Is there an external antenna that will work with a Nuvi 1200? I bought
a GA 27c antenna, but there doesn't seem to be anyplace to plug it
into the nuvi. Then I thought perhaps it was supposed to plug into the
power cord somewhere, but there's no socket available for plugging it
into the power cord either. Thanks for any help.

Op 8-11-2011 7:03, Joseph wrote:
> Is there an external antenna that will work with a Nuvi 1200? I bought
> a GA 27c antenna, but there doesn't seem to be anyplace to plug it
> into the nuvi. Then I thought perhaps it was supposed to plug into the
> power cord somewhere, but there's no socket available for plugging it
> into the power cord either. Thanks for any help.

It is all explained on page 34 of your owners manual:
http://www8.garmin.com/manuals/3130_OwnersManual.pdf
--

Cheerio,
Rudolpho
Carpe diem

Rudolpho wrote:
> Op 8-11-2011 7:03, Joseph wrote:
>> Is there an external antenna that will work with a Nuvi 1200? I
>> bought a GA 27c antenna, but there doesn't seem to be anyplace to
>> plug it into the nuvi. Then I thought perhaps it was supposed to
>> plug into the power cord somewhere, but there's no socket available
>> for plugging it into the power cord either. Thanks for any help.
>
> It is all explained on page 34 of your owners manual:
> http://www8.garmin.com/manuals/3130_OwnersManual.pdf

A quick comparison of mentions of the GA 27c antenna and that manual page
makes it clear that two different antennas are being discussed. Page 34 is
about TMC local traffic condition transmissions which are completely
separate from GPS transmissions from satellites as received by GA 27c.

Mike.
--
If reply address is Mike@@mjcoon.+.com (invalid), remove spurious "@"
and substitute "plus" for +.

> A quick comparison of mentions of the GA 27c antenna and that manual page
> makes it clear that two different antennas are being discussed. Page 34 is
> about TMC local traffic condition transmissions which are completely
> separate from GPS transmissions from satellites as received by GA 27c.

Thanks, Rudolpho and Mike. From my reading of manual page 34, it
appears to be discussing a special power cord that you only receive if
you purchase a traffic subscription. Even if I purchase the traffic
subscription, it's not clear to me whether the "External antenna
connector" on that power cord is compatible with the GA 27c. So I
still don't understand how/whether an external antenna can be used
with the nuvi 1200.

OK, I've heard back from Garmin support now. Unfortunately, they
confirm that the GA 27c antenna cannot be used with the nuvi 1200. The
strange thing is that I read somewhere that they were compatible
before I ordered it. Evidently that was not good information. Also,
Garmin says that antenna cannot be used with any of their newer
models. This disturbs me because my main complaint with the 1200 is
that it stops working in and around downtown areas. E.g. in London it
could not get a signal until we were as far out as Heathrow. In L.A.
it gets dicey if the downtown buildings are anywhere on the horizon.
That is, you don't have to actually be in between tall buildings for
the signal to be lost. If there's no external antenna option, then the
nuvi is fundamentally useless much of the time when I most need it.

Am 09.11.2011 06:37, schrieb Joseph:
> That is, you don't have to actually be in between tall buildings for
> the signal to be lost. If there's no external antenna option, then the
> nuvi is fundamentally useless much of the time when I most need it.

There are GPS-repeaters on the market with a antenna outside and a small
transmitter inside the car. This is usually recommended if you have
metal coated windows.

Jo

On Tue, 8 Nov 2011 21:37:25 -0800 (PST), Joseph
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>OK, I've heard back from Garmin support now. Unfortunately, they
>confirm that the GA 27c antenna cannot be used with the nuvi 1200. The
>strange thing is that I read somewhere that they were compatible
>before I ordered it. Evidently that was not good information. Also,
>Garmin says that antenna cannot be used with any of their newer
>models. This disturbs me because my main complaint with the 1200 is
>that it stops working in and around downtown areas. E.g. in London it
>could not get a signal until we were as far out as Heathrow. In L.A.
>it gets dicey if the downtown buildings are anywhere on the horizon.
>That is, you don't have to actually be in between tall buildings for
>the signal to be lost. If there's no external antenna option, then the
>nuvi is fundamentally useless much of the time when I most need it.

I don't know about your 1200, but if my Nuvi 760 ever begins to work
that poorly I'm going to suspect major issues. I need to be in a
serious skyscraper jungle before it starts to have problems.

