21.5.2011

I've had some experience with the older GPS 76 and found it very hard to see in bright sunlight out on the water.So, I was a bit nervous in ordering the GPS 78sc without being able to kick the tires. It arrived yesterday and I've spent about 6 hours total getting used to it. There were several concerns that I, at first, felt like I had bought a pig in a poke -- BUT, after a couple of phone calls talking to the Garmin technical people, all my issues were resolved.This device is simply incredible with its accuracy and features for such a small package. I rely heavily on the MOB (man overboard) screen for use in setting upwind marks at specific bearings and distances from the committee boat in Race Committee work for Offshore classes.The color screen is very easily seen in the brightest conditions. The track log and reciprocal bearing back to the committee boat are highlighted in different colors and make for a superb display.One of the reasons the color screen is so good (and they don't mention it anywhere) is that the lense window is polarized. I stumbled onto that by accident today on a hike while wearing my polarized sunglasses. I noticed that when turning the device at a right angle the image suddenly disappeared. That only happens when you are viewing a polarized lense from another polarized lense.Now that I am familiar with the 78sc, my ONLY complaint is that the on-line Operation Manual is woefully inadequate for anything other than a basic introduction. However, all of your technical questions (and I am sure you will have some0 will be answered by their Customer Service department. Unlike many other companies, you won't have to wait more than a minute or so before getting through to a tech specialist. Pretty impressive.Let me give you an example of how the Operation Manual suffers. Nothing in the on-line literature advertising the 78sc explains the setup capabilities of the compass feature. It is factory set to show a compass rose instead of degrees. I have a real need for this to be in degrees, and yet after playing with the device for over an hour, I could not locate any menu item that would allow me to change the display. I was quite disappointed in my purchase at this stage -- however, my first call to their tech people got me oriented in how to use the menu drop-down sub categories to find where I could make the setup change.My next issue was that I consistently found the compass bearing was always 10 degrees off from measurements made with my hand-bearing compass. I must have performed the compass calibration in the 78sc a dozen times -- all to know avail. Unbeknownst to me, the factory default for the compass feature is for TRUE north instead of Magnetic north. In my region of the country, eastern Virginia, the angular difference between true north and magnetic north (known as the declination) is ---- Ding ding --- 10 degrees. I stumbled on this by again calling the tech support and was led to the menu item where I could switch from True North to Magnetic North. The devices is now dead on with my hand-bearing compass.I also will be using this for my hiking adventures and purchased the Topo 24 -- Mid-Atlantic sw to provide topographic detail. This along with the built-in altimeter make this a powerful tool to have in your backpack.Having owned this for only two days, I obviously cannot speak to the reliability of the device over long term exposure to saltwater, etc. I had read a few negative reviews from purchasers on this issue on several other websites. But, I intend to keep such exposure to a minimum (i.e., not leave the device on-board), so I do not think this will be a problem for me.UPDATEI spent most of the day yesterday out in the bay doing mark boat duties for our Race Committee. The 78sc performed flawlessly and the accuracy of the MOB feature (pinging on the committee boat) was amazing. As the committee boat stayed put the whole day, I only had to ping it once and from then on I had accurate bearings and distances for setting and moving the upwind marks and the pin end of the starting line.I set the device on the top of the dash in the center console and it never budged, even in choppy waters, thanks to the rubber backing on the GPS.The coastal chart info is also detailed and accurate.I honestly cannot think of anything I would do to improve this device. If you have a need for it -- don't hesitate, buy it.

29.5.2014

At first thought, it's tough going to a small handheld GPS after the marvels of google maps, on multiple google devices, all happily embedded in the google ecosystem ... until you're out of network range, need detailed marine maps, and need them on a device that will take some abuse, including routine submersions. Then all of a sudden this clunky thing seems a whole lot more attractive. The screen is small ... very small ... but you know that if you're buying this device, and like me, you probably want this for some quite specialized applications (kayaking, paddleboarding, or other minimalist open water adventures that won't involve a relatively dry deck and a proper chartplotter).

27.2.2015

I have been using this about about 200 days a year in the field since I got it several years ago. I put a screen protector on it, and change it out once or twice a year. I use this all day everyday for field biology work, navigating 2.4km transects, marking data points, etc. It took some getting used to Basecamp, and I still use Mapsource for some stuff to work with files, but the Garmin software is WAAAY easier than the deLorme stuff. I got a Delorme Earthmate PN-60w for a backup/replacement when my old Garmin 76 got run over, and I found the PN60much to difficult to figure out, and the software was crazy. I got both because fo the ability to download satellite imagery to them.

19.12.2013

I chose this "marine" GPS for use on my motorcycle over the 62 because it has the robust 4-pin power connector. The buttons on top aren't terrible - but not ideal either.The unit is quite accurate, even in deep canyons and with thick canopy overhead, I've never had it not know where I am. The screen is clear and quite readable even in bright light. It takes the beating of handlebar mounted desert riding very well. I've crashed on it pretty hard and had it fly out of the RAM mount to find it 15 feet away.I like the power options - being able to grab it off the bike and take it hiking is great - also nice peace of mind that I'll have a GPS if I have to leave the bike due to malfunction.

