Van's Air Force
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AnywhereMap system or GPSMAP296
- Thread starter Brantel
- Start date
13brv3
Well Known Member
I've always had Garmin's until the RV-3 I recently sold. For that plane, I tried the AWM, and never really liked it. I spent a fortune on different PDA's, software, anti-glare screens, etc, but nothing ever made it as readable as every Garmin I've owned. I eventually mounted a Garmin 195 to use for navigation, and moved the AWM down under the panel (out of the sunlight) to use for XM weather display only.
The new owner of the plane didn't want the AWM either, so I sold it to someone else, and bought a new Garmin 396 for my current RV-8 project.
Some people really love the AWM, and I admit that it has lots of potential, but I was never able to get a display that was readable enough for me in direct sunlight. I also can't peck on those little icons in rough air. What it really needs is a bigger, better display, and there are some options out there now. I just got tired of throwing money into a system that I didn't think would ever work as well for me as a trusty Garmin.
Cheers,
Rusty
The new owner of the plane didn't want the AWM either, so I sold it to someone else, and bought a new Garmin 396 for my current RV-8 project.
Some people really love the AWM, and I admit that it has lots of potential, but I was never able to get a display that was readable enough for me in direct sunlight. I also can't peck on those little icons in rough air. What it really needs is a bigger, better display, and there are some options out there now. I just got tired of throwing money into a system that I didn't think would ever work as well for me as a trusty Garmin.
Cheers,
Rusty
I don't know about Garmin but I would not buy Anywhere map again
Having a moving map in the cockpit is great - once you're used to it, you won't know how you lived without it.
I've never owned or used a garmin so I can't really comment on them but I have owned an anywhere map system running on a IPAQ 2210 with a bluetooth gps. I know some people swear by these things but I don't think its a good match for flying compared to a dedicated device. I have it hardwired to ships power on the control column in my cherokee.
The Pros:
Nice high resolution moving map
Good in flight computer functions like wind vectors
Good airport database
Other windows functions available (mp3 player)
The Cons:
On average, it boots up and connects to the gps without any fuss about half the time. The other half I have to mess around with the thing to get it to connect.
It is not easy to use in the cockpit with the small buttons etc..
If you go anywhere and don't keep the ipaq plugged in, you effectivly lose all data you have not backed up - when it runs out of batteries it doesn't save any stuff to a disk like a PC or laptop. Of course the solution is to constantly back up but I've got enough to do when I shut down the aircraft.
I've been over this with the support people several times and while they do provide excellent support thier product is limited by the technology it rides on. Don't get me wrong, I normally like windows products, I've been in tech for 17 years and have selected and installed lots of windows based technology.
The bottom line is that the anywheremap system brings with it the worst of windows pc problems.
I know some people love these things but I end up using my northstar m3 gps more than the anywhere map.
Having a moving map in the cockpit is great - once you're used to it, you won't know how you lived without it.
I've never owned or used a garmin so I can't really comment on them but I have owned an anywhere map system running on a IPAQ 2210 with a bluetooth gps. I know some people swear by these things but I don't think its a good match for flying compared to a dedicated device. I have it hardwired to ships power on the control column in my cherokee.
The Pros:
Nice high resolution moving map
Good in flight computer functions like wind vectors
Good airport database
Other windows functions available (mp3 player)
The Cons:
On average, it boots up and connects to the gps without any fuss about half the time. The other half I have to mess around with the thing to get it to connect.
It is not easy to use in the cockpit with the small buttons etc..
If you go anywhere and don't keep the ipaq plugged in, you effectivly lose all data you have not backed up - when it runs out of batteries it doesn't save any stuff to a disk like a PC or laptop. Of course the solution is to constantly back up but I've got enough to do when I shut down the aircraft.
I've been over this with the support people several times and while they do provide excellent support thier product is limited by the technology it rides on. Don't get me wrong, I normally like windows products, I've been in tech for 17 years and have selected and installed lots of windows based technology.
The bottom line is that the anywheremap system brings with it the worst of windows pc problems.
I know some people love these things but I end up using my northstar m3 gps more than the anywhere map.
Love it.....
I love my Anywhere Map. Have an iPaq 4700. Works great. Also have a Garmin 250 gps/comm as my primary and it is connected to the autopilot. Would not use the AWM as my only gps, but is great as an information source. What I like about the AWM is the endless information available. It is easy and cheap to keep current ($98/yr for monthly updates). They continue to improve the program. The glare issues are the same for the Garmin. In rough air it can be challanging to use but that is a minor fault.
It really is a great asset for situation awareness. T
I love my Anywhere Map. Have an iPaq 4700. Works great. Also have a Garmin 250 gps/comm as my primary and it is connected to the autopilot. Would not use the AWM as my only gps, but is great as an information source. What I like about the AWM is the endless information available. It is easy and cheap to keep current ($98/yr for monthly updates). They continue to improve the program. The glare issues are the same for the Garmin. In rough air it can be challanging to use but that is a minor fault.
