| Manufacture | Garmin | Garmin | Magellan | Garmin | Lorance | IIMorrow | Garmin |
| Model | GPS-90 | GPS-89 | SkyStar PLUS | GPS III Pilot | Airmap 300 | Precedus | GPSMAP-195 |
| Ground Mapping | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes - highways, cities, coastlines and territorial/political boundaries, | Yes |
| Retail $ | $549 | $399 | $589 | $699 | $799.00. | $995 | $1,199 |
| Best $ | |||||||
| Size/Weight | 2.5" wide, 6.2" high, and 1.5" deep.14 ounces (including batteries) quality look-and-feel | 2" wide, 5" high, and 1.25" deep, and weight with batteries 9 ounces. unusual triangular cross-section more of a toy-like appearance | 22 ounces (including batteries) large size (7.5x3 inches thickness: 1-3/8 inches) welded shut waterproof plastic case is somewhat cheaper-looking also has plastic kit case | (7.5 x 2.125 inches tall - thickness: 1-3/8 inches) case is screwed together aluminum 1.2 lbs. | 22 ounces/1.4 lbs. (including batteries) very big -- (7.5 x 2.125 inches) but a lot thicker at 2-1/8 inches - screwed together with a gasket and nitrogen-filled plastic case has deeply sculptured shape and rubber inserts gives it a quality look. | ||
| GPS Engine | one-channel scanning | one-channel scanning | two-channel scanning-type | same 12-channel parallel GPS engine used by the GPSMAP-195 and GPSCOM-190. It acquires a fix extremely rapidly after power up (typically in 15 seconds or less), and once acquired, it is extremely reluctant to lose lock. | 12-channel GPS engine good as the 12-channel receiver in the Garmin - 195 | 8-channel scanning continuously tracks 8 satellites | 12-channel scanning GPS receiver |
| Display - size, Pixels & grayscale | Quite small display, night lighting (but not keypad) | Quite small display, night lighting (but not keypad) | 1.6" by 2.1" backlighted - much larger display than the GPS-90 with resolution comparable to higher-priced units like the Precedus and AirMap. strictly black-and-white, two levels of white backlighting for nighttime use that illuminates both the display and keypad. | 1.5" by 2.2" higher resolution (easy to read) and 4-level grayscale - capability to flip the display orientation between horizontal and vertical. three levels of green backlighting for nighttime use that illuminates both the display and keypad. | green backlighting with 16 intensity levels - high-resolution display (25,600 pixels .35-millimeter pixel has 3-level gray scale capability (black, white, or gray)) 2-1/4" square display This greatly enhances its ground mapping capability, since mapping features like lakes, rivers and ATC rings can be shown in gray without obscuring the airport and navaid icons and labels that are shown in black. particularly obvious when operating the AirMap in split-screen mode where the left half of the screen displays a moving map and the right half displays alphanumeric flight data. In this mode, the AirMap's map is 80 by 160 pixels -- precisely the same resolution as the Precedus and 22% smaller. Yet a significant number of ground mapping features are visible, the AirMap's half-screen map is far more legible than the Precedus's full-screen map. Gray scale is the difference. | white backlighting with three intensity levels (high, medium, low)12,800-pixel resolution (80 by 160) resolution isn't as good as the designed-for-ground-mapping models (AirMap, GPSMAP-195, GPS III Pilot)- NO grayscale-capability - intense blue color and large .45-millimeter pixel size, the has the best contrast and readability over a wide range of lighting conditions and viewing angles, particularly in direct sunlight but ground mapping info is less legible. | white backlighting with three intensity levels (high, medium, low) 2-1/4 by 3-3/8 inches and 38,400 pixels (160 by 240). Supports 4-level gray scale (black, dark gray, light gray, white), giving an even better ability to display dense ground mapping information while still remaining legible. biggest and highest-resolution display ever seen on a handheld: the same width as the AirMap's but half-again as tall and with 50% more (38,400) pixels. 4 levels of grayscale The downside of these gray-scale displays is impaired contrast and a narrower viewing angle. I found both the AirMap and the Garmin 195 displays difficult to read clearly in direct sunlight. Usually, an adjustment to the display's contrast setting solved the problem, but when the lighting conditions changed, the contrast needed to be adjusted again. Although the blue-and-white display on the Precedus also has adjustable contrast, I never needed to fiddle with it. |
| Keypad - # layout | keypad above | keypad above | Keypad Below - 11 keys - four-way rocker plus ten function keys, but the keys are nicely sized and spaced and considerably easier to use | above or right of the display - four-way cursor-control rocker surrounded by eight tiny function buttons, each only about a quarter-inch in diameter. The keyboard layout is very similar to the GPSMAP-195 except that the GPS III Pilot has two keys fewer (the dedicated NRST and WPT keys of the 195 have been eliminated, and their functionality folded into the GOTO key). The keytop legends on the eight little buttons are skewed at a 45-degree angle so that they're readable whether the unit is mounted in vertical or horizontal orientation. | bottom-mounted keypad well laid-out and easy to use - twelve keys, and is placed right in the middle of the unit, below the display and above the battery pack. This placement works well for both handheld and yoke-mounted operation. The keys are black with white legends, and at night the backlight makes them glow a luminous green. I only wish the keys were a bit larger -- there seems to be plenty of room in the AirMap's keypad layout for big, Precedus-sized keys. | keypad is below keypad is backlit 3-by-3 keypad layout, with nine large oval fingertip-sized keys located at the extreme bottom of the faceplate. Its large keys for one-handed operation and for use in turbulence. At night, they keys are magnificently backlit, appearing as glowing ovals with white legends. But nine keys don't seem to be quite enough. I wish II Morrow had added one more row of keys, like a telephone keypad. The absence of dedicated zoom-out/zoom-in keys and a "cancel" key are particularly noticeable. | top-mounted keypad - 10 Keys - 8 small chicklet-style function keys, plus a two-way zoom-in/zoom-out rocker key and a four-way left-right-up-down cursor control rocker -- essentially 14 separate keys. The keys are logically labeled and consistently employed, providing a straightforward user interface. The keys are black with white legends, and the legends are backlighted for night use. four-way cursor control keys more difficult than four separate arrow keys |
