XM Weather/Garmin 496 PIREP

Mary and I spent several long days at OSH this week, researching our
in-cockpit weather options. Because the manufacturers of our current
GPS receivers (AvMap and Lowrance) have stupidly decided not to pursue
in-cockpit weather for their hardware, our options were extremely
limited. They included:

1. AnyWhere Map. This software runs on cell phones, PDAs and tablets,
and relies on bluetooth transmitters to both the GPS and XM weather
radio antennaes.

2. Tablet-Based Software. There were two main players at OSH, NavAero
and NavAir. Both relied on the new Windows-based tablet touch-screen
PCs. (There were some REAL high end players, too, in the $7K and up
range, that we didn't even consider.)

3. Garmin's 396 or new 496.

All these systems have advantages and disadvantages.

Early in the week, we looked at NavAir, and were duly impressed with
the Motion LS 800 tablet PC. Since we were looking to replace our
laptop, too, we thought "Hey, this will kill two birds with one stone"
and make the $3800 (or 3.8 AMUs) price more palatable. After all, we
could take the tablet with us whereever we went, and use it as a PC.

However, NavAir software had small, Windows-based menus, and the
hardware required a stylus to use. I simply couldn't imagine using it
in turbulence, so we kept looking.

Next, NavAero looked REALLY promising. Their software incorporated BIG
touch-screen buttons that you could push with your finger (no stylus!),
and the NavPad tablet PC was extremely durable looking. The software
didn't have as good a flight planner as the NavAir, however, so we
quibbled and made no decision that day.

Later that evening, however, we decided to buy the NavAero system the
next day. The GPS and weather depiction on that huge color screen were
simply unbeatable.

That night, however, we had a beer with this group's Hai Longworth at
our campsite in the North 40. Hai is an expert in PCs, works for IBM,
and she warned us to stay away from ANY tablet PC that used a hard
drive, simply because of the altitude restrictions that they inflict.
(Because a hard drives head floats on a cushion of air, it can't be
used reliably at high altitudes where the air is thin.)

So, dammit, that forced us to consider the new "solid state" tablet PCs
that utilize "flash memory" instead of hard drives. However, for
reasons known only to the manufacturers, these units cost $1000 MORE
than their hard-drive-equipped equivalents -- even though they have far
fewer moving parts.

So, we were now rammed up into the 4.9 AMU price range -- which, with
tax, would exceed 5 AMUs. This was no longer an option.

So, we reluctantly looked at AnywhereMap.

This software, designed to operate on almost anything, from a cell
phone to a tablet PC, has been around quite a while. I have known
people that owned it and loved it -- but I also know too many people
that started with it and dumped it. It's just futzy to use (a stylus,
again!), and (like the other tablet-based systems) it uses a blue-tooth
connection to both XM and GPS antennas. I personally know a guy who
has had many problems with this set up -- and if you ran it on a tablet
PC, we were right back to the hard-drive thing. And the PDA software
took over FOUR SECONDS to update, after making a menu selection -- so
we discarded them as an option, too.

This left only one player on the field: Garmin.

With great reluctance, we went to the Garmin booth. Mary and I have
been so spoiled by the AvMap and Lowrance color displays, that the
Garmin products simply look like toys by comparison. My two-year old
AvMap is literally THREE times the display size of the 496, and the
Lowrance 2000c is nearly twice the size. And both display in portrait
mode, as they should.

But, we wanted weather, so we had to go look, before we gave up
entirely.

Garmin had a 20-something year old pilot demonstrating the two units
side-by-side, and his enthusiasm was infectious. It was obvious that
he really loved the unit, and used it -- a lot. He gave a great demo
that completely changed our attitude toward the product.

The 496, as most now know, is Garmin's incremental improvement over
last year's 396. It is the same box, but with an enhanced processor
and greatly expanded database. Here's what it can do:

1. Aviation GPS. The Garmin menu system is extremely intuitive, and we
were able to figure it out without referring to the manual. The
refresh rate is very fast -- much faster than the 396 -- which means
you can actually use the "virtual instrument panel" to fly the plane.
In fact, when you raise the unit up over your head, the virtual "VSI"
actually registers the movement! (I played with this virtual panel on
the way home, with Mary flying, and can verify that it perfectly
mimicked every move of the aircraft.)

