Garmin GPS

"Marking the Route to a Trouble-free World"

Introduction

Before we start singing the praise for Garmin GPS systems, it is necessary that we develop an idea about what Garmin and GPS, these two words stand for. For the time being, let it suffice to say that Garmin is a global electronics giant specializing in Global Positioning Systems (GPS); the company covers an entire spectrum spanning from products meant for aviation purposes to gadgetries sufficing the needs of those into marine and outdoor activities.

About Garmin

Garmin International Inc. (founded 1989) happens to be a part of Garmin Ltd. and who design, manufacture and market equipments for navigation and communications purposes. The products are specifically designed to serve the aviation and consumer markets and delivers optimum quality, safety and operational features at prices that can be afforded by all.

About GPS

GPS or the Global Positioning System is a navigation system that functions with the aid of a network comprising 24 satellites. These satellites are the property of the U.S. Department of Defense. The popularity of GPS has grown because of its ability to function in both normal and adverse weather conditions and anywhere in the world on a 24/7 basis. Besides, GPS requires no subscription/setup fees for its usage.

About Garmin GPS Receivers

Garmin understands user-friendliness and simplicity makes the best GPS systems, a philosophy that’s reflected from every Garmin product irrespective of the purpose. Garmin GPS has equipments that match the requirements for a plethora of fields; thus, to understand it better, the following table may prove helpful:

• Aviation Tools - Integrated Systems, Panel Mount Systems, Remote Units and Portable GPS.
• Marine – Chartplotters, GPS Sounders, Fishfinders.
• Outdoor - Basic GPS, GPS Mapping.
• Mobile Electronics - Automotive GPS, PDA/GPS
• Maps and Charts – Cartography, BlueChart®, MapSource®
• OEM and Sensors – Engines, TracPaksGarmin

GPS receivers offer maximum accuracy due to their parallel multi-channel design (12 parallel channel receivers), which lock onto satellites immediately after being turned on. Dense foliage or urban settings do not hinder the functions; however, certain atmospheric factors sometimes affect the accuracy of GPS receivers. Garmin® GPS receivers provide an accuracy of more or less 15 meters on an average.

The first product from Garmin was the GPS 100, a dashboard-mounted GPS receiver built specifically for the marine market. The successors to the first model were the handheld ones that served the military and the personal GPS devices aimed at the civilians. From the Forerunner to the iQue line of integrated PDA-GPS receivers, the newer range of Garmin GPS receivers are based on Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS). The new technology is capable of improving accuracy to less than three meters on an average and that too without the implication of any additional equipment or fees. A better accuracy can also be achieved through Differential GPS or DGPS; it corrects the GPS signals to achieve better results than WAAS.

The Garmin GPS receivers are divided into three categories depending on their usage:

• GARMIN Basic GPS Receivers: Devoid of built-in maps and points-of-interest databases, these receivers do not support downloading of maps. Though considered good value for the money, they do not convey anything more than the location in Latitude and Longitude. However, the receivers store waypoints just the way the more expensive units do.
• GPS Receivers with Points-of-Interest Databases: These ones combine a few extra features along with the features present in all the basic GPS receivers. The prime feature being the built in "Points-of-Interest" database, these receivers allow downloading additional data from optional CD-ROMs. However, linear map features such as roads, rivers, contour lines, etc. are absent.
• Mapping GPS Receivers: Besides uniting the features of the former two types, these receivers include built-in maps that make navigation of primary highways and Interstates child’s play.