Another thing to note about this unit is that it also has a 3.5mm av input. I am thinking about adding a rear view camera at some point.

 

I like it. Thanks for the narrative and great pictures of your installation.

You are correct: For sure it is more cost effective than the stock navigation (Magellan $250-$375 vs. Stock Nissan Navigation at $2,200), and in fact the Megallan is a superior GPS.

Also, Megellan builds a very durable device, so no worry about the bumps and temperature swings that happen in a car’s interior.

Megellan’s animation-like screen display (similar to Kenwood/Garmin) is very intuitive, easily read, and redraws very fast.

I doubt you will have any more problem with screen wash-out under bright light (what kham25 mentions) than you face with any LCD screen. In fact Megallan devices’ feature list includes compensatory adjustments to handle this. One very nice feature is the Auto Night View™ that automatically adjusts your screen's color and contrast for easy night viewing.

Your mount looks very good. I would be surprised if you had any problems with this.

Looking forward to your review once you have the opportunity to run this.

--Spike

 

Get that cheeseburger locker outta here Randy...

I keed i keed

Looks good OP and Blck350z

 

More importantly what kind of power switch does it have?

 

^^duro78^^
The powering on and off was an item I was worried about also... but this unit features an auto power down when the current is shut off(turning the key off). It was another selling point to this unit.

That would great!!! but how would the camera know the car is in reverse.... would there be a wire going from the reverse lights or something to tell the camera to switch over....????

 

You would have to switch it manually. I am presuming on screen. I wonder if there is a headunit that with video in/out that will switch it for you.

 

Yes....I believe the Pioneer that I got (its still shipping) will do that. A lot of after market head units do and use the wire I spoke about aove ...or one similar to get that signal. I was just doubtful that the magellan had anything of the likes.

 

They have an upgrade system where you can punch in a code to get new features, but they haven't started selling any codes yet. Maybe there will be a firmware update that will do the switching at some point, but for now, I am looking at monitor-less dvd receivers and living with the switch for now.

 

I am really hoping that mine fits as easily as yours, but I have the 03 cubby and just from eyeing it in pics I have seen on mp3car.com, it looks like its going to be a tight fit. I might have to remove the case :\. Would anyone happen to know the measurements on the back of the cubby where it will be mounted?

Are you hardwiring yours, and if so, are you just tapping the radio 12v switch power? From what I have read, you have to keep the cigarette adapter attached because a lot of units need a lower voltage like 9v. I was thinking about buying a cheap cigarette lighter and just running that to my 12v switch and hooking it up behind the dash.

 

[QUOTE=Blck350z;8382649]^^duro78^^
The powering on and off was an item I was worried about also... but this unit features an auto power down when the current is shut off(turning the key off). It was another selling point to this unit.


The thing is once its powered off do you manually have to hit the switch to turn it on or will it turn on once the acc power source is on I cant tell you how many plans i had to scrap because if this simple problem because obviously they're would be no way to access it once its mounted behind the cubby.

 

From the manual:

 

I used the setup yesterday (minus the pioneer and "fake" keypad) to travel to functioned tuned to get "Jtgli's" car tuned and it worked flawlessly it powers on nd off dime and even directed us around an accident on US15 !! love this unit and evenone thought it looked great!

will post pics later

 

Spike

Im coming from using a Garmin Nuvi 750, an eclipse 5435 and Stock Lex GX 470 Navi... All these screens DO NOT wash out unlike this Magellan. The Garmin portable is far superior in daytime comparing to this Magellan.I made adjustments according to the manual..NO real impovements was noticed..
Perhaps it because where i mounted the screen as seen in page one..Its the best solution that i could come up with at the time..

I do not plan on buying the 03 dash and perhaps those who do will get better screen quality because off screen angle
I emailed you after a couple after seeking advice because i was disappointed remember..... I do not drive my car often now during the day so it took me a while to notice this annoying flaw.

