Garmin BlueChart Americas Saltwater Map CD-ROM (Windows) Review

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(More customer reviews)Although the packaging offers coverage of the U.S., Canada, Caribbean, and South America on this expensive CD, you can only unlock a very limited "region" with your original purchase. Says Garmin tech support, "When you purchase BlueChart, you're entitled to one free region, and then additional regions can be purchased for $116.65." The word "free" here reflects Garmin's generally abysmal use of language found on their Web site, a labyrinth of obfuscation tangled in their arcane and ultra-paranoid "unlocking" technology and hidden prices. Unlike their Topo and City Navigator CDs where you get a lot of maps for your money, BlueChart gave me a limited sliver of southwest Florida for my purchase price. When I went to load Cape Cod, I discovered I would need to pony up another $116 for this small region. To unlock everything on this CD would costs many, many thousands of dollars, and nowhere is this clear to the unwary consumer.
What is especially grating in all this is that Garmin relies on U.S. government maps and GPS satellites that we taxpapers have already paid for. I find the marketing of Blue Chart really deceptive, especially given the important public safety implications of nautical mapping.
I would add that boat-towing travelers and nautical siteseers will need shoreside mapping and road info, for which these charts are useless, so you'll need additional map products and memory cards to show roads, parks, dining, and local amenities. Buyer beware.

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Garmin's exclusive line of BlueChart marine cartography products is designed to provide interactive viewing of detailed nautical chart data. These detailed electronic nautical charts look just like paper charts when displayed on your Garmin chart plotter. Descriptive details for features typically found on nautical charts can easily be viewed with a simple key press. Cursor movements over the chart provide descriptions for contour depths, chart number, navaid name, and much more.
BlueChart data includes shaded depth contours, intertidal zones, spot soundings, wrecks, navaids, port plans, restricted areas, cable areas, anchorages, and more. Additionally, BlueCharts include information from the paper chart used in the digitization process, such as chart number, name, scale, revision date, and Notice-to-Mariners date.
Three MapSource BlueChart CD-ROMs are available: Americas, Atlantic, and Pacific. The Atlantic CD-ROM covers Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. One CD-ROM contains BlueChart data for an entire region. MapSource BlueChart is a Microsoft Windows-based program that uses Garmin Unlock technology, allowing you to use one coverage area from the CD-ROM when initially purchased and to purchase additional coverage areas. Internet access is recommended for the unlock process.
Compatible products include these Garmin marine chart plotters: GPSMAP 176, GPSMAP 176C, GPSMAP 182, GPSMAP 188 Sounder, GPSMAP 232, GPSMAP 238 Sounder, GPSMAP 2006, and the GPSMAP 2010. BlueChart CD-ROMs are also compatible with Garmin GPS receivers that accept map data, including the GPSMAP 76, eTrex Vista, and eTrex Legend.

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Garmin BlueChart, Lake Erie-Lake St. Clair, Jul 08 Garmin Data Card Review

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(More customer reviews)I think the Amazon sellers are confusing g2 Blue chart cards with the new g2 Blue chart Vision cards for the 400/500 Garmin gps chartplotters (with or without fishfinder). These new models must have Vision cards with a "V" in the model number. The new vision cards are close to $300.

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Garmin LakeMaster CD-ROM for Garmin GPS Units, Minnesota Review

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(More customer reviews)Pros:
The maps provide good contours, even in the boundary waters and small lakes that you wouldn't expect. Excellent 1 foot contours are available on popular lakes.
Cons:
I really didn't realize that I'd only be able to use this with just one unit. So, don't install this on your old GPS, because you're not able to transfer the maps to another unit. I think the sd card version solves this problem since you can just migrate it to other units.

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Native Minnesotans and other devotees of the land of 10,000 lakes will delight in this Minnesota LakeMaster CD-ROM from Garmin. Specifically designed for Garmin GPS navigators, the LakeMaster maps are a must for fisherman, but also provide valuable data for recreational boaters and other Minnesota water enthusiasts. The maps include high-definition 3-foot contours and underwater structure details of 51 of Minnesota's most popular fishing destinations, including Pelican, Vermilion, Winnibigoshish, Leech, Whitefish Chain, White Bear, Clearwater, and North Long Lakes. Map specifics also include islands, reefs, points, bays, access points, marinas, and more--all gathered from meticulous on-the-water surveys. Your Garmin GPS will use LakeMaster to accurately locate your boat on the map, as well as show detailed tracklines and waypoints. So quit cruising blindly when looking for the perfect Minnesota fishing spot and let Garmin do the work for you.

