Hobie Cat Forums

I have decided to go the Garmin Nuvi 500. This is a boat/car and other GPS, it is water proof/resistant. I will get a waterproof bag just for added security!

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Paul, Rebecca & Stephanie

Is this good? Its an Aussie site- http://www.gps-are-us.com/product_info. ... ts_id=1068

I am very impressed with the gpsmap 78. Great floating handheld unit with chart plotting capabilities. Battery life is excellent! I went out this weekend from 8am to 330pm and it still had not lost any battery bars. At worst case it still had 3/4 power left. I use NiMH rechargeable batteries.

There are many on this thread that like this unit!

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Paul, Rebecca & Stephanie

I thought it was a bargain but just realised that was the base model, not quite the one everyone is keen on

Ill keep looking, thanks for startin this thread Paulo, very handy

I finally got around to taking a picture of our Garmin Oregon in full sunlight. The camera is actually picking up a bit of glare off the screen. In person it is more bright and clear.

Chekika you are a pretty wise person!

I was hoping that I could mount my 76 on one of those really cool mounts so it would be in front of me all of the time, but after losing one of the rubber port-protectors a couple of journeys ago it became pretty obvious that a bag is the *only* way to go. I now use mine in a Dry Pak I got on ebay for $7

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2010 Tandem Island!

You might be able to have your cake and eat it too with one of these:



I use something similar in my car and it holds the GPS securely. I would also tie the Dry Pak to something, just in case it gets washed out of the jaws of the mount by a big wave.

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Can you attach the GPSMap76CX to the cross bar on a TI ? Does it have
a means of attaching via strap ?

I use the wrist strap as a leash after testing that it was strong enough.
Here's a picture of mine on the left with a leashed fishfinder on the right,
both on RAM ball mounts:

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http://KayakingBob.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2007, 2009 & 2010 Hobie AIs and a 2010 TI

I received a Garmin GPSMAP 76cx for my birthday earlier this year ... haven't really looked at it much except to notice the screen is pretty small for my now 50 yr old eyes

While the intentions were great, I'm wondering if this is a good choice to stay with or should I sell it now whist it is still considered new in box ?

I sail mostly on the north shore of Long Island NY and in Lake Champlain NY which is an inland lake.

Is it correct that I would need to purchase maps and spend additional $$$ to use this device as intended above ?

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Alan W.
'07 Hobie Adventure Island #1
'07 Hobie Adventure Island #2 Golden Papaya AI LadyJane
... both in Golden Papaya
'06? Hobie Outback SUV

No additional $$$'s to use it. You can add maps, but what it comes with is good enough for sailing. Fishermen, usually like the water maps showing depths. I owned the Topo maps, so I added them, but would have worked well without.

I added launch/landing sites I use to mine and I use Google earth to add others like Hotels, water-towers and takeouts and moorings that I haven't used yet.

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http://KayakingBob.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 2007, 2009 & 2010 Hobie AIs and a 2010 TI

That's well dressed kayak, Bob. You run a tight ship.

Passwind, I agree with you. Too small to read, so I find a 3.5" iphone with Navionics to be as effective as a costly mini GPS, if not more so.

I expect to see a smaller version of the iPad (or larger iPhone) sometime this year that will really make a splash as a GPS replacement.

How does the battery stand up on the iPhone? The Garmin gets about 16 hours from a charge (using rechargeable AA's) with the display on continuously. Do you need to be running a separate app to log your track or is that built into Navionics? Can you add your own points of interest?
I didn't bother trying Navionics because the touchscreen on my old HTC Desire was unresponsive in an Aquapac.

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The battery is the only drawback, but you can boost that with small attachments now, in which case all day is not a problem. Also there are screen saver modes.

If you use too many screen protectors and thick H2O bags the sensitivity can be clunky. With my thinner OverBoard bag it works well. Bleed the air out - that's the trick.

The $15 Navionics app has it all, GPS vector-based gold (Hawaii) maps w adjustable depth contours, waypoints, tracks, routes, tides, overlays, features, hazards, GPS photos, search and sharing.

I wear it around my neck and find it handy for trolling the 90ft line, channel marking and sailing around reefs in the bay.

When this moves to a 7" screen - it will be perfect!