Demand for satellite navigation systems is continuing to rise. It’s not surprising when you consider that the price of these systems is continuing to fall, making these systems more affordable.

I was therefore interested in testing the Mio C210. This is priced at the lower end of the sat nav market so I was keen to see how well it would perform.

This is what you get in the box.

Contents

C210
Dashboard Mount
Windshield Mount
Car Charger
USB Cable
Quick User Guide
CD-ROM containing speedcam synchronization software

Detailed Specifications

Maps of the UK and major roads of Western Europe
Speed camera warnings out-of-the-box with free updates for 1 year
SiRFstarIII GPS receiver
Touch Screen 2.7” colour 240×320 resolution
SD/MMC slot
Samsung 400Mhz processor
3.5mm earphone jack
Car antenna connector

Setup

Initial setup of the device is straightforward. You simply insert 4 AA batteries, switch on and follow the simple setup instructions. This consists of choosing the language and date and time. Once that is done you are ready to use the device. The main screen looks as follows.

Batteries are not included which was a shame. It would have been nice to have seen them included in the box.

The Mio comes with a quick user guide but personally I would have preferred to have seen a more detailed user manual. If you’re technically minded then you should have no problem using the system. Otherwise you’ll need to use it a few times before you’ve figured out all the features, got the most from the system, and are comfortable using it.

The CD-ROM does provide some further information but not enough in my opinion.

Overall Look and Feel

The Mio is compact and lightweight. It weighs 110 grams, width is 59mm, height 85mm and depth 40mm. It is not as slim as I would have liked though. I found it a bit too bulky to fit into a pocket, so it is not that practical for using to navigate pedestrian routes by foot.

I suggest you consider purchasing a carry case separately. If you want to protect the Mio and make sure the screen does not get scratched then it would be a wise investment. These can be purchased in the UK for around £10.

GPS Signal

The first thing that I noticed was how well it picked up a GPS signal. Other satellite navigation systems I have used require you to stand outside for a few minutes before a signal is picked up. The Mio quite happily picked up a GPS signal with me inside a building, providing I was standing next to a window.

If it is unable to pick up a GPS signal for any reason then you get an audible warning.

Navigation

The Mio comes with detailed maps of the UK. It also comes with major roads for Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Spain and Sweden.

The Mio also supports the following languages – Czech, Danish, German, English (UK), English (US), Spanish, French, Italian, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Finnish, Swedish, Turkish, Flemish and Greek.

The navigation units can be set to use either metric (kilometres/metres) or imperial (miles/yards or miles/feet).

Navigation can be done by either entering a full UK postcode, or by entering a city and street name.

It supports all the normal navigation features you would expect such as being able to plan routes by the fastest or shortest route. It also supports planning routes depending on the type of vehicle you’re driving, such as taxi, bus, lorry (truck), and emergency vehicle. Based upon this information it will plan your route accordingly. For example, driving an emergency vehicle will allow it to ignore any travel restrictions that may apply on certain roads.

It also supports planning journeys by bicycle or pedestrian routes on foot.

If there are particular destinations you travel to frequently then you can make use of the favourites feature to store these for easy access later.

The Mio had no problem navigating to my destinations, both in large towns and country areas. It performed well in both areas, even along small country roads.

Whilst driving your vehicle the screen will display a map with your current position, current speed, miles remaining to destination and estimated minutes remaining to reach your destination. The maps will also display current speed limits that apply to the road you’re driving on, plus any speed cameras you’re approaching.

I tested the Mio with the settings set to imperial measurement (miles/yards). Whilst driving along it would give directions like ‘in 0.4 miles take first exit at roundabout’. It would have been better to tell me when I was half a mile from the roundabout, rather than 0.4 miles. Another example was telling me to turn left in 0.9 miles, again I would have preferred it to have told me when I was 1 mile from the junction, but this is just me being picky.

Screen

I found the screen clear and easy to read. Maps were displayed with a good range of detail and colour. The Mio also supports automatic night colours so that the screen is easier to read when driving at night.

You can zoom in and out depending on the level of detail required. If you want to zoom out so you can see the entire route then that is easy to do, as seen in the image below.

Some people may find the touch screen controls a bit fiddly to use with your finger, plus you end up smudging the screen with your fingerprints. Some of the buttons, especially the on screen keyboard are just too small to use by finger. If you’ve got large hands you’ll struggle. I found it far easier to use by touching the screen with a ballpoint pen. Navigation using this method was very easy. It’s a shame the Mio doesn’t come with a stylus. That would have been a welcome touch.

Volume

I left the device on the default volume settings and I was able to clearly hear the instructions. I tested the device up to speeds of 60mph with the windows closed. Once I opened the windows it was more difficult to hear the instructions.

The Mio does come with dynamic volume settings so that the volume increases the faster you drive. If you still cannot hear the instructions then you can adjust these volume settings to higher volume levels if required.

Speed Cameras and Speed Limit Warnings

The Mio comes with speed camera warnings out-of-the-box ready to use as soon as you switch on the device. It also comes with free speed cameras updates for 1 year. To get the latest speed camera updates you need to install the MioSync software that comes on the provided CD-ROM in the box. You then connect the Mio to your PC using the USB cable and run the synchronization process.

In addition you have the option to manually add new fixed or mobile speed cameras. This is useful if you discover new speed cameras not stored on the Mio or online database. You just click the map on the Mio screen at the point the speed camera is located and it will remember the location.

Whilst driving the Mio will provide an audible warning when approaching a speed camera or when you are driving over the speed limit which I found very useful. You can tweak these features if required. For example you can set the Mio to only warn you of speeding when you a certain percentage over the speed limit, such as 5% or 10% over the speed limit. This warning feature can be switched off completely if required.

Here is an example map showing the location of a speedcam at a motorway junction.

I found the speed camera warnings accurate, correctly detecting locations of both fixed and mobile devices. I also liked the audible warning when driving over the speed limit, for example driving 40mph in a 30mph zone. It can be quite easy to drift over the speed limit whilst driving so if you’re keen on sticking to the speed limits then you will like this feature. Again this feature can be switched off if not needed.

I found a couple of occasions where it didn’t correctly detect the right speed for the road I was driving on, but these were rare. The majority of the time it correctly detected the speed limit for the road I was driving on.

Other Features

The Mio has a SD/MMC slot which you can use to insert a storage card if you want to store additional information such as map data.

The Mio also supports points of interest (POI). Using this feature it will show you nearby amenities, such as hotels, petrol stations, restaurants, etc. that are in your current location. If you select a POI it will then provide you with a phone number for that amenity. You can also plot a journey to any given POI.

On the whole I found the POI worked very well. Only once did it not function correctly. I tried driving onto an industrial estate and I can only assume the map software did not recognize the area, as it was unable to show me any POI in the nearby area, instead it showed me POI in the London area which was some 80 miles from where I was testing the Mio. As soon as I drove back onto a main road the POI worked again.

Summary

Overall this is a great satellite navigation system. I was surprised how many features it had when you consider the cheap price tag. The controls are a bit fiddly unless you use a ballpoint pen, and it is a bit too chunky to fit into a pocket, but apart from that I’ve got no real complaints. If Mio could develop a slimline version of this sat nav system then they would be on to a real winner.

If you want a cheap, reliable sat nav system then I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Pros
Strong GPS signal
Easy setup
Speed cameras and speed limit warnings out-of-the-box

Cons
Some controls fiddly to use
No stylus
Not as slim as I would have liked

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