4America

I looked at a nuber of places that had the 400t in stock. I went with REI, just becasue of the 100% warrenty. Most of the places I checked didn't have a very good return policy. Looking at the bad reports of the Colorado 400t I consider the extra $$ as a good investment.

Thanks to everyone so far that has taken the time to complete the survey. If you haven't taken the survey, please do so.

Survey posted! www.Geo-x.org - Garmin Colorado Owners Survey

Please respond here if you have taken the survey (Can you say auto bump?) Also, I fixed an error where users coudn't select more that one answer in a single row. Thanks for the heads up on that one!

Click here for Garmin Colorado Owners Survey

Does the G or M chipset have the most ram?

300 + Memory card + topo 2008 approx equal to= 400t Miain Differences: 300 + Memory card + topo 2008 : you have software to load on your PC 400t addtional built in ram (more than the 300) but no PC topo maps bottom line: some say that a 300, card, topo 2008 will cost a little more that a 400t and topo 2008 software for your pc.

I am putting the finishing touches on a survey for owners, former owners, or anyone with 1st hand use on the Garmin Colorado(s). Because there is lots of mis-information, when the survey input is requested, please only the above group. I'll publish the results for everyone to read. What questions would you like to see on the survey?

any news on stock? looks like all the sources other than REI are out of stock

So that's the order of events? 1. Product released to consumers, 2. Write and test firmware? I'm in the software development business, and I guess we've been doing it backward. Ready Fire Aim

segment limits?

Great job! I'm trashing the one I started, no need to have several projects for one common goal. Keep it up!

The same should (does) apply to City Nav v8.I recomend getting the Garmin GPS 18 Deluxe as it comes with City Select and costs the same as just getting the maps. So you get two unlocks (one can be upgraded to v2008) and you can also sell the gps on ebay to recupe some costs. from the above link Q: "If I buy a GPS18USB Deluxe or GPS18PC Deluxe will I be able to load the City Navigator* maps onto a regular handheld autorouting GPS such as the GPSMAP 60C or GPSMAP 76C series?"" A: "No, Garmin no longer offers a second unlock.""

As they have found out, at Garmin, that many users have trouble using their GPS units, due to them being too complex and stuffed with too many different features. So they try to make it easier by making as much as possible automatic, or at least not user adjustable. Sometimes then some things are sacrificed to make other things easier to do. It will not suit everyone, of course.That's not an issue for people who write here, of course, as they are often more experienced than many other users. I can't speak for all, but I do know one beta tester who certainly uses the units under test. Every day. But there are of course things that pass by. One example is using nRoute. I've used it once with an eTrex Vista, to see if it worked, then ditched it as too inconvenient and bulky a thing to bring along in my car. Besides, if I did want that, I would much prefer one of these small GPS pucks as a position transmitter, not a unit like the Colorado. So I didn't see the lack of support for that, via USB, as any issue at all. Finally, I wanted to inform you about that you don't have to spend time on the phone, writing e-mails, sending letters or generating smoke signals to tell Garmin about that particular issue, as it's already where they need to know to fix it. If you consider your efforts in describing the problem to them would bring a solution out sooner or better, then by all means, feel free to communicate it to them as you like. I was simply giving a friendly hint to tell you that your valuable time could be used pursuing other bugs, so that it may add more improvements to the Colorado. I personally don't like the way the industry is going. If Anders is right, they are dumbing things down at the sacrafice of advanced features that qualify's consumer GPS's as serious data collection and navigation tools. Here's a solution, why don't they just give you an option in the unit software to go "advanced" or "simple". Give us choices on how we want to use the GPS, don't dumb it down and take away what we have relied upon for so long. Seems simple enough to do. I don't have the money for a trimble, nor will I ever, but it seems as though the push to get a larger share of the market to buy and use GPS technology is leaving advanced consumer users like those in this forum in the margins. If you ask me, thats not very savvy on Garmin's, Magellan's, or anyones part. I reiterate, the smart thing to do would be not to take features away, just give us the choice. Don't take the position of "well the new way is better so just get used to it". In some instances that may be correct but in many its not. GIVE ME THE CHOICE! That's all we are asking here. Simple solution, write it in the unit software. and an option to "reset to working defaults".... I tried the secret code on my GPSv, only to find out the removed it in later firmware.

