Garmin Blows

I hope one day my primary motivation for blogging isn't the need to blow off steam in the form of a rant; but Garmin is simply infuriating and I can't help it.

Do you know why Garmin is doing terribly financially? Because it's a pain in the ass to give them your money. And at the time of this writing I still haven't entirely succeeded. Well, I did finally manage to give them my $99, but I haven't been able to actually download my new maps. More on that in a bit.

I've bought, owned and loved a half dozen devices from Garmin but until this afternoon I've never attempted to purchase and download maps from them. It is quite simply the worst purchasing experience imaginable. That's not true: prior to this experience I couldn't have imagined a purchasing experience this terrible. Cisco and HP might be able to compete, but that's it. They've certainly expanded my horizons. There's a reason Amazon touts (and patents!) one-click shopping. It's really that simple. You want the product on your door-step the following day? Click once and get on with your life. Tomorrow, without fail, your local UPS delivery guy will, with care that Ace Ventura didn't demonstrate, gently place your new toys on your front door and scurry off back to his big, brown truck.