Garmin GPSMAP 276CX

[lugueto]

There is a reason Garmin released a new 276C.

Sure, you can do pretty much anything your smart phone, and they even have larger screen, but the ruggedness of these devices are the key.

These devices might go obsolete, but visit any place where navigation is day-to-day essential, and most likely you'll see people using a variation of the old Garmin 276, with their beat up batteries and 128mb memory sticks. People even decided to buy these discontinued and obsolete devices off ebay before purchasing a brand new unit from Garmin.

Its their reliability that get these devices their cult following, and Garmin is betting on the fact that most people will buy this device and use it for another 10 years + the same way they did with their previous device.

 

[1Louder]

New article from Exploring Overland.

http://www.exploringoverland.com/ov...tion-be-revolution-the-new-garmin-gpsmap276cx

There was an impressive list of bugs and annoyances about the device in that article. Garmins track record on provided updates does not seem all that good. A quality RAM mount and good software on my tablet has worked great for me all for under $100 less the cost of the tablet which is used for many other things. Too each his own I just think the price point is silly..... In the $400 range maybe and if they fix the bugs in the software. Not placing a waypoint in the actual area seems to be the largest of the issues.

 

[JackW]

Dave,

Garmin did that with the Monterra. I recently purchased one and it is very slick. But, it has fatal flaw. If you do a factory reset on the Android side, it will wipe part of the Garmin side, and wreck the unit. I know, as I am awaiting the Monterra replacement back from Garmin. The other big downside is that it is an end of the line technology for Garmin, as they will not be upgrading this product line. So you do have the ruggedness of the Garmin, so it will likely last a long time, but you will be stuck on Android 4.04. This means that many apps will not work, now and eventually.

But, I have my fingers crossed that my replacement will work out. Lots of reasons. First, having an android operating system with swiping and pinching means that it is faster for me use, than say the Montana, which I also have. If you are an android user, you can really move around quickly. I did load Oryx maps on mine, and those work well. Gives me google maps, garmin maps, and other third party mapping. It has a music player, and fm receiver. Camera and video. Gmail and other android maps. Basically, everything the phone can do, except make a call. Well, you can call over WIFI, so it has some capability, including email.

My hope is that this will work out, as it means when I go offroad, I can store my phone, and use the unit for all mapping, navigation, music, photography, hunting and shooting apps, in a completely ruggedized unit. My guess is that Garmin decided the headache with staying on top of things in the android world was not worth the effort, but conceptually it is a dandy unit. I played with mine for a week before sending it back, and I loved it. We'll see how the replacement does, with no factory resetting.

Craig

I just bought a Monterra a few months ago - a week after I took delivery I found out they were discontinuing the device. One of the main reasons I bought it over the Montana was the hope that updated versions of Android would eventually make it more capable in the long run. I feel somewhat betrayed by Garmin that I wasn't told that the device had been dropped until after I purchased one. As a long time user of Garmin products, GPS II, GPS III+, Street Pilot 2610 and now the Monterra I'm not feeling the love for Garmin. If I'd known a new version of the 276C was in the works, I definitely would have waited for that - instead it was at Overland Expo East that I saw it for the first time. Its sort of like the Lowrance Baja that I bought years ago - nice product initially but no support. I still like having a dedicated GPS on the dash to supplement my Nexus 7 tablet but I'm real tired of being snakebit by GPS manufacturers.

Anybody need a 2610 with all of the accessories and maybe a Monterra? The new 276Cx is what I really wanted but Garmin had better get their act together before I buy another one of their products.

 

[Rando]

I hear you on the touch screen - it is great for planning trips while sitting on the couch, but is not great for using while bumping down the road. My ideal solution would be an 8-11" android tablet with a bunch of real hardware buttons that could be defined in each app - obviously the apps would have to be modified to work with the button interface. I would even be OK with an accessory, like an otter box case, which had bluetooth buttons and rotary position encoders built in. The goal would be to get something like this, where the screen is actually an android tablet:

 

[soonenough]

That would be an awesome device to have, a waterproof case that maintained touch / stylus input but had customizable buttons incorporated. Something along the lines of the Lifeproof cases but with the additional hardware.

 

[Arjan]

I have a life long hate / love relationship with Garmin.

Their hardware & maps, in Europe, is linked with eachother and when the thing dies, the maps die with it. We have had 2700's in the Land Rovers for ages and they've been everywhere and survived most of it. Until recently, their maps were the best - if very costly.. These days, we have the 2700's still in the vehicles as they're hard wired etc. and have found an alternative source for the maps.

BTW - we also have Brantz rally computers in the LR's as we navigate the old fashioned way time to time.

The iPad2 with Motion-x works very well and the quality of the maps for it these days is very, very good. Living in France we use ToPo France a lot. Yes, map tiles cost money but you can buy what you need. In a Otterbox and a good mount it seems to survive guite good all the abuse so far.

But I must confess that I still carry a 650T in the cubbybox.

Just in case.

 

[LR Max]

I expect I'll be purchasing one soon.

With my old 176c, yeah it hasn't been supported in 5 years or more. With all the cool people with mounted iPads and whatnot, it seems like whenever there is a navigation question, everyone wants to look at the old 176c.

The fact that I'll be able to use it like a normal-people GPS is even better. Getting to the trailhead is half the problem.

 

[mmccurdy]

I've been using Gaia and iPhone/iPad for the past several trips, and it's quite impressive for what it is, but I do miss the robustness and resiliency of my old, trusty Garmin 378 when bouncing down the dusty trail, not to mention the NMEA connectivity to my 2M ham/APRS unit.

Just ordered one of these guys. Fingers crossed it can live up to the Garmin x78 legacy!

 

[Aledoc]

Hello people !! I am afraid You are forgetting the reception issue. At the very very isolated regions of Argentina you need a Waas and Glonass reception device, no tablets no cell phones . If you loose you will be dead.

 

[kojackJKU]

anyone who has this GPS, does it have weather radar capability like the old 276?

 

[Beowulf]

Looking for updates. How is the 276Cx working for everyone?

 

[jerdog53]

I will probably be purchasing one of these shortly

 

[deserteagle56]

Looking for updates. How is the 276Cx working for everyone?

Lots of good experience and info in the attached link:
http://advrider.com/index.php?threads/garmin-announces-the-new-gpsmap-276cx.1178312