avmap EKP IV impressions

Hi all

Just would like to hear who owns this gps his impressions about it, Display, easy of operation, etc...


Regards


Henrique

I have one, that I bought last year at Sun-N-Fun. I got bought it at the time for two reasons. The big beautiful display which could be view in portrait and landscape, and the fact that it came with an attachment to strap it to your thigh. (flying in an RV-4 limits where you mount a portable.)

Nothing is perfect however, and I've had issues with it's wanting to reboot itself and it used to crash a few times with the old software. The latest revision seems to have solved them. Ive also had the small knob break off because another person I let borrow it, man-handled it. To AvMap's defense however, they repaired it free of charge, and even updated the database with all the latest terrain and map software.

For me, the perfect match would be the AvMap EKP IV sized display with the Garmin's 496 features and reliability, not to mention I miss the Garmin logbook feature as well.

I was thinking of trading or selling it and giving up the nice big display to buy a 496. It's too bad they didn't up the screen size from the 396. Alas, I'm hoping AvMap comes out and provides an upgrade to add weather and music, then I'd probably keep it for sure.

me too...

Hi Dave,
I didn't realize you had one of those. I would love to see it sometime. I feel exactly the same way. I am tired of looking at these dinky little displays. An Avmap IV with wx would be THE hot setup for me. I would build a new panel for that setup......

John

Wicked Stick said:

For me, the perfect match would be the AvMap EKP IV sized display with the Garmin's 496 features and reliability, not to mention I miss the Garmin logbook feature as well.

.

Click to expand...

Amen. Ditto. With 'ya man. Count me in. Me too. ETC.

I have been wanting the same for a long time. At this time however, I would really like to see something like a dual screen "Advanced Flight Systems" installation that would accept the nav info from a Garmen or some other source-----Mountainscope being my personal favorite.

How 'bout it Rob??

Mike

EKP IV

I have had one for about a year and a half. The new software has cured the problems I originally experienced with it, and, as I use it, I like it more and more. I talked to C-Map the other day, and they said they are looking at adding weather. I have not used the 296/396/496, so I don't know how it compares. For the price, though ($1500) I think it would be hard to beat. The only real complaint I have is that the back battery cover is flimsy and comes off easily.

I had an AvMap EKP-IV for about 6 months. The display was beautiful and the size was just right. However, the only place it could go was on my knee as Dave has pointed out. It seemed to work out well enough except that I got tired of "wearing" most of my cockpit accessories (mp3 player, gps, charts), I didn't like having to look down to see the GPS, and plus I could not get used to their interface. I think it is a great unit though. If I could have found a way to mount it at panel height, I would have kept it.

Part of why I'm going to build an RV-7.

interface

thanks for the reply folks. Is the interface not easy to use inflight? changing flight planning, nearest airports, is it easy as to use garmin 296?

henrique

I don't think it's any more difficult than the garmin, just different. I'd say they were comparable as far as operating in bumpy air with maybe a slight edge going to the EKP-IV. Only because you are hanging onto the side of it and the buttons are on the edge so they are fairly easy to operate with your thumb. Garmin's cursor keys feel more stout than the EKP to me though. Garmin may have better customer support too. There is a EKP forum and there were some issues raised about customer service from Italy where the EKP is made.

There was a previous thread on this a few months back if you do a search with a few more replys.

svanarts said:

I don't think it's any more difficult than the garmin, just different. I'd say they were comparable as far as operating in bumpy air with maybe a slight edge going to the EKP-IV. Only because you are hanging onto the side of it and the buttons are on the edge so they are fairly easy to operate with your thumb. Garmin's cursor keys feel more stout than the EKP to me though. Garmin may have better customer support too. There is a EKP forum and there were some issues raised about customer service from Italy where the EKP is made.

Click to expand...

I guess one advantage I have over others, is that I live here on the Cape, so AvMap is only a 35 to 40 minute drive from Marion to Mashpee So any customer service for me is up close and personal, and like I said before, their service has been great for me.