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Garmin City Navigator for Detailed Maps of Middle East NT (DVD) Review

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(More customer reviews)I am an expat living in Riyadh Saudi Arabia. To drive around here , it's a maze of u-turns and one way roads, weird turns against traffic, and more! This software actually does a very good job giving me directions, and understands the nuances of the Saudi roads. I never expected it to be as useful as it is - now, I don't venture out without it. I use it on a simple Garmin Nuvi 205W which I purchased from Amazon.com at a very good price for Christmas. Indispensible when learning the roads around here. Don't know if it works as well over the entire range of the map, but in Riyadh, a big city of close to 5 million people, it works great.

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BlueChart g2 Southwest Caribbean ? microSD/SD card Review

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(More customer reviews)After managing to send the maps to a boat in the caribbean I discover that adventurer's bag sent the wrong set of maps, instead of sending the caribbean ones, they sent US maps, It was a hassle to return back to the US. They did not offer me the option of downloading the rigth maps. It costed me an extra USD$35.

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Topo U.S. 24K Mountain South Review

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(More customer reviews)For the first time Garmin is beginning to roll out 24K Topo maps on microSD cards.
All I can say is it is about time !
They are starting with the western states and going east. If your state is not covered yet, please be patient. They are all coming.
This is the highest level of mapping detail available for your Garmin unit. They work best on the new Colorado and Oregon series units as you will see see 3-D views and color terrain shading on these units only. Nice !!
These are a must have for hikers, geocachers and any outdoor enthusiasts.
Highly recommended !!

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Garmin City Navigator UPDATE for Detailed Maps of New Zealand (CD-ROM) Review

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(More customer reviews)I thought we were buying maps of New Zealand. Actually, it was an "update" so that if we didn't already have New Zealand maps, the purchase was worthless.
My Garmin also stopped functioning (no satellite reception) after I attempted to download the software.
The litterature should be clearer so that others don't make similar mistakes.

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Garmin Automotive Navigation Kit for Garmin Vista C and Legend C, North America (010-10564-00) Review

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(More customer reviews)So here's some practical info for a potential buyer of this kit:
1. My kit did not come with the replacement battery cover (indicated in the literature) that you use to attach the GPS to the mounting hardware. This is not a problem if you have a newer GPS which came with its own screw-on hardware, making a battery cover version redundant. But if you lost that little piece, you won't be able to mount your GPS unless you happen to have the battery cover from another kit (such as the bike mount kit).
2. File sizes for route-calculating CitySelect Maps are about 1/3 larger than non-route-calculating maps, so if you've used MetroGuide or another "lesser" product, you will not be able to fit as many maps on your GPS as you are used to. On these 24 MB GPS's, expect to fit the majority of one large metro area (like the Bay Area), but nothing else. If you're going on a road trip, you may need to get rid of your local maps or even take your laptop in order to load new maps as you go. I was able to load the important local areas and the maps for the route to my family's mountain property, so that's good enough for me.
3. The maps are great and have a lot of detail, but keep in mind that your screen isn't very big, so you're probably best off using the text directions for driving. Also, the Legend and Vista can't "beep" very loudly, so if you're listening to the stereo and not paying attention, you may miss a turn.
4. As you've noticed, the price is highway robbery (pardon the pun), but you are getting a quality product that does what it is supposed to do and is easy to use. For road trips, the gas station and resturaunt information is particularly useful, since you won't get that on a regular map. This is by no means an essential accessory, especially if you just use your GPS for geocaching or other "outdoors" activities, but it's great for driving, so it's up to the individual to decide if they want to pony up for this luxury item. Also, if you are researching GPS units, keep in mind that this software plus the GPS could easily cost as much as the Quest, a much more powerful unit that includes this software and hardware for free and has way more map storage capacity. You should only go the Legend+software route if you also need a durable portable handheld GPS for other activites. The etrex line are pretty much indestructable, which is good because I've dropped mine many times already. The Quest looks like it wouldn't survive such use.
5. The cigarette lighter power adapter has a cable length of 6 feet, in case anyone is wondering. It plugs into the USB port of your GPS.
6. The mounting stand articulates in enough ways that you'll find a good viewing position regardless of where you have to put the mount, so no worries there.
7. This is not the latest version of the software, but a free update will be mailed to you from Garmin when you request it.
I hope that can help people make a more-informed purchase.

