GPS Tracklog

Garmin auto / marine units - GPSMAP 378 and 478

No, these aren't GPS receivers for your amphibious vehicle. But if you've got a pickup truck and a boat trailer, they could be the units for you. Earlier today, Garmin announced the GPSMAP 378 and GPSMAP 478 (pictured at left).

These new receivers have pre-loaded marine AND highway maps for North America. Both units come with a marine mount and automotive kit, so you can use them to drive to the dock and then pop them into your boat. The GPSMAP 378 has 10-meter resolution charts for 3200 inland lakes, while the GPSMAP 478 has charts for the entire U.S. coastline, including Alaska and Hawaii.

Both units come pre-loaded with City Navigator ® NT for highway navigation, and optional XM radio weather capabilities.  They are expected to be available  in late May 2006 with an expected street price of $1199.99.

Technorati tags: GPS, marine

New Garmin marine products available

Garmin has announced availability of nearly 20 new marine products, including chartplotters, fishfinders and charts. Listed below are Garmin links to many of the products:

New Garmin Chartplotters

• GPSMAP 292 (Amazon)
• GPSMAP 298
• GPSMAP 392
• GPSMAP 398
• GPSMAP 492 (Amazon)
• GPSMAP 498
• GPSMAP 2106
• GPSMAP 2110
• GPSMAP 2206
• GPSMAP 2210
• GPSMAP 3205
• GPSMAP 3206
• GPSMAP 3210 (pictured at right)
  

Finally, here are links to Garmin press releases on their new Chartplotter lineup, Fishfinder products and BlueChart® g2™ charts.

Inland Lakes maps released by Garmin

Garmin has released Inland Lakes mapping software for the U.S., described by Garmin as follows:

"From small, local lakes to large ones, this software contains highly detailed data for lakes of almost every size in the continental United States. With exceptional detail — including amazing contour lines on most inland lakes plus high-definition shoreline, river and creek channels, islands, boat ramps, campgrounds, rivers, streams, tide stations and predictions, U.S. Coast Guard aids to navigation, a wrecks and obstructions database, and road data..."

Unlike other recent releases, Inland Lakes is to be made available on SD cards, micro-SD cards and DVD, though the DVD version is not available yet. Five regions, shown at left above, are available on individual cards, or you'll be able to buy the full set of five on DVD. The list price for the individual regional cards is $116.65. No word yet on the cost of the DVD. More detailed information on the regions is available here.

Technorati tags: GPS

Garmin GPSMap 76Cx Review

The Garmin GPSMap 76Cx is an update of the popular Garmin GPSMap 76C, which has been well loved by mariners and landlubbers alike. The 76Cx has the new SiRFSTARIII chipset, which has been garnering accolades for its fast acquisition time and awesome coverage under canopy, in urban canyons and even indoors! The other significant upgrade is that the 76Cx no longer utilizes the built in memory for MapSource maps, but loads them to a microSD card slot instead (the unit comes with a 128 MB card). This means you have unlimited map storage capability, plus you can use some of the newer MapSource software like City Select Mexico. Stepping up to the 76CSx adds a barometric altimeter and electronic compass.

Compare prices on the Garmin GPSMAP 76Cx

Garmin GPSMap 76CS Review

UPDATE: The 76CS has been discontinued. We recommend its successor, the 76CSx, as an appropriate alternative.

The Garmin GPSMap 76CS, while billed as a marine GPS unit, is very popular with landlubbers as well, due to its 115 MB of memory (enough to load highway maps for almost the entire state of California). An ideal unit for boaters, the 76CS floats and is waterproof, and comes with an Americas marine database that includes navigational aids.

Confused about the 76 series? Here's the low-down on the differences. The 76 and 76S have black and white screens, while the 76C and 76CS are color. The 76 has 8 MB of memory, the 76S has 24 MB, while the 76C and 76CS both have 115 MB of memory. Units with an S have an electronic compass and barometric altimeter, while the C units, in addition to color screens, have turn-by-turn routing capability. Finally, the 76CS has recently been updated with the new 76CSx.

14 readers at Amazon gave the GPS Map 76CS an average 4-1/2 out of 5 star rating. Here's what the editors at Amazon had to say:

"...The compact unit also boasts a 13 MB Americas marine basemap that includes tide data. In addition, an impressive 115 MB of internal memory lets you load optional MapSource BlueChart or Recreational Lakes with Fishing Hot Spots marine cartography. (The award-winning BlueChart features depth contours, inter-tidal zones, wrecks, and navaids, while Recreational Lakes includes fishing areas, boat ramps, marinas, and hazards for more than 1,000 popular U.S. and Canadian lakes.)

You can rely on the 76CS when you're navigating the highways and byways in your rudderless vehicle, too, thanks to a built-in, auto-routing basemap of major interstates and highways. When loaded with optional MapSource City Select detailed street cartography, the GPS provides automatic route calculation to millions of addresses or points of interest, complete with turn-by-turn directions and tone alerts. The unit is also compatible with MapSource U.S. Topo and 24K Topo for off-road excursions..."

Here are some other resources on the 76CS...