Review on 💫 StarTech Com USBAMB2MD Mini Cable Cord: Fast and Reliable Data Transfer by Michael Schafer

Very good quality cable suitable for charging Garmin Nuvi car navigation devices with some limitations. The limitations are that it doesn't work for "Traffic" as the Garmin charging cable is also a street antenna but the USB cable is not. There is also an issue with the display of the computer icon (data) on the screen when the Garmin Nuvi performs a cold boot. The latter is annoying. I spoke to Garmin support about the annoyance and here's the story: Nuvi uses the same mini USB port for both charging and data like map updates etc. The way Nuvi works between Garmin devices that try , Updating data through the USB cable, and the usual charging differs action (cigarette lighter cable) is to measure the voltage supplied to the device from the cable. The USB data port operates at 4.75-5.25V, 2.1A, and the Garmin cigarette lighter charging cable operates at 10V, 2.4A max. This means that the USB operates at a lower voltage charged than a normal charging cable. When the Nuvi receives USB power, it assumes the user is requesting a data transfer. Garmin does not make a USB cable that will work with the Nuvi due to the generic connector. The workaround is that the USB voltage can be used for charging by removing and reinserting the USB connector after the computer (data) icon. appears on the screen. (This takes about 30 seconds on my GPS.) After reconnecting the USB, the Nuvi resets the data icon and allows the device to load maps and boot normally, although charging at reduced voltage. The USB then acts as a charger and charges more slowly than a normal charging cable with a higher voltage. After that, the annoying computer icon won't repeat itself as long as the device stays up. The annoyance will reappear on the next cold boot and you will need to unplug and plug the USB again as above to perform the workaround. Garmin says the problem doesn't happen with all Nuvi devices, but it does happen frequently. This happens most often with my Nuvi 2595LMT. You need to understand this when buying a cable so you don't think the cable is to blame. Although annoyed, I use it and give the cable five stars for what it is. On my Garmin Nuvi 2595LMT, the connector on the GPS is upside down and the "up angle" connector fits properly so the cable is pointing down. The product photos on Revain correctly illustrate the location of the plug, so refer to the photo and not the almost meaningless up/down description. The angled connector on the Garmin Nuvi GPS (which Garmin ships with GPS) is 180° from what StarTech.com calls the down angle. In these circumstances, the terms "top" and "bottom" may be unintentionally misleading. The best practice would be to look directly at the connector orientation on your GPS and match it to the product photo to order the desired orientation, regardless of what up/down in the product description might mean.