Garming GPS 76s

I bought this mount for my Garmin Venture HC. I like RAM products. I also purchased one of the RAM 2x magnifiers which made my Venture HC usable as an auto gps. The magnifier bracket was a little tricky to get the metal rod bent just right.

I have had this for a little over a year now, and I find it to be very handy and durable. I was not looking for a very sophisticated GPS, just something I could use in case I loose my car after I go hiking. This unit performs that task extremely well.

As with most reviews on here, I agree that the map built in only has major highways on it. This is perfectly fine, as I wasn’t even expecting that much out of the unit (I understand it was not designed for turn-by-turn navigation).

The only thing I am kind of disappointed with is the cable that came with it. It came with a serial DB9 cable, and to my knowledge you cant find a computer made in this decade with a DB9 port on it. So in order to use the feature on my PC I would have to go out and purchase a DB9 to USB adapter cable. I hadn’t needed it until this month, when I just got into geocaching. It sure would be nice to be able to use the computer to load all those waypoints instead of having to type the co-ords into the GPS itself.

Other than that, I am very impressed with the fact i can drop it, dunk it, and accidently kick it and have yet to see it give any sort of hickup. Thats right, dunk it. I had to chase it down a creek and after i pulled it out - it just kept tickin. I also like the idea of using common batteries (2 AA’s). I dont have to worry about charging it or looking for replacement batteries that I have never heard of.

Reliable, durable, and again - inexpensive! Good job garmin!

For nearly 4 years and over 50 countries I had a Magellan Explorist 210. Except for maps, it was very good. I literally always knew my direction, speed and location. I lost it the mountains of Argentina. The Garmin ETrex Legend looks a little fancier, and it has a better (not great) map, but literally everything else is harder to use or inferior.

The obvious first fault is that it doesn’t find salelites quickly. When it does find them, it seems to need 5 or (usually) more to find your location. Then nearby buildings, trees, mountains, tent ceilings, and more just shut it down, with a large prompt saying that it was out of satelite range. This prompt blocks much of the screen, making your map nearly worthless. Trying to regain satelites can often take forever. Even on a regular bike trail with few trees, I can not get a good use of the odometer, as the breadcrumbs would look like dashes. Additionally, when I have not moved the GPS for minutes, I keep getting changes in location and especially altitude.

Other concerns are labeling the POIs. Very often when one pushes the save, it does not accept it…a real pain at an intersection while driving. It also only allows about 9 letters/numbers for a description of your POI…not enough. Then it gives such a variety of markers (i.e. park, church, etc, etc), that one can spend minutes finding the most suitable one. The screen is also smaller and harder to read than the Explorist. There are many other complaints. Keeping it short, I strongly recommend that you not buy a Garmin Legend!

I’ve had the Legend C for 3+ years and love it. By now you can buy it with a memory card which is much better for street software. For just topo software, the older style is fine (but 8 MB in the basic legend is not).

First off, Garmin is an outstanding company. After 2 years of hard travel all over the world, the rubber surround was coming loose so I sent it in to get repaired fully willing to pay (even with the loose rubber surround, it never faltered in heavy rain). Rather, Garmin sent me a brand new one free of charge (despite clear signs of hard use including large scratches on the screen).

Second, this is for hobbyist- if you’re doing serious wilderness work, get a higher end one (and for what it is worth, Magellan’s hand held works better in heavy rain forest canopy cover).

With that said, I love my Legend C and only wish I had the Vista with built in compass. Without the compass, it won’t give you bearing unless you’re moving. I have a mount for my mountain bike (and my dash board which also works with a Garmin StreetPilot) and I don’t bike without it. Get a case with the belt clip and you can put it on your pack while hiking or geocaching.

Color screen is worth the extra cost. Just wish I knew how to get rid of all the nautical markings!

Finally, you’ll want the topo software which has all streets and is fine unless you’re doing address mapping. Free software is fine but for $20 you can get Google Earth Plus and upload your way points and tracks there!

