Garmin Montana 650T

[PaintRock]

Hey everyone, this is my first post here. I am looking to get a new GPS and am seriously considering a Garmin Montana 650T. Sorry if this has already been asked, but does anyone have any experience with this unit? I currently have a Nuvi 1200 and an old black and white Legend. The Nuvi does ok, but the maps are getting old and I can almost buy a new unit with lifetime map updates for the price of new maps. The Legend has never been that great a setup with the tiny black and white non-touch screen (still works ok for kayaking, I'm not terrified of losing it). It seems the 650T can pretty much do everything. The main down-side is the price. It costs more than I spent for my laptop.

 

[TheBigJ]

I also wouldn't mind hearing about some members experiences with this model.

 

[alaskaboy]

Whats the deal? Surely someone has some experience.

 

[evldave]

I have a 600 (same as 650 w/o camera)...a few thoughts:

The screen is 4", but the resolution and brightness don't come anywhere close to a smartphone or even a newer GPS nav unit. Lower your expectations
The navigation is poor compared to standard navigation software on a smartphone like Google Navigation. It's 'ok' compared to a Nuvi unit my friend has. I really don't like the screen, but I'm spoiled by smartphones
Battery life on my rechargeable battery appears to have lost quite a bit of power in the year+ I've owned it....last full charge with the screen on fulltime, full brightness, I got <6 hrs.

Topo maps are solid for a GPS unit if you get the detailed Garmin 24k topo maps and load them on. If you load any other overlays (ie a trails overlay), the unit tends to slow down significantly as it has a hard time rendering detailed topo maps w/overlays (it's better if it's zoomed way in and doesn't have much on the screen).

It's waterproof and really durable

I picked mine up for $300. At that price point, it is BARELY worth the money, especially given the exponential improvement in smartphone quality. It's almost better to go with a used unlocked smartphone and load on BackCountry Navigator and not even sign up for a cell plan Throw it in a ziplock bag to save from the elements and you'd almost be better off.

The most recent trip I did was over Labor Day weekend, used a smartphone + the montana...honestly, I used the Garmin more, just because it was more durable and I was less worried about breaking it, otherwise, I'd rather use my phone...

 

[PaintRock]

Thanks for the info! I was looking a dedicated, rugged, off-the-shelf solution for both on-road and off. It looks like I may be better off going the smart phone (or ipod touch?) route like you mentioned. I am going to get an iphone 5 in a few weeks so I'll start playing with BackCountry Navigator and see how I like it.. I'm still using an iphone 1 (I may be the last one) and its gps functionality without cell service is non-existent and crappy at best with cell service. One question though, does the gps antenna on the newer iphones compare to a dedicated gps like a Garmin?

 

[deserteagle56]

I have a 600 (same as 650 w/o camera)...a few thoughts:

The screen is 4", but the resolution and brightness don't come anywhere close to a smartphone or even a newer GPS nav unit. Lower your expectations
The navigation is poor compared to standard navigation software on a smartphone like Google Navigation. It's 'ok' compared to a Nuvi unit my friend has. I really don't like the screen, but I'm spoiled by smartphones
Battery life on my rechargeable battery appears to have lost quite a bit of power in the year+ I've owned it....last full charge with the screen on fulltime, full brightness, I got <6 hrs.

Topo maps are solid for a GPS unit if you get the detailed Garmin 24k topo maps and load them on. If you load any other overlays (ie a trails overlay), the unit tends to slow down significantly as it has a hard time rendering detailed topo maps w/overlays (it's better if it's zoomed way in and doesn't have much on the screen).

It's waterproof and really durable

I picked mine up for $300. At that price point, it is BARELY worth the money, especially given the exponential improvement in smartphone quality. It's almost better to go with a used unlocked smartphone and load on BackCountry Navigator and not even sign up for a cell plan Throw it in a ziplock bag to save from the elements and you'd almost be better off.

The most recent trip I did was over Labor Day weekend, used a smartphone + the montana...honestly, I used the Garmin more, just because it was more durable and I was less worried about breaking it, otherwise, I'd rather use my phone...

Please explain further, for a dummy who has never used a "smartphone". Are you saying a smartphone with Backcountry Navigator will be able to track me on a good, detailed TOPO map even if I am a hundred miles from the nearest cell tower?? Can you plan routes and tracks on a computer and add them to the smartphone so that when you are out in remote and unfamiliar country you can follow the track or route you created and not get lost? That's what I do on my dedicated Delorme and Garmin GPS units - are you saying that a smartphone has all of the same capabilities?

 

[scanny]

I wouldn't take smartphone to a long trip because first of all battery life is not great and you can't use AA batteries. Then smartphones are fragile - if you drop it in a puddle for instance you're done. Normally smartphones use online maps, so when you don't have cell reception you have no maps. I think that there is offline GPS software for smartphones, but you'll likely have to pay for it or use free software with quite complicated processes to make *.jpg picture of the maps of the area you're going, calibrate those maps etc.
Smatphone is basically a computer and what it can do depends on its hardware and software, so with a good combination of those two it can do pretty much anyhting. But I'd rather have a dedicated Garmin than a smarphone in the woods. Smartphone might a be a good backup though if you have offline maps on it.

 

[Bengreenfj]

Any other competitors? Wasn't their a brand called Baja?

 

[chet]

if you bought a cheap ipod touch you could use the magellan tough case. it has a GPS and extra battery built in to a waterproof case. then you get all the other itouch features as well. (music, apps, etc.) totally portable as well. I have the Tomtom GPS attachment for my ipod touch but its car only as it requires 12v power to run.

 

[CPG7562]

I have a 600 (same as 650 w/o camera)...a few thoughts:

The screen is 4", but the resolution and brightness don't come anywhere close to a smartphone or even a newer GPS nav unit. Lower your expectations
The navigation is poor compared to standard navigation software on a smartphone like Google Navigation. It's 'ok' compared to a Nuvi unit my friend has. I really don't like the screen, but I'm spoiled by smartphones
Battery life on my rechargeable battery appears to have lost quite a bit of power in the year+ I've owned it....last full charge with the screen on fulltime, full brightness, I got <6 hrs.

Topo maps are solid for a GPS unit if you get the detailed Garmin 24k topo maps and load them on. If you load any other overlays (ie a trails overlay), the unit tends to slow down significantly as it has a hard time rendering detailed topo maps w/overlays (it's better if it's zoomed way in and doesn't have much on the screen).

It's waterproof and really durable

I picked mine up for $300. At that price point, it is BARELY worth the money, especially given the exponential improvement in smartphone quality. It's almost better to go with a used unlocked smartphone and load on BackCountry Navigator and not even sign up for a cell plan Throw it in a ziplock bag to save from the elements and you'd almost be better off.

The most recent trip I did was over Labor Day weekend, used a smartphone + the montana...honestly, I used the Garmin more, just because it was more durable and I was less worried about breaking it, otherwise, I'd rather use my phone...

I personally would never use a smartphone over my Montana. I love it. No the screen isnt as glossy and beautiful as a smartphone but Im not watching movies on it Im navigating. I use my Montana on my motorcycle and I need the ruggedness and waterproofness. The screen is great because you can actually read it in direct sun where my iphone is pretty worthless in the sun. The nav is great if you get used to Garmin Basecamp and its capabilities. I dont have the 24k topo just the 100k topo which suits me just fine. Just my 2 cents but dont totally discount it for what its good at.