Joey916 wrote:
Good thread. I'm equally curious as to others opinions as well. GPS for
small craft is hard to decide. I was looking for a model similar to
what Gary is looking for, but also, portable, versatile and the ability
to upgrade and add on features.

I'm seriously considering the Garmin GPSMAP 276. I'm hearing a lot of
good things and the versatility is a big plus. Not to hijack the
thread, I'd like to know if others have opinions on this product or
other like it.

Not bad for the price either...
http://www.gpsdiscount.com/products/index.html?p=808

I got the 276C a couple of months ago, including the land/sea package of
charts on CD. (The optional maps & charts are currently free after
rebate from West Marine.) The charts for regions you select are
downloaded via USB from a PC. They look exactly like the NOAA charts,
with depths, buoys, etc. I selected this unit because its color screen
is a bit bigger than the cheaper units, which helps my old eyes. It
looks great to me and I'm real happy with it. (Impressed, actually.) The
manual is good and I was comfortable with operation after playing with
it at home a couple of hours. (This is my first GPS.)

I was going to install the boat mounting bracket and wiring, but it also
comes with a "bean bag" mount and built in rechargeable battery that are
working out just fine for me, so I'm not going to bother with the
permanent mount and wiring.

I was surprised and pleased that it also shows today's tides. Where
does it get that info!?