Major Noob Need buying advice w/60CSx

[+geo.gator]

Greetings All!

 

I am a GPS/Geocaching noob but have dived in head first. I bought a Garmin 60CSx which is really cool BTW.

 

I'd like to purchase the City Navigator NT v8 maps. Should I purchase the DVD or the preloaded MicroSD card? What is the benefit of one over the other? Does it make more sense to buy my own 1GB MicroSD card (<$40) and get the maps on DVD?

 

Is there a good place to purchase accessories like carrying case, car power adapter, external antenna, car mount?? Should I look solely at Garmin accessories or are there well respected third-party suppliers of parts? Is there a recommended website for GPS stuff?

 

Thanks in advance for all advice.

 

-Bud

[terrible2u]

buy the dvd! so you can also use it on your pc, like for creating routes. then download the maps to your gps. if you have preloaded cards, you can only use 'em on your gps.

 

coolest case i've found so far

 

BTW, congrats on your purchase! just bought one myself, its a real cool toy..

[SandyGarrity]

What bit of the planet are you on. It would help as you may not want to ship something half way accross the world.

[+geo.gator]

What bit of the planet are you on. It would help as you may not want to ship something half way accross the world.

 

My apologies. I am in the great state of Georgia on the good'ol USA.

[+geo.gator]

Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

[+briansnat]

I'd say get the DVD. Its a lot more flexible. As others mentioned you can use it on your PC, but if you buy the pre loaded card you don't have that option.

 

As far as options, I doubt you'll need an antenna. The unit gets great reception without. The neoprene case sold by Garmin (see accessories on their website) is a good thing to get. It will save the GPS from nicks. It also fits better than most of the ones I've seen from 3rd party vendors.

 

Amazon.com is a pretty good source for this stuff. Garmin's website too, but they are a bit expensive.

 

As far as a car mount, depending on the configuration of your dashboard, you might be able to get away with a $4 adhesive swivel, button mount used for cell phones. If there is no place to attach an adhesive mount, I've seen button mounts that clip to vents. Its a cost effective solution esp when you see that the RAM mounts start at $30.

 

Here is the setup I have in my CRV.

 

Edited October 26, 2006 by briansnat

[Paul Cataldo]

I too live in GA, just south of Atlanta, in Fayetteville.

Where exactly are you in GA????

 

Let me know which case you buy, and also has ANYONE here seen those peel-away clear adhesive backed screen protectors that sell on ebay I think?

They are similar to the one that comes on the GPS, that is supposed to be removed, when you first open the GPS. I think they just peel away, and are replaceable, and help protect the screen, IN ADDITION to the neoprene cases.

 

I'm trying to determine the best way to mount the GPS in my vehicle, a GMC Sierra 1500 truck.

 

Does the 60csx SOLELY run on AA batteries, OR can it be plugged into a cigarrette ligther port in the vehicle???

If anyone has any other startup tips or hints for us GA boys, I'd be super greatful!

Thanks guys..

[+PaRacers]

Shield Zone makes the best screen protector, it's the best $10 you can spend to protect your investment. I bought my 12V power cord off ebay (3rd party) along with Navigator software. Been using a simple velcro pad to attach it to my dash and I have no complaints at all. Get the screen protector first, BEFORE you get a scratch. These things take a beating and they're not cheap, $10 is cheap insurance.

[+Span 24]

has ANYONE here seen those peel-away clear adhesive backed screen protectors that sell on ebay I think?

They are similar to the one that comes on the GPS, that is supposed to be removed, when you first open the GPS. I think they just peel away, and are replaceable, and help protect the screen, IN ADDITION to the neoprene cases.

 

Fellowes makes what they call "WriteRight Universal Screen Protectors". You get 10 (3"x4") protectors for about $6. Good not only for GPSr, but cellphones and MP3 Players. I think I got them at Target or Wal-Mart...

 

GL

[+geo.gator]

I too live in GA, just south of Atlanta, in Fayetteville.

Where exactly are you in GA????

 

I live in Tucker. It is at about 2:00 on the I-285 clock-face in case you are not familiar with it.

[DogFleazJR]

Greetings All!

 

I am a GPS/Geocaching noob but have dived in head first. I bought a Garmin 60CSx which is really cool BTW.

 

I'd like to purchase the City Navigator NT v8 maps. Should I purchase the DVD or the preloaded MicroSD card? What is the benefit of one over the other? Does it make more sense to buy my own 1GB MicroSD card (<$40) and get the maps on DVD?

 

Is there a good place to purchase accessories like carrying case, car power adapter, external antenna, car mount?? Should I look solely at Garmin accessories or are there well respected third-party suppliers of parts? Is there a recommended website for GPS stuff?

 

Thanks in advance for all advice.

 

-Bud

 

I bought the Garmin suction up mount from Amazon when I purchased my CSx, was about $20 if I remember. I am a frequent business traveler and I can take the suction cup mount with me when I travel and use it in any car (techically windshield mounts are illegal in CA and Minn, although I have never had a problem). The suction cup is very secure and a big improvement over the older version I bought for my ol' GPS V.