 

I have an 03 and just installed the 1700 this last weekend. It will NOT fit with the case as is. What I did was to take the case off and used my bench sander to sand off about an 1/4 inch off each side. The key was to sand it down just short of the screw holes on the sides (I have pictures). After that it fit perfectly. I made a bracket to hold it in place. The lid works just fine and it looks really good. I'll post some picture when I get a chance. The cigarette adapter puts out 5 volts, if I remember correctly, so I went to Wal-Mart and bought a $5 cigarette lighter socket and connected it to the switched 12V to the head unit. So with the 1700's power switch in the On position it turns on and off with the car. Works great. Its been rainy and cloudy since I put it in so I don't what it looks like on a very sunny day, but so far it looks great.

 

I just got mine in the mail today. I am pretty impressed at the interface so far, which is all I have been able to mess with as its late here already, but I will be trying the navigation on the way to work tomorrow morning. Also, its so much bigger in person, especially compared to my old Mio. The volume is very loud, so that will be great for when its in the cubby. The screen is very bright and crisp.

Awesome, that is great news that someone else has done it on an 03. Ya, I figured I will have to some cutting. I am just glad its a fairly minor case modification. Bye-bye warranty . Please post pictures, I have so many ideas in my head as to how I am going to mount it. I really want stability, it will drive me insane if it moves in the slightest bit when I touch it.

As for the sunlight readability, I think its going to be fine back in the cubby.

Installation is this weekend. I am going to post pics of the install when I get done.

 

I tried the navigation this morning on the way to work. It tried to take me on the interstate to work, which technically is the fastest way, but I prefer to stay off SC's interstate system because of the trash in the road which always manages to hit my car. I know two ppl that have had to replace windshields and my brother has replaced two tires. Anyways, it quickly changed its route without spitefully saying "Recalculating" like my old unit. I have never had a text to speech unit either and it also worked very well.

I could not find the A/V menu button, so I guess that will not show up unless it detects something in the jack. I might grab a 3.5mm A/V cable this weekend to test it.

 

Here are some pictures of how I installed the 1700 into my 2003's cubby:


The GPS without the case.


The front of the case with the GPS removed. The speaker is removed and relocated.


The back of the case. The two slots in the lower middle of the back case is used to keep the GPS from slipping down by the bracket shown two pictures below.


Sanding off the sides of the case to make it fit in the cubby.


The bracket that holds the GPS in place.


The GPS mounted with the power, A/V and USB cables connected. The black and red wires are the speaker wires, the speaker was relocated.


The speaker was moved to the compartment below the head unit so that the sound is directed into the passenger compartment instead of into the dash.


The GPS mounted with the screen protector still on to - mum - protect the screen.


Another view of the GPS.

 

Just started my install tonight, about 80% done. I mounted mine different from Mike's Z. I used epoxy to attach L-brackets and drilled holes into the sides of the cubby. The power supply is mounted to the roof of the cubby

 

Done. Took it for a test drive and the reception is great and I can clearly hear it behind the dash.

 

I remember our discussion… I didn’t mean to sound “preachy” or confrontational.

I agree with your comment that the Garmin devices display better in bright ambient light. I think that is because the Garmin devices use software that show maps in a more animated display (more “cartoon-like" for lack of a better descriptive term) with more contrast than does Magellan.

Magellan goes for the more Rand McNally “look,” which provides more realistic maps but entails softer background colors. That means you need to adjust the Magellan to its brightest setting to match the clarity you get from Garmin units (that have more contrast by nature of their map drawing). Apparently you did that, and the display was still not satisfactory. I don’t believe (maybe I’m wrong here though) Magellan provides a contrast setting… but, only a brightness setting.

One thing you can do with the Magellan to get a high contrast screen is setting the unit to always display as the Auto Night View™, which provide more contrast. That’s meant for night-time viewing, but also works great in the daytime under bright ambient light because that setting has a lot of contrast.

For what’s it’s worth (my opinion), the best 7” LCD screens for a car when viewing under bright ambient light come from Kenwood and Alpine (either built-in double-din LCDs or the remote screens from these companies).

--Spike