipping because I took advantage of the free month's trial of "Prime," and no sales tax to my state. Meanwhile, Beach Camera's packaging and shipping was excellent...arrived in 48 hours to my rural locale. And the mount did in fact INCLUDE the arm NEEDED for the mount to work. That is, the arm consists of a plastic molded part that has gear teeth going around the circumference of the round base, which MESH with the plastic part attached to the friction mount. The tab that you see in the friction mount's photo functions like a clutch, so that you depress it and can then rotate the arm in any direction until you get the desired viewing angle of the unit. And there is also another plastic tab attached to the friction unit which locks the arm in place once you get the GPS angled where you want it. So the point is: the suction cup windshield arm that comes with the GPS will not work with the friction mount. It obviously is not molded with gear teeth to mesh with the friction mount. So you can just put that aside in case you want to try a windshield mount in a future life. A side note: The plastic shell encased Garmin friction mount from Beach Camera had a copyright date of 2008 on the package...so maybe earlier units that were identified with the product number ending in #0 did not have the arm with the gear teeth? I can't say. However, rest assured that if you order the unit from Beach Camera (Amazon comes up on their checkout process), you will get the unit that will work with your Garmin GPS (of course I would stick to the GPS unit #'s stated as being compatible in the product description). I have posted this lengthy review because I gained some satisfaction in taking a chance on getting the right mount (given the vague response I got from Garmin), and hope to save other folks some time trying to figure out if the mount will work "out of the box" for your new GPS. It just ain't much fun to buy a reasonably pricey product (GPS) and then deal with the frustration of getting the necessary accessory to work right.
In conclusion, I would add that although the friction mount would likely work well on many different dashboard configurations, I am using the unit with a 2009 Honda Accord. And it is perfect! With the Accord, you have the option of putting it either on the top of the dashboard, or on the flat area just in front of the display for the radio/clock, etc. I have placed it in the latter position, finding that it is closer (therefore easier to touch the screen without over-reaching) and it also doesn't interfere with the view of the road (obviously a safety concern)...but is as high up as you can get without doing so.
Hence, as the Aussies say: "no worries" about purchasing this excellent accessory.
Customer Review: A Must Have for Garmin Nuvi Users
Summary: 5 Stars
I automatically ordered this product along with my Nuvi 660 after reading the reviews. Anyone who has the nuvi's Needs This portable bean bag mount. Don't let the style of it fool you. It will accomodate any dashboard including one's with a curve.
There are no directions, but all you do is take off the mount piece that comes with your garmin nuvi, and attach it to the bean bag plastic bulb on this mount. Don't worry, it won't break.
Flip your anntenae up (square piece on the back of your garmin nuvi). There is a groove located bottom of the garmin nuvi, attach it to the square groove on the beanbag mount. It justs pops right in. Place bean bag mount with your garmin anywhere on your dash board and then just adjust up/down/sideways whatever is your comfort zone.
There is a little square lever under your bean bag mount that you just pull up to dislodge your nuvi from the the beanbag style mount. That's it.
This product is sturdy, it stays put even through the sharpest of turns or in the of event of a quick breaking. The beanbag mount is portable, can be placed on the floor of your car,glove compartment, etc.
2nd Review
I initially wrote my review March 11, 2008 giving the garmin 660 5 stars. I would probably rate it about a 3 1/2 stars. My reasons are the following:
In a large metro area it takes several minutes to obtain satellite due to tall buildings. My major problem occurred once I got out of underground parking (which of course you get no reception at all) and was forced onto the main one way street (by the car behind me)with absolutely no idea on which street to take to go home. I had to practically go on the outskirts of the city before my garmin would say "ready to navigate". After going in circles before the garmin took over, it miss-led me onto a street where I should have turned left to get onto the highway instead of right.
Now this was in my first comments regarding the garmin about it telling you to turn one way and then you find out that you needed to turn in the opposite direction. I guess I did not mind it so much because I was already familar with the area, but now, I Do Mind It. I have been seriously lost twice now with the gamin telling me to take a left and it turns out to be a right and vice-versa. All streets have been around for over 15 years, so nothing new. I plan on keeping my map with me in the car from now on and use it in unfamiliar areas.
I like the blue tooth, but those who I talk to on it don't. They say it echo's on their end.
If the price keeps going down, say around $100.00 it will be worth it. I paid $329.00.
Customer Review: Better than "suction cup" GPS mounting!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I have been using GPS units (mostly Garmin) for the past several years. The mounting system I have been using has been the suction cup windshield mount that comes with the GPS unit. Now as you likely already know, the suction cup is an easy way to mount your GPS for convenient viewing while driving, and you can still pop your GPS unit out of the bracket for security reasons or for pedestrian navigation. If you have more that one car to share the GPS with, then it is convenient to have one suction cup mount and bracket for each car.
A recent change to Friction Mount by Garmin:
We recently has car service that involved the front windshield. This meant we were not to mount or apply anything to the windshield for 2 weeks. Oh, what do do?? We actually drove away from the auto shop using the "passenger manual hold" technique! I needed to find an option that would allow for clear viewing of the GPS at eye level, without the suction cup or assistance of a stunt-human holding it up in front of me while I drove!