| Battery - #, Type, and hours | 4 AA alkaline batteries(12-15 hours), (18-20 hours - "battery saver mode") 12- or 24-volt external power cord included | 4 AA alkaline batteries(12-15 hours), (18-20 hours - "battery saver mode") 12- or 24-volt external power cord included | 4 AA alkaline batteries (10 hours) ,optional rechargeable NiMH battery $39.00 (8 hours) plugs into ship's power (which can recharged in-flight) - thermometer-style battery level indicator that requires 5 keystrokes to display | 4 AA alkaline batteries (10 hours) can be loaded with rechargeable NiCd AA batteries (which last about 5 hours) but has no provision for in-unit recharging. nice thermometer-style battery level indicator right on the satellite status page | standard with two battery packs: an alkaline 6 AA-size batteries, and a rechargeable NiMH (nickel metal hydride) pack with a built-in smart charger. The NiMH battery is immune from the "memory effect" that plagues ni-cads, can be recharged in-flight while the GPS is in use, assuring that it'll be fully charged in the event of an electrical failure. (An AC charger is not included, but is available for an extra $30.) The unit can also be run off aircraft power with the battery pack removed, reducing the size of the unit by nearly half and making it extremely compact. varies from 4 to 10 hours battery life depending on what update rate is used | standard rechargeable battery pack (standard NEC cell phone battery) (4 hours) extended-time NiMH packs last longer. power off electrical system automatically recharges at the same time. cigarette lighter power cord standard equipment and wall-transformer-type AC charger. | 6 AA-size alkaline batteries(10 hours no backlighting) optional rechargeable ni-cad battery (9 hours) with AC charger, NO charging the pack in-flight Consequently, the ni-cad option on the Garmin 195 might not be such a good idea unless you also carry an alkaline battery pack loaded with six fresh AA's as a backup. |
| Antenna - type, detachable, ext jack | stick-style helical antenna hangs off the side, awkward to remote-mount on the windshield or glareshield, (has to be oriented vertically). | stick-style helical antenna hangs off the side, awkward to remote-mount on the windshield or glareshield, (has to be oriented vertically). | flip-up patch-style antenna small antenna connector may be easy to damage - suction-cup mount with a nine-foot coaxial cable (included) remote-mount antenna comes standard | stick-style quadrifilar antenna that mounts to the radio with a standard full-size BNC connector. much smaller than other stick antennas, and its receiver is so good that it retained a good position fix even when I intentionally positioned the antenna horizontally or even upside down. remote-mount antenna extra-cost option | patch-style antenna - serves as a display cover when the unit isn't in operation includes a coaxial cable and suction-cup mount for remote-mounting | patch-style antenna detaches easily suction-cup mounting on the windshield using a thin flexible supplied antenna cable | flat patch-style GPS antenna and a separate remote antenna and cable that can be left permanently in the airplane (assuming you own one), and plugs into an antenna jack on the radio. suction-cup mount for remote-mounting |
| Mount | Yoke mount included as well as power cable | $68.25 for the yoke mount and $30.00 for the power cable. | Magellan SkyStar comes with a nifty yoke mount that attaches to most control yokes and will also work on a control stick. It's compact, attractive, adjustable, and has a quick-disconnect feature that makes it a lot easier to install and remove than most other yoke mounts I've tried. | does not include a yoke mount as standard equipment. Comes with a "dashboard mounting bracket" . I didn't find glareshield mounting to be acceptable on my airplane, however; the glareshield is too high and places the unit too far away for my taste, and the display is hard to read under some ambient light conditions. Garmin sells an optional yoke mount for $90, or a complete "yoke mount kit" for $204.55 that includes a yoke mount, remote-mount antenna, and cigarette lighter power cord. | Yoke mounts also come standard but big and heavy and relies on Velcro rather than clips | Yoke mounts also come standard - small, sleek and elegant and snaps in and out of its yoke mount easily. | Yoke mounts also comes standard - much bigger, heavier, and more complex knob is used to lock and release the radio. The cigarette lighter power cord screws onto a couple of little ears on the yoke mount and automatically engages the power connector on the 195 when it is locked into the mount - doesn't make reliable contact unless you're very careful. Displays an icon at the bottom of the screen to showing power source in use. |
