Clarion MAP370 Review

What Car have given the Clarion MAP370 a four star rating and voted it a close runner up to the TomTom ONE and Mio C220 devices in the same price range. The reason it does not exceed the other two is mainly a question of aesthetics. It does not have the sleek and stylish lightweight design of the competition and is priced slightly higher because of its extra features.

Sixty years ago, Clarion made the first Japanese car radio and stereo system. The name Clarion, a form of musical instrument from the 14th century, was used for the company to show how close its ties were to music in life. It is not surprising, therefore, that even in the GPS market, there has to be a musical link. Among the brands of GPS that come under the £150 price wire, the Clarion MAP370 is one of the few that include a MP3 player in its list of features. A standard 3.5 mm external headphone connector is incorporated together with a built-in loudspeaker.

Another feature which, like the MP3 player, uses a SD / MMC card is the picture viewer. Paying the slightly higher price to have this feature, however, might not be your best step forward. Although features are nice to have, they should not detract from the basic requirement of the device you are buying. Maybe better to purchase an item that is used for the purpose it was intended…

Back to the basic purpose of navigation then, this device does incorporate high performance with the latest SiRF III 20 channel receiver GPS chip, a 300 MHz CPU and a 3.5 inch colour LCD screen. As in many models today the screen is also the Touch Panel control and comes with a sunlight protective film. Maps from UK and Ireland are preloaded together with the major European routes, and the display shows both 2D and 3D images which make roundabouts and junctions a little clearer on the screen.

The unit supports the optional TMC (Traffic Message Channel) receiver unit although it does not come as standard. It is, however, safety camera compatible and will relay speed limit information to the display. Use of the 'ready to use' speed trap warning system could be construed as illegal in some countries and care should be taken with this.

Batteries are rechargeable and the package comes complete with a USB1.1 cable used for updating software and charging the unit. The manufacturer promises a full 4.5 hours of operation on fully charged batteries.

It seems that Clarion had put a lot of thought and effort into this unit, with its additional features and multi-lingual versatility (navigational guidance is available in 23 languages), but when it comes down to basic navigation it just does not come up to scratch. Users have reported errors in the maps, in the speed information, and in the cradle which rattles somewhat when under way. If the added features are something you cannot live without then this model is ideal, otherwise stick to the market leaders of TomTom or Mio.