Important 60CSx Memory Chip

[+gare-oh]

Talked to Garmin today and they told me when getting a larger memory chip for the 60CSX you need a micro chip not a MINI disk or a micro II (2) the micro 2 will not work in the unit.

Has anyone else had this problem ?

[Neo_Geo]

Many here have confused "Mini" and "Micro" in the past. That means the topic comes up in discussion frequently already. It has also been duly noted several times that the SanDisk Ultra II MicroSD chips get fried in the Garmin handheld units.

 

In other words, what you're saying is nothing new to many of us, and it will be overlooked by the rest.

[+TwoTruckers]

Yes I have a 60 CSX. I went to the local WalMart and got myself a 512MB Micro SD card, I think it ran a little over $30. These can be picked up almost anywhere. Just be careful to get the MICRO SD. The new 2 GB Micros will be out soon.

[+Quoddy]

Yes I have a 60 CSX. I went to the local WalMart and got myself a 512MB Micro SD card, I think it ran a little over $30. These can be picked up almost anywhere. Just be careful to get the MICRO SD. The new 2 GB Micros will be out soon.

They're out now. Available only at Verizon stores. I have one fully loaded.

[mcgyver303]

Well Neo, not all of us knew about the Ultra II's. Sometimes it's harder to find a post that's been on a lot due to the huge number of search returns you get.

 

So thanks for the info Gare-oh, saved me some $$.

[+Prime Suspect]

What's the success of loading these larger cards (> 256mb) through the GPS? There's a note on Amazon about having to use a card reader for the 1gb cards. I was wondering if maybe that's been fixed in the latest OS update, or if it's actually a problem at all.

[8mmag]

What's the success of loading these larger cards (> 256mb) through the GPS? There's a note on Amazon about having to use a card reader for the 1gb cards. I was wondering if maybe that's been fixed in the latest OS update, or if it's actually a problem at all.

 

I had no problem loading a 1G card w/ 950Mb of CN8 maps thru the unit directly. It took about 2 hours though. That was with 2.9/2.5, I think. And I loaded a similar amount of MG6 maps using a prior firmware version (can't remember which one) to use while I was waiting for CN8 to come out. That was on a slower computer and took about 3 1/2 hours. It does work, however.

[+Quoddy]

What's the success of loading these larger cards (> 256mb) through the GPS? There's a note on Amazon about having to use a card reader for the 1gb cards. I was wondering if maybe that's been fixed in the latest OS update, or if it's actually a problem at all.

I loaded a 2GB with 1.7GB (ran out of sectors...still a 2025 limit). No problem loading or using it, and no change in speed of access either. It does take a while to load (over 2 hours) which is why I start the download around bedtime. When I got up the transfer was complete and both units were shut off.

[+Trizumi]

That was on a slower computer and took about 3 1/2 hours. It does work, however.

 

Does your computer have USB 1.0 or USB 2.0 port? USB v. 1.0 is much, much, much slower than 2.0. Most newer computers (2 or 3 years old) have USB v2.0. I have not yet tried to load anything to my 60csx from my computer's USB v2.0 port but was just curious.

[kb9nvh]

Talked to Garmin today and they told me when getting a larger memory chip for the 60CSX you need a micro chip not a MINI disk or a micro II (2) the micro 2 will not work in the unit.

Has anyone else had this problem ?

 

What problem exactly? Did you buy a wrong style chip before you found out what to buy?

 

Garmin told you you needed a micro (or transflash) memory chip for the csx and to be sure not to get the microII because it would NOT work.

I think some have made that mistake of getting the micro II only to have it fry the chip.

 

A mini is a different animal all together.

 

I guess there is room for confusion with this but the "transflash" microSD is what to buy.

[8mmag]

That was on a slower computer and took about 3 1/2 hours. It does work, however.

 

Does your computer have USB 1.0 or USB 2.0 port? USB v. 1.0 is much, much, much slower than 2.0. Most newer computers (2 or 3 years old) have USB v2.0. I have not yet tried to load anything to my 60csx from my computer's USB v2.0 port but was just curious.

 

Its my laptop...a PIII 750Mhz from about '99 so USB 1.1. BUT, the speed of actual transfer of maps to the 60CSx part wasn't a lot different. The part that took forever was building the mapsets before the transfer. (My desktop is a 2.8Ghz w/ 1.5Gig of RAM so naturally much faster at that.)