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Get your Garmin eTrex Legend C or eTrex Vista C in gear with this automobile kit. The kit includes MapSource City Select North America v6, which contains rural and metropolitan maps for the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. In addition to 5 million points of interest, you'll find detailed maps containing highways, interstates, business and residential roads with attributes such as turn restrictions, speed categories and other navigation features. Trip and waypoint management features let you transfer waypoints, routes, and tracks between your Garmin GPS and your PC.
The Auto Navigation Kit also includes a 12-volt cigarette lighter adapter, as well as mounting hardware for your dash, a friction mount and a console mount.
What's in the Box City Select North America software (CD-ROM) with full unlock, console mount, friction mount, dash mount and 12-volt cigarette lighter power cable

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Garmin City Navigator 2009 Mexico Map microSD Card Review

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(More customer reviews)I have purchased this and already used it in Mexico. It is helpful to get you to any of the MAJOR cities but even within Guadalajara it was clearly very dated and did not compare favorably with a GPS that my friend was using that he purchased in Mexico.
I bought the Garmin GPS specifically so I could use this map in Mexico. I called Garmin and asked when an update would be available and was told they have no plans to update. When traveling to Ajijic it did not show ANY streets or even a road to get to the city. Ajijic is on the shore of Lake Chipala -- the largest lake in Mexico.
Let us hope with that with more requests Garmin will finally update this map. It is at least five years out of date.
KS


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Garmin TOPO US 24K Texas Map (microSD/SD Card) Review

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(More customer reviews)What can I say. Save your money. There are better ways to get this map. I would say just average at least for me. This map is the same as the none topo version of the city navigator except it is supposed to have topo info on it which it does but just average at that. Garmin has been eating to much big dog cat food. It has gotten too fat off it's customers.

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Garmin TOPO US 24K Northeast Map (DVD) Review

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(More customer reviews)I've been using this 24K map to hike in Upstate NY. It does very well in indicating where the trail crosses roads, streams, etc. It's handy and useful. On the other hand, I am accustomed to hiking with those elegant maps produced by the Swiss and Austrians for the European Alps. The Garmin Topo map really doesn't compare to those in beauty and detail. On my alpine maps I can actually locate the big boulders and rock outcroppings that I like to sit on at lunch or when I take my break. I treasure my Ordnance Survey maps of Dartmoor that I use for letter-boxing. The Garmin simply doesn't give that kind of information. It seems sketch-like by comparison. Nevertheless, it is great to have a huge chunk of the northeast stored in my gps. It lives in the side pocket of my backpack, and it's ready to go whenever I have a few hours to spare. I did try using this map to find a geo-cache listed along one of the trails I use. It put me right on top of it. No complaints there.
The instructions for loading the map into my gps unit from my computer were not very clear, so I gave the folks at Garmin a call. They were terrific. They walked me through the process and had me up and running before they left the line. That's a major plus.

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Garmin Inland Lakes Vision South Central microSD/SD Card Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought this to put on my Garmin Nuvi 1450 and it works very nicely for telling you the contour of the lakes, where the boat ramps and marinas are, common names of points and coves and rivers on the lake, and parks and camp grounds around the lake. I'm pleased with it and it has definitely met my fishing needs and wants. They usually tell you the depth in 5 foot intervals. The only colors they use are black for deeper water and red lines for shallower water with the depth wrote in feet on the lines. I wish they would have fancied it up a bit more and used more colors to make it a little easier to look at but none the less, it is still a fairly good contour map. After reading on the Garmin website, I thought this came with more features such as "fish eye view" and stuff like that, and I haven't discovered that it does that after using it for over a month. So maybe it does have it but I sure haven't seen any signs of those features.
I will say there are no instructions that tell you how to use and activate this on your GPS. I had to sit on the phone with Garmin for about 45 minutes to learn how to use it, so I will save you the time and trouble and tell you how. In order to use it on the Garmin Nuvi 1450, you must go to "tools", "settings", "map", "info" and then check "US Inland Lakes" and uncheck the base map. You have to do this every time you want to use it on the water and then undo it to use it on the road. The principle is to let the GPS focus on the water maps and not the road maps and vice versa for what you are using it for.
Overall, good product and glad to have a car GPS that is also handy on the water!

