0ur opinion:

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The GPS 12MAP combines the enhanced software features of the popular GPS lll Plus with the rugged design of the GPS 12.Similar to the GPS lll Plus, the basemap on the GPS 12MAP will include cartography information for North and South America including a database of cities, interstates, lakes, rivers, railroads, coastlines, and exit information for the federal interstate highway system. Even more remarkable, the GPS 12MAP takes mapping one step further with an added CD-R0M capability. Simply insert one of Garmin's MapSource CD-R0Ms into your PC, and download up to 1.44 MB of extra map detail into your GPS 12MAP.The 12 parallel channel GPS 12MAP boasts the same physical characteristics as Garmin's 12CX (excluding color display), including a rugged, waterproof case, dedicated zoom keys for quick map scaling, and a high-resolution LCD display complete with backlighting. The unit gets up to 36 hours of battery life with four AA batteries and includes the ability to store up to 500 user waypoints.

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For the Garmin 12Map global positioning system model design, Garmin combined software features from its popular GPS lll Plus model with the durable design of its GPS 12 model. The result is a GPS receiver that can stand up to the elements as well as download sophisticated mapping software.

Similar to the Garmin GPS lll Plus, the base map on the Garmin GPS 12Map includes cartography information for North and South America including a database of cities, interstates, lakes, rivers, railroads, coastlines, and exit information for the U.S. interstate highway system. The GPS 12Map can even take mapping one step further with an added CD-R0M capability. Simply insert one of Garmin's MapSource CD-R0Ms into your PC and copy mapping information into your Garmin GPS 12Map.

The 12-parallel-channel Garmin GPS 12Map boasts a rugged, waterproof case, dedicated zoom keys for quick map scaling, and a high-resolution LCD display complete with backlighting. The unit gets up to 36 hours of battery life with four AA batteries and includes the ability to store up to 500 user waypoints.

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Buyer's feedback: - * Bang for your Buck!! ...
This little unit will surprise you with its capabilities! There's no way I will ever use a GPS that doesn't have mapping capabilities after using this one. It warms up and gets a fix quickly, and is VERY accurate - I held it up next to a $1,500 model and it showed the exact same numbers throughout a 20 mile trip. (needless to say the owner of the more expensive unit was not happy)

I don't go anywhere without this unit.... it is awesome!

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Buyer's feedback: - Excellent value and features
I have owned this GPS for a year now. It is with me every time I travel. I recommend the 12V car power adapter, especially if you plan on using it for night driving with the display lighted. This unit has helped me locate many rental car return lots in unfamiliar cities, and has prevented me from getting lost while hiking. The Trackback feature is particularly useful to find your way back to where you started. Battery life has been about what I expected, around 12-14 hours continuous use without any backlight. The unit even works moderately well in airplanes (some don't allow GPS in flight, some do) so long as you have a window seat, put it right up to the window, and have at least four satellites in the sky on your side of the plane. The included North American map data is adequate for most travel, but if you need street level detail, get one of the map CD's and the computer cable. For the size, weight, and battery life, I don't think there is a better unit out there. I am very pleased and I recommend this unit to family and friends interested in GPS.

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Buyer's feedback: - * Coastal marine navigation with the Garmin 12 Map ...
I just returned from 3 weeks sailing in the San Juan and Gulf Islands in the Pacific Northwest. Navigation was ultimately derived from marine charts (NAD27) but also from daily tracking with my newly acquired Garmin 12 Map. I supplemented the charts with GPS coordinates (NAD83) for harbor entrances, moorings, and anchorages given in a regional marine guide book (Douglass and Douglass).

Good: The GPS 12 Map is easy to use for marine navigation. It's waterproof. It has a non-slip rubber bottom. The size of the GPS and its display is just about right for use in small craft like a 30-ft sailboat. Button size and separation is good even for cold, wet hands. The overlay of the land maps proved quite helpful for generally locating the boat position with respect to nearby land masses like islands and continental coasts. I found the overlays more useful than the traditional "highway" views. Creating, entering, and modifying waypoints is easy. The wide choice of waypoints symbols proved quite useful. Battery life is adequate. Sailing only during the day, I changed batteries every 5 or 6 days with periodic connections to a 12VDC outlet on the boat's electrical panel. I could have used the external DC power exclusively if I had brought a 10 ft extension with me.

Bad: Believe the warning on startup. The land mass overlays are approximate. Even with care as to the correct datum, several anchorages in small coves were shown to be on land even at maximum zoom. The data included for positions of marine buoys and lights were not always correct. Some buoys were shown in incorrect locations or absent altogether. The US Waterways MapSource may fix this for US waters but will exclude the contiguous Canadian waters (Gulf Islands).

Conclusion: A good product for coastal navigation but the pre-loaded land mass and navigation data are not always accurate. I suspect loading ad hoc navigational databases would greatly improve the unit's usefulness.

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Buyer's feedback: - GPS 12 MAP
I finally got a chance to put this unit to the test and it performed flawlessly. 4 days and 70 miles on the Laberinth Canyon section of the Green river in Utah. The GPS 12 Map worked all day in 115 deg heat and even survived a 20 minute swim in my pocket, all with only 1 battery change. Well Worth the price. Would also recomend a third party map program (Delorme's 3d TopoQuads).

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Buyer's feedback: - * Garmin 12 map GPS Review ...
This is the first GPS I have ever purchased, or used, and was alittle apprehensive about making the right choice. I can sum up my experience with few words.. It's a GREAT choice.. I bought it right before a fishing trip to Florida.. It was super easy to learn to use, was able to use it on the plane just by holding it up to the window. I used it on 3 offshore deepwater fishing trips, and worked flawlessly.. I don't think I could have made a better choice in purchasing a GPS.