It really is a great asset for situation awareness. T
A quick FYI on a half-price alternative to AnywhereMap
I've been using a program called Flight-Master on a Palm T5 with a Bluetooth GPS for a little over a year and I love it. The software is about $90, you can get a Palm T3 for less than $150 on eBay (my job had already provided me the T5 which is the same unit with a larger screen), and a bluetooth GPS for about $100. (BTW, FM works on the Palm Treo's as well, in case you happen to have one of those already.)
What that $350-odd dollars bought me is a very high resolution, color, moving map GPS that shows airspace, navaids, airports, flight path, and even obstacles. Especially now that I'm flying in the ADIZ [shudder], I feel like this is pretty much the best $350 I could have spent.
The Flight-Master website is at http://www.flight-master.com, and it uses a donation-ware flight-planner available at http://lauriedavis9.tripod.com/copilot/.
One poster above mentioned readability, and that's where I'd have to agree any of the PDA-based systems are really at a big disadvantage compared to the Garmins. I've flown in Dan C.'s RV-7 with the Garmin 396, and there simply ain't no comparison - if you're willing and able to spend four digits on a handheld GPS, you can't go wrong with any of the Garmins. I would add, though, IMO it's not that my T5 isn't readable, it's just that the Garmin screen is many, MANY times brighter and therefore more easily readable. To each his or her own.
P.S. In case anyone's wondering, I have no connection or interest (financial or otherwise) in Flight-Master, Co-Pilot, Palm PDA's, or bluetooth GPS manufacturers other than being a VERY satisfied customer. Just offering food for thought.
I've been using a program called Flight-Master on a Palm T5 with a Bluetooth GPS for a little over a year and I love it. The software is about $90, you can get a Palm T3 for less than $150 on eBay (my job had already provided me the T5 which is the same unit with a larger screen), and a bluetooth GPS for about $100. (BTW, FM works on the Palm Treo's as well, in case you happen to have one of those already.)
What that $350-odd dollars bought me is a very high resolution, color, moving map GPS that shows airspace, navaids, airports, flight path, and even obstacles. Especially now that I'm flying in the ADIZ [shudder], I feel like this is pretty much the best $350 I could have spent.
The Flight-Master website is at http://www.flight-master.com, and it uses a donation-ware flight-planner available at http://lauriedavis9.tripod.com/copilot/.
One poster above mentioned readability, and that's where I'd have to agree any of the PDA-based systems are really at a big disadvantage compared to the Garmins. I've flown in Dan C.'s RV-7 with the Garmin 396, and there simply ain't no comparison - if you're willing and able to spend four digits on a handheld GPS, you can't go wrong with any of the Garmins. I would add, though, IMO it's not that my T5 isn't readable, it's just that the Garmin screen is many, MANY times brighter and therefore more easily readable. To each his or her own.
P.S. In case anyone's wondering, I have no connection or interest (financial or otherwise) in Flight-Master, Co-Pilot, Palm PDA's, or bluetooth GPS manufacturers other than being a VERY satisfied customer. Just offering food for thought.
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I bought into AnywhereMap several years ago, and used it in my Grumman extensively. I really thougth it was a great upgrade to the cockpit, and gave me a great Situational Awareness tool that the standard VHF Nav systems couldn't do. It was not cost-effective for me to upgrade the tired old Yankee to a modern avionics suite (hence, the reason I built a new airframe!), so the AWM really made a lot of sense.
When I built my -8, I installed a dedicated Garmin-18 GPS engine (a little "hockey-puck" reciever that just puts out NMEA on a serial link to drive a moving map) as a backup GPS to drive my AWM. WHat I have found is that I have rarely taken my PDA along to the airport, because with my full-up GRT EFIS and GNS 430, I simply don't need the AWM. The problem with this, of course, is that the PDA now sits gathering more dust (especially since I now carry a Blackberry, which replaced all of the other functions I used the PDA for...), and can lose it's brains when the battery discharges. I still plan to use the AWM and IpaQ as a backup when I am flying IFR, but I may not even keep it totally up to date. I have enough subscriptions to pay for with the 430 and paper charts. In fact, I might go to one of the free mapping packages available on the web for the PDA if my AWM dies.
In the meantime, I am probably going to wire in a switch so that I can feed the Garmin 18 into the EFIS if the 430 dies on me. It's kind of a waste to have it and not use it...
I guess this all makes me a little ambiguous on AWM at this time - it is great if you don't have something else, but it is a whole lot easier to use the 430 when that is available!
