Easy-to-use Garmin now features a high-resolution glass touchscreen and traffic options. Wayne Gerdes – CleanMPG – April 13, 2023 Garmin has just introduced its latest addition portable GPS device, the all-new Garmin Drive 53 and Garmin Drive 53 & Traffic. Designed with the road warrior, contractor, and vacationer in mind, this cutting-edge navigation tool is packed with features that will make your excursions whether across town or across the country more enjoyable and safer than ever before. With a new sleek yet always rugged design plus Garmin's always easy to use intuitive interface, it's easy to use no matter the vehicle you are driving or the conditions you will be driving through. This GPS device will be your trusted companion every step of the way. Get ready to discover new trails, chart your own course, and explore the great outdoors with confidence. The Garmin Drive 53 provides a bright, 5” glass, 800x480 touchscreen display that makes it easy for drivers to follow their guided route. The navigator includes detailed map updates of North America and is available in two models – one includes a vehicle power cable with a traffic antenna that uses dynamic data to give customers alerts and offer alternative routes when delays from road work, accidents and other traffic conditions arise. Trip Planning The Garmin Drive 53 offers several road trip-ready features to enhance any trek. The device displays important points of interest alongside an active route, allowing drivers to see food, fuel and rest stops ahead as well as distances to upcoming cities and trip milestones. This new device includes Garmin’s standard assortment of core features to help customers navigate with ease, including: Driver alerts for potential hazards along the route with cautions for school zones, speed limit changes, sharp curves and more A thorough directory of U.S. national parks to help users easily find entrances, visitor centers and landmarks within the park Tripadvisor traveler ratings to find top-rated restaurants, hotels and attractions A dedicated GPS allows us to easily follow a recommended route without experiencing phone call interruptions during route guidance. The Garmin Drive 53 retails for $149.99, while the Garmin Drive 53 & Traffic retails for $169.99. Visit Garmin Drive 53 for more detail.
Hi All: To say I am just posting another Garmin release would be a misnomer. I am not only a fan of their portable GPS', I am an end user as evidence by my own Garmin's collected over the years. Here is almost 15-years of Garmin coverage and is not all of it. Garmin Introduces a New Glass Faced 5” GPS Garmin introduces a new lineup of DriveSmart NAVIs Jan. 20, 2021 - New Map Updates for Garmins! Garmin DriveSmart 71 EX with Traffic Garmin nuvi 2555LMT 5" GPS w/ Lifetime Map & Traffic - $95 with free shipping Garmin nuvi 52LM 5.0" GPS Navigation System with Lifetime Map Updates < $100 Garmin nuvi 2555LMT 5.0" GPS Navi w/ Lifetime Map and Traffic GARMIN Is Now Part of the S&P 500 Garmin’s latest top of the line nuvi 1490TV Top line Garmin 3700t series Garmin nüvi 1490t Portable GPS Garmin nuvi 1690 – ecoRouting, online access, social networking plus navigation Wayne
Hi All: The new glass faced Drive 53 arrived this morning and while I registered the device and am currently updating the SW including the latest maps, the one thing I have not seen from Garmin in a good while is a power cord with a built in Antenna for traffic. I have had to synch the 65 and 70 Series Garmin's to my phone via BT for that. The BT connection adds other features like look ahead POIs but I miss the original Nuvi's and Drive 50's simple power cord with antenna. The downside is that I power my Garmin's by an Anker power bricks instead of the long cord heading to the 12V outlet so traffic will be missing for my uses. Garmin Drive 53 The smallish 5" display is not overwhelming like the 65 and 70 Series I own but still offers the info I need. Namely, Direction of travel, Trip A and B, and elevation at a glance. Others may desire to have the latest, larger 7" and even 8" displays with more modern power connections - Garmin introduces a new lineup of DriveSmart NAVIs -- New 8” can be configured for landscape or portrait mode and they all now use USB-C connections, but they take up a lot of windscreen real estate. I have mixed thoughts on size since the larger displays are much easier to see and use on the road including their voice activated manipulations while the smaller 5" and 6" screens hide within a modern vehicle’s interior layout better. The Drive 53 upgrade I was most looking forward too was the smooth and much more responsive glass face and touchscreen just like my 70 series vs the Drive 50 and 52 with the slow responding grainy recessed screens. With < 10-minutes of moving around the menus, the Drive 53 is going to place my Drive 50 and 52 into storage only use. Wayne
Hi All: Here are a few more comparison details between the brand new Garmin Drive 53 and my oldest Drive 50. The Map Selection Screens have been changed with the Drive 53 showing Garmin's new entry screen for its entire lineup vs the older Drive 50. You can also see how the Drive 53s bezels have been reduced and the flat glass screen vs the embedded one including a higher resolution display is easier to read vs the older Drive 50. Drive 53 on top, Drive 50 below in both pics. Moving to the Map screen with trip data on both the Drive 53 and Drive 50 shown, the Trip A/B fonts have been increased in size making a quick glance easier to read vs the Drive 50s. The directions are 180 out since I walked into my Media room with the Drive 50 and it did not catch the 180 degree spin. One other great addition to the all-new Drive 53 is when you plug it into your PC, you can choose to allow it to go into Data Mode or cancel that and keep standard use mode up and active with a 10-second delay thanks to a cancel button (X) on the bottom to stop going into Data Mode. The Drive 50 does not have that. The Older Drive 65 and 70 had to have that choice selected in a menu before plugging into a PC to keep it from moving to the Data Screen and locking out all other functionalities. Wayne