The map itself is quite clear, and easy to read. Unfortunately, it's
displayed on a dinky little screen, and it can't be displayed in
portrait mode, which severely limits its usability in the plane.

2. AOPA Directory. The 496 has the entire AOPA directory built in,
making finding restaurants, hotels, hours of operation, etc., a snap.
This will eliminate hauling around the AOPA directory, a
phonebook-sized paperback that always takes up too much room.

3. Airport Diagrams. You now have REAL airport diagrams, with labeled
taxiways and runways. Your little plane appears super-imposed on the
real deal, which will make taxiing around unfamiliar airports a snap.
No more "progressives"!

4. Automotive GPS. The 496 now comes with the full-blown automotive
GPS system, too. What's cool is you can select a restaurant from the
AOPA directory, above, select "Go-to", and get turn-by-turn driving
instructions to the food. Or the hotel. Or whatever.

5. XM Weather. This, of course, is the killer application we were
looking for. The 496 has "smoothed out" the pixelized presentation of
the 396, thanks to its faster processor and somewhat higher resolution.
As with the 396, it also displayed winds aloft (at all the various
altitudes), radar, satellite imagery, icing levels, TAFs, Metars, TFRs,
prog charts -- you name it, it's all there. This thing will literally
eliminate the need to call Flight Service, because you now have more
information than they do!

This ability to see and avoid weather is what we were looking for, and
the 496 gave us everything we were looking for, in an easy to use,
logical, menu-driven, non-Windows-based machine.

The 396 was temptingly priced $600 cheaper than the 496, but the
automotive database and better weather depiction made the decision for
us. (And, believe it or not -- Garmin has actually REMOVED THE STUPID
MAGNET from the 496's XM antenna! That alone is worth something...
:-)

Sadly, Garmin's control of the market meant that they were able to
dictate a hard-and-fast price of $2795 at OSH '06, no matter where you
shopped or what you offered. A buddy of mine who worked at one of the
avionics shops told me that Garmin would threaten his rights to sell
their products if he under-cut the competition -- so, in effect, there
wasn't any.

So, we simply bought it from the shop closest to our home, for ease of
support. Although I felt good about helping the smaller shop (The
Avionics Place, in Rockford, IL) over the giants (like Pacific Coast
Avionics), I really resented Garmin's interference with the free
market.

Because we almost always have two pilots on board, and because of the
superior displays of our AvMap or Airmap, we have decided to put the
496 on the CO-pilot's yoke. This enables the "2nd in command" to screw
around with the weather, thus keeping the pilot's eyes outside, where
they belong. And, because our other GPS's display their navigational
information on a larger screen and in a clearer fashion, leaving them
in front of the pilot's station made more sense -- simply because the
PIC can see, at a glance, more pertinent navigational information on
the larger displays.

Even though I'm not exactly ecstatic with our purchase, the damned
thing works great. Today, leaving OSH right after a major storm, we
departed into somewhat iffy VFR conditions. The 496 showed EXACTLY what
was happening, in virtual real-time, so we knew that the showers in the
area would diminish to nothing just a few miles southwest -- and
launching into ugly skies became an effortless, much more relaxing
experience.

Just like the display showed, the ceilings lifted and the skies grew
sunnier all the way home. Easily checking METARs and TAFs ahead --
again, in real time -- ensured that the situation wasn't changing for
the worse, and we enjoyed one of the most relaxing cross-country
flights ever -- thanks to XM weather.

The situational awareness that XM weather provides is simply
astounding. While Mary was flying home, I was able to check the
current weather conditions on the west coast, just to see if Jack and
Steve Allison were going to be able to make it home to California
today! It felt like science fiction, but I was able to do it with a
few button strokes, effortlessly.

It's a real shame that Lowrance and AvMap have dropped the ball with
weather. They would be absolutely cleaning Garmin's clock right now,
with their superior displays -- but apparently they lack the vision and
financial capability to pull it off.

It's an even bigger shame that the tablet PC-based weather software
companies have not filled the $2500 - $3000 price point that would make
them a VERY strong competitor for Garmin. If they had a slightly
smaller -- yet still larger than the 496 -- display in that price
range, sans hard drive, they would have been the "killer app" at OSH
'06.

