V7 NAV740

Tested two V7 models, the NAV740, which is for budget GPS devices, and its smaller screen sibling, the NAV730, both of which boast generous feature sets and low prices. The primary differences between the two devices are screen size and price.

The NAV740 ($299.95 list) has a 4.3 inch wide screen, while the NAV730 ($199.95 list) has a 3.5 inch screen. For this review, I'll focus on the NAV740 model, but will highlight some differences with the NAV730.

The hardware platform is similar to many other navigation devices we've reviewed.

It's based on the Samsung S3C2440 400-MHz processor with 64MB of flash memory and 64MB of SDRAM. The software runs on top of Windows CE .NET 5.0.

The receiver is a 20 channels SiRFstarIII with a built in antenna. As with virtually all portable

GPS devices, there's an antenna jack for an external antenna, but with the sensitivity of the SiRFstarIII, you rarely need one.

The NAV740 measures 3.3 by 4.9 by 0.8 inches (HWD) and weighs 7.1 ounces. At about three quarters of an inch thick, it's not the thinnest unit on the market, but it does come close. The 4.3 inch WQVGA display is 480 by 272 pixels. V7 rates the built in 1,600 mAh lithium polymer battery at 3.5 hours in GPS navigation mode.

Both devices come with the standard suction cup windshield mount, as well as a car power adapter. The NAV740 also includes an AC power adapter. Neither unit comes with an adhesive disk to allow dashboard mounting in states where windshield mounted devices might get you a traffic ticket.

Each device features a standby power switch, a reset button, a 3.5mm audio out jack, and a mini USB connector on the right hand side. At the left, you'll find the slot for the SD card as well as a volume up or down switch.

It's nice to have a dedicated volume switch, that founded a hardware volume control is easier, and safer, to use while driving than navigating through menus. Both devices also support dynamic volume adjustment, meaning that you can set them to increase volume automatically based on your driving speed.