Traveling man Larry Garfield has been inundated by GPS lately, and Garmin's second GPS handheld is next on his list. Read on to see how it worked.
Design
The Garmin iQue 3200, at first glance, is very similar to the company's previous iQue 3600 GPS-enabled handheld, and that similarity stands up under further examination, too. At 71.1 x 127 x 20.3 mm with a back that tapers thicker at the top it is nearly identical to its older brother, and at 147 grams it's only slightly lighter. The casing is a subdued grey plastic, and the GPS antenna flips up from the top back of the device.
 | The iQue 3200 is a moderate change from the 3600
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One of the few notable differences between the 3200 and 3600 is the screen. The iQue 3200 includes a standard 320 x 320 pixel color display instead of the 320 x 480 resolution display of its predecessor, combined with a fixed handwriting area. That unfortunately cuts the viewable map area by a third, and the screen can feel cramped as a result. On the flip side, the iQue 3200 uses newer, clearer display technology that is on-par with palmOne's recent excellent screens.
Below the screen are the usual four application buttons, the right-most now mapped to the "Que" function, and two directional buttons instead of the now-common 5-way directional pad. The sides of the device lack any buttons, such as the jog wheel or Esc button of the 3600, while the top of the device includes an SD card slot, IR port, and stylus silo. There is also a vibrating alarm and a good front-mounted speaker. The attached flip cover, just as with the 3600, attaches to the bottom of the device and flips around to lie flat front or back, keeping both the GPS antenna and serial port free.
The other major difference from its predecessor is the inclusion of a car adapter kit standard with the iQue 3200. Unlike the stiff flex-cable attachments of many GPS units, though, this one is a short hinged job that attaches to the windshield via suction cup. While that does hold the device still better on rough roads it keeps the handheld further from the driver, making it a bit harder to see. On the other hand, the included car power adapter includes an auxiliary speaker that is beautifully loud and clear at all times.
Connectivity
Naturally the iQue 3200's main connectivity feature is its GPS antenna, which flips open from the back of the unit. The antenna can be positioned at any angle, and parallel to the ground gives the best reception. Flipping the antenna up automatically turns on the GPS receiver, and displays a brief warning to not adjust the iQue while driving, as it is a distraction from the road. We agree completely, and as with all GPS equipment suggest not driving with it alone.
Getting a satellite lock with the iQue 3200 took approximately 1-2 minutes. Signal lock was good except when we lost sky view for a while, but the device tended to pick up again quickly. Accuracy is very good, generally within 10 feet.
The iQue 3200 also uses the palmOne Universal Connector, as did its predecessor, making it compatible with the wide array of accessories available. It does, however, include its own style of cradle.
Specifications
The iQue 3600 runs on a Motorola Dragonball MXL ARM processor at 200 MHz. It includes 32 MB of RAM, of which a 23 MB is available to the user. Map can quickly eat up that space, however, making an SD card a necessity.
To test the iQue 3200's battery we left it playing music using a 3rd party audio player until it ran down. For some reason the device will not disable its screen while playing music, so it lasted only 1 hour, 45 minutes before giving its first warning and died after about 2 hours, 30 minutes. In practice, however, the device will generally be connected to car power and will therefore last as long as the car does.
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