With the 496 we've now got precisely the right application running on
an immensely inferior piece of hardware (our 2-year old AvMap's display
is STILL head-&-shoulders above the 496's) -- but right now it's the
best choice out there, and we've exponentially improved our situational
awareness and safety by purchasing it.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

On 30 Jul 2006 19:09:56 -0700, "Jay Honeck" wrote
in .com::

This thing will literally eliminate the need to call Flight Service,
because you now have more information than they do!

So the 496 provides TFR NOTAMs in flight too?

Is the XM weather considered an 'official' source for pilot briefing
purposes?

So the 496 provides TFR NOTAMs in flight too?

I'm not sure I understand the question. The 496 provides real-time
TFRs via XM satellite radio, so, yes, it works in flight as well as on
the ground.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

On 30 Jul 2006 20:40:11 -0700, "Jay Honeck" wrote
in . com::

So the 496 provides TFR NOTAMs in flight too?

I'm not sure I understand the question. The 496 provides real-time
TFRs via XM satellite radio, so, yes, it works in flight as well as on
the ground.

I was just inquiring if the XM feed contained NOTAMs as well as
weather information. Thanks.

In article ,
Larry Dighera wrote:
I'm not sure I understand the question. The 496 provides real-time
TFRs via XM satellite radio, so, yes, it works in flight as well as on
the ground.

I was just inquiring if the XM feed contained NOTAMs as well as
weather information. Thanks.

It does not contain full NOTAMs. It does contain TFRs, along with the
relevant text of the TFR (type of TFR, start/stop times, etc.) The
color of the TFR graphic also changes depending on whether the TFR is
active or not.


JKG

Jay,

Researching on what to buy is probably the hardest part of any
purchases. I am glad to hear that you decided to go with the Garmin 496
and made good use of it on the way home.

The Lowrance rep I talked to sounded quite definite about a new
Lowrance unit with XMWeather to be introduced next spring at Sun & Fun
so I am going to wait for a while.

I just want to have a disclaimer about being a PC expert. Messing
around with PC hardware/software has been one of my hobbies but it is
not my line of work. I only have a background in electronic materials
science/engineering and work in the reliability field.

Without XM Weather, we just have to be extra cautious, plan ahead
and obtain frequent weather updates. We left Oshkosh Wednesday morning
heading to northern Minnesota. We had to scrub our next stops in
Houghton Michigan and Mackinac Islands to avoid the fronts with
scattered thunderstorms. We stayed a day and a half in
GrandHaven/Lowell area visiting relatives and enjoying a Lake Michigan
swim with water temperature in the low 70's. We left Muskegon at 8 am
this morning heading back to NY and picked up a 30 knots tailwind.
There was just a bit of weather in Buffalo area with the ceiling lifted
to 1600' just in time for us to do a visual approach at Buffalo
Lancaster airport. From there it took less than 2 hours to get home at
KPOU.

I am glad that we did not have to put up with the storms at Oshkosh
the last two days. Not sure whether our little tent could hold up
against 40+ knots wind. It was kind of scary to hear about the plane
damages at Appleton. The "Claw" tie-down kit which we ordered at
Oshkosh will certainly come in handy in our next trip.

Thank you for the beer and the good company. I hope to meet few
more of rec.aviation regulars next time.

Hai Longworth

("Longworth" wrote)
Thank you for the beer and the good company. I hope to meet few more of
rec.aviation regulars next time.


Sorry I missed you. I was there that evening but had to leave before you
dropped by.


Montblack

Jay,

Researching on what to buy is probably the hardest part of any
purchases. I am glad to hear that you decided to go with the Garmin 496
and made good use of it on the way home.

The Lowrance rep I talked to sounded quite definite about a new
Lowrance unit with XMWeather to be introduced next spring at Sun & Fun
so I am going to wait for a while.

I just want to have a disclaimer about being a PC expert. Messing
around with PC hardware/software has been one of my hobbies but it is
not my line of work. I only have a background in electronic materials
science/engineering and work in the reliability field.

