GPS Models -- Pros and Cons

Before you do anything wait to see the sanitary installation and pilot
report on
the Garmin color 295 when we get to IOW.

Wilco!

Now if only I could afford the color...
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

The actual downside is that it is slower than the newer
handhelds.

Could you expand on that a bit? Slower in what way?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

I have a garmin 295 right now (untill I upgrade my panel), my old plane I sold a
few months ago I had put a garmin 430 in it. I have friends who have garmin
196's and they like it alot. I prefer the 295 because its color.

But generally I think handhelds are mostly the same, only exception would be
any unique features you may want, like I would prefer a gps to show the screen
like a sectional, where it shows terrain hieght and such for avoiding mountains
at night. The 295, you can also purchase additional data bases for it for use in
a car and so on. But it does every thing from flight planning to showing you how
much fuel you will need for a leg.

Jay Honeck wrote:

I've been leaning towards a Garmin 196 to replace our ailing Lowrance Airmap
300. However, now that Garmin has announced they are no longer going to
support the Garmin 90, it appears that they are no better at support than
Lowrance -- who recently "orphaned" my Airmap from all technical support.
(This occurred right before it started acting flaky, naturally.)

So, I'm now thinking about one of these Compaq Ipaq/GPS combinations. One
of our guests at the inn gave me a 15 minute "tour" of his, and I was fairly
impressed with:

- The color screen.
- The strength of the software.
- The fact that it just doesn't sit in the plane, but is actually useful
beyond flying.

Apparent downsides we

- The screen didn't look bright enough in direct sunlight
- The "pen" interface seemed like a tough thing to handle, especially in
turbulence.
- The clutter of wires in the cockpit sounds like a mess.

What says the group? Anyone out there care to comment on the various
strengths and weaknesses? I've only got about ten days left to make up my
mind!
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:cwVSa.112586$ye4.83381@sccrnsc01...
| The actual downside is that it is slower than the newer
| handhelds.
|
| Could you expand on that a bit? Slower in what way?
| --

It appears to me (and this is a subjective observation) that the iPaq
updates its screen more slowly than a handheld GPS. Of course, this can be
dependent on the particular model of iPaq, too.

"Nosegear" wrote:
Last advantage I can think of is also a disadvantage: you do not pay for
certification of the equipment (I'm sure Garmin and others have some
percentage for that in the price)

Nope. Portable GPS's aren't certified.
--
Dan
C172RG at BFM

BTW did you get your hotel in the flight guide I mentioned awhile back?

Yep! Thanks for the tip! (We're supposedly going to be in the next issue.
Please let me know if you see it...)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

You could try using the PocketAI shareware that runs on the
Pocket PC to make your decision faster. It's free to download
and functional even if you don't buy it. The programs makes it
very easy to weigh various factors and then rate each of your
alternatives. This way you know exactly which one comes out on
top and why.

Give it a try... http://www.3dnetproductions.com/pocketai/

Cheers,
BM

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message news:K_DSa.107706$ye4.80571@sccrnsc01...
I've been leaning towards a Garmin 196 to replace our ailing Lowrance Airmap
300. However, now that Garmin has announced they are no longer going to
support the Garmin 90, it appears that they are no better at support than
Lowrance -- who recently "orphaned" my Airmap from all technical support.
(This occurred right before it started acting flaky, naturally.)

So, I'm now thinking about one of these Compaq Ipaq/GPS combinations. One
of our guests at the inn gave me a 15 minute "tour" of his, and I was fairly
impressed with:

- The color screen.
- The strength of the software.
- The fact that it just doesn't sit in the plane, but is actually useful
beyond flying.

Apparent downsides we

- The screen didn't look bright enough in direct sunlight
- The "pen" interface seemed like a tough thing to handle, especially in
turbulence.
- The clutter of wires in the cockpit sounds like a mess.

What says the group? Anyone out there care to comment on the various
strengths and weaknesses? I've only got about ten days left to make up my
mind!

Nosegear wrote:

Also, with properly designed software the pen interface need not be a
problem: you do the miniscule work when safely on the ground, and all
other functions are easily activated by using your finger on the touch-
screen. When you'd use PocketFMS, you can do the pre-flight part on your
home PC and transfer everything to your iPAQ when finished.

Um, I dunno about you, but it's not unknown for us to wind up
diverting enroute due to weather. Usually under conditions
which make it both highly desireable to navigate accurately,
and highly difficult to use the pen interface on a Palm (which
one of us is usually doing, to check CBAV).

ie, we may start out doing the "miniscule" work safely on the
ground but it can't be counted on to end there.

I don't know how PocketFMS works: if it has the equivalent of
a red "nearest" button which will let you toggle quickly through
the 20 nearest airports or navaids, that'd suffice for most situations
I can think of.

Cheers,
Sydney

Usually under conditions
which make it both highly desireable to navigate accurately,
and highly difficult to use the pen interface on a Palm (which
one of us is usually doing, to check CBAV).

What is CBAV?

"C J Campbell" wrote in message


It appears to me (and this is a subjective observation) that the iPaq
updates its screen more slowly than a handheld GPS. Of course, this
can be dependent on the particular model of iPaq, too.

....and the software and how many other apps are currently running.

My experience is that the AnywhereMap software will paint the screen very
quickly once a second with the Sentinel GPS. I also try to keep it as the
only software running at the time to help ensure it has all the RAM it needs
(although my iPAQ has far more than necessary).

With all that said, a dedicated GPS unit has only one function so they can
tweak the hell out of it to do that one function very well.

--
John T
http://tknowlogy.com/tknoFlyer
__________