Garmin Colorado 400t Handheld GPS Unit with U.S. Topographic Preloaded Maps
- High Sensitivity, WAAS-Enabled GPS Receiver
- Features A 2.55-InchH X 1.53-InchW, Transflective Color Tft Display With 240 X 400 Pixel Resolution
- Features Built-In Worldwide Basemap With Shaded Relief
- Wireless Sharing Of User Tracks, Waypoints, Routes & Geocaches Between Units
- 5 User Profiles – Automotive, Marine, Recreation, Fitness Or Geocache
Product DescriptionWith the state-of-the-art 3D elevation perspective and preloaded topographic map data of the U. S. , the rugged Colorado 400t is the perfect companion for your outdoor adventures. It gives you all the tools you need for serious climbing, hiking or hunting. Amazon. com Product Description–January 21, 2008Amazon. com Product Description–January 21, 2008 This rugged, advanced handheld is packed with detailed topographicmaps for all your hiking adventures not to. . . More >>
Garmin Colorado 400t Handheld GPS Unit with U.S. Topographic Preloaded Maps
Awesome GPS. Be sure to buy the world map from Garmin, really increases functionality of this GPS if you go outside of America.
Rating: 5 / 5
Edited: Downgraded from 3 to 1 stars
Edited: Want to return item and can’t
Edited: Trying to save my money by getting this to work
I slightly hacked it and created a theme that was slightly more readable ( I tried solid white and black themes. I guess next I will hack more seriously? ). The display is still inferior.
In the Bay Area, the maps where I am are always off about 500′!! I checked with a 60CSX and it was off too. ( The Garmin StreetPilots are dead on. The unit is reading the correct lat/lon, it turns out, it is just that the maps are worthless. I put the lat/lon in the google satellite map and it practically showed which room I was in. This is what you would expect based on the current achievable GPS accuracy. As I said, the problems are the maps. I have seen map problems in all Garmin products. In some areas, as much as 1/4 to almost 1/2 mile. I suspect that there are systematic bugs in the algorithms but I haven’t studies this too much. ).
Since these units are buggy, you will have to eventually update the software. Read Garmin’s disclaimer – Ie updates are at your own risk and, if there are problems, YOU PAY. Look at their flat rate repair charges for this unit )
Since I couldn’t return it, I tried to make it halfway usable. Why should I have to do what Garmin isn’t.
BTW, google this model and you will see that other reviews are equally negative. I try to be honest, unlike the people who are paid to post glowing reviews or who are paid to place good reviews on seller’s websites, or the magazines who contain Garmin advertisements.
Note that this unit apparently has major power problems ( from other reviews, too ). If you read the manual or look on Garmin’s website you will see that you have to take steps to preserve power. Probably as the software is bloated.
To me, it seems that this unit takes much longer to acquire satellites than does the normally speedy 60CSX. I have noticed this a lot of times. The 60CSX acquires satellites easily indoors, the Colorado, much less so. I don’t know if it is the GPS chip or the smaller antennna ( You see a similar problem with the Garmin Edge 305, etc. They work well outside on a bicycle but NOT inside a car. This is probably because of the small antenna in the Edge or maybe they use a different chip. I was too lazy to ride by bicycle to map a route so I put the edge in my truck. It didn’t work. )
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This unit is GROSSLY defective; as noted it reads off by ONE BLOCK. Display is almost unreadable. I decided to return this lemon and I can’t as it was purchased from one of amazon’s partners.
RIPPED OFF. RIPPED OFF. RIPPED OFF
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Are you going to spend $500+ for a unit that is almost unusable? With all the “good” reviews, apparently yes.
This unit is just plain no good
1) The display is eminently unreadable, I mean UNREADABLE. Inside you have to turn on the backlight to a battery draining HIGH; outside you have to carefully orient it so you can SEE anything. Garmin obviously doesn’t use it’s own products because this one is UNUSABLE. Either I am hopelessly colorblind ( or just plain blind ? ) or the displays are an unsable low contrast. Garmin manages to chose schemes/displays that aren’t usable. DON’T BE DECEIVED BY THE PICTURES ON THIS SITE ( they don’t look that way in reality because the ones on this site are being displayed on a backlit monitor )
2) I have done several full resets now; right now the accuracy is ca 20′ and YET it has me located a FULL BLOCK AWAY from where I am. You figure.
