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Nodrog
NWOntario
Nov 14, 2011
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GARMIN RINO 530HCX
Pros: strong gps. seeing other's position
Cons: easily lost charger
Good working unit. Transmissions are clear. GPS works great, probably one of the best GPS receivers I've worked with. Wish that the radio put out 5 watts when using the AA battery pack. Recharge clip is easily lost. Overall a good choice for hunting, especially when using a headset.
Recommend? YES
36 viewers found this helpful.
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gary
leominster mass
Dec 2, 2010
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GTATRO LEOMINSTER
Pros: exceptionally great reception
Cons: none
By far the best rino to date had the 120 no comparison never lost reception the best tool you can have in the woods. I use it mostly for hunting. The only thing it doesnt tell you is were the deer are..
Recommend? YES
109 viewers found this helpful.
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Alex
Las Vegas, NV
Oct 27, 2010
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RINO 530HCX
Great unit. It does everything I expected and more. For the price it should include TOPO maps as it's useless for me with out it.
Recommend? YES
93 viewers found this helpful.
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Brian
Richland, WA
Mar 23, 2010
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CHARGER HAS EASILY LOST PARTS
Pros: lot's of features, easy to learn and use.
Cons: charging system poorly designed.
The GPS unit works great, as does the radio. However, Garmin chose to have a wall charger that plugs into a very small (and easily lost) "adapter" that clips onto the batter to charge. It is impossible to buy this pieces separately if lost (like I did). Good GPS unit, bad overall design. However, if you only charge it in one place and have a good location to store everything when not in use, it's a great device.I used mine in Iraq and the US and it has all the features you would want or need in a GPS/radio.
Recommend? YES
127 viewers found this helpful.
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Boris
BC Canada
Jan 13, 2010
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GREAT UNIT
Pros: screens and functions similar to other garmins
Cons: cost
Great unit purchased two for backcountry travel with wife. She has picked up on use and function very quickly for a first time user.
Recommend? YES
167 viewers found this helpful.
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TinCupMan
Jackson, MI
Oct 26, 2009
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GOOD GPS BUT COULD BE IMPROVED
Pros: easier menu setup than my 60cs
Cons: can't hook it up to permanent power in a ram mount
Went trailriding in Michigan and the unit performed very well except for the range of the radio/position-marking feature. Could only communicate and mark positions with another Rino up to about a mile and a half apart in wooded terrain with a few small hills. Also, we mount the Rino to the quad in a RAM cradle and unlike my 60CS, you cannot connect to a power source like a cigarette lighter plug or even hard-wire it to the quad's battery. By not having this capability, you can't keep the screen lit for night riding. Wish Garmin and RAM would come up with a solution for this. Otherwise, as a GPS, it is top notch.
Recommend? YES
205 viewers found this helpful.
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Gummi Gisla
Iceland
Oct 22, 2009
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BEST ALL AROUND OUTDOOR GPS
Without a doubt, the best all-around GPS/Radio available. Extremely usefull features like the position of a friend etc
Recommend? YES
168 viewers found this helpful.
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hfd1
western colorado
Aug 20, 2009
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A STEP UP
Pros: brilliant screen, exceptional battery life, usb
Cons: battery charging system, clips
our fire district has purchased about 25 Rinos ( a few 120's and the rest 130's) for our firefighters. We use them on wildfires and swiftwater rescues. We decided to purchase a few 530HCX models because the extra range would allow us to send the location of lightning strikes further to our guys in the field, and we could relay waypoints to everyone if needed.
We let our firefighters use the Rinos for hikes and other outdoor activities so they can become familiar with it's use and features.
The 530 HCX is an improvement over the old 130's with a slightly better ease of use, a brilliant screen, and super good battery life.
Most of the product descriptions don't make it clear you have to buy a flash memory card in order to use the map feature. So I had to wait for the cards to arrive before being able to use the units.
USB loading of the maps is just a tad faster then the old serial cable.
The only con so far is the charging clip, it's a little clunky and subject to breakage and loss of parts unless you are careful.
Recommend? YES
198 viewers found this helpful.
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Old Gasser
Eastern Arizona
Jan 29, 2009
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TOPO MAP HAS BLANK SPOTS
Pros: feature rich with more than you will ever need.
Cons: large blank spots in topo maps
I bought the 530HCx because the display on my original 530 failed and I had to send it in for exchange. After paying $110 for exchange for a refurb I gave it to my Son because I had already purchased a new 530HCX. Many things about the HCx I like, particularly that I can equip it with a 2gb SD card and load the whole Western US topo map set with 60% of the card still free. I do, however, have issues with the TOPO maps. I have several blank spots which appear as cross hatched areas where no map detail of any kind is shown. One of these is just West of my home and measures 15 minutes high and 1 1/2 degrees wide. I have been corresponding with Garmin about this and I get the impression they are aware of it and it is a software problem. They had me upgrade my MapSource program and upgrade the HCx software. I then reformatted the SD card and reinstalled the Western US TOPO map set. No Joy. The blank spots are still there. It is not the TOPO map set because the maps appear with no blank spots on my desktop computer. I have spent several hours on this problem and am not a particularly happy camper. I hope Garmin finds a fix for this soon. Other than that, I very much like the HCx with it's large memory capacity and more sensetive GPS functions. The many features require frequent use in order to become familiar and there are many that I will seldom use. Also, you can get distracted by the GPS operation to the detriment of enjoying the outdoor experience. With the proper familiarity it will get you home and it will enable you to relocate sites such as downed big game. A great unit if I can get the mapping problem resolved.
Recommend? YES
246 viewers found this helpful.
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BYRON COLLMAN
Oct 12, 2008
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ANYONE LOOKING FOR AN EXCELLANT GPS WITH A RADIO YOU CANNOT GO WRONG WITH THE RINO. MY SON AND I BOTH HAVE THE 530s HE HAD HIS ON TWO TOURS IN IRAQ. THE LAST TOUR HE WAS IN A HUMVEE THAT HIT AN IED AND HE WAS BADLY WOUNDED. UP TILL THIS POINT HE USED THE RINO EVERY DAY IN THE FIELD. EVEN AFTER THE EXPLOSION THE RINO WORKED PERFECT.NOW HE USES IT FOR BIG GAME HUNTING. GARMIN KEEP MAKING YOUR EXCELLANT PRODUCTS.
PROUD DAD OF A WOUNDED U.S. ARMY SCOUT SNIPER BYRON
Recommend? YES
240 viewers found this helpful.
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