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Garmin says "Screw You" to customers who buy topo maps.

coloktmGS

New member
I spoke with Garmin today. In the past, you could buy topo maps and install them on your unit. When you upgraded, you removed your maps and installed them on your new unit. NO LONGER. Garmin has now locked all maps to one serial number. If you buy maps, they are permanently locked to one serial number and they are lost to you if you sell that unit to upgrade. When questioned, Garmin simply says:

Unfortunately, mapping products do not transfer to newer units. You would need to purchase new mapping for each unit you have.
Please let me know if you have any further questions.
With Best Regards,
Amy Ch.
Product Support Specialist
2nd Shift Outdoor/Fitness Team
Garmin International
913-397-8200
800-800-1020
913-440-8280 (fax) Att: Amy Ch., Associate #6013
www.garmin.com
Additional solutions may be found at http://www.garmin.com/garmin/cms/sit.../searchsupport


I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER GARMIN PRODUCT!!!
 
What's new, it has Always been that way to my knowledge.

NO different than MS windows, and probably Apple OS systems. You buy a new compute, you have to get a new license.

Heck when I went from My R11RS to a R11S, my damn rear tire didn't fit either, I had to sell the extra ones I had in the basement and lost $$.
 
The older Topo maps that didn't have auto-routing data in them (Topo 2008 and previous) weren't restricted to a certain gps. Somewhere along the line they added the ability to auto-route (put in start and finish location and it would generate a non-direct route) and started locking them to a gps serial number just like the road mapsets. I suspect it is due to licensing just like on the road maps.

I went with the sd card version of topos this last time and those you can move the card between units.
 
The older Topo maps that didn't have auto-routing data in them (Topo 2008 and previous) weren't restricted to a certain gps. Somewhere along the line they added the ability to auto-route (put in start and finish location and it would generate a non-direct route) and started locking them to a gps serial number just like the road mapsets. I suspect it is due to licensing just like on the road maps.

I went with the sd card version of topos this last time and those you can move the card between units.

That explains why I've had trouble making routes on the Topo 2008 I bought with my used unit. Seems highly counter intuitive system. It didn't work at all on my Macs and barely works on my XP PC.:banghead

Hey, Woodbutcher! My grandfather always called himself a woodbutcher IV class. I think I've passed him to III class!
 
I dislike Garmin for many issues that if I listed here would bore you. But I too won't buy a Garmin.
 
All this has nothing to do with Garmin. Maps are copyrighted and Garmin just follows the law. You purchase the rights to the maps for a particular unit.

It's kinda like getting mad at iTunes cause they charge you money to buy a song when you can listen to it for free on the radio.

Pay the money, load your map, enjoy the ride.
 
All this has nothing to do with Garmin. Maps are copyrighted and Garmin just follows the law. You purchase the rights to the maps for a particular unit.

It's kinda like getting mad at iTunes cause they charge you money to buy a song when you can listen to it for free on the radio.

Pay the money, load your map, enjoy the ride.

except that with an ipod/ipad you can sync the song with all of your units. not the same thing at all.

A better analogy is that it's like buying MS Office. For PC use, you get exactly one license. For Mac platforms, you get three licenses.
 
Garmin is a detestable company. Buying maps and upoloading them to your GPS (I have the Zumo 660) never, ever works as expected, or not at all. Instructions are garbage. Transferring routes from Basecamp (routing software for Mac) to the unit is a PIA... When they try to help you by mail, the answers are always wrong or off the point. And I mean always.

As for maps being valid only for one unit, I think it's a rip-off. After all, I BOUGHT the maps, I didn' rent them. They are mine. This is akin to having to buy all your applications anew when changing computer. If they have copyrights issues, it is their problem, not mine. When I purchased a lifetime update to maps, they never told me they would be valid only for my present unit. This could be challenged in court.
 
What's new, it has Always been that way to my knowledge.

NO different than MS windows, and probably Apple OS systems. You buy a new compute, you have to get a new license.
Bad example; when you buy a new computer, you can use your software on the new computer. You may have to buy a new operating system license (not in many cases) but the software is transferable. It's not bound to one computer. It's bound to one computer at the same time.

Problem is that this is probably clearly (if you're a lawyer) stated in the license agreement you agreed to when you installed the software. So we don't have a leg to stand on. It's a bad way to sell you the same thing twice. You don't have to buy new CD's when you buy a new player, and that's what they're saying. You buy a new device, which is compatible with the maps you already own.

If it was legal, I would point the topic starter to a certain GPS underground website where you can get a key generator that will generate a new key for you. This key will fool MapSource into thinking you're dumb enough to pay twice and let you install the maps on your new device. But it's not very legal I'm afraid, so I can't.
 
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