| Database - Type, updates, cost | Jeppesen database updated via PC $125 each | Jeppesen database (stripped down) contains only VORs and airports It doesn't have NDBs, intersections, Class B and C, or special-use airspace. And the GPS-89's airport database contains just airport identifiers and lat/lon information...period. No frequencies, no runway information or runway diagrams, not even airport names. | Jeppesen databases and operating software field updated by PC ($99) two alternative Jeppesen databases: North America and International only have enough memory to hold one of these databases at a time. PLUS version includes AOPA's Airport Directory and vertical obstruction data (towers, buildings, powerlines, etc.) | Jeppesen databases and operating software field updated by PC. ($130). offers three Jeppesen databases: Americas, Atlantic International and Pacific International. only have enough memory to hold one of these databases at a time | Database and software updates are distributed on tiny cartridges that plug into the back of the radio. you simply pull out the old cartridge, plug in the new one, and send the old one back. Software updates are slightly different: you plug the software cartridge into the AirMap and turn it on, whereupon it automatically loads the new software into its internal flash memory; then you unplug the software cartridge and mail it back to Lowrance. No PC or cable is required. Furthermore, Lowrance charges substantially less for its Jeppesen database updates than the competition ($75 for the AirMap versus $125 for the Garmin). | Jeppesen database in the Precedus includes everything you could possibly want: airports, VORs, NDBs, Intersections, and special-use airspace. The airport information includes runway information, airport diagrams, and extensive frequency listings, GPS overlay and stand-alone approaches No other handheld we evaluated passes the "closed book" learning test as well. both databases and operating software can be updated in the field from a PC. Data cable and PC update kit extra-cost options ($100) | both databases and operating software can be updated in the field from the PC. Data cable and PC update kit as extra-cost options ($125) |
| Software - Updates, Use | NONE | NONE | more feature-rich than the GPS-90's, updated in the field along with the database by a PC - user-friendly context-sensitive menu-driven interface that is quite similar to Garmin's. easy-to-use context-sensitive menu system that almost looks as if it was copied from Garmin. Pressing the MENU key once brings up a specialized menu for the nav or map page being displayed, while pressing MENU a second time brings up the main menu. I still found the SkyStar menu system a bit less-well human-engineered than the Garmin, | same "context-sensitive" menu system that it pioneered in the GPSMAP-195. Pressing the MENU key brings up one of several alternative menus depending on which nav page was being displayed when you pressed the key. If you press MENU while looking at the map page, a map-option menu pops up; if you do the same thing while looking at the active route page, a route-option menu appears; etc. In all cases, pressing MENU a second time brings up the main menu. It takes a little while to get accustomed to this system, but it is a great keystroke-saver. future software releases. | extremely good about providing a continuous stream of software upgrades that have resolved almost all of the known deficiencies and added some exciting new features. Most of these upgrades have been made available to AirMap owners free-of-charge. plug a software update cartridge into the back, turn it on, and the new software is automatically loaded into flash ROM. Single function menu that appears when the user presses the "menu" key. The menu contains about 16 entries (sometimes one or two more or less, depending on what feature are active) but only 6 of them are visible in the menu window at a time -- the rest much be reached by scrolling as you move the cursor through the menu using the up/down arrow keys. I found the inability to see the entire menu at once makes the AirMap a bit more difficult to learn and use, although it's not a major obstacle. Another AirMap oddity: to execute a menu item, you hit the right-arrow key (rather than the "enter" key as on other models). This feels strange at first, but | feature-rich software that can be updated in the field - superb at providing a continuous stream of software upgrades and new features for this unit. single 13-entry function menu that appears whenever the user presses the "menu" key. You select a menu function by moving the cursor to the desired item with the up/down arrow keys, then pressing the "enter" key. The top menu item is "Return to Nav" which takes you back to the navigation/map pages. The other 12 menu items call up specialized pages that permit you to configure the various system and mapping functions, initialize the GPS position and clock, start and stop timers, perform E6B functions, access checklists, and so forth. For the most part, the Precedus user interface is very straightforward and easy to learn and use. | both databases and operating software can be updated in the field. "menu" key brings up one of several alternative menus, depending on what nav page is being displayed when you press the key. If you press "menu" while looking at the map page, for example, a map-option menu pops up; if you do the same thing while looking at the active route page, a route-option menu pops up instead; and so forth. Regardless of which menu pops up, pressing "menu" a second time brings up the main menu. Menus tend to have relatively few items, and they are displayed in a larger, easier-to-read font than the Precedus or AirMap. Menu items that are inapplicable in the present context are "grayed out", similar to Windows or Macintosh menus -- a nice touch. |