The menu is different like others said, it just takes getting used to it. The one thing I wish they'd fix is to assign a different color to the mode c veil line so you can more easily distinquish it from the Bravo lines.

EKC IIIC

I have an older version of the EKC IV. I got it new at a very reasonable price ($600). The size of the display, good reviews by users, and the low price attracted me to the unit. I love it due to the nice size of the screen and readability of the screen. I mounted it on the forward right side of the instrument panel and devised a mounting method which hinges so I can swing it open to access a map case behind the unit. When the flight is over I simply extract the hinge pin and take the unit home where I can plug in my next flight plan the evening before my next flight. I also have it hooked into my EZ pilot autopilot which drives the airplane to all the flight plan waypoints. I would buy another one in a heart beat. I use my Garmin 295 as a backup but hardly ever look at the small screen. I have had no problems with the unit at all.

Joe Hart

EKP-IV database glitches

The EKP-IV has by far the nicest screen of any of the portable GPS units and I was looking forward to getting my hands on one at Oshkosh.

At the Avmap booth, the salesman was giving me a demo and offered to show me the approaches to my home airport. He punched in KSEE and the only approach shown was a GPS to 17, very much NOT the primary approach to Gillespie. The LOC-D 27 was not listed. The salesman's explanation was that the approach must have been decommissioned (yeah, right). I'd just come from SEE so I knew this was not the case but, just for fun, I went over to the Jeppesen tent and confirmed there was nothing going on with the LOC-D 27 at Gillespie.

I did not buy the unit, much as I like some of the features (especially the screen, of course). I'm still waiting to get an honest explanation from the company about why the approach is missing, since if a missing approach showed up with the first attempt, the big question in my mind is how many other approaches, navaids, fixes, airports, etc. are also missing?

Any EKP-IV users out there have any ideas as to why the unit will display the GPS 17 and not the LOC-D 27 at KSEE? I was hoping it was just a menu setting which perhaps selected only GPS approaches, or something like that, but someone who has one told me there is no such setting.

Any ideas anyone?

Thanks,

Mike

Isnt the more realistic comparison between the Avmap and the Lowrance AirMap 2000, not the Garman 396/496- based on cost, screen size, capabilities, support? Neither have WX yet...

Missing database items

Any EKP-IV users out there who have found missing items in the database? As I mentioned in the previous post, the unit lists the little-used GPS approach to SEE but does not list the primary approach, LOC-D 27.

My concern of course is that if it's missing this item, what else have these Italians left out?

The demo salesman at Oshkosh claimed the approach was "decomissioned" - which doesn't bode well for future customer support issues. He just made that up instead of looking into it.

EKP-IV owners, please respond.

Thanks,

Mike

MikeS

Nice name---------I like it-------a bit confusing, but I like it.

Mike

I was considering the EKP-IV as well but read too many scary stories of glitches and database problems so I bought a Lowrance 2000C instead. Had it 2 days and decided to sell it because of missing data in it too. (only one of 2 active runways shown at my home airport was the first clue). I also hated the convuluted programming. Went back to my favorite Skymap IIIC. Expensive but nothing is easier to use and I've never found database problems with my first one in four years.

I have panel mounted this GPS in two RV's now and the owners love them. Av-Map will have wx available in December. I find their support great, and they listen.

Avmap + Jeppesen = &%$#

I respondet to this isue ones before in an other thread. The data in my Avmap is not what you would expect of it. (huge towers missing, airfields that no longer exist still in the data, militairy airfileds marked as civil, ATZ-airspace missing, etc. etc.) (that is in the European version, I do not know about the USA version). I spoke to the "Jepp-rep" at Aero-Friedrichshafen in 2005 about this, who said it is down to Avmap and Avmap say it is down to crappy data from Jeppesen: Catch 22 !!

Lets put pressure on both, so they get theit act together !

Regards, PilotTonny.