Garmin Gps 12Xl Waterproof Hiking

If you do a ton of hiking, running, back-packing or long distance cross-country style cycling, then you would genuinely take delight in one of these new GPS wrist watches. And there are assorted new prototypes hitting the market in 2009 and that means lower costs, more features and better standards. Think of it, a lightweight wrist watch with GPS that you may wear where ever you go or whatsoever you are doing such as; Mountain Biking, River Rafting, Snow Mobiling or Sailing. Did you recognise you may buy one of these GPS wristwatches for under $500, it is true? Even the most modern ones are under $1500 and they work perfectly fabulously. You will not believe the features or the accuracy.   There are various manufacturers and you may even buy them online applied well, if you shop around a bit. One thing I would commend is to get one that is waterproof, because you never know what you might be using it for. There are some that are employed by hikers, mountain bikers and folks that do back-packing or mountain climbing. These units are not commonly water proofed, so you need to also consider that.   Another thing that is very indispensable is to check on the battery life. Some of these units only last for 12 hours without recharging, but if you're going to be in the mountains for a number of days then you need to either fetch extra battery packs or find one that has a battery life of 4 to 5 days. There are not that some that are like this, and the ones that are run well for 4-5 days are over $1000. ReviewThe key to success in life is knowing where you are, where you've been, and where you're going. Garmin's full-featured GPSMAP 76 puts all of that selective information in the palm of your hand, mapping your movements off-road or on--and even afloat. Plus, it is spacious features, PC connectivity, and spacious add-on map choices make it powerful sufficient for practically any need. About the size of a little paperback book and weighing less than 8 ounces, the GPSMAP 76 fits comfortable in the palm of your hand, but is a bit big to carry in a shirt pocket. Using the unit requires almost no setup. Just put in two AA batteries, turn it on, go outside, and wait. In with regards to a minute or so it will determine your location. It's exact to with regards to three meters, thanks to the unit's help of WAAS (Wide Area Augmentation System), which augments GPS signals for even more outstanding accuracy. Knowing your longitude, latitude, and altitude doesn't mean much without a little context. That's where GPSMAP 76's backlit LCD display comes in, displaying your emplacement on elaborated maps. The unit comes with a built-in basemap that includes major roads, railroads, rivers, and lakes for the U.S. and Canada, as well as a high-level global map. The unit likewise has 8 MB memory for storing maps from optional CD-ROMS; available maps include topographical maps, BlueChart marine cartography maps, as well as city maps with elaborate data on city streets and points of interest. The eight buttons, directional rocker thumbpad, and menu-based interface made it simple to access all of the unit's features and custommake the display. For instance, it's a simple matter to use the buttons to set and name waypoints and build planned routes. Extra features include selective information on tides, sunrise and sunset, and a trip computer for seeing how far you've traveled and your intermediate speed. To test the GPSMAP 76, we used the included serial cable, connected it to our PC, and loaded it up with topographical maps using the optional United States topographical map disc. We then hit the road and headed for Muir Beach north of San Francisco. It tracked our progress along Highway 1, and once we reached our destination, we found it very simple to use. It showed both the elevation of the hills as well as the paths we could take. The zoom-in and zoom-out function made it simple to plan out and mechanically measure the distance of our intended route. After walking for a while and enjoying the scenery, we applied the TracBack mode to guide us back to our car. The unit mechanically stores waypoints as you walk along, letting you display the way home distinctly on the map. We even applied the TracBack capability to guide us on the roads back to the freeway. The GPSMAP 76 comes in handy closely anywhere, whether you're hiking, driving, boating, or wandering around a city as a tourist. Its easy-to-use interface makes it without delay utile to novices, and as you learn to exploit it is programmability and features, it may become an exceedingly powerful navigation tool. --Ken Feinstein Pros: Large backlit LCD WAAS (Wide Area Augmentation System) support Automatic TracBack shows you the way back to your commence emplacement PC connectivity with wide potpourri of uploadable maps available Cons: 8 MB built-in memory can't be expanded Too huge to fit comfortably in a shirt pocket About the size of a small, flat calculator, the Garmin GPSMAP 76 is a 12-parallel-channel, WAAS-enabled global positioning system GPS receiver that will go anywhere. Even with it is compact style, this GPS unit boasts an extra-large display for showing more map info and the same power you've come to suppose from Garmin handhelds--even while operating for up to 16 hours on two AA batteries. The GPSMAP 76 features 500 waypoints (10 nearest, 10 proximity), 50 reversible routes with up to 50 points each, an automatic track log, and alarms for anchor drag, approach and arrival, off course, proximity waypoint, shoal water, and deep water. The GPSMAP 76 is also compatible with Garmin's line of downloadable MapSource CD-ROMs and will store 8 MB of downloaded map detail. Always recognise just where you're going with preloaded maps of rivers, lakes, international cities, navaids, and tide data. With a elaborate base map database, users likewise have the capacity to look up address and telephone number info for nearby services and points of interest as well as find map detail for cities, highways, and interstates. Designed with all types of users in mind, this unit will take you from the car to the hiking trail and beach without missing a beat. This quality Garmin product comes with a one-year fixed warranty. Garmin Gps 12xl Waterproof Hiking Pic Garmin Gps 12xl Waterproof Hiking Pic Garmin Gps 12xl Waterproof Hiking Pic Garmin Gps 12xl Waterproof Hiking Pic Garmin Gps 12xl Waterproof Hiking Image Garmin Gps 12xl Waterproof Hiking Pic

