Garmin 695/696 flight charts no longer expire

[MSFT-1]

I happened to see this on the Garmin web blog. I recall lots of people being unhappy with the sunset date functionality on the 696.

"The 3.20 software update for the GPSMAP 696 / 695 has one improvement that many 696 / 695 customers who use the FliteCharts database simply for a VFR reference have been asking for. The sunset date for the FliteCharts has been removed. What this means is that the electronic charts will remain useable in the unit even well after the expiration date. Now if you are using the unit as an electronic flight bag (EFB) you will still need to have a current chart database to use the unit as a replacement for paper; however, this is a benefit for those VFR pilots that simply use the charts for assistance in situational awareness."

SIAP.

[Ironflight]

That's pretty neat - Garmin is listening to it's customer base, and if they keep following that model, it can only be good news for all of us.

Paul

[WhiskeyMike]

Please excuse the thread drift, but has anyone seen or heard a recent update from Garmin regarding the addition of geo-referenced approach plates for the 695/696 by sometime this summer? Wondering if this welcomed enhancement was still on schedule...Thanks!

[Bob Axsom]

I sitting here with a stand alone GPS695 and I can't see an easy way for Garmin to change the the time driven elimination of chart access. There must be a software update involved.

If Garmin would geo reference the approach charts that would give this unit a major leap in functionallity - I would pay whatever it took to get it.

Bob Axsom

[Brantel]

Firmware updates are common with all the portable GPS's. You can download the files and update it yourself without having to send it back to them....

I updated my new Aera 510 the same day I got it...It was already a couple versions behind...

[newtech]

Originally Posted by Bob Axsom

I sitting here with a stand alone GPS695 and I can't see an easy way for Garmin to change the the time driven elimination of chart access. There must be a software update involved.

If Garmin would geo reference the approach charts that would give this unit a major leap in functionallity - I would pay whatever it took to get it.

Bob Axsom

It is a software update and there is supposed to be another update, coming this Summer, that gives the geo-referencing. My guess is around OshKosh time. If the GDU 375 would have been available when I bought my 696 I would have bought it.

Now if there was a way to get the SD Card accessible from the front of the panel it would be perfect. Always wanting more

[Louise Hose]

Originally Posted by MSFT-1

"The sunset date for the FliteCharts has been removed."

Man, that's good news. Thank you Garmin!

[ron sterba]

OK not sure what your all talking about but I have been playing with the idea of purchasing a 510 or 695 Garmin unit to place in my RV9A. So help me understand in layman terms what this means to a new buyer. GDU 375? Go Down Under like in Austrailia?

Ron in Oregon