The purpose of this guide is to warn consumers in the UK, and possibly other countries, of the risks involved in purchasing a GPS device branded either by MyGuide or Typhoon.

MyGuide or Typhoon are a German company apparently based in Hamburg.

Potential buyers of MyGuide or Typhoon branded GPS devices, also available via Lidl, should note the extreme similarity with Medion and Mitac products, leading to the strong suspicion that all products originate in China.

Reviews in other places have commented on the fragility of the connector at the base of the device that serves both battery charging and PC data connection.

Your concern with MyGuide/Typhoon should be with the difficulty in making suitable contact with the, supposed, support/service Hotlines. Calls to Hotlines are not, generally, answered and emails and faxes likewise get no response.

In a recent instance, innumerable calls over a 3 day period finally persuaded someone to answer the phone. Usually, a pre-recorded message about the availability of the Hotline between 08:00 and 20:00 was followed by a second pre-recorded message that all agents were busy. Having supposedly arranged a collection of a faulty device, it turned out to be impossible to advise the company that the designated collection date was not suitable and arrange an alternative. This was despite further innumerable phone calls, emails and faxes.

The collection company, referred to by MyGuide as GLS, turned out to be ParcelForce. But this was only determined when the ParcelForce driver left a card. It also turns out that the collection instruction is date-specific. So, if you miss the collection, you can't ask ParcelForce, or whoever, to come again, you have to get MyGuide to set up a new arrangement. Difficult if you can't get a response from them.

Best advice is to avoid MyGuide/Typhoon products. Even if they are comparable with Medion or Mitac products, the service and support options are abysmal.

This is the type of company where a facility should exist to vote on its existence. Once votes had reached a suitable number, the company should be compulsorily wound-up. This is a total BEWARE warning;.

A recent contact from another eBay member suggests that this company MAY have ceased trading.