So I ordered the Garmin Portable Friction Mount on Amazon.com- It's fantastic!! The base is made out of black "ballistic nylon" filled with a material that gives the base some weight. (Think small, heavy beanbag for your dash) There are 4 "petals" to the base, which serve to add friction to the unit, preventing slipping and sliding while you drive around. There is a stem coming out of the base that has the universal socket end that you simply snap your GPS bracket onto.
The Good:
The unit is great! You simply snap your GPS in and place the unit anywhere on your dash. The GPS stays put in all but the most enthusiastic driving. When we park the car, we simply grab the GPS off the dash and either place the whole thing on the passenger floorboard (out of sight) or we pop the GPS unit out of the bracket and take it with us. The cost for this base was quite reasonable.
Bonus:
Over the years of using GPS units, I have experienced two things that are common with the former suction cup mounts. One is that you have to remember to periodically remove and re-mount the suction cup, or at the worst moment ever, you will need to touch your display screen- only to have the GPS suction cup fail and the whole thing falls to your dash and rolls onto the floorboard. (Again, the easy fix is to periodically re-mount your suction cup) Which brings me to the second common thing. The suction cup can leave (temporary) rings on your windshield glass from being stuck there. It is purely cosmetic, but you certainly won't have either one of these situations with this excellent friction mount which sits on your dash.
Customer Review: This is the one you need for a Nuvi--complete & works well
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this friction mount for my Nuvi 350, and used both on a recent driving vacation. Both worked even better than expected!
Amazon's listings are a little confusing--If you have a Nuvi, don't buy the one that says "for Garmin GPS". Get this one instead. With this one, you don't need to purchase anything else, just use the little bracket that comes with the Nuvi unit. (Put the bracket onto the mount without the GPS in it--it takes some pressure or a little twisting to get the bracket to snap onto the ball of the mount. But once it's on, you won't need to take the bracket off the mount. The GPS snaps into and out of the bracket easily--the bracket and mount stay together as one piece.)
The literature with the GPS unit said that the dash mount adhesive is hard to remove, so I didn't want that on my car's dash. Some reviews said the windshield mount could melt to the glass and I didn't want that, either. Also, some say that thieves will break into your car even if they can only see the windshield mount, assuming the GPS is in the car somewhere. So, I wanted the friction mount. It was about $28 at amazon.
After using it, I like it even better than I thought I would. It holds VERY well; I never had a problem with it slipping even once. It's easy to reposition, for example if the sun is hitting it the wrong way, and it's easy to put into the console when you park so that nothing shows to tempt theives. Also, it can just stay plugged in to the car's power outlet. The cord plugs into the bracket on the mount instead of directly into the Nuvi, which is convenient. The Nuvi unit itself easily releases from the mount, with no cords to unplug, and is easy to take with you.
The only disadvantages I can come up with are that it is a separate purchase (but is complete), and it's not beautiful (but neither are the other mounts, I guess).
If you can't or don't want to use the windshield or permanent dash mounts, try this one. I'm glad I bought it.
A suggestion to amazon would be to describe all these mounts & other accessories a little better--lots of postings say they bought the wrong mount or bought accessories that were already included with the GPS unit, because they were listed on the product page with the GPS unit.
By the way, I love the Nuvi 350!
Customer Review: MOBILITY, FLEXIBILITY, PORTABILITY, ADAPTABILITY = UTILITY
Summary: 5 Stars
We have heard about some frustrations about fitting/using attachments to the Garmin GPS machines. We ourselves finally found we were missing some critical mental parts that Garmin do not slip into the package, so we share them on Amazon - which itself is a 'magical' technology Jeff Bezos: Business Executive And Founder Of Amazon.com (Ferguson Career Biographies)
In Clarke-ian terms Childhood's End 'magic' is anything that works for you - but you don't really understand how it works.
1 At One Big Idea Consulting Limited NZ we have come to believe that when we are investing in 'magic', which the Garmin GPS product range now is, we invest much more than just cash. We are investing in extending our sensory-motor system... and it is really worth disconnecting our hurry-scurry-worry reactions and instead peacefully climb the inevitable Learning-curve with a sense of wonder.
2. The docking devices are a small part of the puzzle... but small things make a big difference... so we tell our clients - treat yourself as priceless vehicle cargo ...and buy two or three different kinds and give your motor-sensory system a chance to grasp the complete experience of GPS before you get too frustrated with a small part of the 'miracle' when it becomes a temporary puzzle. Embrace is as the opportunity to learn more GPS overall, as we learned how to do.
Each docking device has its own charm and its own 'maybe'.
3. In time, like us and our clients, you will say a heartfelt prayer of thanksgiving every time your faithfull driving 'guide' (we use a plug into the vehicle sound) drives you in elegant English as smooth a satin around and about ... and smoothly gets you back on track when a turning 'oopsie' derails you, or/and when the docking device responds at a fingertip and adjusts the external glare from the screen map or otherwise treats you like a queen/king.
4. As owners of nuvi systems, we consider ourselves, some of the luckiest persons in human history to be able to move around the way we can with the GPS at our finger/lip tips.
Blanckenberg & Blanckenberg