Garmin 196 advice sought

[Zulu Alpha]

I'm thinking about getting the Garmin 196 with the black and white screen.

Does anyone have any comments good or bad?

It sems to have a good combination of price, battery life, performance accessories etc and I don't think I really need colour.

Thanks for any advice

[Twiddle]

I've been using a friends for a while and seems very good.

396 is of no use over here (it'd be a 296), 296 I've only used once and I was very impressed by the quality of the display and the speed of repaints.

[bolkowman]

I've been using the Garmin 196 for a number of years and consider it to be an excellent and reliable piece of kit.

[SKYYACHT]

ME TOO!

My GPS 196 is a fabulous piece of kit. Once you get used to all the functions, and know which pages to use for which purpose, it becomes a "morceau de gateaux"

Mind you, the monthly updates can be a bit expensive!

Tailwinds

[Zulu Alpha]

Skyacht,

Thanks for the heads up about the updates.

How much are they and how essential? Is it just frequency and airspace restrictions that change and therefore once a year would be enough if I wasn't relying on the GPS as a primary source of information for those?

Key points for me are screen readabilty in sunlight as I have a perspex bubble canopy and battery life as I want it to be independant of the aircraft electrics.

Thanks

ZA

[SKYYACHT]

I have used my 196 in a Firefly with no problems, I do sometimes have to shield the display with my hand if its very bright.

The Garmin updates are monthly, and coincide with the global AIRAC cycle. I seem to recall that they are about 25.00GBP per update. Check out the Garmin Website. If you only do it once per year, then airspace updates, such as the recent Bristol one, wont appear in your database!

Cheers


M

[SKYYACHT]

Just seen your reference to battery life.... If you are using the external anttena, this is powered, so it may eat batteries a bit. I always load fresh ones before doing a cross country. A friend of mine has bought rechargeables, and these seem to do the trick as well. I have used mine for about 2.0 hours since putting in the latest set of Duracells.

Also, on another note, even if you dont fly much, its a good idea to get the unit out one a week or so, and allow it to capture satellites so that it can "fix" its position.

Otherwise, it will take AGES to acquire all the satellites and fix it position when you have the engine and Hobbs meter running!

Cheers

[Lister Noble]

Zulu Warrior,
I suppose you could make some sort of basic shield against the light,a bit of bent ali sheet taped on, or velcro'd on so it could be removed for transport?
Just a thought.
I'm now a proud Priory Cub group member!
Lister

[whiskeytangofoxtrot]

Originally Posted by SKYYACHT

The Garmin updates are monthly, and coincide with the global AIRAC cycle. I seem to recall that they are about 25.00GBP per update. Check out the Garmin Website. If you only do it once per year, then airspace updates, such as the recent Bristol one, wont appear in your database!

I have a 196 also and I like it. A decent map with good size.

My reasoning for the updates is, that since the GPS is a supplement to the VFR chart for me, I keep it in sync with the chart. Our charts update roughly once per year, and thus when I get a new maps, I also get a database update. The revision service has updates ~monthly but not much happens in the VFR land - sometimes things do change, but then the maps change too.

This method has been working reasonably well. Lately we got a Garmin 430 on the plane I fly most (and two on the other one I got checked out most recently) so a handheld is not that necessary anymore. But it's a good device that can probably be purchased for a good price nowadays.

[Tim_CPL]

Originally Posted by SKYYACHT

Just seen your reference to battery life.... If you are using the external anttena, this is powered, so it may eat batteries a bit. I always load fresh ones before doing a cross country. A friend of mine has bought rechargeables, and these seem to do the trick as well. I have used mine for about 2.0 hours since putting in the latest set of Duracells.
Also, on another note, even if you dont fly much, its a good idea to get the unit out one a week or so, and allow it to capture satellites so that it can "fix" its position.
Otherwise, it will take AGES to acquire all the satellites and fix it position when you have the engine and Hobbs meter running!
Cheers

I have a 196 and it is a wonderful piece of kit. Just a point on the startup times, if you fly from the same place, there is no need to do the regular startups as described above.
From the user manual, it should take 15s for a warm start, 45s for a cold start and a maximum of 2 minutes for an autolocate/first fix. Also battery life is quoted at 16 hours, but I seem to get about 10 in mixed night/day use, but I also use the cigarette lighter adapter in the 172. Best mounting mechanism is a RAM windshield mount. I have had one problem with it overheating, but this was after I left it in the baking sun on a texas summer day, and the thing was too hot to touch. It seemed to be working but the display was screwed up. Again the spec says max temp is 70C, so it was toasty!
Finally, I'm not sure about the UK, but in the US, a major feature I use as a backup in case of power loss is the approach mode. Basically all IAP's from the FAF are in the database (without stepdown alts), and this is very useful. Also all IFR waypoints are in there, again as a backup. The WAAS feature meant that I got <5ft accuracy last week on an XC.
Of course there are fancier 296/396/496 units with color, but the 196 does a good job, has excellent battery life and has a great set of features for a good price. In the US you can get a refurb for $499 if you look, I believe you should be able to load the European database onto it, but I haven't tried this (I know I can swap US/UK charts on my old trusty GPS-92).


- Tim

[drauk]

I have one for sale. It's going cheap because it's a bit scratched and battered. PM for details including close-up photos.

[PTR 175]

As above, A good bit of kit. I use it via the power cable, on the C150/172 I fly, so cannot comment on battery life. However, mine will not start up on the cable with flat batteries, so you always need a good set of cells in it plus a spare set.

I use the Bean bag mount which is quick, easy and appears to be stable. Like others I only update mine once a year after I have got my new chart. I use it as an addition to chart and compass and a prepared log.