Customer Reviews

Garmin 010-00601-00 GPSMap 545 5-Inch Portable GPS Navigator

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I've owned Loran, and 3 Marine GPS's I considered this unit to be the most useful when it comes to boating in a new area. Here in GA many of the rivers leading to the ocean doesn't have a buoy system and many of the rivers are very shallow, so this unit was very useful for me and would recommend buying it. Jim Boyd

Last year I finally broke down and bought a used flats skiff to be kept in The Lower Florida Keys. With little navigation experience, I opted to buy The Garmin 545 S (the ione with Dual frequency transducer) and I also purchased The Florida Keys G2Vision card. Here are my thoughts:
Positive: The unit is small in size--perfect for a 16 foot flats boat. The GPS, chartplotter, Sonar and tracking functions all make navigating much, much easier. Another plus--with the addition of a Garmin XM antenna , one can subscribe to instant weather forecasts, including alarms when lighting approaches. Very cool.....
Negatives:
First: I purchased an early version of The Garmin. As such, I was always downloading software updates, each of which would fix a glitch or malfunction. While the unit and wiring purport to be totally waterproof, my experience has required lots of anti corrosives to regularly clean mounting contacts. Finally, the dual frequency transducer has not been totally reliable. As I understand it, Then newest 545's include a far more rugged--and reliable transducer.

All in all, I think the rough days with my Garmin are over! Updated software and transducer makes this an investment without which I will never leave the dock. The G2 Vision card stores great satellite overviews of coastal areas and further facilitates navigation.

Bottom line: it's small, easy to use and the XM weather function alone keeps me and my graphite fly rods away from dangerous Lower Keys lightening. I would buy another.