 

By luck, the car charger for my BlackBerry has the same connector as the CSx (plugs into the USB connector on the back of the unit), so I use that in the car. You could shop around for chargers with that same mini-pin connector - lots of USB enabled devices use this style (cell phones, digital cameras). Of course every manufacturer looks to make big margins on selling accessories like car chargers so finding a great deal may be tough.

 

I also agree with others, buy the DVD so you can use it on your computer.

 

I had plans to buy a 1G card for my CSx, but I am ok with the card that came with the unit. I can store all the road navigation and topo maps in a 2-hour driving radius from home, plus a few additional maps for where I'm travelling to. The download speed with the USB is MUCH faster than the old serial connection, so downloading map sets is no big deal. Someday I will get the bigger card, but not urgent.

 

Enjoy.

[+kdgreene]

Another Noob here! I will be using my 60 csx for business travel as well as geocaching. Can I get by with the city navigator software or do I need to get the topo maps as well???

Thanks

[-Oz-]

Another Noob here! I will be using my 60 csx for business travel as well as geocaching. Can I get by with the city navigator software or do I need to get the topo maps as well???

Thanks

Start with city navigator only. You'll find out if you need the topo software pretty quickly. Thing with it is the topo is only 100k so its not going to show you all the little details that you may want for caching. Its great for mountains but 100ft+ between contour lines is a long fall.

[DogFleazJR]

Another Noob here! I will be using my 60 csx for business travel as well as geocaching. Can I get by with the city navigator software or do I need to get the topo maps as well???

Thanks

 

It took me five years to buy the topos. You can geocache just about anywhere without them, but they are a "nice to have."

 

The auto navigation maps, even with their flaws, are invaluable, especially for business travelers. I never leave home without mine.

[+geo.gator]

 

As far as a car mount, depending on the configuration of your dashboard, you might be able to get away with a $4 adhesive swivel, button mount used for cell phones. If there is no place to attach an adhesive mount, I've seen button mounts that clip to vents. Its a cost effective solution esp when you see that the RAM mounts start at $30.

 

Here is the setup I have in my CRV.

 

 

I like the $4 adhesive dealio. Where can I buy that? I think that it would work perfectly in my vehicles.

[Paul Cataldo]

Guys,

Can someone clear a few things up for me?

 

I'm not clear on exactly WHAT maps can be purchased for the 60CSx (or ANY GPS for that matter?)

I guess we should specifically refer to the Garmin mapping products, as I too, own a 60CSx.

 

You see guys, I am sitting here wondering WHAT all kinds of maps can I buy? I mean, I KNOW I can buy either topo or city (road) maps.

My question, is HOW MANY are there for my area, and what does an "area" consist of? I mean, do they sell topo maps by the STATE, or by the SouthEast region of the U.S. or what? ( I do think I saw they sell national parks seperately, but I'm not interested in those). I am a hunter, and I'm wondering WHAT topo maps I will want for my 60CSx??? I mean, will I be buying the ENTIRE state of GA, when I buy Garmins topo maps? HOW MANY topo maps exist (from Garmin), for my area, and all the wooded areas around me???? Is there ONLY ONE topo offering from Garmin for each area?????

 

How about the road maps? Again, will this be an entire state of GA deal, or do they offer something like "Atlanta Metro Area" or what???

 

Thanks for the help guys. I cruised the Garmin site, and still am a bit unclear about this...

 

Oh, one more thing,

 

Is it common to find some of the mapping software, for sale, secondhand, like on Ebay or this forum or something???

I mean, we are always selling used movies on Ebay, and CD's at Pawn shops, so I wonder if any of the GPS mapping software comes up for sale very often???

Just wondering....

Edited October 31, 2006 by Paul Cataldo

[beauxp]

CITY NAVIGATOR North America v8 dvd covers all of the US and you have the option of loading as much or as little map detail to your unit (given how much memory you have. Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tenessee, and some of Alabama take up about 190 mb.

 

Buy the DVD new as it needs un unlock code and if you buy it used you probaly have no warrant. I bought mine from www.pagecomputers.com for $97.

 

The Topo US is probably all you need as well. It coveres all of the USA with topo information and also has a great deal of street ino. This also you can load as much or as little as you want (given the amount of memory you have) Same area as mentioned above takes about 250 mb.

 

You load both of these onto your unit at the same time and in the mao setup turn off and on what you do or don't want to show. I bought this one also at www.pagecomputers.com for $69.

 

With both, depending on how much memory you have, you can load all of the state of Georgia, Georgia with all of the states around it, or the complete USA. It is really up to you.

 

For your info. The Georgia topo plus street maps come up to 82 mb.

 

They do have another topo program that is for different parts of the country but that only contains the national parks in that area. Probably not what you are looking for.

 

Hope this helps.

[+Night Stalker]

City Navigator Version 8 NT is probably what you want to buy. This version has a different compression software so that you can get more area on your Micro SD card for the same amount of memory. You might want to look at buying an auto navigation kit. This comes with the software and a beanbag mounting kit. It also comes with a permanent base that you can stick on your dash. You can find them on ebay for around $150 which is a lot cheaper then the Garmin price. I travel for business and this has been a life saver for me.