I concur with the positive reviews for this product–this is one fantastic little invention that really makes for smooth navigation of new cycling routes!

I give it 3 stars because it’s not Mac compatible.

BEFORE you buy this product, get the book “Outdoor Navigation with GPS”. This is VERY helpful for understanding how GPS works, will help you select an appropriate GPS unit, and includes many helpful suggestions for saving battery power, etc… I imagine that many people who have issues with their GPSr’s, don’t really understand how GPS works, and expect miracles. The manual that comes with it does NOT explain a number of things that you should know.

I also recommend that you buy NiMH rechargeable batteries (do your research! get a good charger, understand how your batteries work!) and take a freshly charged spare set with you for those lo-o-ong rides, or if in any doubt. So far, the battery life in this unit is very long, and I haven’t had problems even in the cold weather.

For you cyclists, I recommend that you label waypoints (in a route) like you would cues on a cue-sheet: 1R-BRI would mean first turn, go right onto Bridge St. Maybe that’s just obvious, but I didn’t do it for my first ride, and it makes navigation much Smoother and without confusion.

Also, I think a more basic model without map capability would be fine as long as it has long battery life, and spd/distance/time information.

Later. Some new notes:
1. My batteries appear to last 22+ hrs, at temps around freezing. (plus or minus a few degrees). I chose this model primarily because it had the longest battery life.

2. I think it is an advantage NOT to have the full maps feature, haven’t needed it, and have heard from other cyclists that it either clutters the screen, or re-routes you onto freeways (However, I think that it might be possible to turn off the automatic routing) .

3. It can take a long time to program a route manually if you only have a MAC–I’m unemployed right now, so I have lots of time to spare (another reason why I’m even writing this damned review). if you don’t have a PC, It will be a sad thing if you can’t archive this route and have to delete it to make room for other routes.

4. I love the tracback feature, this has turned out to be helpful a few times.

5. this makes a great bike computer! many features that I love to use! okay, I’ve said enough, but I hope this review is helpful to someone out there.

Purchased eTrex Legend Cx on April 6, 2008. Received the unit SN:15P013699 on 4/20. After extensive trouble shooting with Garmin Tech Support, I sent the unit back to Garmin on 4/26. My complaint was with the accuracy of cache/waypoints particularly in the longitude readings when over a known waypoint with exact coordinates, I found the unit to register as much as 25-35 feet away.
Garmin sent a replacement unit without giving any explaination of checking the one I had returned. I tested the replacement unit, SN:76968064, on numerous cache waypoints and obtained about the same accuracy results; 40-50feet off of the exact waypoint locations. Next, after another frustrating conversation with Garmin Tech Support, I was given another RMA # for return of the second unit, which was then returned on 6/20. As of the time of writing this review, I have not received any correspondence from Garmin with regards to the status on the GPS repair. Garmin repair turn around is terrible and so is their email correspondence. If the next unit I receive operates the same as the first two, I intend to return the unit to Garmin and ask for a refund so I can purchase another GPS with better accuracy.
EB Prescott, AZ

The unit overall works pretty well. Holds firm and looks nice. I didn’t really like the lower mounting hardware (U bolts, nuts), it seemed to be a little less than the rest of the unit, thats why I took one star, but it works OK. I would buy again for sure. Lots of positions are a plus. The biggest drawback is that the GPS made for this unit has a screen that is too small to see much when on a moving motorcycle, but of course this is not a problem with this mount.

This RAM handlebar mount for a Garmin Vista HCx is “solid as a rock”… I have it mounted on motorcycle and it doesn’t shake/vibrate at all. The articulated arm helps to position the gps where ever you want it.

This video is sort of short and not as detailed as I had hoped for the price I paid. You might learn better from a friend and the manual itself. This video is not produced by Garmin, it was a little helpful in getting started. Most things will have to be learned by trial and error.