Jonathan Sorger wrote in message ...
I'm debating a Lowrance Airmap 1000 (or possibly a 500) and am curious
to hear opinions of happy/sad pilots who own it...

Jonathan,
I bought the Airmap 1000 back in June (for something like $699)
based on good reviews and users' feedbacks (at rec.aviation.xxxx
newsgroups). The 5" display is very easy to see when flying. We
typically mount the Airmap on the copilot's yoke but slightly tilted
toward the pilot so both of us can see the screen. If it wasn't for
the obstruction database in the GPS, we would not have continued with
our long x-country flight last month (NY-MI-MN-IL-NY) when the ceiling
dropped down to 1200' at Eau Claire, WI (visibility was 10nm so
spotting those tall towers shown along the route was not a problem).
I have also used the GPS for land navigation. It does not give
turn-to-turn instruction but provides very detailed map down to street
level. Regarding battery usage, we use rechargeable AA NiMH batteries
(the charger & battery came with package - not sure whether all
dealers provide the same package). There is battery monitor feature
so you know when to change the batteries. I have not kept tracked of
battery usage but pretty sure a set of fully charged battery lasted at
least 10hrs. Since our GPS, MP3 player/voice recorder and Digital
camera all use AA batteries and SD flash memory cards, we keep a bunch
of spare batteries and cards in our flight bags for all of them.
Overall, we are very happy with our choice.