February 24, 2011 20:46
I have the Garmin GPSMAP 76 and 78 and recommend them both.
76 series:
(0) floats
(1) do not all have USB port
(2) those with USB may not treat it like storage ? and you need SW that talks garmin protocol
(3) Uses garmin blue charts and mapsource which I have been told are going away and will not be supported on newer units i.e. 78 ..... I still have unused licenses for Blue Chart atlantic regions. the tech tech folks at garmin just told me in a nice way I was SOL on that deal.
78 series:
(0) floats
(1) works in places the 76 series would not work like inside a building or a cabin.
(2) acquires much faster than the 76
(3) the preinstalled charts ($$$$) told me right after I bought the unit (78sc) that an update was available and when I tried to find the update (a) wanted to charge me $$ and then (b) could not find the update. I got a bad attitude and have yet to resolve the matter. Garmin is not my favorite company but their products keep me coming back.
76 series:
(0) floats
(1) do not all have USB port
(2) those with USB may not treat it like storage ? and you need SW that talks garmin protocol
(3) Uses garmin blue charts and mapsource which I have been told are going away and will not be supported on newer units i.e. 78 ..... I still have unused licenses for Blue Chart atlantic regions. the tech tech folks at garmin just told me in a nice way I was SOL on that deal.
78 series:
(0) floats
(1) works in places the 76 series would not work like inside a building or a cabin.
(2) acquires much faster than the 76
(3) the preinstalled charts ($$$$) told me right after I bought the unit (78sc) that an update was available and when I tried to find the update (a) wanted to charge me $$ and then (b) could not find the update. I got a bad attitude and have yet to resolve the matter. Garmin is not my favorite company but their products keep me coming back.