Without XM Weather, we just have to be extra cautious, plan ahead
and obtain frequent weather updates. We left Oshkosh Wednesday morning
heading to northern Minnesota. We had to scrub our next stops in
Houghton Michigan and Mackinac Islands to avoid the fronts with
scattered thunderstorms. We stayed a day and a half in
GrandHaven/Lowell area visiting relatives and enjoying a Lake Michigan
swim with water temperature in the low 70's. We left Muskegon at 8 am
this morning heading back to NY and picked up a 30 knots tailwind.
There was just a bit of weather in Buffalo area with the ceiling lifted
to 1600' just in time for us to do a visual approach at Buffalo
Lancaster airport. From there it took less than 2 hours to get home at
KPOU.

I am glad that we did not have to put up with the storms at Oshkosh
the last two days. Not sure whether our little tent could hold up
against 40+ knots wind. It was kind of scary to hear about the plane
damages at Appleton. The "Claw" tie-down kit which we ordered at
Oshkosh will certainly come in handy in our next trip.

Thank you for the beer and the good company. I hope to meet few
more of rec.aviation regulars next time.

Hai Longworth

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
oups.com...
[...]
So, dammit, that forced us to consider the new "solid state" tablet PCs
that utilize "flash memory" instead of hard drives. However, for
reasons known only to the manufacturers, these units cost $1000 MORE
than their hard-drive-equipped equivalents -- even though they have far
fewer moving parts.

For what it's worth, fewer moving parts in *no* way implies lower cost in
the electronics world. There are two primary factors: cost of
manufacturing, and degree of competition.

In the case of flash-based hard drives, the actual parts cost is MUCH higher
than for conventional drives, especially on a per-gigabyte basis. In
addition, only a portion of all of the major hard drive manufacturers are
actually selling flash-based hard drives at this point. There's relatively
little competition in that market right now.

In the near future, I fully expect that market to expand somewhat, and in
fact other manufacturers known more for their RAM products and not for hard
drives are likely to enter the market and create more competition. But
until flash-based hard drives have similar capacities as conventional
drives, there won't be enough demand to motivate a large number of competing
manufacturers, and certainly for the near-term it's absolutely true that PCs
using flash-based drives are going to much more expensive, mostly as a
result of the cost of the drives themselves. Fewer moving parts doesn't
help anything here.

Also for what it's worth, while it may not be practical for you (depends on
how comfortable you are taking apart your tablet PC), IMHO the altitude
issue is, while real, not a huge impediment, especially for someone flying a
normally-aspirated aircraft as you are.

Conventional hard drives ought to lose very little lifetime up to about
10,000', and even beyond that it's not like high-altitude flight is going to
kill the drive outright. I don't doubt that the chances of a drive failure
are increased, but there's always that chance regardless, and plenty of
other environmental factors, including cold, heat, and vibration are also
working to break your drive, regardless of altitude.

Which is a long way of saying, if you're using a PC with a conventional hard
drive, you've got a chance of the drive going kaput on you anyway. If it's
important for you to minimize the chances of failure while actually flying,
then with a conventional drive, whether or not it's used at high altitudes,
you need to be monitoring the drive's health (pretty much all modern drives
use the "SMART" hardware monitoring technology, in which the drive can tell
you well before it is unusable that it needs replacing), and just replace
the drive on the ground before it actually fails. If you're flying below
10,000' all the time, you probably won't notice any significant reduction in
lifetime for the drive (but it could still fail).

All that said, even ignoring the altitude issues, flash-based drives are
more reliable than conventional drives. For that matter, that's essentially
what your Garmin 496 uses. The only reason it doesn't cost even more is
that the amount of storage is quite small compared to what you'd find in a
full-blown PC. But you are still paying through the nose for the storage.
If reliability is your top priority, then flash-based systems are the
way to go, and they are justified in their costs, whether you look at it
from a reliability point of view, or cost of manufacturing, or supply and
demand.

Pete

In a previous article, "Peter Duniho" said:
Conventional hard drives ought to lose very little lifetime up to about
10,000', and even beyond that it's not like high-altitude flight is going to

I know a person who runs a data center for an observatory on Mauna Kea.
Some of the computers are up the mountain at 10,000'+, and most are down
at the bottom at near sea level. She reports no observable difference in
lifetime for hard disks up the mountain versus down the bottom.


--
Paul Tomblin http://xcski.com/blogs/pt/
The only sensible way to estimate the stability of a Windows server
is to power it down and try it out as a step ladder.
-- Robert Crawford