Garmin GPS - Re: GPSMAP 76CSx being sold cheaper than 60CSx

Author

Re: GPSMAP 76CSx being sold cheaper than 60CSx

miso@sushi.com

2007-04-17, 4:33 am

On Apr 16, 1:08 pm, "Fred Hiltz" <n...@home.ca> wrote:
> m...@sushi.com wrote:
>
> [snip]
>
>
> Don't let that stop you. For $6.95 you can buy a keychain magnetic
> compass that is 3D, just as accurate as the one in the 60CSx, and
> far more reliable. Turn off the Garmin compass and enjoy longer
> battery times.
> --
> Fred Hiltz, fhiltz at yahoo dot com

The compass in the gps would be to aid in "slow" hikes, i.e. where the
terrain is so rough that you can't move fast enough for the virtual
compass to work. Visualize a 1:1 grade, loose shale, and prickly
plants where you don't have the shale. You can't move fast enough for
the gps to predict what direction to move.

Magellan manages to put in a 3D compass. I don't see why Garmin can't
do it.

Keith G. Powell

2007-04-17, 4:33 am

<miso@sushi.com> wrote in message
news:1176788055.836545.38740@n76g2000hsh.googlegroups.com...
> On Apr 16, 1:08 pm, "Fred Hiltz" <n...@home.ca> wrote:
>
> The compass in the gps would be to aid in "slow" hikes, i.e. where the
> terrain is so rough that you can't move fast enough for the virtual
> compass to work. Visualize a 1:1 grade, loose shale, and prickly
> plants where you don't have the shale. You can't move fast enough for
> the gps to predict what direction to move.
>
> Magellan manages to put in a 3D compass. I don't see why Garmin can't
> do it.
>

What is a "3D" compass?

Keith G. Powell

dold@81.usenet.us.com

2007-04-17, 12:33 pm

In sci.geo.satellite-nav emmbeedee <emmbeedee@gmail.com> wrote:

> Essentially a compass which does not need to be held level to operate.
> I rarely turn on the compass on my 60CSx except if I'm projecting a
> waypoint since it needs to be held level and if not, is confusing.

"confusing" has two meanings to me. One is when it doesn't work, and you
realize it isn't working, but you don't know why.

The other is when it is pointing in the wrong direction and you don't
realize it. "Hold Level" might mean that you aren't holding it level,
which is reasonably easy to correct. "Hold Level", for some odd reason,
might also mean that it needs to be calibrated. Also not difficult to
correct, but a "confusing" message. Once, my 60cs was miscalibrated, and I
thought it was correcting the wrong way for magnetic deviation, from my
knowledge of the lay of the land. That was just a rough coincidence, and
had nothing to do with the directional error.

I rarely turn on the compass. If I do, I turn it on, calibrate it, use it,
and turn it off.

It is a nice feature though, and I haven't pulled my "real" compass out of
its little pouch since I got the 60cs. I like the sight-and-go. I don't
care for the barometer, and would like to be able to turn it off.

I think the "s" is worth the extra money.

I like the 60 form factor instead of the 76 form factor. I have used
both. The 76 seems clunkier and not outdoorsy. The 60 fits in a pocket
a little better, where the 76 is the same size all the way to the top.
Mounted in a dash mount in a car, my hand does block my view of the 76
while pushing buttons, where the 60 display is above my hand.

--
---
Clarence A Dold - Hidden Valley Lake, CA, USA GPS: 38.8,-122.5

Kent Friis

2007-04-17, 12:33 pm

Den Tue, 17 Apr 2007 16:56:55 +0000 (UTC) skrev dold@81.usenet.us.com:
>
> I rarely turn on the compass. If I do, I turn it on, calibrate it, use it,
> and turn it off.

Funny thing about needing to turn the compass of to save batteries. I
never turn mine off, when I'm in the car, it gets power through the
cable, and I don't need to worry about the batteries. And when it's
running on battery, I'm either walking or biking, and won't be moving
when I'm looking at it, so the compass is nice.

/Kent
--
"So there I was surrounded by all these scary creatures
They were even scarier than what Microsoft call features"
- C64Mafia: Forbidden Forest (Don't Go Walking Slow).

Klatch

2007-04-17, 3:33 pm

"Kent Friis" <nospam@nospam.invalid> wrote in message
news:4625022a$0$9027
0$14726298@news.sunsite.dk...
> Den Tue, 17 Apr 2007 16:56:55 +0000 (UTC) skrev dold@81.usenet.us.com:
>
> Funny thing about needing to turn the compass of to save batteries. I
> never turn mine off, when I'm in the car, it gets power through the
> cable, and I don't need to worry about the batteries. And when it's
> running on battery, I'm either walking or biking, and won't be moving
> when I'm looking at it, so the compass is nice.
>
> /Kent
> --
> "So there I was surrounded by all these scary creatures
> They were even scarier than what Microsoft call features"
> - C64Mafia: Forbidden Forest (Don't Go Walking Slow).

I also do not turn off the magnetic compass. As stated by Kent Friis, it is
either under 12 volt power or I am walking fast enough to reach my
pre-selected speed threshold at which point the magnetic compass turns
itself off. When I am moving and the magnetic compass is off, the virtual
compass from the position calculations takes over. If I am moving very
slowly or stopped, the magnetic compass comes on. That said, I do carry a
standard magnetic compass for backup.

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