How bizarre that you can't charge the unit unless it is draining simultaneously?
Hearing about the new Monterra, at first I was extremely envious about the BlueTooth & Wi-Fi connectivity for "non-tethered communications/data transfers." ~ Then I remembered all the frustrations I encountered with firmware on my Montana 650 as Monterra threads began showing up on this forum. All I can say is I sincerely hope the two units somehow share a common code-base with the actual Garmin GPS applications sitting on top of Android..... It took ~2 years to get decent firmware. (Still missing a few key features, but the Montana now always "points the right way" and doesn't "pop" very frequently! ("pop" = unexpected instant shutdown, which used to happen WAY TOO frequently)
The other thing I've been wondering about is is battery life on the Android OS device. Android devices seem to eat batteries when the communication chips are operating. (And since that's what GPS is all about, avoiding battery drain & achieving "long run-times" is a main reason that people use a dedicated GPS unit.) How long does the Monterra take to charge, and how long will it run using GPS navigation between charges with the Garmin battery pack in the unit?
If they get these issues settled, I'll probably end up owning one eventually, after the firmware "matures." (and likely carry a spare rechargeable battery pack "On the Trail")
PS: Like the Montana (and "On the Trail" forum support/lack thereof) it's a shame there isn't a specific forum sub-category for you either! :(
Question - I assume you use tracks..... Do you think the unit would benefit from showing the assigned color of the track before/next to the name of the tracks (when viewing in list during track selection.) Also, how about "archive all" feature (for tracks) and the ability to sort/filter tracks like waypoints. (filter by track color and sort based on proximity & names etc.) ~ Track management seems virtually "non-existent" on these GPSr units.
With more than a dozen "favorite tracks", selecting/viewing the right one(s) are/is difficult even with the archiving feature. ~ And even once they are "archived", if you send them back to the unit from Basecamp, they all end up favorites. (over and over again)
Do you think the unit would benefit from showing the assigned color of the track before/next to the name of the tracks (when viewing in list during track selection.)
Question - I assume you use tracks..... Do you think the unit would benefit from showing the assigned color of the track before/next to the name of the tracks (when viewing in list during track selection.)
Yes, I use tracks, but I don't store them on the Montana - I call him Monty, just like I never stored them on my Edge705 before that.
I use an activity program on my computers that store and sort it all. All that's required is to transfer the GPX into it. If I want to see it on Monty, I can transfer it back - or any track I desire. I do a great del of cycling, and have records going back to 2004 on my computer. I can re-live any of them by transferring them back to the GPX folder.
Wow, The Oregon 6xx actually displays track colors in the lists before the names?... If so, I'm "beyond frustrated." (irritated)
Yes... The Oregon 6xx displays the current track color for each enabled track, so you know which are showing on the map and what color they are, all from the Track Manager List. It looks like this:
Montana shows nothing but text. I don't suppose you have any track filtering (on color) or any support for filtering? (And definitely not an "archive-all" feature, right?) Also, with the Montana being "touch only", I refuse to use the keypad for even simple data entry. ~ Especially since there's no insert/overwrite toggle! It's "insanely frustrating' to use (and essentially useless with gloves on) after the "inevitable mistake" is made! (So all editing is done exclusively in Basecamp.)
And of course this complicates matters even further: Since Basecamp doesn't "respect (or differentiate to the user) the difference between favorites and archives", every time a track is sent back to the unit it ends up a favorite all over again. (So archiving is also essentially useless.) Because of this: I've resorted to keeping all edited data on the chip, and all "fresh data" on the internal memory. But this doesn't really work either as it: 1.) Breaks archiving/restoring & 2.) Breaks other features like "adventures."
I actually take mapped regions (yellow tracks explained below) and convert them into "Adventures." That way I have access to them on a different screen, separate from tracks. It's mostly a "futile attempt to differentiate these types of tracks", but it "sort of partially works"..... (The associated tracks also show up in favorites even though they don't transfer to and from the unit quit the same way.) As I've stated numerous times: If those who "called the shots" @ Garmin actually used this stuff, the products would be considerably more "user friendly in the real world."
These issues when combined aren't "trivial", at least not for those who really use the unit as it could be/should be used....
PS: From your screen capture, it appears you don't edit text on the unit either. And without those color swatches, everything "looks the same." ~ I "color-code" tracks so that old/unimportant ones are dark cyan, new tracks are cyan, actual trails are "red", mapped regions that "look like trails" in Basecamp/Google Earth are dark red, 4wd trails are black, and land features (like ridge top lines & hardwood forest regions) are yellow. Being able to visually see & sort between this data would be a huge benefit "on the trail." ~ Now I'm wishing I had the Oregon, but my eyes need the larger screen. (Unlike with your unit, color coding doesn't help much unless I"m sitting in a warm room looking at the tracks from within Basecamp.)
Sure also wish that "orange" was a supported color attribute. Superior to dark red IMO. Who knows, maybe at least one of these missing features will be added with the next firmware update.....
One other thing related to your screen capture: What menu items do you have on that screen? ~ The Montana units don't (presently) have a menu selection symbol on that screen, (bottom right next to the scroll arrows)
PS: 149 "favorites", I get lost with just 30. (Especially given the way the tracks are "vaguely sorted based on distance.")
