+btgrant Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 I'm having a problem with my brand new Colorado 300 that I'm hoping someone on here has heard of. I got this primarily for geocaching, but also to use in the car. We just got back from a road trip, and consistently after several hours of use, once the car is shut off to gas up, the unit refuses to come back on despite being connected to the auto cable. The Garmin screen comes up, then it says it's loading waypoints, then the map comes up for a second then the unit powers off. I have to leave the unit off for at least 10 minutes, then disconnect it from the auto cable and reconnect to get it to come on. Sometimes I have to go through this routine several times before it will come on. Once on, it will stay on with no problems. Other than this problem I am very happy with the Colorado; but this is extremely annoying behavior when you are relying on the GPS for auto travel. Has anyone had trouble with the Colorado 300 overheating? I've checked the batteries and this behavior happens even if they are completely charged. Configuration: - Colorado 300 - Official Garmin auto power cable - Sanyo Eneloop NiMH Hybrid batteries - CityNavigator maps loaded on Kingston 2 GB SD card (another much less annoying problem - the screen flickers when the backlight is not on; I only mention this in case it contributes to an understanding of the real problem) Quote Link to comment
+qlenfg Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 I've got basically the same setup, except with CNNA NT 2008 and the Topo maps loaded, and I've not seen any backlight flicker or other described issues with the factory DC power cable. Have you updated the system firmware and GPS chip firmware to the latest and greatest? Does it work normally on batteries, or does the backlight flicker? Does the backlight flicker when you use the PC data cable? Are the batteries fully charged? Might try a fresh set or try without the batteries. Might also check to see that your vehicle charging system is within specs, and try a different power cable. Might also try it without the SD card on the chance you have a funky map or waypoint file, or the card has an issue. Quote Link to comment
+btgrant Posted January 1, 2009 Author Share Posted January 1, 2009 Have you updated the system firmware and GPS chip firmware to the latest and greatest? Does it work normally on batteries, or does the backlight flicker? Does the backlight flicker when you use the PC data cable? Are the batteries fully charged? Might try a fresh set or try without the batteries. Might also check to see that your vehicle charging system is within specs, and try a different power cable. Might also try it without the SD card on the chance you have a funky map or waypoint file, or the card has an issue. Thanks for the reply! I have the unit connected to my PC now via Spanner more and the screen is flickering; so at least that problem does seem to be related to the Colorado itself rather than the auto cable. I have updated the system and GPS firmware and the batteries are fully charged. My next test is going to be leaving it in Spanner mode on the PC for a couple hours to see if I can replicate the power off problem in this mode without the auto cable. Quote Link to comment
+Styk Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 I'm on my second unit and I have observed the screen flicker on both when the backlight is at minimum. I sometimes have power up issues when I use the Garmin car adapter. I find I have to remove the batteries and once in a while i have to remove the SD card too. The flicker doesn't concern me as much as the power up lockups. The power issues have existed though all the software updates. Quote Link to comment
+btgrant Posted January 1, 2009 Author Share Posted January 1, 2009 I'm on my second unit and I have observed the screen flicker on both when the backlight is at minimum. I sometimes have power up issues when I use the Garmin car adapter. I find I have to remove the batteries and once in a while i have to remove the SD card too. The flicker doesn't concern me as much as the power up lockups. The power issues have existed though all the software updates. So I'm not alone - good to know. Given you have had this problem with 2 units, I guess there's not much point in me exchanging through Garmin. I will try pulling the batteries and SD card next time I have the problem as you've suggested. Quote Link to comment
+Nozzletime Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 On my second Colorado, I went through a set of batteries an hour. I called Garmin, they asked if it felt warm. How could I tell with gloves on in -5C. They said send it back. The repair depot tested it and sent a replacement the next day, it had a short circuit someplace. I would suggest contacting Garmin. If it isnt working right let them fix it. They are pretty good at backing the product. Quote Link to comment
+Styk Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 If you can, return it to the store. As one of the many early adopters, I feel betrayed by Garmin. They appear to be dropping the Colorado. So if you can, I would recommend going with their newer model, the Oregon. For one, the compass will work better because it likes the same orientation as the antenna. For another, Garmin still appears to be actively backing the Oregon. For instance, the latest update for the Colorado isn't even listed on the update page, you have to connect your Colorado and update it with the webupdater. Who knows what all the changes with it are as there is no details available. Quote Link to comment
+Styk Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 (edited) Duplicate Edited January 2, 2009 by stickman756 Quote Link to comment
+Styk Posted January 1, 2009 Share Posted January 1, 2009 (edited) Duplicate Edited January 1, 2009 by stickman756 Quote Link to comment
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