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Garmin 010-11043-00 City Navigator Europe NT - Benelux/France Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought this for a trip to France last month, as an add-on for our Nuvi 305. Popped it in, and could instantly start creating favorites for spots we were going to be. Once in France, turned on the unit and it worked perfectly. No manual switching between maps or configuration of any kind: plug it in, and away we went. It has a huge database of points of interest, and it knows about every single street in France, even the tiniest one lane road through vineyards or around minuscule towns. If you have a Nuvi and are going to be in France, I wholeheartedly recommend this.

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Garmin TOPO West Canada Map microSD Card Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought two of these from Amazon for my two Garmin Rino devices. I was expecting the tiny fingernail sized chips that install in the back of the unit. What I received were two larger SD cards, the type that will fit into most cameras and my old Nuvi GPS.
The price was right but the item was not.

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City Navigator North America Review

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(More customer reviews)The product arrived timely. My intention was to use it with my Garmin Edge 705 for cycling routes. No substantial documentation for product use came with the DVD. And, Garmin has no documentation on their site. You have to string together bits and pieces from help files and maybe try You-Tube for a demo. I called and emailed Garmin support and had to wait forever. The product lets you trace a map route you would like to follow on your bicycle, but there is a real challenge trasfering it to your device and using it. I have it figured out now, but Garmin could do a much better job with a users manual and better documentation. Good maps, but hard to use.

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Garmin Microsd Data Card, City Navigator Mexico Nt Review

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(More customer reviews)If you drive in a major cities or major highways it is quite good it has a maps for it. Finding a place might be different (Mexican use different street system than in the US neither Google nor MapQuest can manage it). Major highways are quite good. If you try to leave the highway into a small village tough luck. This is the best thers is.

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Garmin City Navigator for Detailed Maps of Italy and Greece (microSD/SD Card) Review

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(More customer reviews)Let's be up front about this. Maps, GPS, directions from the guy on the street, you're going to eventually get lost driving in a foreign country where you don't speak the language. That being said I can not adequately express the joy and lack of tension I felt driving in Tuscany while we had our Garmin City Navigator of Italy and Greece. The criticisms mentioned in Irina's review just prior to this one are all true, but in the end, so what. On those occasions where the data did not have the new off ramp or entrance to the I22 or the creation of the new roundabout in Siena you simply press detour and in about 5 seconds the new route is calculated. For me the beauty of this product was that in the end I knew it would get me there. Maybe it didn't seem to be the best route, but I could certainly not have done better with a map and my wife calling out directions. The only thing I would be aware of is the old - garbage in garbage out - advice. How you get there will be determined to a great extent on how precise your end location address is. If you are going to Florence but don't know the address of the parking garage, there is only so much the Garmin can do for you. (Been there, done that.) A couple of hints. 1. When in doubt, zoom out on the map, click on the location you are headed to and save. Some locations just don't appear in the address list no matter how many times you try to type in the name. I found this was often due to my misunderstanding of how towns, cities, and streets were categorized. That being said once I found the location on the map I was usually given the proper name and was able to find it in the data base; 2. The "attractions" section has a wonderful supply of information, including parking garages in the cities - found that one out too late; 3. If you are lost or get to an unidentified one way street, be quick with the detour button (menu - detour), it will save you a lot of time; 4. If you are taking a long drive, double check. Plot the route on the Garmin, then zoom out and use the touch screen to drag the map from beginning to end. Make sure that you and the GPS are in agreement as to where you are going. Had that problem going to the Coast. We were about 10 minutes away and the GPS took us up a mountain - as my wife said, this doesn't look like the beach. My fault since I had used the incorrect ending address so therefore, finally; 5. Bring a map - what can I say.

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