Garmin 76CSx Envy - Have Garmin 76CS

[+Lizzy]

I received a Garmin Map76CS last Christmas & I understand it was close to $500 in price. Right after Christmas, a friend of mine received the latest Garmin Map76CSx which has MUCH better sat reception. Her's is great under tree cover, where mine drops off to nothing. I'm soooo envious & wish I could convince Garmin to upgrade my unit (it's just too new to sell). Has anyone ever done something like this with Garmin? I know they want you to buy the latest & greatest from them, but a lot of $$ was spent on mine & it's not that old!

[+geobc]

I received a Garmin Map76CS last Christmas & I understand it was close to $500 in price. Right after Christmas, a friend of mine received the latest Garmin Map76CSx which has MUCH better sat reception. Her's is great under tree cover, where mine drops off to nothing. I'm soooo envious & wish I could convince Garmin to upgrade my unit (it's just too new to sell). Has anyone ever done something like this with Garmin? I know they want you to buy the latest & greatest from them, but a lot of $$ was spent on mine & it's not that old!

 

When Garmin released their III+, they let new III owners to upgrade to the III+. That was rather unusual and I don't know if they've ever done something like it, since.

 

Be happy with the 76CS. It's a good unit. If it _really_ bothers you that much, sell it and spend extra for a new one. But don't waste time worrying about it. Life's too short.

 

GeoBC

[+Thrak]

I found a ton of caches with my 76CS. It's an excellent unit. When the 76CSx came out Garmin offered a $100 rebate for a while. I sold my CS and bought the CSx. Between the sale price of the old unit and the rebate -- plus getting a killer price online -- it hardly cost me anything at all for the upgrade. If I couldn't have worked that type of deal I would have simply stayed with the CS. Like I said above, it's an excellent unit.

 

Now get off of the forums and go outside and find a cache.

[+Lizzy]

Thanks for the replies. It wouldn't really be that much of an issue, but a couple of my last cache hides were off by quite a bit. A little embarrassing because I make an effort to hide mostly quality caches. Makes me a little timid about using my coordinates without someone to "beta test" them for me. I'm still considering upgrading though & may if the right price can be had. I'll contact Garmin though, just in case....

[Team Sidewinder]

If your friend didn't have the 76csx that you are comparing your 76cs to you would still be a happy camper with your unit. The 76cs as stated above is a fine unit and I have never had any serious sat. coverage problems. I guess if you live in an area where there is really heavy tree cover and you have constant reception problems maybe you should try to sell it here in the Geocaching forums and buy a 76csx. Do as I say and not as I do. I have ordered a 76csx but plan to keep my 76cs as a backup along with my 76s.

[+Lizzy]

I had a Garmin III+ before I had this 76CS, and I'd swear I didn't have half the reception problems or the inaccurate coordinates with that. Go figure. So it's not pure CSx envy, it's that I'm disappointed in this newer one. I was a little disappointed in it's performance right after I got it, but thought maybe it was some sort of a learning curve I needed to go through. Too bad I don't still have the old one - sent it south to my bro-n-law's. There have been many times I find myself way off on the hunt, especially caching with friends. I do admit that I like the maps & features...just don't care for the inaccuracy.

[Team Sidewinder]

That is odd in my opinion. My wife uses my 76s and I have used my 76cs for way more than a year and 95% of the time we end up at the same exact location when looking for caches. Sometimes we take different routes to the cache site though. That is why she has hers and I have mine as she never liked to follow right behind me. I did load the latest updates but my 76cs unit is an early one. I wouldn't even be getting a 76csx if it weren't for the ability to add a larger memory card.

[Team Sidewinder]

OK OK I did a bad. I recieved my 76csx today and it is nice but not that much nicer than a 76cs. I got a larger memory card. I don't get out of the state much anymore but it is nice to have more maps loaded just in case. The new more sensitive SIRF chip is impressive for picking up signals inside the house alright but in the real world seldom is coverage blocked like in a house with absolutely no view of the sky. I can see that a more sensitive gpsr chip will show more compass needle flucuation when looking for a cache which is not all that good of a thing in my opinion. A 76cs seems to be more dampered which I have become more use to. BUT I will be keeping the 76csx and using the 76cs for backup. Just my 2 cents worth.

team sidewinder

[+Prime Suspect]

OK OK I did a bad. I recieved my 76csx today and it is nice but not that much nicer than a 76cs. I got a larger memory card. I don't get out of the state much anymore but it is nice to have more maps loaded just in case. The new more sensitive SIRF chip is impressive for picking up signals inside the house alright but in the real world seldom is coverage blocked like in a house with absolutely no view of the sky. I can see that a more sensitive gpsr chip will show more compass needle flucuation when looking for a cache which is not all that good of a thing in my opinion. A 76cs seems to be more dampered which I have become more use to. BUT I will be keeping the 76csx and using the 76cs for backup. Just my 2 cents worth.

team sidewinder

You don't have to have a completely blocked sky in order to flummox a GPS. Good leafy tree cover will do just as well. Of course, the so-called "Healthy Forests Initiative" is making sure that won't be problem much longer.

[Team Sidewinder]

Yes I stand corrected on the open sky statement. I guess when I am using my 76cs for hunting if I ever lose signal I have always been moving and within a short distance signal is back or I find a better place to get a signal and all is well. I imagine a state like Washington or lots of other costal areas with their very heavy foliage a signal could be lost for a prolonged period of time as to prohibit finding caches where a constant sat signal is a necessity.