3) I loaded the pdf documentation on my computer and looked at it with adobe acrobat ( not the worthless Mac Preview ) trying to find needed information. Can’t find it there are on the garmin website.
4) When you look at the satellite display ( which you have to search for on the unit ), again, the color/contrast is trash. Garmin, every hear of green ( good ), yellow ( in acquisition process ) and red ( not yet acquiring as SNR is too low )? Obviously NOT. What a bunch of jokers. They apparently outsourced intelligence and good design, to boot.
COMMENT: it is up to you whether you want to waste time trying to get something to work that does NOT work. Remember, you just threw away $500+ for a PREMIUM unit? Garmin blew it, big time. I mean BIG TIME. Buy a Garmin GPS 60CSX and get something that is actually usable ( for garmin, at least. at least the screen is readable )
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I own at least a dozen garmin units, although this is the first Colorado 400T that I own, so I am reasonably familiar with garmin gps units. ( StreetPilot, 60CSX, 76CSX, Edge and this Colorado )
This is a very handsome, solid feeling unit. It is built like a brick sh-thouse. To me it feels quite heavy although the manual says only 5. 9oz w/o batteries.
Upon receipt, after initial testing, I thought that the unit was defective – the display was all but unreadable ( very low contrast; you have to turn on the backlight and turn it on higher to read it; this quickly discharges the battery ) and the displayed elevation was off by 1000′ !!! Also, the backlight intensity has to be readjusted every time you turn the unit on – a pain. I didn’t see anything about saving the intensity setting. Also, the unit takes about 30 seconds from pushing the power button until anything is displayed. This is true even with a warm start where you turn the unit off and then immediatel on. ( apparently there is a lot of overhead due to initializing the maps, etc. )
After trying to get it behaving properly ( and failing in that endeavor ), I wanted to reset the unit to factory default ( figuring that I had configured myself into a hole ). Naturally, as others have commented, the manual is useless. I mean USELESS. You have to read the whole thing.
Others have commented on the substandard, inferior display. Garmin goes out of its’ way, in this unit as well as others, to chose or allow color schemes that are low contrast and all but unreadable. ( it is hard to believe that they use their own units. possible, the engineer in charge of human factors WAS using one of these units and he never made it to work? that bad ). HIGH CONTRAST, READABILITY. HIGH CONTRAST, READABILITY! Hear that you Kansas schmucks? It may be possible to install your own jpeg background but, from what other reviewers have said, this doesn’t work?
The elevation was off because the altimeter needed to be calibrated. Bad human factors, to say the least. Really bad; how many beginners are going to do this?
The manual is typical garmin – more omissions than inclusions. More of an outline than a manual.
Not a whole lot of blinking, which is good for people like me who have seizures when exposed to any blinking ( apparently only on the “satellite” page )
Conclusions:
1) This is a premiliminary review; 50-50 whether I return it? DECIDED TO RETURN IT AND CAN’T
2) Someone said that you have to back up the internal maps? If so, typical garmin cheap, cheap, cheap. They ought to supply a backup on a CD. CHEAP!
3) If you already have a 60xxx or a 76xxx ( I have both ), you may want to either wait to see if garmin cleans up it’s act ( not likely based on my years of experience ), or pass?
As I said, “not close, and definitely no cigar”
Rating: 3 / 5
It has things I don’t need but I am really enjoying it. I use it to track my walking.
Rating: 4 / 5
I have a Garmin Vista. It goes 24 hours per battery set. This thing needs a set of batteries per day in the field. As you still need a paper map, I returned it.
Rating: 3 / 5
I have to consider this unit along with the 300 model. The 400t is basically just the 300 with 10 times the memory at 4GB AND the 2008 Topo loaded. If you own the 2008 Topo already, you can just go buy a 4GB SD card and it would be the equivalent of the 400t.
Rating: 5 / 5