| Navigation Pages/screens | several alphanumeric navigation information pages that show your course, track, groundspeed, distance to the next waypoint, course deviation indication, and so forth. | several alphanumeric navigation information pages that show your course, track, groundspeed, distance to the next waypoint, course deviation indication, and so forth. | 8 user customizable navigation and map pages It has all the features you'd expect: pan/zoom, route mode (up to 20 routes of 30 fixes each), airport information and runway diagrams, nearest airport search Position page (3 customizable nav data fields plus lat/lon, altitude and time) Navigation page (6 customizable nav data fields plus CDI) HSI page Descent profile page (only if VNAV is activated) Fuel page (only if route is active and fuel burn info has been entered) Full map page (full-screen moving map) Half map page (moving map plus 6 customizable nav data fields) Pan N Scan map page (full-screen moving map plus cursor) NAV key cycles first five, MAP key cycles last three. highly customizable. A CDI display is available on the navigation page, but not on the moving map page - status line at the bottom of every display page reminds important things: simulator mode or actually tracking satellites, whether the GPS position fix has been lost or degraded to 2D, | six nav pages: Satellite status page (including battery gauge) Nav data page (6 customizable nav data fields plus heading, lat/lon, and date/time) Map page (moving map plus 4 customizable nav data fields) HSI page (HSI display plus 4 customizable nav data fields) Highway page (highway display plus 4 customizable nav data fields) Active route page cycle forwards by pressing the PAGE key; backwards by pressing the QUIT key. highly customizable. You can choose each nav data field (six on the nav data page and four each on the map, HSI and highway pages) from a long list of available fields, and set up the pages almost any way you like. The biggest shortcoming I found was that a CDI (course deviation indicator) display is not available on any of the pages. The closest you can come to a CDI with the GPS III Pilot is to display a "pointer" (sort of a poor man's ADF needle) and a cross-track error distance (a digital field that shows how far off-course you are). | 21 different pages -- most of them user-customizable. In addition to the usual map, alphanumeric, and split-screen pages, the AirMap offers a variety of dual-map screen layouts, where each map is individually configurable and zoomable. Just to cite one example: you can bring up a display where the left half of the screen is an ordinary moving map, the upper-right-hand quadrant is a second map zoomed in tightly on the destination airport, and the lower-right-hand quadrant displays four nav-data items (e.g., distance, groundspeed, bearing and track). There are two downsides to the AirMap's plethora of pages. First, there are too many of them to simply cycle through sequentially like the Precedus and Garmin do. To change nav pages on the AirMap, you press the "mode" key to bring up a menu of pages, then use the arrow keys to specify the page you want, and finally press the "exit" key to make the menu go away. Definitely more cumbersome than simply cycling through six or seven pages with a single key. Second, c | Pre-set from the factory, the Precedus displays seven navigation pages: A full-screen map page; A split-screen page with a 2/3-screen map plus four alphanumeric nav-info fields; Two alphanumeric nav pages, each with up to twelve nav-info field; A messages page; A GPS status page; A route page. Nav pages are highly user-customizable. You can specify between one and four alphanumeric nav pages, each containing up to twelve fields that you can select from a palette of 34 different nav-info items. You can also customize the four fields on the split-screen page in the same fashion. In navigation mode (as it is most of the time), you cycle through nav pages by pressing the up- and down-arrow keys. The left- and right-arrow keys are used to zoom the map pages in and out. In flight toggling frequently back and forth between the split-screen map page (configured to show distance-to-waypoint, groundspeed, bearing and track) and one of the alphanumeric nav pages (to see CDI, time-to-station and time-to-desti | very similar design as the Precedus, with a few important differences. It has only one map page and one alphanumeric nav-info page, but that's enough because its screen is so big that it can get three times as much information on a page as the Precedus can. The Garmin does offer an interesting "HSI" page that has no parallel on the Precedus. This makes a total of six nav pages in all, which you can cycle through by pressing the "page" key. (The "quit" key cycles through them backwards.) Map zooming is accomplished with the dedicated zoom-in/zoom-out rocker key. This leaves the four-way cursor control rocker free for slewing the cursor around the map (discussed below). Like the Precedus, the Garmin allows user customization of all the nav-info fields from a lengthy palette of choices. It also allows its single map page to be customized: you can select a full-screen ap or a variety of split-screen options with 2, 4, 6 or 8 nav-info fields, or with 0, 2, 4 or 6 fields plus a CDI display. I settled on a spli |
| Customizable Pages/screens | configure to display navaids, fixes, airports, class B&C airspace, special-use airspace, planned flight, & actual. bottom always displays: bearing and distance to the next fix, ground track, and groundspeed. | more customizable pages than any other competitor (nearly 20), including some really interesting possibilities such as a split-screen map in which the two halves can be independently zoomed and panned. | |||||
| Ground Mapping - Items | None | None | no ground mapping capability at all, which I consider perhaps its single biggest shortcoming. It does provide a moving map display that includes airports, navaids, intersections and sectorized special use airspace. With the PLUS version obstacles are also displayed. | every bit as good as the GPSMAP-195 looks very much like a sectional chart (albeit in monochrome). Once again, the Garmin hardware and software gurus have done a really splendid job. About the only thing missing is depiction of obstacles and their elevations. | highways, rivers, lakes, cities, coastlines, state boundaries, and so forth - optional detailed regional ground mapping cartridges that take over from the built-in background map when you zoom in to a width of 8 miles or less, and such close-in ranges are seldom used in-flight. 