How about a winXp notebook with a usb GPS? I see tha the test setup is for WinXp, and with the UMPC's and the small panasonic CF18 win pcs... might be the perfect setup, they support sound, etc and have a big display. bump

Oh yes it should. I was perhaps too fuzzy, but what I refer to is not the intended purpose of the unit, but the handling and appearance of the supported functionality. In this aspect, Garmin has tried to use design elements from the very popular nüvi line, when making the Colorado. It doesn't matter that the Colorado is mainly geared towards use off the road than on the same.This includes the computer connection as a USB drive, for example. There are many more. Now I'll go out and see if I see any street names. I've not paid attention to their absence before, as I don't see any point in displaying a lot of street names when you drive around. If I want to find a particular one, then I search for it. If not, it doesn't matter what they are called. Just messes the map up. Just last night I was looking for an address. I had the wrong spelling of the street. As I approached the area, I saw the street I was looking for coming up on the GPS V I have. I identified the street I was looking for several blocks away, way before I could read the street sign. This prevented me from driving at a much slower speed, then slamming on ,my brakes to make a turn. If garmin didn't want the 300/400 used for street nav, with the driveing profile?

400t update

look 3 messages up (or so) from this one they posted a new version today.

Any chance these are new batteries? NiMH batteries require 10-15 discharge/recharge cycles before they reach maximum capacity. I just posted a update of the new update to the 300 /400. Battery issues re listed as fixed. Search for the firmware topic...

Garmin has fixed this issue and support tells me it will be in the next software update. Between now and then the workaround is as follows (from tech support): So it seems like the issue is with certain characters in cache descriptions or in my case logs. I guess if I really cared about this then I would spend 10 minutes and write a script to strip them out, but I'll probably live with it for now. GO$Rs edit: fix quote A few days ago, I posted regarding my issues with performance (which looks like that will be fixed soon). the business with the coordinates not being displayed on the geocache listing. Out of curiosity, did the garmin guy make any mention of what might be included in the next software update and the timing of that software update? I returned my Colorado to REI two days ago - the combination of the performance and geocaching display (lack of coordinates, won't display current position, etc) let to my decision to return the unit. However, I'm still following this thread in the hopes that perhaps the issues can be corrected at some point. just listed... I don't see any direct geocaching fixes... Change History Changes made from version 2.20 to 2.30: Added setting to turn off the compass. Alarm clock will not change your backlight if it is already on. Low battery warning shows on powerup when appropriate. Improved DEM shading with supplemental maps. Fixed marine colors for depth soundings and active track. Added ability to view extended chart information and chart notes. Improve share wirelessly connection. Changes made from version 2.10 to 2.20: Fixed potential shutdown when using partially discharged alkaline batteries and significant amounts of backlight. Improved backlight usability. Corrected potential memory leak on altimeter page. Corrected issue that changed map setting to north up if reviewing a point on the map. Changed the automotive view angle to match automotive products. Added ability to exit compass calibration if calibration fails. Improved performance and error handling of Share Wirelessly application. Corrected tone of route turn warnings. Added height and depth information on review pages if the information is available (related to marine maps). Corrected drawing of spot soundings. Improved drawing of satellite imagery in 400i and 400c.

Hello Garmin... I lost my wheel, during a regular greese job... what how old is the unit ...just over a year? You are kidding me... I have to send it back with a check for how much?

Just talked to Garmin tech support. He said that the topo 2008 maps do not render 3D views on the 300. Can't confirm from personal experience. Hope this helps. wow.. this could be BIG news if you were going to get a 300..

He was obviously thinking along the lines of units like the 60 CSx. A Colorado works like all the new Garmin GPS units. Take a nüvi 760, Zumo 550 or StreetPilot c550, for example. They all run as USB drives when connected to a PC, since that's the way you go to transfer data back and forth. They aren't intended to operate as GPS pucks, hooked up to computers via USB. In order to verify your last download you'd have to dismount anyway, as you can't operate the GPS when it's in drive mode, but you can't download anything when it's not. You can eject electronically, but you would still have to reboot the device independently, to see what you have on the GPS, then connect and reboot in drive mode to download again, if you forgot something the first time. Once again, it's not like a 60 CSx, which has two different USB profiles: Garmin GPS or USB drive. so this means you can't put it on the dash, tether to a notebook and get input to a mapping program?

I understand the beta cycle better than most, as a previous paid gig, I did contract work. They said I have the reverse midas touch... for those that have never heard about the midas touch, everything he touched turned to gold... They said I could break an anvil!

Quick answer: Yes, CN is more accurate as you zoom into the map. CN is accurate down to 300 feet. Topo 2008 is accurate down to 800 feet. What you must do is look to see if the Topo 2008 map is zoomed in farther than 800 feet. In the case of CN, keep the maximum zoom to 300 feet. what? this is strange... 800 ft and topo doens't work right? Is this just for garmin, or do all GPSs have this shortcoming?