Garmin RV 890 GPS

I recently needed to buy a new GPS because my old one simply wore out and died. I looked at several brands and decided to give the Garmin 890 RV a try.

The design and build quality are excellent! The GPS is built on an Android tablet, and that gives it the ability to run Android apps and provide functionality outside the realm of the GPS task.

The screen is large, bright and easy to read. Included with the unit is a truly excellent magnetic mount that eliminates the need to connect cables to the GPS itself. Power and data are sent through the mount. It also has the best windshield suction cup I’ve ever seen. It sticks to the windshield like a bad relation and provides a stable base for the mount. Unlike some of the previous Garmin units I’ve owned, this one has surprisingly good battery life, at least three to four hours. That makes it possible to grab it off the mount and take it to an outside chair to leisurely plan your next trip.

The unit allows you to enter your RV height, weight, length, etc., and it takes that information into consideration when it routes you. There’s no guarantee it won’t take you someplace you shouldn’t go, but it does reduce the possibility. Navigation is easy, the touch screen works like a phone with two-finger
zoom and pan, and the voice quality and volume is better than average. Street names and directions are
given verbally and shown on the screen in nice large letters.

There is a good trip-planning function built into this GPS. It will allow you to create trips with multiple stops, and edit and modify saved trips. However, it’s not all that easy to figure out from scratch: It took me a number of sessions of sitting and playing with the GPS to understand how to make the trip planner work for me. Once I learned how the interface wanted me to do things, I found it to be useful and functional. Just be aware there’s a big learning curve on the trip planner.

Need hands-free options? Simply say “OK Garmin,” and tell it where you want to go. The unit also offers real-time traffic, weather and gas prices, but that requires you to install the Garmin Drive app on your phone. Wi-Fi is built-in, so map updates are a snap and lifetime maps are included.

I really like this GPS! Yes, there are some things in the user interface I find frustrating but, overall, I’m very happy with it. It’s become a trusted and reliable work-horse on my dash.

Complete Product Name: Garmin RV 890

Company Name and Info: Garmin.com

Online Shopping Links: https://amzn.to/3HBQADB

Average Street Price: $499.99

Additional information: PART NUMBER 010-02425-00

Original Publication Date: MA/22