64 different "IMS SmartMap" cartridges to cover 48 states. depicts rivers, lakes and coastlines in faithful detail, but highways are sometimes mislocated by as much as a mile, and railroad tracks don't appear at all. Airports and navaids appear precisely where they belong, but no attempt is made to depict them using standard aviation symbology. In short, I found the AirMap's ground mapping capability to be quite good, but the Garmin's to be breathtaking. However, starting with the version 2.1 update, the Lowrance has added a unique new capability to the AirMap: an obstacle database, and mapping of obstacles. Antenna towers and the like now show up on the map, complete with their elevations (you can specify MSL or AGL). This is a very u | depicts rivers, lakes and coastlines in faithful detail, but highways are sometimes mislocated by as much as a mile, and railroad tracks don't appear at all. Airports and navaids appear precisely where they belong, but no attempt is made to depict them using standard aviation symbology. In short, I found the AirMap's ground mapping capability to be quite good, but the Garmin's to be breathtaking. However, starting with the version 2.1 update, the Lowrance has added a unique new capability to the AirMap: an obstacle database, and mapping of obstacles. Antenna towers and the like now show up on the map, complete with their elevations (you can specify MSL or AGL). This is a very useful safety feature, and one that the competition is sure to notice. | About the only way they could make the GPSMAP-195 display look more like a sectional would be to install a color display. |
| Zoom & Auto-Zoom | AutoZoom | AutoZoom | .25 NM to 250 NM. auto-zoom four-way rocker for to control zooming three or four seconds to redraw the new map | 500 feet to 5000 NM auto-zoom dedicated zoom-in/zoom-out keys three or four seconds to redraw the new map | clever de-cluttering software as you zoom screen widths of 0.1 NM to 4,000 NM Almost never takes more than one second to display the new map after a zoom-in or zoom-out request, auto-zoom | auto-zoom 0.1 NM to 250 NM frequently take four or five seconds to zoom | auto-zoom 0.1 NM to 3,000 NM frequently take four or five seconds to zoom |
| Regional Mapping | None | None | Yes - requires separate cartridges and it takes a lot of them for complete US coverage. A feature that is mostly useful for on ground use. | ||||
| Decluttering | configure the map to display navaids, fixes, airports, class B&C airspace, special-use airspace, your flight planned route line, and your actual track. At the bottom of the map page, the unit displays the most essential navigation data: bearing and distance to the next fix, ground track, and groundspeed. | de-cluttering function is largely hard-wired, | customize the de-cluttering algorithm by setting the scale at which various kinds of map details are eliminated. But there are so many parameters to customize that in practice, most users won't be inclined to fiddle with them. The default settings work okay. | de-cluttering function of the AirMap is completely automatic and non-customizable. In some 7,000 NM of cross-country flying with the AirMap in all sorts of areas and conditions, I've found that it works surprisingly well. But once in a while, when flying over sparsely-populated areas, the screen gets rather sparse and I wish I could ask the AirMap to display some more detail. And occasionally when flying in especially complex and densely-packed airspace (like Southern California), the screen gets a bit cluttered and I wish I could drop out a bit of detail. Unfortunately, there's no way to do this with the AirMap. | permit the user to customize the de-cluttering algorithm. But doing so involves adjusting a zillion different parameters. At what minimum zoom range do you want to eliminate state highways? Federal highways? Interstates? City names? Airport identifiers? VOR identifiers? Intersections? Class D airspace rings? And so forth. Get the picture? It's so complicated to customize the de-cluttering algorithm that in practice, I'm never inclined to fool with it. | permit the user to customize the de-cluttering algorithm. But doing so involves adjusting a zillion different parameters. At what minimum zoom range do you want to eliminate state highways? Federal highways? Interstates? City names? Airport identifiers? VOR identifiers? Intersections? Class D airspace rings? And so forth. Get the picture? It's so complicated to customize the de-cluttering algorithm that in practice, I'm never inclined to fool with it. | |
| Cursor/Pan | cursor mode is very crude and ugly by comparison. Because the SkyStar lacks dedicated zoom-in/zoom-out keys and accomplishes zooming with its four-way rocker, Magellan had to provide an entirely separate map page just to support cursor mode and panning. The "Pan page" looks just like the regular full-page map display except that it has a little cross-shaped cursor in the middle. To move the cursor, you must first place the page into "Pan N Scan" mode by selecting a menu function or pressing the ESC key. Once in "Pan N Scan" mode, the four-way rocker allows the cursor to be moved around the map. Unfortunately, cursor movement occurs is anything but smooth; it occurs in large, jerky increments which I found most disconcerting. And rather than the cursor moving on the map, the map moves under a stationary centered cursor, and then the newly revealed portion of the map is redrawn while you watch. To zoom the map to a different scale, you have to exit "Pan N Scan" mode, change the zoom scale with the four-way roc | capability for slewing a "cursor" around. two purposes: to point to something on the map in order to get more information about it or to memorize its position or to navigate there, or to "pan" the map window by slewing the cursor beyond the edge of the usual present-position-centered display. This is an important and often used feature. works just like the GPSMAP-195. press the four-way rocker key and "bullseye" cursor appears and you can slew it around the map with the rocker. As the cursor touches various map features, up pops a little