Posts Tagged ‘GPS navigation’
The GPSMAP 60 Navigation System
The slogan for the GPSMAP 60 is “Making it easy to navigate the great outdoors.” This affordable GPS navigation system is ideal for the occasional hike, sailboat ride or hunting trip. The long battery life, its quick reception and durability make this choice a winner for new users who want to try out the system without dropping $600. Drivers will probably prefer the Nuvi series, which features more detailed maps, voice activated turn-by-turn directions and over 6 million points of interest. Avid hikers may prefer the Oregon 300 or 400 series. However, for just a versatile, all-around decent device, the Garmin GPSMAP 60 is a sensible choice.
The 60 is perfect for beginner navigators or those who need a reliable GPS navigation device while wandering around the woods or waters. The built-in base map and 24 MB of internal memory will store basic marine, topography and city street information. It is waterproof for marine adventures and provides turn-by-turn automatic routing capabilities for road warriors. Hunters and fishers like the alarm clock, sunrise/sunset time, moon phase table and optimal hunting/fishing time features. With 28 hours of battery life, this device is a reliable and affordable companion for outdoor adventures.
There are many pros to the GPSMAP 60. Since this GPS navigation system uses Wide Area Augmentation System technology, the margin of error is 3 meters or less, which is fairly precise. Adding new programs and maps, storing trips and automatically recording waypoints or trails is easy with the computer-like interface too. The unit is waterproof, making it suitable for water travel and rainy hikes. Lastly, the affordable price (less than $200) is a draw for many outdoor adventurers! On the downside, the display screen is only 2.6″ and there is only gray-scale graphics with the old style receiver, which works best in open areas. For hikers traversing deep canyons, urban areas or dense forests, the high-sensitivity receivers are preferable for more reliability.
The www.amazon.com editors gave the GPSMAP 60 full marks, arguing that the GPS navigation system “offers a high-contrast, four-level grayscale LCD (160 x 240 pixels) with backlighting for the display and the keypad. A large-numbers option provides easy viewing. You get 1,000 user waypoints with name and graphic symbols and 20 reversible routes. A handy trip computer provides an odometer, stopped time, moving average, overall average, total time, max speed and more. The unit also comes with a 10,000-point automatic track log, and 20 saved tracks (500 points each), which will let you retrace your path in both directions.”
Taking A Look At The Garmin Gpsmap Features
A Garmin GPSMAP can be used by motorists, bicyclists, hikers and mariners. The crossover GPS devices are usually smaller, which allow for hand-held capacity, especially when compared to the bulkier nuvi automobile models. The navigator maps can range greatly too, as some are in color and some are black-and-white. As well, some are equipped with customizable points of interest, some aren’t; some have 16 hour batteries, some with 28 hour; some with automatic routing and games, some without.
Garmin knew that active individuals needed a reliable crossover device to help them navigate their way. In this world of James Bond caliber adventure, we find ourselves traveling by various modes in our pursuits. At the very beginning of the Garmin line of GPS maps, there are aviation navigator maps for pilots to travel by land, air and sea, such as the GPSMAP 96 or 196, for example. From those basic grey-scale models, Garmin has advanced to full-color portable devices like the GPSMAP 495 and 496, adding airport maps, pre-loaded maps, 3,000 favorite locations, traffic information services, voice prompts, satellite radio and weather.
The Garmin GPSMAP 76 series ranges from $200 to $428.56, depending on the model. The marine-friendly GPS navigation systems are great for serious outdoor adventurers who want a barometric altimeter, electronic compass, location tracking and turn-by-turn directions. The grey-scale Garmin GPSMAP comes with the 76 and 76-S models, while the 76Cx and 76CSx models display in 256 colors with transflective screens. The higher end GPSMAP 76cx and 76CSx models also beat the cheaper 76 models in that they have high-quality receivers for when you’re in deep canyons, dense forests or far-off mountain ranges. Additionally, the more expensive models accept pre-loaded data cards if you want to add more maps without linking up to the computer. If you want geocaching and games, then you’ll need the 76Cx or 76CSx, but if you want the compass and altimeter, you’ll need the 76 or 76Cx.
If you’re not much of an outdoors person, but you fancy yourself more of a road warrior, then Garmin GPS devices has something for everyone in their car navigator models. The 200 series Garmin GPSMAP (which includes the 200, 250, 260 and 270) has a 3.5″ screen and internal antenna. Next there is the 200W series (200W, 250W and 260W), which is the same as the 200 series but with a larger 4.3″ screen. The Garmin 2×5 Series (205, 205W, 255 and 255W) adds live traffic reports via MSN Direct and also includes that nice, larger 4.3″ screen. The 500 Series include crossover models good for hiking, cycling and boating, as well as driving. The 700 series adds anti-theft, multiple-destination routing and entertainment functions. The 800 series adds voice recognition, lane assist and 3-D buildings. The 300 Series and 600 Series, though you can still find them online, have been discontinued; while each step was celebrated at the time with a new series, the newer models include all those features and more, so Garmin is simplifying their line.