 

Come to think of it, I used the USB 1.1 port on the desktop too since I read on this forum somewhere that plugging the unit into a USB 2.0 port changes the status of the port in the computer to the slower 1.1 for everything thereafter. I have both 1.1 and 2.0 in the desktop. Does anyone know if the Garmin USB drivers really do 'upgrade' 2.0 ports to 1.1???

[+Train_Man]

I have heard the 60CSx is actually a USB 1.1 device and does not use the speed of USB 2 even when on a USB 2 port. That means its top transfer rate is about 11Mbit. Its strange such a new device has no USB 2 support when even tiny little flash drives are USB 2!

[8mmag]

I have heard the 60CSx is actually a USB 1.1 device and does not use the speed of USB 2 even when on a USB 2 port. That means its top transfer rate is about 11Mbit. Its strange such a new device has no USB 2 support when even tiny little flash drives are USB 2!

 

I agree, but I also seem to recall that the max transfer rate of the MicroSD card itself is something not much more than USB 1.1 speed...maybe 15Mb/s (couldn't locate this quickly on the Sandisk site). Maybe that explains why Garmin stuck w/ the 1.1?

[robertlipe]

Marketing types have done their best to make this confusing, but USB 2 actually specifies three speeds - low speed, full speed, and high speed. USB 1.0 and 1.1 specified only the first two. So while some might think that "USB 2" means high speed (480Mbit/sec) that's a bit like inferring that a car is green just becuase it happens to be a Beetle.

 

The 60CSX is a full speed (12Mbit/sec) device.

 

If you put a MicroSD card in a high speed device, most of them can be written at a much spiffier clip - see Annoyedone's tests on this very subject in the yahoogroup FAQs linked to at the top of this group if you'd like it numerically quantified.

 

[ edit ]

...actually, Annoyedone updated this just this morning, it looks: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Garmin_GPSmap_76C/message/4939

Edited August 7, 2006 by robertlipe

[8mmag]

If you put a MicroSD card in a high speed device, most of them can be written at a much spiffier clip - see Annoyedone's tests on this very subject in the yahoogroup FAQs linked to at the top of this group if you'd like it numerically quantified.

 

Chief...I'm not sure where the link is you're referring to is, I'd like to check it out...

[misteraceman]

OK, I've got a question for those of you that have already new Transflash cards.

I purchased both a SanDisk Transflash 512mb plus now I received the 1 Gb TransFlash Card or Micro SD.

 

My question is : Is the basemap on the installed 64mb card.

 

When I install the new Micro SD card, I get a blank screen with the word Drawing in a square box. I have waited a considerable time to see if anything happens and nothing does. I assumed that the basemap was on the internal memory and then when you install the card, then any new mapping gets installed there. So my question then is "Do I have to install my Navigator 8 onto the card first which will then get me my routing software" or how if possible do you use the unit just to see my location in North America while using my new 512mb or 1 Gb SanDisk Micro SD card? It seems to me that the unit is card dependent and that the basemap is on the installed 64mb card that comes from the factory.

[misteraceman]

OK now, I have the 1 Gb card installed and the basemap is showing. This card definitely says on the card that it is Micro SD and the 512 mb card packaging says that it is MicroSD, but the card itself says it is a 512 mb TransFlash Card not MicroSD. When I compare the part number on the face of the 512 mb card, the code is SDQCJP-512 mb but the card package says it is SDSDQ-512-A10M. Both cards have exactly the same packaging saying microSD/TransFlash compatible, but the adaptor on the 512 says TransFlash Adapter whereas the 1 Gb one says microSD/Transflash Adapter. The code on the 1 Gb is SDSDQ-1024-A10M so you would think that both units are the same until you actually look at the code on the card itself.

 

Both cards appear to be exact matches other than the code and the fact that the 512 mb card does not seem to associate with the 60Cx basemap. Anyone else have this problem?

[+Munin]

OK, I've got a question for those of you that have already new Transflash cards.

I purchased both a SanDisk Transflash 512mb plus now I received the 1 Gb TransFlash Card or Micro SD.

 

My question is : Is the basemap on the installed 64mb card.

No, definitely not - I can remove the microSD card completely and when I power back up the basemap is still displayed. (On my 76CSx, there's actually two maps built into the unit - the regular (road-oriented) basemap, and the Americas Marine Point basemap. Both of these are always present even when the microSD card has been removed.)

