mrmacman2u

A "Dashboard" is a, well, a dashboard! It's a graphical display of certain information on certain screens like the trip computer display or the map display. For example, it has a geocaching dashboard for the map screen that displays either basic or detailed information about the nearest geocache (or the one you're navigating to if you're navigating ) The 62 series, the montana, oregon and (i think) dakota also have dashboards including automotive, biking, hiking, marine and 2 different geocaching dashboards. I personally find them very hand and have the detailed Geocaching dashboard set to display on my map in my geocaching profile.

Your results are almost exactly what I discovered a few months ago with over two weeks of continuous testing. Although I have the Maha Powerex that you don't seem to like. (Note that when comparing the Maha to your LaCrosse, the LaCrosse actually has tested as putting slightly more charge into most batteries, so the Maha has a little less agressive termination circuit) I also found that the compass being turned off appeared to make no discernable difference. Glad to see my results are in line with what others have also tested As for the Maha, I noticed similar results and concluded its a two spire anomaly. Yes, the Maha does have a gentler termination which is pretty much bang on what it SHOULD be for happier, healthier batteries; where the LaCrosse has a rather more aggressive termination than "ideal" as you said. I also found that the difference comes from the very low current "top off" trickle charge the LaCrosse uses post-charging, where the Maha charges and then it's done. When charging at more aggressive rates, "topping off" becomes more nessecary. So, despite the harsher termination, one reason I prefer the LaCrosse is the trickle charge it provides, I just charge at a higher rate with older cells to ensure they terminate properly and then let them "rest" in the charger a few hours after and absorb a nice gentle trickle to ensure they are completly full... Dog, I sound like suck a dork lol! Does it show that battery technology is one of my hobby horses? So, I defiantly wouldn't say I DISLIKE the Maha charger, I had one for a few weeks before returning it and it worked very well! I'm just extremely fiddly when charging and to change the charge rates, perform a refresh cycle, etc had to be done one cell at a time requiring many, MANY button presses lol!!! The LaCrosse just has a far better UI IMHO. The reality of it is, EITHER one is better than ANY cheap charger and their advanced features can make even cheapo rechargables gallop like a stallion while weeding out lame ducks AND rejuvenate older cells to get more life (and thus more savings) out of them That's why I always recommend both brands, different folks, different strokes lol! Also agree on the compass making barely two bits of difference in life on the Garmin units; yet on others, *cough*magellen*cough*, it does. So, one of those completeness sake things

Actually, I just remember learning that a really long time ago. Still, I'd prefer some (any?) proof that this is true. It doesn't make any sense, yet IANAD... Also, when calibrated correctly, I've never seen accuracy issue with either the 60CSX or the 62S series and personally find it to be invaluable, especially when standing still and trying to get your bearings!

I've been using a 62S for a few weeks now and have been very pleasantly surprised with it's battery life. Since I'm a battery nut and stumbled across this thread I figured I'd share some of my experiences and the run-down tests I've been running. I used a pair of 2600mah Ni-MH, a pair of generic low self discharge (LSD) 2200mah Ni-MH cells, and a pair of very high quality japanese Duracell 2100mah NiMH cells (they are the famous Sanyo Eneloops rebranded for Duracell and are sometimes dubbed "Duraloops" ) I also used a pair of the PowerGenix NiZn just for shiggles since these cells are designed for high discharge rates such as digital cameras, motor powered toys and so on and actually have a fairly SMALL capacity of about 1500mah. As a trade off, they can produce amazing amounts of current. In fact, that's how I found out my battery load tester, while rated to 30 amps, wasn't CAPABLE of handling even 25 amps lol!!! However, since a GPS uses fairly little current, their benefit is minimized... They also have a shorter cycle lifespan, require a special charger and are now quite expensive. I don't see much of a reason to use this type of battery technology in any GPS. Though feel free to use them in sub-freezing tempuratures since Alkaline and NiMH cells take a HUGE performance hit under 32 degrees F. Frankly, I just use lithiums when it gets cold Some information about my testing methods and equipment: I used my LaCrosse BC-9009 (No issues with fires on this model and it's now replaced by the BC-1000) to ensure all the NiMH cells were charged correctly and how much charge capacity they each had. The cells used for testing were all "matched", this means they have VERY similar capacities (I accept no more than 200mah (2%) difference) and discharge curves (meaning they "go dead" at the same time) For the NiZn batteries, I used the standard 4 cell charger provided from PowerGenix. Please note, I read earlier that people were wondering about the chargers for the NiZn batteries, there are TWO MODELS, one will ONLY charge 2 or 4 cells at a time and one can charge 1-4 cells at a time. A quick way to tell the difference between the two is the one that will charge only 2 or 4 at a time will have 2 red LED's on the front, the "one-at-a-time" model has a red and a green LED. I also used only three pair of Energizer alkalines. I really don't use disposable cells, sorry! Each run down test was timed from the moment I turned it on, to the moment the device shut off. I used the 62 normally, navigating both on road and off, tones on, battery saver off, WAAS on, mag. compass on. For the backlight tests, it was set to 'Always on" The Results: Covering the NiZn cells first, they had somewhat shorter run times than the 2100mah Duracell NiMH, but the difference was only about 1.5 hours give or take a few minutes NiZn 1500mah - 2 runs/each No BL: 13.9 hours 50% BL: 11.3 hours 100% BL: 7.9 hours Not exactly impressive. The generic and the brand name LSD NiMH cells performed so closely to each other that I'm just going to lump them together NiMH (Low Self Discharge) 2100mah - 4 runs/each No BL: 15.6 Hours 50% BL: 12.9 Hours 100% BL: 9.2 hours Better Finally, my high capacity cells... NiMH 2600mah - 2 runs/each No BL: 19.1 Hours 50% BL: 15.5 Hours 100% BL: 11 hours Excellent Last and least, the disposable one's for completeness sake. Alkaline - 1 run/each No BL: 19.8 hours 50% BL: 14.9 hours 100% BL: 9.1 Hours The backlight was the biggest hit on all these run tests. If you are finding your 62 is eating batteries use the power button to turn off the backlight and leave it off as much as possible if you're in conditions where you have plenty of light. Also, turning off the shaded contours helps greatly with the screen visibility requiring you to use the backlight less. Other things to keep in mind: - A worn out rechargeable will provide only a fraction of the run time expected despite a "full charge". - A defective rechargeable cell in a pair will also cut your run time to mear hours or even minutes depending on how bad it is. - Rechargables don't last forever AND a poor charge makes then die even sooner! A good charger is ALWAYS a worthwhile investment if you use Ni-MH's! My LaCrosse BC-9009 cost almost 50 bucks and the new BC-1000 model pushes 60 on Amazon as of this writing. It's a good sized investment IMHO, but is VERY worth it when your $5 charger is continuously destroying $15 packs of rechargables many hundreds of cycles early while giving you lousy run times. Mine has paid for itself 7 or 8 times over now... TBH, I've lost track lol!! Btw, people also like the PowerEx C9000, I do not. Too hard to use. bcblues, it sounds as if you have a defective 62, I suggest using your warranty... Hope this helps all! Happy Caching! **I know the data here shows alkalines experiencing an exponential drop off in run time, this is not an error despite only a single sample set. This is just the nature of the beast. The more current you try and draw from a disposable battery, the shorter it's life. They are most happy around 100mah draw current and will provide a capacity of nearly 3000mah, unfortunately, even with no backlight, the 62 draws more current than that