Garmin GPSMAP 60 Personal Navigation Unit

Garmin GPSMAP 60 Personal Navigation Unit Review

I bought this mostly for hiking and also for geocaching. For those uses this GPS does all you need. Sure the base map comes with only the larger highways and basically no landmarks aside from large lakes and points marking towns; but if I do a little planning ahead I don't need the map.

What I do is trace with paths, or mark with points any landmarks that are important for where I will be going in google earth. I export these to a free 3rd party software (GPS Trackmaker) that will allow me to open google earth KML files and save out a GPX file which I can then open with the included software (Mapsource) and transfer to the device. This sounds complicated but it's really a quick operation and allows me to use google earth for everything which is the point.

You can also buy maps for it if this is too much work for you. The great thing about my process though is you learn a lot about where you're going before hand from your exploration in google earth which can be invaluable.

My only complaint(why its 4 stars instead of 5) is it only supports 20 saved paths. I haven't really needed more than that yet but I'm sure at some point I will considering I'm using saved paths to mark roads, rivers, creeks, trails and other landmarks in the area I intend to visit.

Aside from the 20 paths you also get the 10,000 point "track log" which is just one very long path that it makes automatically as you travel. I enjoy this feature a lot and google earth does support loading all the paths and waypoints directly from the GPS so its not an involved process to view your recent exploits in google earth.

If you want something that doesn't require any tinkering you'd better double your price range; otherwise this is a great device.

Garmin GPSMAP 60 Personal Navigation Unit Feature

• WAAS-Enabled, 12 Parallel-Channel GPS Receiver
• Large, Grayscale Display With Bright, Backlit Led
• 50 Reversible Routes, 10,000 Track Points With Tracback Technology & 1,000 Waypoints With Additional Graphical Icons For Location Identification
• Serial & Usb Connections For Fast & Versatile Download Transfer
• Built-In Basemap With Automatic Routing Capabilities & Turn-By-Turn Voice Prompts

Garmin GPSMAP 60 Personal Navigation Unit Overview

The GPSMAP 60 is completely waterproof, with up to 28 hours battery life using two AA batteries, this new product will target the marine and outdoor recreation markets. The GPSMAP 60 has up to 24 MB’s of internal memory for detailed maps that can be transferred to the unit using the USB interface. The GPSMAP 60 also includes a built-in Americas basemap with automatic routing capabilities. The GPSMAP 60 is fully compatible with MapSource products like BlueChart, 24K Topo and City Select, which provides detailed streets for turn-by-turn guidance (there is no voice output). The GPSMAP 60 provides separate serial and USB interfaces. Navigation instructions can be shared with repeaters, plotters and autopilots using NMEA protocols through the dedicated serial port. Includes: unit, USB interface cable, lanyard, belt clip, manual, quick start guide

Garmin GPSMAP 60 Personal Navigation Unit Specifications

Optimized for both land and marine navigation, Garmin's handheld GPSMap 60 includes a built-in Americas basemap with automatic routing capabilities. The 12-parallel-channel GPS receiver is designed to provide precise GPS positioning using correction data obtained from the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS).

Map page. View larger.

Compass page. View larger.

The Garmin GPSMap 60 packs GPS navigation into a compact, waterproof device.

The GPSMap 60 also features 24 MB of internal memory for detailed maps that you can load through a speedy USB interface, and it's fully compatible with Garmin MapSource products such as BlueChart, 24K Topo, and City Select, which provides detailed streets for turn-by-turn guidance. However, it is important to note that the GPSMap 60 does not provide voice notification.

The device offers a high-contrast, four-level grayscale LCD (160 x 240 pixels) with backlighting for the display and the keypad. A large-numbers option provides easy viewing. You get 1,000 user waypoints with name and graphic symbol and 20 reversible routes; position formats include Lat/Lon, UTM, Loran TDs, Maidenhead, MGRS, and user grid. Memory is non-volatile for permanent user data storage, requiring no memory battery.

A handy trip computer provides an odometer, stopped time, moving average, overall average, total time, max speed, and more. The unit also comes with a 10,000-point automatic track log, and 20 saved tracks (500 points each) let you retrace your path in both directions.

Other features include course and speed filtering; built-in celestial tables for best times to fish and hunt (plus sun and moon calculations); an alarm clock wake-up and stop watch; audible alarms for anchor drag, arrival, off-course, and proximity waypoint; and a geocaching navigation mode. Navigation instructions can be shared with repeaters, plotters, and autopilots using NMEA protocols through the serial port.

The GPSMap 60's rugged, fully gasketed case is waterproof to IEC 60529 IPX7 standards, meaning it's submersible in one meter of water for up to 30 minutes. The device derives up to 28 hours battery life using 2 AA batteries (not included).

What's in the Box
GPSMAP 60 receiver, basemap (Americas Recreational), MapSource Trip & Waypoint Manager CD, PC/USB interface cable, wrist strap, belt clip with button, quick-start guide, and owner's manual.

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*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Sep 04, 2010 02:30:05