Mio Moov R403 4.3 Inch Vehicle GPS Navigator Review

The Mio Moov R403 GPS navigator features a 4.3 inch anti-glare widescreen display for easier map and navigation menu viewing. Other key features include text-to-speech for spoken street names, lane guidance, predictive keyword search, speed alerts, pre-loaded U.S. Maps and four million Points of Interest (POI).

Mio Moov R403 GPS Vehicle Navigator

Both the Mio Moov R series models R403 and R303) come with text-to-speech which means that instead turn left or turn right, the streets, freeways and exits are spoken allowing the driver to keep their eyes on the road resulting in safer driving.

Lane Guidance helps the driver to get in the correct lane for upcoming turn through both voice and visual prompts. It makes the driving process smoother, safer and less stressful.

Navigating with the Mio Moov R403

The Mio has Auto Day/Night which modifies the screen contrast automatically for the lighting conditions. One can even select the map color scheme.

The top level navigation menu consists of three side-by-side screens accessed with side arrows. Each screen can have up to six buttons. Options include:

My Home: set you home as a destination
Favourites: to save frequently used destinations (up to 200) and a NavPix can be saved as a favourite
Recent: to scroll through the most recent destinations
Map: view a map of your surroundings
Address: press to type in a destinations address
POI: there are four million pre-loaded POI to search including restaurants, gas stations, hotels, tourist attractions etc
NavPix: pictures geotagged with position data can be used to select a destination
Preferences: set preferences such as for how routes are calculated.
Mio Connect: search for and navigate to POIs downloaded using the MioMore Desktop software.
Tripmeter: for recording distance travelled

A variety of map screens can be viewed including the standard 2D and 3D as well as Traffic Overview (if receiver fitted), Route Overview and Turn-by-Turn.

If the driver misses a turn the Mio will automatically calculate a route to get them back on track.

Using Route Options allows preferences to be set for how routes are calculated. The following preferences can be set:

Route Type - Shortest distance to Fastest Time (sliding scale)
Preference for Motorways - Less often to More Often (sliding scale)
Toll Roads, Unsurfaced Roads and Ferry - check avoid and/or warn check boxes

A novel feature allows the driver to set the Mio R403 to calculate a route that avoids a specified area on the map. The area is selected by tapping and dragging on the map which is harder on the pressure sensitive screen as opposed to the new capacitive screens of the latest Garmin GPS navigators including the Garmin nuvi 3790T.

There is a Multi-stop Trip Planner screen to set multiple stops or waypoints for a trip however, the route only calculated in the specified order rather than as an optomized route. Waypoints can be added to a route via the same screen.

The Mio R403 will log and calculate route statistics including; distance traveled, average speed, maximum speed, time taken, stationary time for either current trip or all trips to date. If this is of interest, then the Magellan RoadMate 3065 Trip Report feature where you can designate a business trip will be of even more interest.

The Mio Moov R403 can managed using the free MioMore Desktop software which provides options to;