Even when hikers and geocachers thought the respectable Garmin GPSMAP 60CS couldn't get any better, it did! The improved GPSMAP 60CSx added a high-sensitivity receiver to track your positioning even under dense canopies or in the deepest canyons. The screen is brighter and easier to read during the day and a storage card enables you to store more detailed map information. With the electronic compass and barometric altimeter, you can traverse land and water.
The Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx retails around 5.70, but can be found for as low as 1.50 at Bestpriceaudiovideo or 9 at Zappos. Compared to the 9 Garmin GPSMAP 60, this upgraded version comes with three important new features. First, the new SiRFSTARIII chip set has received wide acclaim for its ability to beam signals under canopies, around buildings, down into canyons and in typically hard-to-reach places.
Secondly, this new Garmin model has traded in the dated internal memory system for a microSD card slot that can be upgraded instead, giving you unlimited storage capacity and the ability to use any new map software that comes out. Thirdly, the 60CSx comes with an electronic compass and barometric altimeter that the GPSMap 60CS doesn't even have.
There are many functions for your GPSMAP 60CSx that you'll find useful in the wilderness or out on the seas. For instance, those on a fitness routine can appreciate the trip computer with odometer, which indicates how long you've been stopped, what your moving average is, the total time, your max speed and more.
Mariners can make use of the audible alarms for anchor drag, arrival, off-course indication and waypoint proximity. Hikers can backtrack easily using a 10,000-point automatic track log, with 20 saved tracks. Hunters and fishers can look at built-in celestial tables for the sun and moon, which calculate the optimal time to fish or hunt. Drivers can use the automatic routing GPS systems to help them get from point A to point B.
There aren't many glitches or problems associated with the GPSMAP 60CSx, but as with any technical gadget, you may occasionally run into something. A few times, your GPS navigation system won't reach a fix within a few seconds, so you'll need to turn it off and back on again to reset. Additionally, even though you save the same amount of points in your track log, the newer model will use more memory for some reason.
There was an early altimeter bug that has since been fixed with firmware version 2.7. Sometimes the "find by name" in the points of interest doesn't work either. Even so, Garmin has been working on improvements and the 60CSx is still one of the most highly rated GPS devices you can buy.
