My Garmin Chartplotter Selection Error

[Bizywk]

Just for clarification so no one else makes my mistake, we're planning our first JetBoater.net Bimini crossing this year and I wanted to be absolutely prepared, so we spent more money than we probably should have buying a 9" Garmin Echomap UHD 94SV with transducer on Black Friday.

We live in the Midwest, but I purchased the Bluechart G3 Costal model anyway because LakeVu maps were cheaper to buy after the fact, and I was told by another member that the stock Garmin Bluechart G3 costal map would reach out and include Bimini. Suprise! No it won't. Critical chart details stop a few NM offshore so I had to buy another chart card which drove my costs up even more. I could probably get by given that the stock map will probably be good enough to get us there and back, but we'd be without all the detailed local depth information and clarity for our scenic waypoints to help prevent getting into trouble with all the shallow water out there.

I really like this Garmin though. If I had to do it all over again, I certainly would have purchased the 93SV since I had to buy the added Bimini map anyway. It's the exact same unit with lakemaps pre-installed.

 

[fatboyroy]

I have a garmin too (743xsv) and im not sure if Bahamas is included in G3 Coastal (likely not if yours did not include it) where did you buy the chart? I found this but the price are outrageous, are there any other options for the Bimini chart?

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/c455-p2.html

 

[Bizywk]

That's a whole other problem, and again I'm not sure that I made the best choice.

I wanted to steer clear of cheap imitation or counterfeit so I went to Garmin's site directly and spent days pondering over the maps which overlap greatly and are very confusing if you're interested in a destination near the boundary because the visuals are often in a tiny graphic and intentionally devoid of detail if you try to magnify them - presumably to prevent screen caps I guess?? For example, I wasn't sure which of the following was the best way to go: 1. US, Jacksonville, FL to Bahamas Coastal for $449, 2. US, S. Florida and N. Bahamas Coastal for $349, or US, Jacksonville, FL to Key West for $349. Garmin

To compound matters, Garmin reportedly purchased and uses Navionics for their data but Navionics is still selling their branded products on their site and they appear to have slightly different boundaries, at a slightly better price. Marine and Lake Charts

I finally bought my chip from the GPS Store which is a licensed Garmin chart distributor and appears to sell their chart products, however they again have slightly different boundaries and sell for $75 less. Oh, and they come with free 2day air delivery too. GPS Maps & Software

I finally chose the Garmin Bluechart G3 Vision Southeast Florida Chart - VUS010R because the area was huge in comparison to the other offerings - in case we decide to go elsewhere in the future. I may know more when my order arrives tomorrow.

Another consideration - I bought the card instead of the download at no additional cost. You get the instant gratification by downloading and it reportedly doesn't require tying up your chartplotter chip port while in use, but downloads are copy protected and lock the chart to one single device. You can never re-sell the download later like you can with the chip and if you damage/lose your chartplotter, you have to buy the chart all over again.

There is a chart quality comparison video out there which I recommend if you're flummoxed like I was.

 

[fatboyroy]

I just checked mine and it’s pre-loaded entire bahamas area including bouy locations and markers. What a relief lol

 

[fatboyroy]

Yours probably pre-loaded with LakeVu since you are in the mid-west, if your dealer installed it they will pick the area around your location.

 

[Bizywk]

Mail order

 

[212s]

That sucks...don't know why they make it so hard to get maps - why not just east/west or something. I had a hard time deciding on a chartplotter to install and decided the Axiom sounded like my best option and it was about the same price as the similar Garmin model. It came with full Can/US maps too which was a bonus so I snapped it up when it went on sale in the fall. Another bonus was the full touch interface so it matches the Connext screen too...the wife likes things to look pretty and consistent.

 

[Bizywk]

I just checked mine and it’s pre-loaded entire bahamas area including bouy locations and markers. What a relief lol

I'm really glad that worked out for you.

With Fatboyroy's input and your screen caps showing detail that I know I don't have, I went back into the chartplotter to check. I know I didn't have LakeVu and confirmed it again. NONE of my local lakes show up and the sales literature explicitly said it was going to be the Bluechart G3 coastal chart, but after further investigation, I apparently have the Great Lakes & Canada charts. Ugh. Rediculous. Photo 1 below shows Bimini in relation to FL, and photo 2 shows the detail I get for Bimini with one more zoom-in increment. In the 3rd photo, you can see it extend well past the US boarder into Canada. I can't even find that specific chart set for sale on their sites.

Now I have to buy a LakeVu AND a Southern Florida/Bahamas card. Very disapointing for such an expensive investment.

 

[Julian]

I bought a knock off chart for my old Garmin and it worked fine on the old device, the new one let me use it for 1 year then disabled it.