GPS - Which is best.....

[badattitude]

I'm interested in buying myself a GPS but find that the prices and gizmos vary. Also if I'm going to commit to spending more than I can afford I would like the option to be able to use it in my car. Any comments greatfully received.

[big.al]

Many people swear by the Garmin GPSIII Pilot. I have the non-aviation GPSIII and it's great, for around half the price. You obviously need to enter the airfields/waypoints yourself, but in a small package you get quite a lot of functions, including moving map. You can now pick one up for around £160 or so.

I have mine set up to show the map with the following down the right-hand side;

Heading
Bearing
Time to next waypoint
ETA at next waypoint

Not to be relied upon of course, but useful as a cross-check, especially when "estimating zone boundary at time....." etc etc.

If you can afford more then I'm told the colour-map Garmin GPSMAP 295 is very good, but haven't actually used one. And I know that the 'gadget of the year' in Flyer is the new Garmin GPSMAP 196, but before anyone suggests it, I DON'T work for Garmin!

Come on you users of Magellan etc - any further recommendations?

[vancouv]

I've got a Garmin GPSMAP 196, which is pretty expensive (c. £800) but I have found to be very good.

It has aviation, sea and land modes, so I guess you could use it in a car, although I've only used the aviation mode so I don't know exactly what it does in other modes.

From an aviation point of view I would have no hesitation recommending it.

[IO540-C4D5D]

I would first decide on the desired method of mounting. The Garmins mostly (except for the 195 but that's a 7 year old design) cannot be strapped to one's knee. The Skyforce Skymap 2 can, which may be preferred if you are renting.

If you are into serious gadgets, look out for a new Compaq PDA which combines GPRS and GPS :O

[Ludwig]

Garmin 196 the dog's round things. Apart from wx radar it's got the lot.

[Cusco]

Well I swear by the GPS 295 which has the lot except the 'instrument panel' of the 196.

Advantages: clear colour charts, many tiny towns indicated by name to help navigation.

Land mode,available built in, but for a price you can download metro maps for the whole of europe if you seriously want to use it in the car: equals built in car sat nav with the exception that you dont have some foreign voice telling you which way to turn all the time.

Easily available mains adaptor to allow route planning at home without eating batteries.

Shed loads of way point space.

Disadvantages:

Cost: still about GBP1k.

Heavy: vibrates a bit if yoke mounted: solution velcro mount (supplied) to coaming

Eats batteries: not a prob as we have power from a/c.

Colours can be a bit difficult to readin strong sunlight:

Not a huge number (20) of uses route memory, but enough for a low hours recreational flyer like me.


Bottom line is, how deep is your wallet.

Safe flying

Cusco. :p

[Southern Cross]

GPS Garmin III is excellent as small, light but all the functionality you need.

195 is also good but older design as someone else noted. God functionality though....I have one that could be for sale if I was asked....(not breaching the no-advertising rules of Pprune though!!). Fully up to date software installed. Yoke mounting.

E-mail me if you are interested

[drauk]

Depends how much you want to spend.

A non-aviation GPS (take your pick - lots available with broadly similar features) is useful. Up the scale a bit a Pilot III is very good. The Garmin 196 is better still but lots more cash of course. It is significantly better than the Pilot III because the screen is that much bigger and the screen updates much more quickly when you're scrolling around (not an issue when in flight - the III updates fast enough for that). I don't rate the 295 too highly because of the problems of seeing it in direct sunlight and the rate at which it consumes batteries (if you've not got a power outlet in your plane). The 196 has a decent yoke mount which works well in the planes I've tried it in.

None of these units do a great job on the ground, even the 196 and 295 that have a routing mode, though they do the job at a push. A PDA with a GPS will do much better, with more options and voice routing. If money is no object I'd recommend a 196 plus an iPAQ showing your CAA map. Then get road routing software for the iPAQ for use in the car (like TomTom). The 196 is a bit big and cumbersome to use just as a GPS feed for the iPAQ in the car, so throw another 250 quid at it and you can have a bluetooth GPS which is tiny and has no wires.

If you have more specific questions fire away.

[Ludwig]

drauk, of course money is no object; Can you explain that PDA iPAQtom tom bluetooth stuff in English? It sound really good. Gadget man heaven almost. : :8 :D

[big.al]

Southern Cross -

195 is also good but older design as someone else noted. God functionality though....
What is a God functionality? Some omnipotent powerful method of getting you home when lost perhaps? Or is it like.... "beam me up Scotty"..? :O

[Fly Stimulator]

Presumably the God functionality lets you choose the weather you want, specify that you'll always be granted transits, can use whatever airways you want without going to the trouble of getting an IR, and get free fuel wherever you land.

No wonder the 195 is slightly costly, but with these functions I think it sounds well worth the money. ;)

[Southern Cross]

"God functionality" moves the Heathrow zone or other restricted airspace into which you have no present clearance to enter, laterally by a distance sufficient for you to just continue blithely on without getting into trouble. Honest Guv...:cool: :cool: :cool:

He he he...

[QDMQDMQDM]

I have a GPS 3 Pilot. It's very good, but if I was buying today it would be the GPS 196.

QDM

[willbav8r]

Good article here in the USofA (AOPA mag) regarding true GPS and PDA "add-ons".

I was thinking of an iPaq plus the goodies (will cost same as a Garmin 196) but read that you WILL experience a lock up or two. Plus, batteries will get used, and there are a few wires/anntenae to consider.

Still, definately the most flexible. I have even seen an HSI add on for a PDA.

[drauk]

willbav8r, I think it is wrong to say that you WILL experience a lock up. I think it is right to say that you're more likely to with a PDA than with a Garmin GPS. Funnily enough I've had one with a Garmin GPS but never (in flight) with an iPAQ. But then I've used the Garmin more than the iPAQ, so it isn't that surprising. Having used both pretty extensively I have to say that personally I find a 196 better than an iPAQ with any of a different number of pieces of software. But if you want moving real CAA charts and you've already got a PDA and a GPS all you need is the software (cheap) and the cable (cheap) and you can have the best of both worlds - navigation data from the GPS and a moving map on the iPAQ.

[willbav8r]

Can't speak from experience, but purely repeating what the article stated.

I DO like the idea of all the bells and whistles that a PDA can provide. DO NOT like the idea of having to try and reset a PDA in flight (at a less than opportune moment)

I wouldn't be using as my primary navigation (until the VOR gets kyboshed) so, I'd rather have a dedicated piece of kit. Besides, those 196's look ultra mega whizz bang marvelous.

Of course, iPaq plus GPS add on and software is 1 large here in the US, which is precisely what the 196 comes to......decisions decisions.

Think I will stick to VOR, DME, ADF and a chart. For now.

[bar shaker]

Another vote for the 196.

I also use it quite a bit in the car as it has turn by turn road nav. Very useful for bypassing traffic jams and getting back on route. The manual says that it will not give TbT nav with Metroguide maps, but it does on all but the smallest back roads.

Can't fault it in the air.