Hi All: Not that you have tired of seeing this pic in several different threads the past two days but ... This is one of the reasons why I was thinking the 5" may be a better choice than my 7" Garmin’s? I was able to mount the new Drive 53 on the wing window so I can open and close the door without it touching anything and knocking it out of its placement every time I get out or get in. Ok, that problem is solved. Next up, the cable routing. I mentioned above about powering it with a Power Brick but in doing so, I would lose the AT-20 12V power cables built in Antenna so FM traffic would be disabled. Yes I have Google Maps via Android Auto on the 8" screen but having a display with a neutered output was not sitting well with me. The answer? Find a USB-A to Mini-USB power connector with the Garmin Antenna built in. I wish Garmin would do this for all their personal GPS' since the 12V outlet is going away while USB-A and USB-C connectors are quickly becoming commonplace inside our automobiles. For $11, I ordered this 20 AWG, USB Charging Cable Power Cord for Garmin GPS Drive DriveSmart DriveAssist TA20 for $11. The Garmin cables are 24 AWG while knockoffs are usually 28 AWG and sometimes fail to work. This one will work for power but will it work for FM reception buried in the font door like it will be? While I am waiting for the new Garmin Cable allowing Traffic when plugged into a power brick - expected possibly today, and full-sized spare including the Toyo tire arriving later this week, what about the cable routing and power brick placement? Toyota has very close tolerance interior plastics so slipping a cable behind the interior plastics is a non-starter. I ran one of my own USB-A to USB-Mini cables from the Garmin to an Anker Power brick just to get it mounted and make sure cable routing can work where I placed it. I have temporarily scotch taped the cabling as it runs down the hidden front edge of the front door and back across to the map pocket/cup holder where I have placed the Anker 2.6 Ah power brick. When the new cable arrives, I will tape that in with a thin strip of black duct tape running down the front hidden edge of the door and across the lower door face to the power brick. Next item to solve. The Anker power core is just sitting in the map pocket openings of the door and is prone to slide forward and back plus rattle. I placed it in its cloth surround and that helped but I have not semi-permanently figured out a way to secure it within the map pocket. I am thinking of making a bubble wrap pocket and securely taping it into the map pocket. The power core can then be pulled out and placed back in as necessary when it is time to recharge. I am still working on that solution. Along with where am I going to mount the ScanGauge III so its cables are hidden as well??? Mounting the GoPro to a buckle mounted at the top of the windscreen is next on my tick list. Wayne
Hi All: 2023 Toyota Prius LE Accessorizing Continues Almost ready for action. The Garmin Drive 53 is mounted and powered via 2.6 Ah Anker power core with the antenna equipped cable black Gorilla taped into a channel ahead of the front door interior edge. And it is a must have for seeing trip meters - if you care, while driving down the road and not lifting your head over the wheel all the time. The GoPro Hero9 Black is also mounted with its power cabling ran underneath the top edge of the headliner and powered via another 2.6 Ah Anker power core held within the visor organizer which is barely visible. My Galaxy S22 + is mounted in one of my standard cup holder mounts and powered with a red braided USB-C to USB-C cable to the USB-C power outlet. I do not need to use the USB-C data port since I have wireless Android Auto. Now, where in the hell do I mount the ScanGauge III so its cabling is hidden? I may mount that ahead of the lower console tray so as to keep things tidy but if it blocks access to the tray, I may mount it ... Hmmm. Wayne
Hi All: Garmin Drive 53 w/ Traffic in Action There was apparently no traffic signal in either TN and KY but as soon as I crossed the KY/IN border, traffic went live through IN, IL, and WI. My setup with a power core in the drivers door map pocket, power and traffic cable routed down the front edge of the door frame, and the 5" Garmin mounted in the wing window is really working out great. A 6" and especially the 7" and 8" Garmin's would not have fit in that tight but completely out of the way opening. Wayne
Hi All: Now with almost 20k miles on the new Garmin Drive 53 to date, it continues to perform as any Garmin in the past does except the new glass screen as I have experienced with the 6.5 adn 7" units is so much easier to read and more responsive to the touch than the older low res and grainy feeling screens of the recent past. I moved it to the passenger wing window so the ScanGauge III can go in the driver wing window, I installed the OEM 12V Aux cord and am powering it through the 23 Prius LE. I did disable "Traffic" and the "Take a Break" pop-up overlays since they were redundant but outside of that, having accurate trip distances and elevation just a glance away makes me a lot more comfortable when pushing the envelope than driving all but blind previously. I guess the smallest things make me happy. Wayne
