There’s no better day than holidays. The time when you, together with your family members, go on a trip to visit uncommon places that you don’t see everyday. Spending the free time with family is an absolute blast. Especially when you’re going on a trip to a faraway destination together.
In order to have a convenience holiday experience, some families, especially in America, tend to have or rent an RV car. The car is big enough for a bunch of family members, plus there are some useful additional features for a long trip. It’s very accommodating for a family who wants to have a nice holiday experience.
Usually, RV equipped with some useful features, including the GPS. This system should be present in any car, not only RVs. It’s really useful to point places of interest, rest areas, nearest gas stations, and the other important locations. With a decent system, you may also have an accurate navigation to point your way to the destination.
However, in order to fully equip their RVs, people would use additional GPS devices for their cars. You can find some brands with their best products, but notably there’s always the people’s favorite called Garmin RV. Just like its name, this device is designed specifically for RV cars. The size is not small, and the features within are also nice.

When driving an RV, you need a bigger screen in order to check the navigation. Bigger screen, responsive touch are some of the most important features that a GPS device should have. These are also present in Garmin RV GPS Devices. However, Garmin RV has some of the best products, each called Garmin RV 780 and Garmin RV 785.
As you may notice, there’s only a slight leap between 780 and 785 in number. Is the newer product worth the money? Or maybe the older one could satisfy you enough with its already-pleasing features? Let’s start the comparison below.
Garmin RV 780
Garmin RV780 is probably a great GPS device that also has an affordable price. It came to the market with the price worth of 300 dollars. First thing to notice is the display. It has about 6.5 inches screen, which is not that small to see the roads and all additional information that you need. Even though it’s small, it’s not bad at all. It’s even more simple and effective to place right near your driving view, without actually blocking it..
This device also has the custom feature which allows you to determine the weight and height of your vehicle. It can be very useful to take more effective routes depending on your vehicle characteristics. For example, if your RV is not too big, you may be guided to smaller kinds of roads, and vice versa. Also, it gives you weight-limit warnings as well. Read also: Tomtom Via 1530 vs 1535.
Garmin RV 780 | Garmin RV 785 | |
---|---|---|
Product Dimensions | 6.8 x 0.7 x 3.9 inches | 0.93 x 7.84 x 4.79 inches |
Item Weight | 1 pounds | 15.4 ounces |
Best Offer | click here | click here |
You can also depend on the warnings and suggestions that are provided by Garmin RV870. This device will tell you about the sharp curves or steep roads along the way. Don’t worry, you can actually watch these warnings clearly, giving you some time to be prepared. This feature can grant you much safety and more convenient driving experience, especially if you’re travelling to new locations.
Almost all the Garmin RV devices are always equipped with built-in information about parking lots and services for RV. Hence the name Garmin RV, a really great companion for RVs. Not just limited to that, Garmin RV 780 also packed with information about rest areas as well. You just need to slide your finger on the screen to find the nearest one. You may also be granted access to several trip directories such as Tripadvisor or Foursquare for example. Filter them based on the price or nearest location to suit your favor.
You can also connect the device with your smartphone with real ease. There’s the free Garmin Drive application available both in Google Play Store or Apple Store. After downloading, you just need to do simple tasks to connect it to the Garmin device via bluetooth. Once connected, you can display available routes, check the weather forecast, seeing the traffic conditions live, and so on. Plus, with the paired smartphone, you may also have the hands-free calling or voice command via the Garmin device itself. Quite a convenience.

And about the updates, you can always get updated maps and routes via free-to-download updates. As long as you have internet connection, it’s all good to go.
Garmin RV 785
Now, it’s the time for Garmin RV 785. A slight difference in the model number, but actually means a big deal. Garmin RV 785 has about 400 dollars in price, about a hundred more than 780. Looking at the display, it has a slightly bigger screen, pumped up to 7”. The 0.5” difference ist not that noticeable. It is also packed with all previous features from 780.
What makes it different is the additional dash camera presented within. Yes, having a dash cam nowadays can be a big deal, since it can actually become really helpful. It can become a proof if you happen to be stuck in a traffic accident problem. It’s also nice to have, since it can help you along the way. It registers and saves videos automatically, so it basically records any event along your trip.

The video footage is not only help you through false accusation, but also help the community to provide the proof of drunk driving or any possible harmful events, such as robbery, car theft, illegal street racing, and many more. Plus, it can also be a really good proof provider when something unusual happens to you or your car, since it also records audio. The dash cam feature alone can make this device worth the price, especially nowadays when the street crimes are on the rise.
Garmin RV 780 vs RV 785
Verdict
With the 100 dollars in difference, we think that Garmin RV 785 nailed this one. Even though it is slightly more expensive than 780, it can provide you better features, better performance, and also better look. It shines it its own way, serving one thing that 780 ultimately doesn’t have, the dash cam. The dash cam feature is really worth the price range, and is not that expensive if you think about it. So with all that said, RV 785 can give you a nice convenient RV driving experience, with an additional safety feature that will be useful in any day.