label telling you what that feature is. whole map smooth-scrolls as necessary to keep the cursor on-screen. Slew too far and you'll run into a redraw delay. Once you've placed the cursor where you want it, you can ask the GPS III Pilot to: Navigate a great-circle route to the cursor position Create a user-defined waypoint at the cursor position Zoom the map in on the cursor position to have a closer look To leave cursor mode, you press the QUIT key. The bu | The AirMap has a particularly nice cursor mode. To activate it, you simply press any of the four arrow keys while any map page is being displayed. Crosshairs appear, and you can easily and precisely slew them to any location on the map with the arrow keys. If you slew the cursor close to any edge of the map, the map is redrawn (after a one-second delay) centered on the cursor position. Once you've placed the cursor where you want it, you can ask the AirMap to: Navigate a great-circle route to the cursor position Drop an icon onto the map at the cursor position for future reference Create a user-defined waypoint at the cursor position Search for the nearest airports, VORs, NDBs, etc. relative to the cursor position Identify any special-use airspace that contains the cursor position Zoom the map in on the cursor position to have a closer look To leave cursor mode, you press the "exit" key. The map resumes its previous zoom level (or auto-zoom, if that was in effect) and re-c | greatly-improved pan/zoom capabilities Precedus calls its cursor mode "pan mode" and you enter and leave it by pressing the "enter" key while the full-screen map page is on the display. Once in pan mode, a little plus-sign appears on the map, and you can slew it around with the arrow keys. If you touch any airport or navaid with the cursor, its identifier is highlighted and you can get additional information about it by pressing the "info" key. If you touch any special-use-airspace boundary with the cursor, it intensifies -- you can then press the "info" key and see information about that SUA region (name, altitude limits, controlling agency, etc.). The SUA information page even includes a perspective drawing of the SUA area which you can rotate and tilt, but I consider this mostly a gimmick and not particularly useful -- some software engineer at II Morrow must have had too much time on his hands! If you slew the cursor beyond the edge of the map window, the Precedus locks up for 4 or 5 seconds while it's | operates in a very similar fashion to the AirMap positioning the cursor more difficult "bullseye" symbol as its cursor symbol obscuring the map items - four-way rocker will "coast" overshooting desired location. indication that microprocessor is slower - touch any map feature and up pops a little label telling you what it is. ! press the "nrst" key while in cursor mode, it displays a list of nearest airports to your present position, not the cursor position. I like the AirMap's way of doing this a lot better. Another nasty litch in the Garmin's cursor mode: if you slew the cursor somewhere and then zoom-in for a closer look, when you cancel cursor mode (by pressing "quit") the map doesn't return to its previous zoom level. | ||
| Route Waypoints | 250 user-defined waypoints | 250 user-defined waypoints | route mode automatically sequence from segment to segment as you fly. store up to 20 such routes in memory (Magellan calls them "flight plans"), and to fly the routes either forward or backward. up to 20 legs in length (which is plenty); requires that you bring up the route page via main menu selection, requiring more keystrokes. provide a relatively easy-to-master route editor that permit creation and revision of stored routes. allow you to depart the pre-planned route and then rejoin it by going direct to a selected route fix (a common situation when flying IFR or making weather deviations). Neither model has a turn-anticipation feature that gives you advance warning of your new heading so that you can lead the turn (that would be a nice software enhancement). | route mode automatically sequence from segment to segment as you fly. store up to 20 such routes in memory and to fly the routes either forward or backward. routes up to 30 waypoints each. The GPS III Pilot displays the active route on the route page that is one of the six nav pages in the unit's round-robin page sequence. provides a relatively easy-to-master route editor that permit creation and revision of stored routes. allow you to depart the pre-planned route and then rejoin it by going direct to a selected route fix (a common situation when flying IFR or making weather deviations). Neither model has a turn-anticipation feature that gives you advance warning of your new heading so that you can lead the turn (that would be a nice software enhancement). | route mode which enable you to set up multi-waypoint routes and have the GPS automatically sequence from segment to segment as you fly. All allow you to store up to 20 such routes in memory, and to fly the routes either forwards or backward. offer a "turn anticipation" feature when route mode is active. also has an arrival alert with a user-programmable lead distance, but its alert message doesn't include the next fix or course -- instead, it simply sequences to the next leg at the lead point, making the next leg info available on the normal nav pages. | route mode which enable you to set up multi-waypoint routes and have the GPS automatically sequence from segment to segment as you fly. All allow you to store up to 20 such routes in memory, and to fly the routes either forwards or backward. offer a "turn anticipation" feature when route mode is active: at a user-programmable distance from the fix, it displays an arrival alert which includes the identifier, course, and distance to the succeeding fix. | route mode which enable you to set up multi-waypoint routes and have the GPS automatically sequence from segment to segment as you fly. All allow you to store up to 20 such routes in memory, and to fly the routes either forwards or backward. as an arrival alert, but it lacks any turn-anticipation information (other than requiring you to switch to the route page and look it up); hopefully, Garmin will emulate the Precedus' approach in a future software update. |
