Garmin surprised me.

[Don]

And it was a pleasant surprise, too!

Last night I was updating the database on my Aera 510 and was having trouble getting to the $99 bundled update. It had a year of nav, obstacle, and terrain rather than a single update for $49 - that I bought last April...or thought I did.

I called tech support and the guy said the reason I couldn't find the option was because I still had 2 months left on my subscription. That surprised and disappointed me. If I knew I had the subscription! I would have used it - and I really didn't think I'd bought a subscription. Well, without even asking, the Garmin rep saw I hadn't used any db updates and heard my disappointment, and extended my subscription for another year at no cost. I didn't even ask - he just did it.

That was excellent customer service. Compared to the last time I dealt with Garmin it was a night and day difference. That time my Garmin 195 died one day out of warranty and it cost over $100 to fix. One freaking day. That time I felt serviced while this time I felt served. So kudos to Garmin.

[Mike S]

Originally Posted by Don

That time I felt serviced while this time I felt served.

And there is a difference

[BillFear]

I had a similar experience with my 696. They gave me more than I expected and I was thrilled! Surprised and thrilled.

[JonJay]

I have had good experiences. Their aviation division, at least for radio's, is located here in Salem Oregon. When the SL30 SB came out, I dropped it off to them and picked it back up in record time, two days I think. They met me at the reception counter and where very professional.

They are building a new building right now, next to the old one. We are going to be doing their lighting. Maybe I can figure out something in trade?

[Snowflake]

Count your blessings that you live in the US... In Canada, the *one time* database update is $149. If you want to be current, you pay that every 56 days. Highway robbery, I tell ya.

[Bill_H]

You are not being robbed by Garmin, its the very high cost the Canadian govt charges for the data. Dynon has a similar issue with them.

[Snowflake]

1. The Canadian government charges nothing for its data. It gave it for free to NavCanada, a private company that now gets to charge through the nose for the data.
2. There *are* other options. Skyvector.com generates their own data from freely available info. Jeppesen and others could do the same if they had half a mind to.

[Don]

Originally Posted by Snowflake

1. The Canadian government charges nothing for its data. It gave it for free to NavCanada, a private company that now gets to charge through the nose for the data.
2. There *are* other options. Skyvector.com generates their own data from freely available info. Jeppesen and others could do the same if they had half a mind to.

Good to know where I can get Canadian charts door free. I wondered why subscriptions for Canadian charts were so blasted expensive.

[vlittle]

Ottawa, Ontario, February 15, 2014.

Minister of Finance Jim Flaherty today announced that all road signs are to be removed from federally funded highways starting January 1, 2015. It is expected that this move will save over $75 million in annual maintenance costs, and is an important step in Canada achieving a balanced budget by 2015.

Control of federal highways will instead be transferred to Nav Canada, a private corporation that currently manages air traffic in Canada.

According to the Finance Minister, "Nav Canada will manage federal roads the same way it provides navigation information to pilots. It will provide map subscriptions to drivers who will be expected to use these charts to obtain critical information such as speed limits." Added Flaherty "We also expect this information to be made electronically on services such as OnStar, making it easier for drivers to keep up to date."

Parliament is expected to pass new legislation making it mandatory for all drivers to carry road charts when travelling on federal roads. Annual costs are expected to be under $1000 per driver. Penalties for not carrying these charts would include loss of vehicle insurance and possible criminal charges.

The federal government is also considering removing all marine navigation systems and transferring responsibility to Nav Canada starting in 2020. This will be part of a comprehensive review that will include an annual environmental tax on all vessels greater than 5 meters in length and all moorage facilities. This is expected to raise over $1 billion in revenue annually.

[Toobuilder]

Originally Posted by vlittle

...Parliament is expected to pass new legislation making it mandatory for all drivers to carry road charts when travelling on federal roads...

Brilliant. Because what we really need is more drivers focused on something inside the vehicle rather than looking where they are going.