"Jay Honeck" wrote:

Until Garmin addresses the poor resolution of the 396's color screen,
I
wouldn't consider buying it.

You gotta be kidding, Jay. That's like not buying a prime steak because
you don't like the plate they serve it on. Anyhow, 320 x 480 ain't that
bad on a unit like this--what's higher resolution gonna *really* give
you besides higher cost?

Did you go to one of the 396 intro sessions at OSH? Maybe I'm
prejudiced because I fly in the land of endless thunderstorms, but to me
this thing is beyond awesome. What else has all the following in one
compact box?

o Li-Ion battery rechargeble from ship's power
o Synthetic panel
o Terrain & obstacles
o V-NAV
o Approaches
o Airport data
o Flight recorder
o W & B calculator
o E6B
o Data exchange with Garmin panel mounts
o NEXRAD, animated
o Lightning
o TFRs
o Graphical METARs
o TAFs
o Satellite view (cloud cover)
o XM Radio tuner & audio output
o Auto and marine modes that do all kinds of cool things
o All the usual GPS moving map stuff
o All the usual GPS route stuff
o A lot of stuff I'm forgetting

Yeah, I'd like a little larger screen, but other than that, this thing
is exactly what I wanted in a portable aviation GPS. Why wait to have
all these great tools right at my fingertips? When they come out with a
cooler one, I'll trade the 396 in to JA Air Center or Gulf Coast
Avionics like I've done with all my previous Garmins.

--

Dan
C172RG at BFM