www.iFourWinns.com

Hi All,

I was thinking of upgrading my GPS. I just purchased a boat with a Garmin 126 and I am thinking of upgrading to something a little more current. Any suggestions of what to get and why would be appreciated! Also, things to watch for would be helpful.

Thanks,

Muligan

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2000 23.8 Four Winns Vista
Windermere

There are many good units on the market but more information is needed:

What type of boat, where will you be boating, do you plan on using a “mapping” type program to chart your routes?

You also need to decide if you prefer a unit with a built in or an external antenna. An external is needed if you have a solid obstruction between the unit and the sky. How much room do you have to install the unit, I would suggest the largest screen that you can afford and will fit where you want to locate it

Another decision to make is if you want preinstalled maps, you pay a little more for the unit but it’s cheaper then purchasing them separately. Garmin offers three versions of every GPS one preloaded with inland water, one with the US coast line and a third with no maps at all.

I have had all Garmin products with the exception of my first boat which had a Lowarnce GPS. I prefer Garmin; their customer support is second to none. When I call Garmin they have real live people to talk to; with Lowrance the only way to contact them was by email and lets hope they answerer your question or you would have to reply back by email again, when I called Raymarine regarding my recent radar upgrade I was placed on hold for 30 minute then they tell you to email them for support. Needles to say I purchased the Garmin radar and chartplotter,

Okay so I didn’t tell you what exact model to by buy you really need to make an informed decision based on your boating needs.

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“Growing Older, But Not Up”
[

2008 Four Winns V248
2004 Stingray 220CS

Thx for the info.

I have a 238 Vista. I will be using the boat mainly on the Great Lakes. My budget is < 600.

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2000 23.8 Four Winns Vista
Windermere

Is there an easy way to determine which Garmins have maps preloaded?

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2000 23.8 Four Winns Vista
Windermere

From what I can tell, no, there is no easy way to tell if maps are pre-loaded. Ive been banging my head against walls after searching google non stop for a way to find out which ones have preloaded charts, how detailed they are, etc...

I just bought a Garmin 172c ($250 on ebay). I bought mine used, but there are new ones (read: refurbed) for $320 on ebay as well.

They supposedly take BlueChart charts and I happen to have the CD leftover from my last chartplotter from my last boat.

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1997 Four Winns Vista 278
T - 4.3l EFI
Kohler 4esz Genset
379 hours as of 8/8/21

To determin if A GArmin has a map is easy on the newwe models:
example:
for the 400 series
400 no map
410 in land waterways
420 US shore line

I hope that helps; it is generally the way they lable them for all the new units.

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“Growing Older, But Not Up”
[

2008 Four Winns V248
2004 Stingray 220CS

A few years back...but I had a Navman 5500 on my cruiser and loved it. Simple to use, color and had the option to monitor my fuel tank as well. The same model looks like it is now called the 5505.

Thx for the replies...I'm looking at a Garmin 176 or 172.

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2000 23.8 Four Winns Vista
Windermere