Ghengis,
my aircraft came with a Garmin 430 installed. Nevertheless I got a Garmin 296 as backup and track recorder. I must say I am very happy with it, a lot of GPS for the money. It will do Terrain and accepts flightplans from Pocket FMS, which I use as my route planner right now. I also use Pocket FMS in flight, since I finally got a GPS equipped Windows Mobile device which will run it well. I must admit that had I had it before, I might have stuck with it. The Pocket FMS database is close to perfect for VFR and very easy to use.
For what I need, I find the 296 great, so I'd assume the 496, which has the larger resolution, should be super too.