Paul
When I built my -8, I installed a dedicated Garmin-18 GPS engine (a little "hockey-puck" reciever that just puts out NMEA on a serial link to drive a moving map) as a backup GPS to drive my AWM. WHat I have found is that I have rarely taken my PDA along to the airport, because with my full-up GRT EFIS and GNS 430, I simply don't need the AWM. The problem with this, of course, is that the PDA now sits gathering more dust (especially since I now carry a Blackberry, which replaced all of the other functions I used the PDA for...), and can lose it's brains when the battery discharges. I still plan to use the AWM and IpaQ as a backup when I am flying IFR, but I may not even keep it totally up to date. I have enough subscriptions to pay for with the 430 and paper charts. In fact, I might go to one of the free mapping packages available on the web for the PDA if my AWM dies.
In the meantime, I am probably going to wire in a switch so that I can feed the Garmin 18 into the EFIS if the 430 dies on me. It's kind of a waste to have it and not use it...
I guess this all makes me a little ambiguous on AWM at this time - it is great if you don't have something else, but it is a whole lot easier to use the 430 when that is available!
Paul
Scott Will
Well Known Member
For me, the handheld Garmins are far better in the cockpit. I have flown spam cans with my old Palm IIIc running a great program called Flight Master. It is a fine little program in its own right but dealing with all the cords in the cockpit and trying to effectively use the PDA (tapping the touchscreen, hitting the right button, starting it up) while flying made it very hard to do at times. Furthermore, it had to be not in direct sunlight.
Around Christmas I got a very, very nice PDA - a Dell Axim x51v with a great VGA screen. I took it to South America on a cruise and tried to use it in bright sunlight... OK but not as great as a dedicated flying GPS. I wanted to see if it would be a viable flying PDA.
My RV-7A is coming along nicely and I have decided that it will have a Garmin 296 or 396 as backup to my GRT EFIS with it's own GPS. The Garmin is a lot brighter, has dedicated buttons and is practically self contained. Sure it's pricey but after you spend a bunch for a nice PDA plus software plus updates plus hassles of placing and using it in the cockpit you may want the dedicated unit.
Try them both if you can...
Around Christmas I got a very, very nice PDA - a Dell Axim x51v with a great VGA screen. I took it to South America on a cruise and tried to use it in bright sunlight... OK but not as great as a dedicated flying GPS. I wanted to see if it would be a viable flying PDA.
My RV-7A is coming along nicely and I have decided that it will have a Garmin 296 or 396 as backup to my GRT EFIS with it's own GPS. The Garmin is a lot brighter, has dedicated buttons and is practically self contained. Sure it's pricey but after you spend a bunch for a nice PDA plus software plus updates plus hassles of placing and using it in the cockpit you may want the dedicated unit.
Try them both if you can...
hevansrv7a
Well Known Member
Both?
I have a 296 which I got by trading-in my 295. They are rock-solid performers and optimized for aviation. I use an installed antenna. I'm flying a C-150 while I build my 7A.
I just got a HP4700, my first PDA. I have several GPS programs on it. There are some nice features on some, like the real, full sectionals (myairplane.com), but the PDA is typical Windows and it needs to be booted sometimes. It's also not as fast as the Garmin to update screens.
Both have visibility problems under some conditions.
The PDA is obviously better for the car or on foot and the Bluetooth GPS is EXCELLENT (Haicom BT406-C); the SIRF chipset is so good that Garmin is buying some of them for some of their units.
I have read every argument made by Control Vision and the other vendors for using the PDA over the Brick, but I'll continue to use the Garmin. I like having the PDA to supplement the Garmin with information such as sectionals, airport directory, etc.
I have a 296 which I got by trading-in my 295. They are rock-solid performers and optimized for aviation. I use an installed antenna. I'm flying a C-150 while I build my 7A.
I just got a HP4700, my first PDA. I have several GPS programs on it. There are some nice features on some, like the real, full sectionals (myairplane.com), but the PDA is typical Windows and it needs to be booted sometimes. It's also not as fast as the Garmin to update screens.
Both have visibility problems under some conditions.
The PDA is obviously better for the car or on foot and the Bluetooth GPS is EXCELLENT (Haicom BT406-C); the SIRF chipset is so good that Garmin is buying some of them for some of their units.
I have read every argument made by Control Vision and the other vendors for using the PDA over the Brick, but I'll continue to use the Garmin. I like having the PDA to supplement the Garmin with information such as sectionals, airport directory, etc.
Here is a pic of my iPAQ with Anywheremap at 15,500' over Northpark, Co.
This is about as bright as you are going to get! Still very readable. I will say that with dark sunglasses, you are going to have trouble reading it, but I have some sunglasses with the lower portion of the lens far less dark than the top. This shot was also before I got an anti-glare sticker for the iPAQ panel, which has made it even clearer. I've used Garmin for years, but the latest one is in the rear pit to keep my GIB busy. I wouldn't go back. There are just too many superior features on the AnywhereMap. I use a device called "truetip" which takes the place of a stylus, it's basically a fingertip stylus. I sometimes use a pencil, if I'm wearing gloves, the anti-glare membrane protects the panel of the iPAQ from the pencil, although the touch is not really enough to harm the iPAQ anyway.
