Garmin 60CSX - Experiences?
 

Any of you guys splashed out and bought a 60CSx yet ??? - Im looking at buying one in the next few weeks and would appreciate any comments good bad or indifferent.
Are they any better than a 60CS - whats better and whats not ???

Cheers
Grif

I have done quite a bit of research on the hand held GPS units. In my opinion the 60csx has the best specs. Although the 76csx has an internal antenna (looks good and doesn't snag) and a larger internal memory, I find that the top location of the buttons is a poor option. When mounted on your bike, this may translate into part of the screen being blocked out of vision while you are operating it. The great thing with eiether of these models is that they will serve you well both on and off the bike, and the internal compass means that it won't loose its bearings while you stand still at an intersection, etc. The exhangeable memory card means you can bring maps of the entire world on separate cards without having to carry a computer to upload maps on your GPS. Further, the transflective screen makes the gadget visible in daylight.

I don't have first hand experience with any of them, but a friend of mine seems to be quite happy with his (he has the 60 CS without the exchangeable memory card).

I will be purchasing one soon.

I just got the Cx and it is not able to acquire any sats indopors, in NYC!?!

If I understood you correctly, your complaint was that your GPS didn't function indoors.

I know of no Satelite GPS that functions indoors. Unlike radios and GSM phones, you need a direct line of sight from the GPS to the satelites, even heavy tree canopies can be obtrusion enough.

However, there is a second generation GPS coming on the market that unites the GPS navigation and the GSM navigation, but I wouldn't wait arround for it. The firs gadgets that will get these are cell phones as you would need a GSM subscription to use it. Besides, few indoor places are so large that you need a GPS to navigate, a really small market. Tunnels however is a different story. But here, the stock GPS units that come with cars have the gps integrated with the car computer. When you enter tunnels and loose sight of the satelites, the tachometer takes over and measures the distance travelled in the tunnel. With the handhelds, you are out of luck.

If you at some point have been able to get reception inddors, it is likely because some satelites were at that instant poitioned in such a wy that there was a direct line of sight through the windows. It must be said howver that "in line of sight" for a satelite is completely different tha enyesight. These things can "see" through tent canopies, etc.

Have been using 60CSx - its a good unit
 

Gipper

We recently bought the same unit and have been testing it of late in the UK. We have been really impressed with it and its easy to use features......it came with Garmin Mapsource (with base world map) and Trip and Way Point Manager software and USB cable.

We are planning an overland trip in 2007 London - Cape Town see www.langebaan-sunset.com , which is why we bought it. The tracking and logging features are very good and its very easy to generate libraries of all your routes or create new ones to down load / up load. The tracks feature and track back are very easy to use. We also have a need for using GPS at sea, so the fact it floats and can handle marine maps is a bonus. It also can use UK Topo maps so its an ideal unit for walking / off roading / greenlaning in the UK (if you have a need to do that kind of thing).

We also have a Tracks4Africa software, which has a map of Africa and lots of data (mainly for the South / South East of Africa) but the data is constantly being refined. Their software / map is compatible with Garmin units too. If you are needing to hunt down useful way points for overland trips (in Africa at least) check out the links page on our website...... www.langebaan-sunset.com

We have also ordered the window RAM mount so we can use the unit in our Land Rover, as well as the power lead for auxillary power socket use.....the only downside i can see so far is that the unit likes to eat batteries.....like most GPS units do. So if you can wire it up to an auxillary power socket / hard wire it in, you will be sorted.

As for not picking up GPS signals in doors (previous posts)....well, it works ok in built up areas and when inside it worked ok near the window but did start to say it was unhappy once we had been indoors for a while.... The unit (as i understand it) has the latest arieal technology and its been working fine in our Land Rover since we got it without the need for an auxillary arieal (although it can use one).

I recently showed it to my mate who works in the GIS / GPS field and he thought it was a good buy, particularly with respect to the fact you can be selective about the mapping / GPS data you can upload to the unit and the memory that is expandable.

On the whole we give it a good 9 out of 10

Hope that helps.

Nick www.langebaan-sunset.com

Nick
Are you sure the 60CSx floats? I’ve been looking at both it and the 76CSx and I understood that the 60CSx is water resistant but that the 76CSx floats. The Garmin site seems to support this. Can you test yours in the bath before you drop it in the sea?
Stephan

Float testing my 60CSx
 

Stephano,

Good point.....the unit is waterproof as you rightly point out in accordance with IEC 60529 IPX7. An IPX7 designation means the GPS case can withstand accidental immersion in one meter of water for up to 30 minutes.

I tested it in the bath as suggested, it is near on neutrally bouyant in freshwater....which may mean its floats in salt water.......interestingly it says on the box it is "submersible".......

NOTE: The website I bought it from (www.globalpositioningsystems.co.uk) does says it is capable of floating, so I guess I will just have to throw it in the sea to see if its true....nothing like field testing to prove that it does eh!!! Will keep you posted when this test is complete - thanks

Nick www.langebaan-sunset.com

My bad, I thought it would work if I was near the windows.

Thanks Guys...
 

