PIREP Lowrance 600c

PIREP Lowrance 600c

The trip up the central valley (see PIREP SCK, posted earlier today)
was the first time I had occasion to make use of the Lowrance 600c I
bought a few months back.

It works. That's the good news. With the external antenna sitting on
the glare shield, it pretty much instantaneously locked onto some
satellites and never lost lock. It's much faster than the Garmin
handheld hiker's model (no aviation database) I also have used.

I don't think I got all that close to the advertised six hours from
the batteries. The first pair died after not much more than an hour
into the flight, though I don't have an accurate figure on how long I
used them before takeoff. However, after I replaced them on the ground
at SCK and used them for another three hours, the unit reports it
still has half charge left, so maybe it does get an honest six hours
per pair of AAs.

The screens are generally too cluttered and there are too many menus
with too small type to effectively make use of all the power it has.
Maybe if I had a dedicated electronics officer in the right seat it
would have worked better. As is, it seems to me that the only
practical way to use it is to set it on the ground and stick with
whatever destination and display is chosen there.

The display is all but invisible without the backlight on. Using the
backlight, of course, chews up the battery at a great rate. I left it
at the default setting of turning the light off after 30 seconds use.
It is usable that way, but not ideal.

And that's my general feeling about the unit. It's usable, but not
ideal. It's a lot of processing power and features for the buck. It
is, however, something of a compromise in cockpit utility.

The display is all but invisible without the backlight on. Using the
backlight, of course, chews up the battery at a great rate. I left it
at the default setting of turning the light off after 30 seconds use.
It is usable that way, but not ideal.

That's true with most GPS's, Lowrance especially. Our 2000c is the
same way -- without the backlight on, it's almost useless. Which is
why we have it plugged into ship's power at all times, and regard the
batteries as "emergency back-up" only.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

"xxx" wrote in message
oups.com...
PIREP Lowrance 600c

The screens are generally too cluttered and there are too many menus
with too small type to effectively make use of all the power it has.
Maybe if I had a dedicated electronics officer in the right seat it
would have worked better. As is, it seems to me that the only
practical way to use it is to set it on the ground and stick with
whatever destination and display is chosen there.

In the case of a sudden in-flight change of plans, you can always just use is
as a moving-map display and fly in the correct general direction towards any
destination you can see on the screen. It ain't perfect, but it still beats
trying to figure out a course from the sectional while you are trying to fly the
airplane.


The display is all but invisible without the backlight on. Using the
backlight, of course, chews up the battery at a great rate. I left it
at the default setting of turning the light off after 30 seconds use.
It is usable that way, but not ideal.

Wow! Is this true of all color displays? I fly behind the original
non-color Lowrance 500 and it has no such problem. The only time you might want
the backlight is at night. Perhaps I should cherish that old 500?

And that's my general feeling about the unit. It's usable, but not
ideal. It's a lot of processing power and features for the buck. It
is, however, something of a compromise in cockpit utility.

That is how I have always felt about my 500, but it is head and shoulders
better than anything I have ever had before.

As for battery life, use several sets of batteries from several different
lots before you make up your mind. I have learned the hard way, even a name
brand battery manufacturer will occasionally ship a bad lot. I have also found
that the "best by" dates printed on the batteries are often a fiction. The best
batteries are fresh batteries.

Vaughn

That's true with most GPS's, Lowrance especially. Our 2000c is the
same way -- without the backlight on, it's almost useless. Which is
why we have it plugged into ship's power at all times, and regard the
batteries as "emergency back-up" only.

Lowrance actually states that the battery is for emergency backup and
that it is not recommended as the primary power source.

Tony



Tony Roberts
PP-ASEL
VFR OTT
Night
Cessna 172H C-GICE