Most helpful client reviews

126 of 128 persons found the following review helpful.
A Great Sea Kayaking Companion
By Darren
Before my GPS purchase, I considered a number of Magellan units in addition to galore in the Garmin E Trex series. I ultimately decisive on the Garmin Map76.

In addition to being comparatively easy to use, I preferent the somewhat more prominent screen of the Map76 over the other units. Since I was purchasing the unit to use while sea kayaking, I found the screen on the Map76 was much having little impact to read in the sunlight than the littler screens on the E-Trex models. In addition, you may upload map data into this unit. (Although the unit includes a basemap, Garmin also manufactures a number of optional mapping productions which cover roads, waterways and topographical features in more detail). For kayaking, I use the optional BlueCharts which is basically like having Nautical maps at your fingertips. (These are sold by regions and tend to be a bit pricey however).

The tide station/prediction feature on the Map76 was likewise an important settling factor. With this unit, you have the capacity to get tidal forecastings for almost anyplace in the US at your fingertips.

The Map76 often times receives criticism on the low amount of memory for uploading map data. The tradeoff notwithstanding is that it also drains the battery power at a slower rate than those that brag more memory. (I also considered the GPS Map76S which has an added electronic compass and more memory, nevertheless after a trial use from a friend's, I found the Map76S unit to drain battery power far too quickly for my intended use. The Map76S was also regarding $100 more in cost). Although the Map76S was a somewhat upgraded Map76, I didn't feel the extra features of the 76S were worth the added cost, particularly with the rapidly and without delay rate of the battery drain.

I've logged over 500 miles of sea kayaking with this unit and am very satisfied with it is performance. I find the memory capability in the Map76 is adequate for uploading maps for day trips and the remainder with the battery drain is likewise sufficient.

Although it is waterproof, I highly suggest a transparent waterproof bag for using while kayaking to stay clear from salt water condensation corroding the battery leads.

Garmin also offers toll free phone and email technical support for their units and software.

This unit makes a outstanding paddling partner.