| Approaches | Doesn't provide the option of displaying runway centerline extensions to assist in lining up on approach | Doesn't provide the option of displaying runway centerline extensions to assist in lining up on approach | offers no approach capability at all, but does offer centerline extensions. | "approach monitor" feature. This works in conjunction with the route mode, and lets you automatically set up an approach at the destination airport of the route. You can choose from any published GPS approach for the destination airport, or you can select a do-it-yourself approach that starts at a fix 4 miles out on the extended centerline of any runway. | limited to published GPS approaches and lacks the runway centerline extension feature. | ||
| Airport Information | field elevation, runway diagrams, runway lengths, and frequencies for ATIS, tower, ground, clearance, AWOS, UNICOM, and CTAF. PLUS version includes AOPA's Airport Directory including: FBO services, rentals cars, restaurants, hotels, etc. | field elevation, runway diagrams, runway lengths, and frequencies for ATIS, tower, ground, clearance, AWOS, UNICOM, and CTAF. Both do a good job here, although the GPS III Pilot has easier-to-read text displays and prettier airport diagrams which support zooming in and out. | offer airport information such as field elevation, runway diagrams, runway lengths, and frequencies for ATIS, tower, ground, clearance, AWOS, UNICOM, and CTAF. | offer airport information such as field elevation, runway diagrams, runway lengths, and frequencies for ATIS, tower, ground, clearance, AWOS, UNICOM, and CTAF. All do a good job here, but the Precedus is the easiest to use (it has a dedicated "info" key) and offers the most complete information, including approach and departure control frequencies and even a sunrise/sunset calculator. | offer airport information such as field elevation, runway diagrams, runway lengths, and frequencies for ATIS, tower, ground, clearance, AWOS, UNICOM, and CTAF. | ||
| Nearest Waypoint Search | activated by pressing the NEAR key, and after a short delay displays lists of the 20 nearest: airports VORs NDBs intersections user-defined waypoints ARTCC (Center) frequencies FSS frequencies | activated by pressing and holding the GOTO/NRST key. It displays lists of the nine nearest airports, VORs, NDBs, intersections and user-defined waypoints. It also displays the nearest ARTCC frequency, the nearest FSS frequency (one each), and up to three nearby special-use airspace areas (by name and controlling agency, but without comm frequency). | displays up to 40 nearest waypoints in each of the following categories: airports, VORs, NDBs, intersections and user-defined waypoints. The AirMap takes several seconds to come up with each list. A very useful feature unique to the AirMap is the ability to perform a nearest-waypoint search centered on any desired cursor position (rather than just from the present GPS position). | displays up to 40 nearest items in each of the following categories: airports, VORs, NDBs, intersections, special-use airspace areas, cities, and user-defined waypoints. What's more, it somehow manages to come up them virtually instantaneously. | displays the 9 nearest airports to the present GPS position. Pressing the menu key at this point allows you to access nearest waypoints of other categories. | ||
| User Way-points | up to 500 user-defined waypoints. four different ways: Capturing ("marking") your present position Capturing the cursor position from the moving map Defined by a user-entered latitude/longitude Defined by a user-entered bearing and distance from another known waypoint | up to 500 user-defined waypoints. defined in five different ways: Capturing ("marking") your present position Capturing the cursor position from the moving map Defined by a user-entered latitude/longitude Defined by a user-entered bearing and distance from another known waypoint Averaging your present position over a period of time The last "averaging" method is intended to let you obtain a very accurate position fix when the receiver is stationary (presumably on the ground) by canceling out the position errors created by GPS Selective Availability. It's probably more useful for hikers and surveyors than for pilots. | allow you to define hundreds of user-defined waypoints. won't define a waypoint as a radial and distance from a VOR or other known fix but does it based on cursor position | allow you to define hundreds of user-defined waypoints. lets you define a waypoint as a radial and distance from a VOR or other known fix -- doesn't allow you to define a waypoint based on cursor position | allow you to define hundreds of user-defined waypoints. doesn't let you define a waypoint as a radial and distance from a VOR or other known fix -- define a waypoint based on cursor position | ||
| HIS Page | NONE | NONE | nice HSI page (the GPS-90 doesn't) look precisely like a real horizontal situation indicator instrument, complete with compass rose, course arrow, lubber line, and rectilinear CDI needle. OBS is hard-wired to the current route segment. | look precisely like a real horizontal situation indicator instrument, complete with compass rose, course arrow, lubber line, and rectilinear CDI needle. can manually rotate the course arrow (OBS) to any desired radial, displays a "glideslope" needle to show you graphically whether your GPS altitude is above or below the VNAV target altitude. (can be in error by several hundred feet) | only vaguely resembles a real HSI. like peering through a window in the belly of the airplane and looking down on a "road" that portrays the desired route. The centerline is visible, as are the edges of the route (which represent full-scale CDI deflection) and the aircraft's actual track history. You can also watch route fixes as they pass by below | looks precisely like a real horizontal situation indicator instrument, complete with compass rose, course arrow, heading bug, lubber line, and rectilinear CDI needle. | looks precisely like a real horizontal situation indicator instrument, complete with compass rose, course arrow, heading bug, lubber line, and rectilinear CDI needle. |
