help needed on Garmin GPS 60C Vs 60 CS

[sherifsalem]

Dear All,

i read a couple of topics on travelers opinion between 60 C and 60 CS my only question is since they are both almost alike, the main difference is the electronic compass and barometric altimeter in 60 CS.

Do i really need this feature, is it important for navigation in any sort.

i found a unit 60 C priced 444 Euro and another 60 CS priced 578 Euro and i would really aapreciate your opinion on the worth of this feature as i am undecided on which one to buy.

Happy Travels

[Moodoo]

Hi,

I read somewhere that the GPS60CS has a reduced battery life due to the extra features. This could be an issue if the unit isnt going to be used plugged into an external power source.

I have the 60CS and really like it. I havent had any real reason so far to use the altimeter except as a nice-to-have gadget to look at hills I've just cycled over. The electronic compass seems to be useful when you are walking around too slowly for the GPS to work out your bearing from your movement. Dont know how much use this would be driving around though?

If I was to buy one again I would probably go for the 60C. However so far I havent used it on a big trip so there may well be good reasons to get the electronic compass that I dont know about yet!

Cheers, Andrew

[brettsyoung]

I've found the 60C great. As Moodoo says the compass feature isn't really necessary unless you're stationary. GPS altimeters are notoriously unreliable (this is an area where maps are generally better) and a feature I've found redundant (the 60C has a basic altimeter which always has me underwater). The 60C has so many features anyway that you'll be overwhelmed with programming options already without the hassle of the extra (I think) superfluous bits.

[AnderZen]

I have the GPS 60 MAP (no colour version) and it´s pretty good, but as you know the compass only works when moving (and when sattelite reception is ok). However I always carry an analogue compass with me and I wouldn´t do with out some sort of compass for navigation. As I see it you can have both in one gadget or compass and GPS seperate. I would not rely on batteries for the compass function though so I fugured that I didn´t need this function in the FPS as I would carry a standard compass anyway.

[Mr. Ron]

In case you haven't heard yet, Garmin just came out with the 60cx, which has mini flashcard media instead of built-in memory. Check it out
www.garmin.com

[John Ferris]

Hi Ron,
I just bought the Garmin 76csx.
I bought a 256 SD card and it holds almost all of the US & Canada West.
Its Great.

[Gipper]

Mr Ron,
Heard some good things about the new 60csx -and some not so good....these guys use them for Geocaching - check out this forum on it - interesting reading.

http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/ind...owtopic=121974

Been using the 60cs for a while now too , good bit of kit - the Altimeter is only any good as your (regular) calibration of it - it uses a combination of air pressure and gps to get its height - it is not bad - it can help you get your location on a map easier by tieing up your location and altitude with contour lines - handy if you are trying to navigate quickly.
If you are static (elevation) you can get the 60cs to take a pressure reading every 15 minutes - even with it turned off - handy for a weather guestimation.
Something you cant apparantly do on the 60csx.

I find the elecronic compass quite handy if im static to at least get an idea of where im trying to head- ive pulled it off the bike or out of the rover and nipped up to the top of a dune to take a bearing by hand, looking for the correct piste, otherwise youve got to keep walking.

Another feature with looking back at your altitude plot is that it tells you what time you were at that altitude and the distance to it - quite handy as a travel log.

The Gpsmap 60 series is very impressive and works nicely with mapsource for auto routing - I might be tempted with the new 60csx when theyve ironed out the software problems - the new SiRF chipset looks very quick and sensitive in poor reception areas and you can load up a 512mb Micro sd card with a lot of mapping - might even be able to use a 1Gb card.....

In the Land Rover I use a Wi-Sys 3910 external antenna roof mounted - great bit of kit, very sensitive and quick to locate even with very low angle satellites.
Cheers
Grif

[lork]

hi,

i bought a 60c in spring 2004, i rode from india to switzerland with it. and it was just a dead weight as the metal strips that touches the batteries are too weak. and with the vibes on the bike (i was riding an enfield) were so strong that the batteries were not touching the contact part, switching off the gps in the process. i did put aluminium foil, metal strips to fill up the gap. it came to an end, when i broke the metal strip, bending them too often i guess. garmin may have solved this problem since i bought it, and if you connect the gps with an external power source, you solve the problem at once... when it worked, the gps was great but i would buy a 60cs now. a few times, looking for direction in cities i would have liked to have the compass when i was asking for direction standing still.
cheers

[Hitecrednek]

as a geocacher, I will say, you really should get the CS with the compass built in.....

the compass makes life much easier, I wouldn't be without it.....

once you download the maps, you can choose to orient the screen so that the map is laid out in true north-south, making it very easy to aim yourself in the right direction.