78 of 80 humans found the following review helpful.
Hits the sweet spot for GPS price/performance...
By G. Lawrence
So I ultimately got around to upgrading my trustable 3 year old Garmin 12XL to a new GPSMAP 76. I played with one of the Magellan 330s at the local store for comparison but found that once again I merely prefer the Garmin user interfaces. I also picked up the MetroGuide CD. I figured if I was going to upgrade to a mapping GPS, I'd actually want richly elaborated maps. Surprisingly, I've experienced no buyer's remorse whatsoever. The GPSMAP 76 is not one thing short of miraculous! Garmin is to be commended for the improvements they've made to their product line over the years.

The internal quad-helix antenna is excellent. Position accuracy is superb, screen solution is vastly improved, and the extras such as tidal and celestial selective information are a genuinely nice touch. The optimal fishing/hunting time predictor seems like overkill but I'll bet there are users who swear by it. The routing and tracking functions are well thought out and much bettered since the 12XL was released. WAAS is sort of a mixed bag. I find that that whenever I lock onto WAAS signals, the approximated accuracy gets a few feet worse. It's never reads more than 20-25 feet off total but it's still the opposite of what I'd expect. Regardless of what the approximated error reading is, the accuracy always seems much better than it lets on. I've been using it a lot for geocaching not long back and it without variation puts me within 5-6 feet of the caches.

The MetroGuide CD is rather nicely designed for a Windows product (I'm a Mac fan!) It holds significant improvements over Delormes Street Atlas 4 Mac which was the last CD based mapping product I owned. It's fast and precise (I understand that they just altered all their maps) and the integration with the GPSMAP is excellent. You may without apparent effort transfer all waypoints, routes, tracks, or maps back and forth among the GPS and your PC (or VirtualPC for Mac fans). You may likewise connect your GPS to the serial port and dynamically track your whereabouts on your laptop screen but I find this arrangement a bit cumbersome. There are just too a great deal of wires and batteries to deal with. For me having an effortlessly readable, high-resolution, zoomable map on the GPS is the only way to go.

The only complaint I expected to make was with regard to the fixed 8 MB map storage space. It turns out that 8 MB will hold gorgeous much the entire San Diego, CA and San Francisco, CA Bay Area. If I were driving throughout the country and wanted to investigate each nook and cranny I might be concerned. Otherwise it's perfectly fine for now.

Great product, great price. Happy navigating!

73 of 75 people found the following review helpful.
I'd buy it again, but gosh how when it comes to a little more RAM?
By A
I love the screen, equated to the others. That is the most compelling feathure. The Mapsource data was more elaborate than I expected. Tracked correctly on an old Georgia logging road I hunt from. I didn't suppose it to be there. I did find some signal loss in deep woods though, the Lorance seems to have a better antenna if that is a problem for you. My dropouts were more momentary than extended though.
Battery life was as advertised with regards to 12 hrs, bonus that's using ONLY 2 AA batteries. I applied the light on screen as little as possible though.
Has all the features most could want. My understanding is WAAS is very fixed at this time, DOD will shoot a heap of more birds up in the future, but don't count on it for now. I used this in FLA, GA, Wash state, Lower Alberta and BC provinces and was satisfied overall w/ basemaps and reception... but never got WAAS. P.S. I would not trust basemap to navigate by (e.g. boat in fog). Resolution not enuf; happily it erred in my favor, said I was on land long before I could hit the rocks. Have to buy addin Topo USA (Canada) maps. Mapping/topo gps is wonderful, equated to nonmapping. I applied the grids to find a draw that deer would likely use.

Interestingly, Garmin calls this a maritime unit, but depending what maps you download, it's not an issue if you are a landlubber. I downloaded a four region region near Tampa, and much of N. Georgia to the unit before running out of memory. I wanted to do Tenn. and NC appalacian Mtns, but not enuf room.

The drifting percentage and usual light weight is outstanding feature. I think it is requiring little effort than a heap of competitors.

Be sure to go to Garmin web site and download: Firmware upgrade, Maritime map database (if u use downloadable maps, it may wipe out the base maritime maps, but u may upload again w/ this file) and finally, if u buy topousa or other set, get any updates there too.

See all 40 client reviews...