Joined: 22 Jun 2008 Posts: 123 Location: Chandler, AZ
Could there be a Nuvi 760 production run change over? Wed Jul 02, 2008 3:22 pm
Not trying to start rumors, but something I was wondering and wanted to get everyone elses take on.
At gpspassion there is a thread where someone in Europe got a 760 with an MTK gps chipset and the screen is much dimmer than his previous 760. He even has photos to show it (quite a difference actually). Now I know this was Europe, but....
We have seen in the last month that several merchants lowered the price on the 760 to $349. This was a smoking deal and looks like it cleared out a lot of merchants. Best Buy is on back order and several other online places show the 760 out of stock. They all say it should be back in 1 - 2 weeks. Also, Costco had the 760 units before the $349 deal, and then as soon as that deal expired they were gone from their site. I ordered on the last day and received one. I would have to think this was a popular item for Costco and I doubt they sold every last one of them, so why would they be pulled from their site? Plus, I don't think Costco ever had them in their warehouse - I bet it was just a Garmin warehouse that shipped them when you ordered through Costco.
So, I am wondering if Garmin went through a production change to an MTK chipset and a different screen manufacturer, and the $349 deal was to get rid of their older inventory before the new ones come off the line. I just find it odd that several merchants are out of stock and that Garmin just gave everyone $100 off one of their best units. It seems they were trying to move inventory - just not sure why.
The fact that Garmin hasn't acknowledged the addition of SiRFinstantFix was puzzling, and I can only imagine it was to offer them the flexibility to change chipsets without changing their info/spec pages. I doubt that the recent price drops would be an indicator-- rather I think it was because the 800 and 5000 series devices are starting to hit shelves.
Garmin has changed screens mid-production before, with the 300 series devices most noticeable.
So I wouldn't take the price drop as a signal, however the overall theory itself is quite plausible.
Joined: 22 Jun 2008 Posts: 123 Location: Chandler, AZ
Wed Jul 02, 2008 3:52 pm
Yeah - it could all be coincidence, but it still doesn't make sense to me.
The reason the price drop is puzzling is that it wasn't permanent. Most sites are back up to their normal prices and sold out. I understand the 800 series is coming out - but it is still so much more in price, why undercut the sales even more of your high end unit by lowering the price of the next unit down.
If given a choice between and 850 at $700+ and a 760 at $349, I am sure most people will choose a 760. But price that 760 at $599, now I will look a little more at the 850. You don't lower your price on a product unless your are trying to clear that unit out. The 760 sales were strong at the original price. It's not like the 760 was discontinued and the 850 was the replacement. If you are clearing out units because of a new version, it's usually to replace it, not to sell in conjunction with it. That's why I am puzzled - this doesn't follow the normal trend for other electronics.
Bryan
P.S. And think about this - the 760 was priced lower than a 750, and even a 600 series. That's not normal pricing - that's pricing to move.
Last edited by bacevedo on Wed Jul 02, 2008 4:26 pm; edited 1 time in total
Joined: 22 Jun 2008 Posts: 123 Location: Chandler, AZ
Wed Jul 02, 2008 4:24 pm
Looking forward to what you find out.
I wanted to clarify earlier about the price of a 760 vs an 850. Once they cut the price of the 760, many people that might have bought an 850 once it was released, probably opted to get a 760 instead. Now that the 760 has gone back up in price, they aren't cannibalizing their sales as much.
Another possibility is that they physically needed to make room for the 800 series in the warehouses and had a whole bunch of 760 units to clear out. It may not have anything to do with a production change over.
But in my mind, one thing is certain - they priced the 760 to move for a reason. I just think the other things going on at the same time (out of stock) make it point to a possible production change. Think about that - why would so many places be out of stock on a hot selling item? Because the manufacturer isn't shipping the item to them. Merchants don't like being out of stock of hot items - they lose potential sales. Why would Garmin lower their price to the merchants if they knew their own stock was low and they wouldn't be able to provide the units? Because that was their plan - to get rid of them.
I had to call Costco because my 760 shipped with a broken car adapter and was told I'd had to reorder. The lady at Costco.com said the 760 would be back on sale in "late July" so if there's an effort to clear them out, they're not done yet. The 760 was never stocked in Costco retail warehouses -- it was an online-only deal.
Joined: 22 Jun 2008 Posts: 123 Location: Chandler, AZ
Wed Jul 02, 2008 8:53 pm
Yeah - I didn't mean clear them out forever. I meant clear them out temporarily. I figured Costco would carry them again. I am curious to know what Costco's new price will be when they start selling them again.
The fact that everyone will be selling them again in a few weeks tells me there is something holding them up in the supply chain. Maybe the battery fire they had a few weeks ago is causing them to be behind?
Joined: 22 Jun 2008 Posts: 123 Location: Chandler, AZ
Sat Jul 19, 2008 6:21 pm
I have seen more reports of people receiving a 760 with a Mediatek chip. However, those have all been in Europe. I haven't seen a US purchased one with that yet. Maybe there is still old inventory with the SIRF chipset for the US vendors.
My thought - if you want a SIRF chipset in a 760, you might want to buy now to be sure.
Joined: 22 Jun 2008 Posts: 123 Location: Chandler, AZ
Wed Jul 30, 2008 3:05 am
I finally saw a post by someone on GPS Passion that they got a 750 from Sam's Club that had a MediaTek chip in it. I think Sam's Club is only in the US, so I would assume that means some US 7xx series now have a non Sirf chip. Whether that matters to you or not, just thought I would share it with you.
Also, they are reporting that the screen is much dimmer, almost unusable. That to me seems like a much bigger problem.
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
