Best priced GPS for the money?

What is the best portable GPS system to get without spending a fortune?

I've been looking at the Garmin 296 (used since they don't make them anymore), but don't know much about the smaller aircraft GPS systems.

Ideally I'd like to keep the bill under $700. Preferably under $500.

We picked up a bunch of Garmin 255W's for use by the Sheriff's Air Squadron. They are not aviation specific, but when set in "off-road" mode, they work reasonably well by giving a visual track and actual track display. They can also be updated with overlays, etc, and the tracks can be downloaded for analysis later. Not sure how the internal antenna responds to a high metal wing yet.

I wouldn't recommend it if you are looking for a serious air navigation unit with airspace overlays and other features, but for $140, it gets you from point A to point B.

Bruce

^ Yeah, looking for something more aviation specific so it would have overlays on it.

Ideally it would be nice to have something universal that also works on the ground for general GPS use (as if you are off roading somewhere).

For ultralight flying (and for hiking, hunting, and driving) I use a Garmin 60CSx to which I've added airport and airspace information. Not a true aviation GPS, but more than adequate for my purposes.

-Dana

Thinking for yourself is like most addictive behaviour. It is frowned upon by all right thinking people and is bound to get you killed sooner or later.

You can pick up a used Garmin 196 for under $200... It is a very powerful tool for the money. I'm hanging on to mine until it dies.

What all does the 196 do? I know thats the one that is black and white, right?

I use a Magellen 315. It is from 1999 era but works just dandy. It has a database with medium and large cities already in it and a user database you can add your own waypoints to. It does not have a moving map or much in the way of whistles and bells but it navigates, does give groundspeed and heading, and bearing and distance to waypoints. In conjunction with a sectional, it is very adequate.

I am thinking you could find one less than $100 used, maybe even less than that.

An $8 sectional alone will give you pretty good navigation information. People used to use them all the time.
Wally

^ And some still do!

Originally Posted by CALL911

What all does the 196 do? I know thats the one that is black and white, right?

Sorry about the tardy reply...

The 196 is in greyscale, but that slight downside is offset by the very fast refresh rate of the display (compared to some early color models). What all does it do? well, in short, a LOT! My most commonly used features are the moving map, HSI, flight instruments display (the six pack), flight log, vertical navigation, and about a hundred different ways to display ETE, ETA, distance, speed, etc.

About the only thing it does NOT have is color, XM weather and detailed terrain alerting that is common on today's devices.

I don't know exactly what features you are looking for, but if you are like me, you would find this unit to be far more capable than you really need.

^ Sweet!

I have a 196 as well - it does everything I need and the price was right... biggest downside to me is the 9-pin serial cable. Since I don't have a computer with a serial port, I haven't updated the maps or the firmware. Mine is actually old enough that it doesn't have the "panel" page. At some point I'll probably buy a serial card to stick in one of the PCI slots in my desktop.