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Home | Technology | Gps

The Utility of Garmin GPS units

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Choosing a GPS Chartplotter

There are a number of things you need to consider when choosing a GPS chartplotter including size of the screen, whether you want maps preloaded or not, external or internal antenna, or do you want a combo unit that can include other functionality such as fish finder, marine radar, and weather receiver.
The first thing you should consider is the size of the screen. Most manufacturers make a compact screen line of units usually 4 or 5 inches diagonally and larger display lines that range from 8 inches to 15 inches. Obviously, the larger the screen, the better the easier it is to see the detail. But with more screen comes an increase in cost. So it is important to find the largest screen for your budget. Also, another issue is space. You need to make sure that you have enough space to accommodate your unit.

After you have decided the size, you must decide if you want a pure GPS chartplotter or combo unit or multifunction display. Most chartplotter lines below 8 inches either come with GPS only or GS/fishfinder combos. Some of these units like the Lowrance LMS series can be networked and add radar to them. Many screens 8 inches or above only come as multifunction displays. This is usually the screen only (many lines do include the GPS antenna) and all functions are added with peripherals ala carte such as sounder modules, weather receivers, radar antennas, etc.

The next thing to consider is what type of GPS antenna you want. If you are mounting on your console and have an open air cockpit and/or bimini top, you should only need an internal antenna. If you are going to flush mount your unit, mount in an enclosure or closed cockpit; you will need to an external remote antenna. Most units come with either an external antenna or an internal antenna and cannot be changed, but the Garmin GPSMAP 4xx, 5xx, and 5x5 line of chartplotters come with an internal antenna and can have an optional external antenna added. Most chartplotters over 8 inches only come with external antennas.

Another thing that many manufacturers like Garmin or Lowrance offer is having the units preloaded with detailed cartography. For example, the Garmin units offer detailed g2 Bluechart cartography that included depth, wrecks, points of interest, and satellite maps as an option for all of their lines of GPS chartplotter. For most, these built-in maps are more than enough detail, but you can still enhance your GPS chartplotter by buying additional cartography that may give added features like 3D views, advanced routing options that will give directions much like a Car GPS would, and aeronautical photography of points of interest.

Anchor Express has hundreds of these GPS chartplotters to choose from. Our excellent sales staff are happy to assist you to choose the right chartplotter for you. We have nearly 4,000 marine electronics, GPS and outdoor products and have over 35 years of experience.

Article Source: http://bytepowered.org/articles

Rob Quint is author of article written on Garmin GPSMAP Chartplotters & Raymarine Multifunction Displays. For more information, please visit :www.anchorexpress.com

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