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I have used this to navigate very complex courses and it works well. It acquires a signal faster and the map display updates much more quickly. I can get more than a day out of a set of alkaline batteries. I have the City Navigator NT product, Lake Michigan and Lake Huron on the 2GB card with room to spare.
I bought this GPS to replace a GPSMAP 76cs that I dropped overboard on a sailboat race. I plan to upload tracks to MotionBased and analyze my racing performance. Navigation mode works very well for sailboat racing. I had to watch it float away as we sailed away from it.
The battery life is great. Now I just have to hold onto this one better and not lose it overboard. Anyhow, this GPS is a nice improvement. I like that I can put a 2GB memory card in it and load lots of maps and change cards quickly.
My total investment so far is $350 for unit + 1 map purchase. But do check out the screen size comparisons. The Garmin software is rudimentary, Garmin is totally proprietary and the maps are ridiculously expensive and a royal pain to download and to load to SD or microSDs. One more thing: the unit itself is really big. I love this unit.
It does not bother me but others have mentioned it and it was shocking the first time I saw the unit out of the box. First of all it is challenging to the point of hair pulling frustration and secondly Garmin does not reward you for buying a second unit since they will charge you full price to buy maps for the second unit after you have already paid for the same software for the 1st unit. You may consider the new Colorado series if this is a deal breaker for you. This unit has one of the largest screen sizes in the handhelds. I will likely spend the time to learn to make my own maps (another $100 for 3rd party software)and to use them for hiking/canoeing/cycling and forget about Garmin maps entirely. So, I will be into this unit for about $500 total.
It is my first GPS and I complemented my purchase with a good "how to" book and a 2nd book on how to make your own maps. Not even a discount for being a good customer. As I intend to use this unit for a long time, I think that is not a bad deal overall. Most of the negatives you read about are true and are mainly complaints about Garmin and/or support. As for boating, I will probably bit the bullet and drop another $100-150 for the Bluecharts I will soon want just because I'll have my hands full making terrestrial maps and it will be easy to just buy an already loaded SD card from Garmin. But, having said all that, I still think it is an excellent and affordable choice if you want to navigate in the car (safer w/ a co-pilot helping), in the field and in the water and this unit does it better than most GPS handhelds that try to do everything.
And, God forbid you buy a second unit and try to connect with the same computer. Very shortsighted but that is probably why their profits have dropped so dramatically this year.
We also purchased the southcentral lakes chip to use.very good purchase for us. Our son explained the features to him and now he's set for all his "good fishing holes". I bought this for my husband who is not techno savvy at all. He has commented on how easy this is for him to understand.
I would highly recommend going this route versus buying blank SD cards and going through the hassle of downloading topo maps. I want to echo the praises of my fellow-reviewers by saying this is one top-notch GPS system. But with all of the excellent features (including it being waterproof and having the ability to float.we will be using ours on kayak trips as well) and the hard-to-beat price, I believe the 76CSx gives you the best "bang for the buck." It may cost a bit more, but all things considered it is the most practical way to go.The ONLY downside is the size; I wish it were as small as the Vista or the newer Colorado. My wife and I went hiking up the North Shore of Lake Superior last week and the 76CSx exceeded our expectations. It acquired the satellite signals quickly and never lost them, even in very deep woods; the screen was bright and detailed; the trip odometer and altimeter were amazingly accurate; and after hours of hiking the batteries (Energizer rechargables) were still going strong.I will add that I purchased a MicroSD card of the Upper Midwest and we were quite pleased at the amount of detail it shows.
It is accurate so far and that keeps the aggravation down when searching. He likes the easy to read directions and the screen viewing is clear. When he is alone it is an added insurance for safety.Overall recommendation - buy and enjoy. I bought this for the husband and it is his new best friend.It provides all the information he requires to do various types of fishing. He is still learning all it can do but overall it performs well when traveling and fishing.
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