Problems with Magellan GPS??

[uchwear]

I just bought a Magellan explorist 500le and straight out of the package it didn't work.  I've talked to a couple of people who have had problems with their magellan gps.  Does anyone have any experience with this?  I'm thinking about sending it back and getting a garmin.

[wavery]

I just bought a Magellan explorist 500le and straight out of the package it didn't work.  I've talked to a couple of people who have had problems with their magellan gps.  Does anyone have any experience with this?  I'm thinking about sending it back and getting a garmin.

Just a few thoughts..................

Is the battery fully charged?

What doesn't work about it?

Does it turn on?

Some of that stuff has a "Reset" feature on it. Sometimes, the reset is a matter of removing the batteries for a minute then reinstalling them.

If it turns on but doesn't give you a position, try going through the set-up procedure again.

Maybe this will help:
http://www.magellangps.com/assets/manuals/eXplorist_500_en.pdf

[uchwear]

When I turn it on it displays on the screen "checking media"  I have tried it without the sd card in and with the sd card.  I've tried to take the batteries out and turn it back on,  I've tried the reset and when It comes back on it still displays "checking media"  I contacted magellan and they didn't give me any information other than that they were familiar with the problem and I would have to mail it to them for repair.
 

Just a few thoughts..................
 
Is the battery fully charged?
 
What doesn't work about it?
 
Does it turn on?
 
Some of that stuff has a "Reset" feature on it. Sometimes, the reset is a matter of removing the batteries for a minute then reinstalling them.
 
If it turns on but doesn't give you a position, try going through the set-up procedure again.
 
Maybe this will help:
http://www.magellangps.com/assets/manuals/eXplorist_500_en.pdf

[wavery]

When I turn it on it displays on the screen "checking media"  I have tried it without the sd card in and with the sd card.  I've tried to take the batteries out and turn it back on,  I've tried the reset and when It comes back on it still displays "checking media"  I contacted magellan and they didn't give me any information other than that they were familiar with the problem and I would have to mail it to them for repair.

According to the instructions, you have 30 seconds to hit "ENTER" after turning the unit on. Did you do that??

I am assuming that you do.......what happens when you hit the "Menu" key??

[uchwear]

According to the instructions, you have 30 seconds to hit "ENTER" after turning the unit on. Did you do that??
 
I am assuming that you do.......what happens when you hit the "Menu" key??

I hit the enter key and nothing happens,  I hit the menu key and nothing happens.  I've tried every combination that I can think of and it still displays "checking media"  My brother has the exact same unit and he looked at it and said he couldn't figure it out.  His has worked fine.

[wavery]

I wonder if something is wrong with your smart media card. On some of these devices, once the media card is installed, the device looks for that media card whenever the device is turned on. If the media card fails, the device will look for it and not find it.

Another thought is, if you had the media card in the device before you first initialized it, it may have messed something up. On some of these devices, you have to turn on the device without the card first, then set the device up to accept the card, then install the card

[uchwear]

I think that must have been what happened because it won't do anything but read "checking media"  I got an email from magellan customer service and they said to send it back and they would make it right just a few minutes ago so I think I'm going to give that a shot before I exchange to garmin.  At least give them a chance.
 
It's frustrating though.  New toy doesn't work.....