 

When I install the new Micro SD card, I get a blank screen with the word Drawing in a square box. I have waited a considerable time to see if anything happens and nothing does. I assumed that the basemap was on the internal memory and then when you install the card, then any new mapping gets installed there. So my question then is "Do I have to install my Navigator 8 onto the card first which will then get me my routing software" or how if possible do you use the unit just to see my location in North America while using my new 512mb or 1 Gb SanDisk Micro SD card? It seems to me that the unit is card dependent and that the basemap is on the installed 64mb card that comes from the factory.

Not sure what's going on with your card. When I first put my new 1GB microSD card into my GPSr, it powered up normally - no "Drawing" message, no freezing/lockup. I was then able to hook the GPSr into my computer and download the City Nav and Topo maps via MapSource, just like you were expecting to do with your GPSr.

 

Do you have a microSD or SD compatible drive on your computer that you could use to look at your 512MB card? I'm wondering if Windows (or whatever your favorite OS is) can access the card, and/or if it'll think the card is unformatted?

 

OK now, I have the 1 Gb card installed and the basemap is showing. This card definitely says on the card that it is Micro SD and the 512 mb card packaging says that it is MicroSD, but the card itself says it is a 512 mb TransFlash Card not MicroSD.

"TransFlash" is just another name for "MicroSD". If I remember my geek history right, "TransFlash" was what SanDisk called this particular form-factor before their design was accepted by the SD Card Association as an official SD card standard, at which point it became known as "MicroSD". Same electronics, just a matter of whether a card was manufactured before the SD Card Association officially "blessed" SanDisk's teeny-tiny design or after the blessing.

[misteraceman]

Ok:

Installed the 1 Gb card and installed most of Canada plus the North Eastern US plus Forida on the card. Actually only took up 409 mb. It is up and running OK.

 

The 512 mb card shows nothing when I put in into my card reader. I think that it is defective or something. It shows nothing at all and when placed into my 60Cx just shows a blank screen with the word "reading" in a square. I am using the Adapter with it and into an Optex 5 in 1 USB reader and the card is not reading so it must be defective. Thanks for your help.

 

I decided to download directly to my GPS and it took an hour total for the maps to download. I was not sure about downloading to my USB reader with the card installed since I felt that it would be looking for my GPS ID number as usual. Is it easy to download directly to the card?

 

Thanks for your help Munin.

[+Munin]

The 512 mb card shows nothing when I put in into my card reader. I think that it is defective or something. It shows nothing at all and when placed into my 60Cx just shows a blank screen with the word "reading" in a square. I am using the Adapter with it and into an Optex 5 in 1 USB reader and the card is not reading so it must be defective.

Yeah, I'm thinking the same thing - both my original and 1GB microSD cards have worked fine, both in the GPSr, and also under WinXP and Linux using that SanDisk adapter with a couple of similar USB readers. Did you buy the 512MB card somewhere where an exchange is an easy thing? (If it was a local store, I'd be tempted to try bringing your GPSr along when you take the card back, explain what you've tried and how it failed, and see if they'll let you try the replacement card out in your GPSr while you're right there in the store. If the GPSr doesn't freeze up with that "reading" message when you power it up with the new card, then you could feel pretty confident that the old card was fubar'ed and the new card is functioning correctly.)

 

I decided to download directly to my GPS and it took an hour total for the maps to download. I was not sure about downloading to my USB reader with the card installed since I felt that it would be looking for my GPS ID number as usual. Is it easy to download directly to the card?

You should have no trouble downloading using your USB reader if you want to - depending on your computer and the card reader it may be much faster than sending the data through the GPSr. And it's very easy - what'll happen is that when you click on the "Send To Device" icon in MapSource is that you'll see the USB reader's drive letter show up as a target instead of your GPSr. MapSource already knows which GPSr IDs you've unlocked the maps for (assuming the maps are locked in the first place), so when it writes the map files to the card it'll mark them as usable by those IDs - it doesn't need to talk to your GPSr first.

 

The POILoader program (for creating Custom POIs) works the same way - if you hook up your reader with the microSD+adapter and then run POILoader, it'll give you the option of saving to the USB reader's drive letter instead of the GPSr.

 

Thanks for your help Munin.

You're quite welcome, misteraceman!