How Garmin's 696 Can Save Your Bacon

摘要

We have a love-hate relationship with cockpit gadgets. On one hand, we're strongly in favor of anything that simplifies aviating, navigating and communicating. On the other hand, we've too often seen people get caught up trying to make the gadget work while ignoring the airplane. In the end, we (and our wallets) always have yearned for some kind of inexpensive all-in-one magic box to simplify cockpit chores. Garmin's latest GPS portable, the GPSMAP 696, comes about as close as we've seen.rnIt's not perfect, it's definitely not cheap and it occupies a lot of space in what might be cramped quarters, but the sheer volume of features and the ease with which they can be accessed pretty much demand anyone shopping for a portable GPS navigator take a close look at the 696. Moreover, having one of these in the cockpit might save what otherwise could be a very bad day. Let's look at what those safety features are and how they work.