Thanks for the responses - didnt mention -but we have had a 60cs for about a year and have been happy with it - apart from the 56mb of memory - so that is the big difference - also little things ive heard like not being able to do a barometer trace and no alarm clock on the 60csx.
Anyone else using a csx model with good or bad experiences ?
Cheers
Grif

RAM Mounts for Garmin 60csx
 

By way of an update, we finally took delivery of a RAM vehicle mount for the Garmin 60csx see http://www.ram-mount-uk.com

The one we got was the http://www.gpsw.co.uk/details/prod1950.html

The RAM mount has a bomb proof "sucker" that sticks to the window of our Landy and it sticks on like a bad boy!!! Its fully adjustable and the holder works well. Getting hold of the RAM cradle that holds your Garmin is hard work....http://www.ram-mount-uk.com/ram-hol-ga12.htm

the UK distributor has been over loaded with back orders so check stock levels before you buy.....or you will wait 6 weeks (like I did) before it arrives.

The distributor sells them via the GPS Wearhouse http://www.gpsw.co.uk

We also bought the GPS Wearhouse 12volt power lead (as opposed to the Garmin one which is even harder to buy than the cradle)......good length on the lead and locks into the unit well.

Hope that sheds a bit more light on its use.

Nick

I recently bought a 60 Cx which is the same as a CSx, but without the magnetic compass and pressure altimeter; both of those features rely on calibration to be accurate, and if they're not, they're of no use, at least to me. Besides, the 60 Cx has those "satellite generated" features.

The 60 Cx replaced the eMap that I've had for years. It took Garmin to finally come out with a descent replacement for me to make the switch. I refuse to buy any electronic gadget that takes "proprietary" anything and in the case of Garmin, that means Garmin memory cards and their Lithium-Ion batteries.

The 60Cx picks up at least 4 satellites when I'm indoors, even in a room with no windows. It even works much better in aircraft if sitting in a window seat.

You can get a 1 Gb microSD card for next to nothing.

It runs on 2 x AA batteries, either alkaline or NiMH (software selectable) for almost 20 hours. It can also be powered by the USB or extenal DC plug anywhere between 8 and 36 volts.

The unit can't be beat. I'm very happy with mine.

Exactly! I could never figure out if there was a purpose to blocking out the screen while activating those buttons. Either I'm missing something obvious or the engineer that designed that unit came from "Flunkies Inc".

I didn't even consider the 76 Cx for that reason.

Garmin 60CS / 60 CSx etc...
 

I've been using various Garmin GPS units for years and the quality/reliability is excellent.
I currently use a 276C in the Landy and a 60CS when hiking (not hitch hiking !).
When new, the 60CS experts said the firmware had a number of bugs.
I downloaded the latest firmware from the Garmin website (free) and no problems since.
The 60CSx (and other 60x models) have 3 main advantages over the non-x model:
1/ More sensitive SiRF type GPS receiver which is claimed to give quicker satellite lock-on.
2/ Improved retention of satellite signals when under dense foliage or in the 'urban canyon' of tall buildings all around...
3/ Can take readily available memory cards - a very strong point if on a long trip.

My 60CS has the compass option (S denotes) - it is very useful when hiking as it can be switched on to give you directions to waypoints when stationary - switch it off afterwards though, as it uses extra battery power.
My understanding is that all these 'S' type compass units require it to be held horizontally in order for the compass to work accurately - not very convenient when vehicle mounted..!

As with all things electronic these days - even Garmin seem to be launching new models before the firmware has been fully debugged - general users such as myself would probably not notice, but the enthusiasts are finding bugs and discussing it...
I am sure a 60 x model would be a better buy at this stage and just look out for any latest firmware downloads...

A good web forum for this stuff is
http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showforum=11

Good luck...

James Stephenson
Land Rover Defender 130 camper - 'Mr Custard'
www.JamesUK.net

I just returned from my Africa trip with my newly purchased 60 csx.

Although I love the autorouting of TomTom more, though the 60csx offers greater versatility when you are in the boonies or off the bike. Hence, for serious biking, the 60csx is as good as it gets. For riding arround in the civilized world though, the TomTom.

In the end though, I hardly ever used the GPS. I only really brought it out of my luggage when my speedometer broke. On the main roads in Africa I didn't need it and found the GPS more as clutter than useful. It was purely expensive novelty than just took up space and added to more clutter. The only place I really wanted the full GPS option was when trying to navigate urbanised areas. But as I didnt have a detailed map with aoutorouting options, the GPS was utterly useless for this purpose. As the main roads in Africa are so few and far appart and so obviously distinctive, getting lost requires some talent in fact. Also, as the World Map lacks so much detail, it is useless off the main road anyways, making your sat position the only truely useful piece of info (if you have a map), which translates into any weather proof GPS being adequate.

There are ofcourse better maps available for Africa than World Map, but none that I would rely on completely... I'd allways bring Michelin paper Maps (I tried several other brands that were supposed to be more detailed but found them to give insignificantly more info, and often inaccurate). For the bush you need GPS coordinates, any weather tight GPS, the Michelin map and people to ask for directions along the way. I don't think the extra money the 60csx costs will offer you anything more than novelty when travelling in Africa.

In other places of the world, such as Europe, this will ofcourse be a different story. In my opinion, what dictates how much money you should spend on a GPS is the availability of reliable detailed maps. If there are none for where you will be going, buy a cheap one.

errr more detail .. for 'adventure roads' in Garmin maping GPSes...

Tracks 4 Africa

and

Tracks 4 Australia

have much more detail than Gramins world map .. in places. And they are 'free' ... They don't suport auto routing ... nor do they 'do' cities..

In full agreement about buying a gps - check what maps are avalible and there suitablity for what you want to do.