Joseph wrote on Nov 9, 2011:

> OK, I've heard back from Garmin support now. Unfortunately, they
> confirm that the GA 27c antenna cannot be used with the nuvi 1200. The
> strange thing is that I read somewhere that they were compatible
> before I ordered it. Evidently that was not good information. Also,
> Garmin says that antenna cannot be used with any of their newer
> models. This disturbs me because my main complaint with the 1200 is
> that it stops working in and around downtown areas. E.g. in London it
> could not get a signal until we were as far out as Heathrow. In L.A.
> it gets dicey if the downtown buildings are anywhere on the horizon.
> That is, you don't have to actually be in between tall buildings for
> the signal to be lost. If there's no external antenna option, then the
> nuvi is fundamentally useless much of the time when I most need it.

I think your first priority should be to investigate why your Nuvi is
performing so poorly. All Nuvis should be quite capable of receiving
satellite signals in most urban situations.

It is possible that your car is fitted with heat reflective windscreen which
blocks gps signals as well as heat from the sun. You could easily test this
by stopping in a place where you have lost reception, and holding the unit
outside the car (or trying it in a different vehicle).

If it is not your car that is blocking the satellite signals, then you have a
faulty unit and you should return your Nuvi to Garmin for repair. If it is
your car then a reradiating antenna is your only solution. They're quite
expensive unfortunately as you can see here:
http://tinyurl.com/cnpl8zl

--
Mike Lane
UK North Yorkshire
mike_lane at mac dot com

Mike Lane wrote the following:
> Joseph wrote on Nov 9, 2011:
>
>> OK, I've heard back from Garmin support now. Unfortunately, they
>> confirm that the GA 27c antenna cannot be used with the nuvi 1200. The
>> strange thing is that I read somewhere that they were compatible
>> before I ordered it. Evidently that was not good information. Also,
>> Garmin says that antenna cannot be used with any of their newer
>> models. This disturbs me because my main complaint with the 1200 is
>> that it stops working in and around downtown areas. E.g. in London it
>> could not get a signal until we were as far out as Heathrow. In L.A.
>> it gets dicey if the downtown buildings are anywhere on the horizon.
>> That is, you don't have to actually be in between tall buildings for
>> the signal to be lost. If there's no external antenna option, then the
>> nuvi is fundamentally useless much of the time when I most need it.
>
> I think your first priority should be to investigate why your Nuvi is
> performing so poorly. All Nuvis should be quite capable of receiving
> satellite signals in most urban situations.
>
> It is possible that your car is fitted with heat reflective windscreen which
> blocks gps signals as well as heat from the sun. You could easily test this
> by stopping in a place where you have lost reception, and holding the unit
> outside the car (or trying it in a different vehicle).
>
> If it is not your car that is blocking the satellite signals, then you have a
> faulty unit and you should return your Nuvi to Garmin for repair. If it is
> your car then a reradiating antenna is your only solution. They're quite
> expensive unfortunately as you can see here:

....and also discontinued!

> http://tinyurl.com/cnpl8zl
>


--

Bill
In Hamptonburgh, NY
In the original Orange County. Est. 1683
To email, remove the double zeroes after @

On 9-11-2011 7:15, Sunshine wrote:
> On Tue, 8 Nov 2011 21:37:25 -0800 (PST), Joseph
> <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
>> OK, I've heard back from Garmin support now. Unfortunately, they
>> confirm that the GA 27c antenna cannot be used with the nuvi 1200. The
>> strange thing is that I read somewhere that they were compatible
>> before I ordered it. Evidently that was not good information. Also,
>> Garmin says that antenna cannot be used with any of their newer
>> models. This disturbs me because my main complaint with the 1200 is
>> that it stops working in and around downtown areas. E.g. in London it
>> could not get a signal until we were as far out as Heathrow. In L.A.
>> it gets dicey if the downtown buildings are anywhere on the horizon.
>> That is, you don't have to actually be in between tall buildings for
>> the signal to be lost. If there's no external antenna option, then the
>> nuvi is fundamentally useless much of the time when I most need it.
>
> I don't know about your 1200, but if my Nuvi 760 ever begins to work
> that poorly I'm going to suspect major issues. I need to be in a
> serious skyscraper jungle before it starts to have problems.
>

Any narrow street will get you in trouble. Walking through Amsterdam, my
Garmins 60CSx will lose signal when walking in te city-centre. The are
no skyscrapers of any serious height overthere.
--

Cheerio,
Rudolpho
Carpe diem