Absolutely! Any nϋvi with a photo viewer, which is the majority of nϋvis, will let you customize the start-up screen with a JPEG image. Whether you want to see a photo of your smiling kids or maybe you’re a fleet operator that wants to display your company’s logo, you can personalize the nϋvi with a few easy steps. This step-by-step tutorial explains the process using the nϋvi 1xxx series, but the steps are similar for most nϋvis.

To get started, from the home screen go to “Tools” and then select “Picture Viewer.” Once in the Picture Viewer, select the image you want for your start-up screen. The image you select will go from a thumbnail to a large, full screen image.

Click on the “i” icon on the left tool bar. Once you do, you’ll see a thumbnail of the image and the bottom of the screen will offer you the option to “Display at power on?” Check the box, and now get ready to admire your handiwork. The image you’ve selected will now be displayed when you power on your nuvi. 

If you don’t like the preloaded images in the nϋvi , you can add your own image to the nϋvi’s Picture Viewer, by connecting your nϋvi to your computer via the USB cable and then drag and drop your selected image into the JPEG folder in the Garmin nϋvi drive.

With features such as ecoRoute, lifetime traffic and cityXplorer, the ultra-thin and portable nϋvi 1390T is popular for epic road trips and scenic vacations. But The Family Handyman magazine points out that it excels with everyday chores as well. In their April issue, The Family Handyman shines the spotlight on nϋvi as an example of “Brainier navigation.”

“Even if you’re not map impaired, you need this cool GPS from Garmin,” the editors write. “It taps into traffic reports and reroutes you around traffic jams. That’ll save you time. Want to pick up food on the way? This baby will pull up all the restaurants along your route and sort them by cuisine. Get the Bluetooth model and you can use it as a speakerphone.”

While we all dream of big adventures and exotic excursions, thanks to the folks at Family Handyman for reminding us that little helpers like a pocket-sized nϋvi can keep our daily routine from becoming a nightmare.

Join the Garmin Chicago team on March 23 for an exclusive first look at the highly anticipated GPSMAP 6000/7000 and 700 series. A reservation is required, so RSVP now for your chance to interact with the newest marine products!

Enjoy light Hors D’oeuvres while listening to a special presentation demonstrating the exclusive Garmin G Motion featured on the new large-format MFD series. Attendees will also have the opportunity to participate in in-depth Q&A sessions with our product experts. 

Click here for additional event details including RSVP contact info (pdf).

You don’t have to wait until this event to see marine products – just visit the second floor of Garmin Chicago to see an entire line of fish finders, chartplotters, portable devices and marine instruments. With a $100 rebate on the 401/501/506 series, how can you afford not to? Our staff is on hand to answer all your networking and navigation questions, and to help find you the perfect device.

Garmin Chicago carries the latest and greatest in all of our product lines, so stop by and ask about deals not just in marine, but also in fitness, automotive, outdoor and aviation. For a limited time, save 10% on all accessories purchased with a device, and don’t miss the nüvi 1390T or 765T that we are selling bundled with nüMaps lifetime maps for North America.

When we announced Garmin’s new Voice Studio at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show, we turned heads, raised eyebrows and got a lot of people talking … as the voice on their own nüvi. And because Voice Studio is a free and easy way to customize your nüvi, you can record your own voice, or have your kids give you directions, or let your spouse navigate, or practice your impressions to surprise and impress your friends – or a little of everything. So because the answers to the most popular questions – “How much does it cost” and “How long does it take” – were “nothing” and “not long,” the question that always follows is “How do I do it?”

Simply download the free Voice Studio application from http://www.garmin.com/voicestudio and install it on a PC. You can then record a few dozen phrases, and edit them directly within the Voice Studio application. To achieve the best quality recordings, we recommend that you use an external microphone. Once complete, the voice file is loaded onto a compatible Garmin nüvi. The entire process typically takes less than 30 minutes.

Combined with free and fun icons from the Garmin Garage (http://www8.garmin.com/vehicles/) – and other downloadable voices – Garmin customers can personalize their devices to a degree that no other navigation provider can match. Voice Studio is compatible with all nüvis except the nüvi 300 and 600 series. Voice Studio does not provide text-to-speech directions.

The nüvi 1390T continues to impress those it meets. According to a recent blog review by smarter, “Garmin arguably makes some of the best GPS navigation units, and the nüvi 1390T is in my opinion, the best of their bunch. With an innovative
touch-screen interface, extensive battery life, and an extensive host
of additional features, it has the ability to get you where you need to
go, and fast.” 

The free lifetime traffic updates and street navigation features are what impressed the reviewer, but one of the other great capabilities that wasn’t mentioned is pedestrian navigation. If you’re traveling to a city and know you’ll be walking more than driving, you should consider cityXplorer. The optional cityXplorer maps are about $10 for a city, and with them you’ll receive street directions using public transportation. The nüvi can then let you know where to walk, how far to walk, and where to catch
the bus, subway, or tram. Just think of how much you can save if you’re able to use the metro in an unfamiliar city rather than cabbing it everywhere you go. cityXplorer could save you a lot of taxi receipts in the long run. Want to learn more? Visit our online demo and take the nüvi 1390T for a walk around the block.