The Streetpilot c330 has sold millions of copies since it was released several years ago and is the father of the modern GPS navigation unit. It revolutionized the industry and set the tone for quality and reliability in the industry for years.

This is an older GPS model and it does not have some of the features that a modern GPS would have, like bluetooth integration and MP3 compatibility, but it still picks up satellite signals and is equipped with Garmin's high quality routing system. And for the price, what more could you ask for?

Here are the words of someone who found their experience with the Garmin Streetpilot c330 to be wanting:

Most of what these reviews say about the unit is mostly true. But I was still disappointed with the unit's overall performance. To be fair, I think the biggest problem I had was how outdated the maps were.

My first trip was from my home to my office (to try it out). My office building was constructed about 3 years ago. The road and the building are not on the unit's map. So the directions were not optimal.

Later, I took a trip to the NC mountains. During one segment of the trip, the unit routed me way off course (about 1 extra hour). I know this because after I returned I typed the same route into Mapquest and Mapblast. Both routed me the better way. What was more annoying was that all of the roads were included in the maps in the unit. So not sure what the problem here was.

During multiple segments of the return trip, the unit showed my location way off the highway (i.e., running parallel to the highway, but about 1 mile north). I reset the unit and it corrected the display. This problem happened frequently, but was intermittent.

Summary:

The unit worked well about 75% of the time, but when I needed it most (i.e., driving in areas I'm unfamiliar with) I was constantly checking the unit against a map to see if it was working well.

Weighing all of the evidence I concluded that the unit was more distracting than navigating using a good map and a semi-functional brain. So I decided to return the unit and wait for better technology and/or a better solution to the map-lag problem (see below).

Note: I think the biggest problem with this whole approach may be the task of getting the updated maps to the units. Garmin told me the same thing that others here say: maps are updated about every 12 to 18 months. Assuming this is true, my experience indicates that that's too long. In other words, there were so many new roads added since the last map update, that the unit didn't perform well enough to meet what I consider pretty realistic expectations during the trip described above.

Mapping on older GPS models can often find a lot to be lacking. They simply do not benefit from the massive advances in routing technology that companies like Garmin, Magellan, and TomTom have made in recent years. I mean the Garmin Streetpilot c330 is around 5 years old - and that is ancient in terms of navigational GPS!

Here is a positive review that still finds some faults with this refurbished GPS - yet it still gave it a 5 out of 5 review!

I just bought the Garmin C330 for our 1-week trip to California. Before I left Iowa to fly into LAX, I entered all the addresses I planned to visit. This unit took me to all the right locations (hotels, restaurants, attractions, friends',etc) in San Diego, Orange County, San Francisco, San Jose and back to LAX. Particularly, I had to stop by a house in Newport Coast, CA unexpectedly. This house is in a gated community on a hill top overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It requires many turns to get there. I consider myself a good navigator with traditional map but I think I would have difficulty trying to get there without the GPS. People at the house were shocked that I was able to get there the first time given just the address. I was really impressed with the C330's capability. I also like the POI's features, especially the "fuel" and "restaurant" features. At anytime, it can show me the restaurants (by type such as Fast Food, Chinese,etc) nearby. It really helped because sometimes a McDonald is only a street or two from either your left or right side and you do not know it. The unit will show all the restaurants nearby around your current position.

On I-5 from LAX to San Francisco, it took us to a gas station that had been closed. Luckily, there was another gas station that was about a mile away. New businesses open and old ones close everyday, so I do not expect the POI (point of interest)to be 100% updated and accurate.

Negatives: I think another reviewer has pointed out, the volume control does not work very well. It is either max (a little loud) or you cannot hear it if you turn it down. However, I consider it a minor problem. I wish they have a listing for "pizza." My daughter loves pizza especially Pizza Hut and Papa John. I was having difficulty finding it at first under "fast food" but later on found out they were listed under "Italian." They don't seem to list pizza places that only have carry-out and delivery. Before I leave for a trip, I normally check the Pizza Hut and PPJ websites for their locations, then enter them in the unit.

I definitely likes this individuals "understanding" that no GPS device, not even the newest of the new, is going to be able to know the location of every address you could possibly want to find. It just isn't possible.

But it does highlight something interesting about an older GPS model - they really work best in locations where things can't change that much. That means major metropolitan areas that have already been developed. If you live in a place like this, how much has the major roads changed in the past year? Not very much.

Sometimes, the price differences between refurbished items and new items can be staggering. The refurbished Garmin Streetpilot c330 GPS is a prime example of that. As you can see, the device is significantly (over $100) cheaper than a new unit. The Streetpilot c330 is certainly affordable for even the tightest budget and, for the dollar, provides a quality navigation experience.

If you are looking for something a with a few more features, then you might want to take a look at a few new models offered by Garmin, TomTom, or Magellan.  You should be able to find many more features, but you will probably end up paying double what you would for the c330.