30.11.2017

First, this is a pretty good instrument, and the fact it doesn't have the latest and greatest techno-gadgetry incorporated doesn't bother me one wit. My biggest grumble is that the instructions are abysmal and seem to presume that most folks buying the 78sc will be stepping down from a full-feature chart platter rather than buying it as their primary instrument. The online/YouTube instructions aren't any better and seem to assume that folks are spending time in hiking boots rather than deck-shoes -- other than noting the included nautical charts, the writers seem largely ignorant of marine principles. Fortunately I've used a no-frills Garmin 72h with paper charts for sailing for over a decade (and trust it implicitly)

3.6.2015

I've owned the 76s and the 60csx. The first thing I noticed with the 78 is the lack of a decent manual, even online. Thankfully, most of it can be figured out. The triaxial compass makes a real nice difference compared to the 76. The case seals on this unit definitely don't seem as durable as the 76 and I think that's likely the issue many people are having with leaking. I don't like that there are exposed screw heads too....salt water is going to have a field day...they aren't even galvanized. The screen is the same as the other two...it's decent and I do expect the same good battery performance. The sat pickup is very quick which is nice. So far so good but I do suspect that there will be problems with the battery seal door,

26.7.2011

This unit replaced my Magellan GPS 3000 which had replace an older Loran C unit. The older unit was not a Chartplotter and had great difficulty in acquiring satellites when on shore. The 78SC acquires satellites within seconds of turning it on as long as you are outdoors. Although it did a pretty good job acquiring them even indoors most of the time.It is nice to have a Chart to give you a visual of the area you are in. I always was concerned that the older unit I had would guide me right into a breakwall in poor visual conditions, if I didn't have an old route map to rely on. The built in map is sufficient for my purposes as I only need to rely on it for fishing purposes on Lake Erie which is part of the coastal maps included.

7.8.2016

For the price it is a decent GPS, even though it is somewhat antiquated.I have been waiting for the price to go down to purchase this hand held GPS unit to use with my personal watercraft riding in FL. For me, it didn't make much sense to hook up a larger "boat" GPS that would be tied into the PWC with wires.A big plus is that this model does have a bunch of custom mounts, which for me that is awesome! I could easily swap it in and out without any fuss. It is a handheld unit after all.Pros:-GPS catches on acceptably quick-Easy to hold in hand-Easy to store when on a personal water craft-Easy to view in direct sunlight-Very good battery life-Waterproof!-Love the maps.

26.3.2013

I read the reviews before purchase and must say that I do not agree with the grouse regarding operating the device. OK it is not all intuitive but the instructions are clear and easy to follow. One just needs to learn a few commands to handle everything. I am not planning to test it in water as I do not regard it as waterproof but nice to know just in case. I would like a longer strap so that I can wear it around the neck and maybe tuck it inside a waterproof. If you would like depth reading, you would need to wire it to a transponder. A bit pointless, one might as well have a dedicated instrument. What it does do it does very well. It even has a timer if you are starting a race.

16.9.2013

I own a very old (10+) Garmin 76, but after a few drops too many or old age, it's having a hard time locking onto the GPS satellites. A friend I often sail with has Garmin's 78 model, and to keep my learning curve low, and being the only floating GPS I know of, it was a no-brainer.I am disappointed that modern features like a USB port to charge and share data, or Bluetooth are missing from the Garmin 78. Also, the maps are bare basic, so budget to buy Garmin's expensive maps for your activity & to be nickel and dimed on accessories like cables. We are in the 21st Century, and now have amazing and inexpensive navigation tools, which can talk to each other.

29.6.2010

I was in the market for a new GPS and came across this model while doing some research on the web. Although the Garmin GPSMAP 76 was available at very good prices, I decided to opt for the newer GPSMAP 78 model. I this will be only the third GPS I have owned in the past 15 years, so I wanted the very latest generation. The GPSMAP 78 has a very good feature set. It acquires a location very quickly after powering up. I was able to transfer waypoints to the unit when connected to my PC by using Google Earth. Very slick and easy! The only downside so far it the unit has lots of options and setup features. I'm still trying to remember them, but it's getting easier.

16.10.2012

I bought this product then added the English Channel sailing map from the Garmin site and I've used the map for various sailing trips in the Solent. I've had no problems with getting a GPS signal and the map has been very accurate. (Lots of other maps are available e.g. for walking.)One or two items on the 78S have been tricky to find in the menu system. I asked for help at the Garmin stand at the boat show and it took three people before getting an answer. Basically even though the screen only shows one option, which is selected by pressing Enter, on some screens pressing Menu can give more options. Simple, but not that obvious when using the 78S.All in all,

17.9.2017

Very nice, a lot of function for the money. I spent 6 weeks sailing the Bahamas (Spring and compared the chart quality of this unit to an large chartplotter mounted on my boat and an IPAD loading with the latest Garmin and Navionics charts. The charts on this little handheld were the most accurate! This unit showed individual coral heads correctly. Amazing. Depth contours were more accurate than the others and when we had to navigate through shoal passages, I relied on this Garmin handhold, it was spot on.I used it in my dinghy and it got wet occasionally. One time I noted the back cover wasn't sealed properly, check it carefully. I ended up with a little fogging in the LCD once in a while but it worked great.

29.5.2015

I was using previously one of the older model of this type with black and white screen. When looking for another unit years later it was really easy to make up my mind. Decided to take this as versatile device that would be good both on water and on hike in bad weather. Battery life is great and with my usage patterns they last really long time - three fishing/hiking weekends easy. Unit has great functionality and everything I need is packed there. However as the years go by - one may wish for a bit better display, but that is mostly due to my poor eyesight. I would recommend this unit regardless of the fact that smartphones these days offer perhaps better mapping services,

2.3.2014

I use one of these units pretty extensively at work for backcountry navigation. The barometer and waterproofing come in quite handy even on land for detecting and dealing with foul weather. Garmin's basemap for land navigation sucks, but topo maps are readily available for download. I got mine free from a non-Garmin website. I outfitted my unit with a 32GB micro-SD card to boost the memory capacity. So far, topographic info for the entire US, Puerto Rico, and most of Canada takes up about 8GB, so you can fit a LOT of information into one of these things if you feel the need to.I've never used any of the marine features or optional Garmin map products, so I'll let someone else speak to those.

Garmin GPSMAP 78 - Reviews

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