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upgrading from a 64s

minty95
over 5 years ago

Hi all,

I have a 64s, which I use just for hiking, I download my GPX tracks onto it, and follow them while walking, screen off, backlight low, I manage to get a day on a full batteryc. I use Open Street maps as they are pretty dammed good. Living in France I only need French, Spanish and English maps

I'm thinking of upgrading to an InReach for add extra security when out of GPS range, as this happened last year while out hiking

It seems that the 66i, is pretty good for the maps (better than Open Street maps I think), but the Explorer+ seems far better for battery life but like the 64s only has Open Street maps (for Europe)

Normally I start the 64s as soon as I start walking so, 1 : I can follow the trail, and 2 : I can record the track (as normally downloaded tracks are not very precise) Like my Garmin 6x I set the recording to every second.

Does anyone know how long the 66i would last? walking is about 6 to 8 hours so would it last a full day ? I know that I would need to charge in the evening as I do with the 64s

Any more ideas or suggestion to which model I should buy

Thanks

  • 0 over 5 years ago

    The claimed battery life for the 66i in "normal" use (including sending a track point via the Iridium network every 10 minutes, with "auto" logging of your track locally on the device) is 35 hours. This is going to vary quite a bit with your usage pattern, including things like backlight level and duration. If you are sending track points via satellite, the quality of your sky view also matters a lot. The 66i will try very hard to get that track point out in a timely way. If the sky view is poor, it's going to suck power for the retries.

    I have been a little disappointed with battery life in "normal" mode - especially when compared with my previous "legacy" iR devices such as the Explorer+. OTOH, I was favorably impressed with the improvement in "expedition mode". But that might not meet your use case since the on-device logging in expedition mode is a pretty rough track. Also, the screen is completely off in expedition mode. You can turn it on via the power button for periodic checks, but you can't just watch the screen and walk along your pre-loaded track in order to navigate.

    With regard to maps, the big plus to the 66i is the fact that it can use any map in the Garmin eco-system. The legacy devices still use maps in the old DeLorme format. That said, as I understand it, the TopoActive maps that ship with the 66i are based on OSM. There's some Garmin special sauce involved, but I don't think the coverage, coverage detail, or routing abilities are affected by the special sauce.

    Edited to add: Reference regarding the fact that these are OSM: https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=IgBPZ9DlHE5zaIWuSuwCS8

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to twolpert

    Thanks, 

    I'm not to interested in sending trackpoints. Live track on my Garmin 6x does that nicely. The InReach if I buy one, is just in case I'm out of touch GSM wise and need to contact my Wife or help

    The 66i seems a nice choice as the screen is far bigger than my 64s or the Explorer+, better battery than my 64s so it should last a little longer

    It's hard to see what the TOPO Europe maps are like, Garmin don't show anything

    "Also, the screen is completely off in expedition mode. You can turn it on via the power button for periodic checks" - That's fine as that's what I do on the 64s, the screen switches of after 10 seconds, As I only need to check the trails I'm walking when there's a junction maybe without a signpost. or looking further on to see whats coming up

    Thanks again

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to minty95

    Just to clarify - although Garmin bills it the same way ("Live Track"), the point of sending track points via Iridium is not quite the same. The idea here is that even when you are out of cell coverage, you have a continuously recorded track. Aside from the comfort factor for folks at home, this gives SAR a starting point if you become disabled and are unable to send the SOS/send help message.

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to twolpert

    thanks 

    that is interesting to know indeed 

    I presume you can do both, send track points, and independently record the track at 1 second intervals ot auto depending on what  I want? 

  • 0 over 5 years ago in reply to minty95

    Yes. The two functions are independent. The "sent" points (the ones transmitted via satellite) show up on the web site (including your MapShare page, which other people can see) in more or less real time.

    "Logged points" (which are recorded locally on the device) also make it to the web site - but only after you sync the device. If/when you have cell coverage, you can sync using a free mobile app. Or you can sync via a wired connection to your PC. No real reason to do the latter, though.