XM question for Garmin 396/496 owers

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
newssUrk.310590$yE1.222838@attbi_s21...
Yes, yes, and yes. Everything -- airspace, navigation, and radar
returns --
can be shown on the same map. (You can add satellite, too.)
Sadly, the 496's screen is so little that it's difficult to see any of
this
great stuff.

That's because you have your 496 mounted in the dock in your panel.
I use a RAM suction cup mount to place the 496 within 12-inches of my
face. I don't like the yoke mount that comes with the 496.

Even before I had it panel docked (which, BTW, makes it more -- not
less -- readable, by putting it at nearly eye-level) that dinky screen
drove me nuts. I like your suction mount solution better than a yoke
mount (which I -- like most people -- used), though. When it was yoke
mounted I couldn't scrunch down far enough to "make the screen bigger by
getting closer" -- especially with old(er) eyes. Now, if needed, the
co-pilot can stick their face right up to that miniscule screen.

I take the opposite view of the 496. I like it because it has a small
screen. I have mine mounted on the yoke, which is where I prefer it. It is
convenient there, doesn't get in the way, and is easy to read. If it had a
bigger screen, the problem becomes where do you put it? The G1000 has a
huge MFD, but it's all the way over on the co-pilot's side and is
inconvenient for the pilot to manipulate. The older Bonanzas with their
yoke configuration has a nice place to mount a tablet PC, which is a great
mounting location. However if you don't have that type of yoke, you are out
of luck. I don't particularly like the interface for the tablet PC XM
weather applications anyway and prefer Garmin's approach, but that just may
be because I've used Garmin products for so long.