| Vertical Navigation | vertical navigation, altitude-sensitive special-use airspace warning | vertical navigation monitors your GPS altitude (which is not terribly accurate, but is good enough for this purpose) and alerts you when it thinks you need to start down. You can then switch to the HSI page, on which a "glideslope" needle appears to guide you down. tightly tied to its aircraft profile and flight plan facilities. To use it, you must have defined an aircraft profile with a non-zero descent rate. You must also be navigating on an active flight plan route. Under these conditions, a special "descent profile screen" appears in the nav page rotation that provides vertical guidance. | provide altitude guidance during letdowns, but they take quite different approaches. To use VNAV on the GPS III Pilot, you bring up a setup page and specify what altitude you want to descend to (generally pattern altitude or initial approach altitude), how far from the airport you want to reach that altitude (4 miles seems to be a good figure), and how rapidly you want to descend (I use 800 feet per minute). intuitive "glideslope needle" display; just don't be tempted to try flying precision approaches with it! | offer a vertical navigation feature that helps you plan letdowns from altitude. To use it, you bring up a setup page and specify what altitude you want to descend to (generally pattern altitude or initial approach altitude), how far from the airport you want to reach that altitude (4 miles seems to be a good figure), and how rapidly you want to descend (I used 800 feet per minute). offers only a digital readout of the target altitude, rather than the "simulated glideslope needle" display | displays GPS altitude, but doesn't have any VNAV function | offer a vertical navigation feature that helps you plan letdowns from altitude. To use it, you bring up a setup page and specify what altitude you want to descend to (generally pattern altitude or initial approach altitude), how far from the airport you want to reach that altitude (4 miles seems to be a good figure), and how rapidly you want to descend (I used 800 feet per minute). software shuts off the VNAV indicator 500 feet above the target altitude | |
| GPS Initialization | specifying either a nearby airport identifier or an approximate latitude and longitude. | displays a map of North America at an extremely wide scale (3000 NM) and point arrow to the general present position, | allows initializing in both ways: by pointing at the map (like the -195), or by entering a lat/lon (like the Precedus). | have to specify the initial position in terms of latitude and longitude | displays a map of North America at an extremely wide scale (3000 NM) and point arrow to the general present position, | ||
| Misc | flight plan entry, storage of multiple flight plans, | The ability to store aircraft performance profiles for up to five different aircraft, including climb, cruise, descent and glide speeds, rates, fuel flow data, and weight-and-balance information. Basic E6B features: calculation of weight-and-balance, ETE, ETA, Winds-aloft, True airspeed, Density altitude and fuel burn ( including climb and descent) for a trip, using these aircraft performance profiles, and the ability to update these estimates continually as you fly the trip. Enter your actual fuel-on-board and the unit displays your estimated fuel quantity which counts down as you fly the trip. It also displays your estimated fuel remaining at your destination. Storage of up to five customizable checklists of up to ten items each, with the ability to electronically check off the items in-flight. Tiny 24-point track history memory buffer. SkyStar's nearest-airport search feature places an asterisk next to each airport that is theoretically within gliding range. | comes with none of the basic accessories that are standard equipment on virtually every other aviation handheld. No yoke mount, no remote-mount antenna or antenna cable, no DC power cord, no carrying case. By the time you add these essentials, you've added a bit over $200 to the purchase price of the GPS III Pilot basic E6B features: True airspeed calculation, Density altitude calculation, Winds-aloft calculation | airspace look-ahead, E6-B features, obstruction mapping and runway centerline extensions. high marks for customer support. AirMap 300 includes Jeppesen database cartridge with obstacle database, yoke mount, alkaline battery pack, rechargeable NiMH battery pack, cigarette lighter cable, remote antenna cable and suction-cup mount. | For the IFR pilot, perhaps the most important advantage of the Precedus over most other handhelds is its so-called Approach Monitor capability. What this means, simply, is that the Precedus' database contains the data for all GPS overlay and stand-alone approaches. For runways not served by a GPS approach, it also includes an extended centerline pseudo-approach that starts from an imaginary fix on 4-mile final. (The only other handheld with this feature is the Garmin GPSMAP-195, and the Garmin doesn't offer the extended centerline feature.) | PC interface/database update cable...$30 Americas database update...$130.00 (Database updates require PC interface/database update cable.) NiCad rechargeable battery pack...$79.00 NiCad battery pack w/US charger...$99.00 110vac US trickle charger...$20.00 Extra AA alkaline battery pack...$30.00 Mounting bracket...$35.00 Extra yoke mount...$68.25 GA-56 low-profile antenna (TSO'd)...$382.00 MCX-to-BNC adapter cable...$25.00 15-foot low-loss antenna extension cable...$85.00 30-foot low-loss antenna extension cable...$150.00 Power/data cable...$25.00 | |
| References |