Garmin has announced a range of cutting edge new electronics to be launched at the Collins Stewart London Boat Show (January 11 to 20 at ExCel).
The GMI 10 is a NMEA 2000 and NMEA 0183 compliant marine instrument that provides at-a-glance data - information like speed, depth, weather, engine and fuel-related information.
The GMI 10 represents a fresh new approach to marine instrumentation, says Garmin: “It features an exceptionally bright and sharp sunlight-readable 3.5-inch diagonal full colour display that can be easily read from a distance. Its three 'soft' keys, and a dedicated 'back' button make it very easy to use, and the GMI 10's crisp industrial design matches the look of Garmin's newest line of multifunction displays.”
“Garmin has taken marine instrumentation and brought it into the 21st century with a large sunlight readable colour display, intuitive menu and simple plug-and-play configurability,” said Chris Boyle, Garmin's UK marine product manager.
The GMI 10 can be configured as one particular type of instrument (e.g. speed or depth) or can display a set of favourite customised pages at the press of a button. Most information can be shown as digits, analogue gauge or as a graph.
To interface with the GMI 10, Garmin is also introducing an array of Intelligent Transducers in both transom and through-hull configurations with a beam width of 15 degrees and a maximum depth of 600 feet. These Intelliducers can output both depth and water temperature data to the GMI 10 in either NMEA 2000 or NMEA 0183.
The GMI 10 will be available from February 2008 and the recommended retail price is £399.99 inc VAT.
Garmin is also launching a new line of big-screen multi-function displays (MFDs), designed for use in larger yachts and motorboats - the Touchscreen GPSmap 5015 and the GPSmap 4010.
“These new displays are versatile, powerful and stylish” said Chris Boyle. “Their vivid, big, and bright displays catch the eye, but they boast plenty of cutting-edge, market-leading innovations as well.”
The GPSMAP 5015 has a whopping 15-inch diagonal XGA (1024 x 768 pixel) sunlight readable touchscreen display. The touchscreen is said to make navigating menus easy because the 'virtual buttons' change depending on the function. It also eliminates the need for 'hard' buttons, so saving space and allowing you to fit a bigger screen at your helm. Garmin Touchscreen 5000 series displays are also available with 12-inch and 8-inch screens.
The GPSmap 4010 features a 10.4-inch diagonal SVGA (800 x 600 pixel) sunlight readable display with a conventional alphanumeric keypad and a row of soft keys for easy data input. Within this family, Garmin already offers the 4012 and 4008 12- and 8-inch products.
These new MFDs feature Garmin's new user interface that lets users intuitively see and select the information they want, while eliminating the clutter they don't - all with fewer button pushes, says the company: “All 2008 units also feature a stylish new design that compliments today's modern boats.”
Both of the new units are fully network compatible with the Garmin Marine Network, including other Garmin 4000 and 5000 displays, GPS, digital radar, autopilot, sonar, and other sensors. The 5015 and 4010 units have three built-in network ports, four NMEA 0183 inputs, two NMEA 0183 outputs, one NMEA 2000 port, two video inputs for onboard cameras, and one PC monitor video output.
The new displays come with a worldwide satellite imagery basemap to enhance the standard vector chart format. Garmin's optional BlueChart g2 Vision enhanced cartography - available on a pre-programmed SD card - offers a wide range of additional features.
In addition to high resolution satellite imagery, g2 Vision features true 3D 'Mariner's Eye View' above water or a 'Fish Eye' underwater perspective - both in three dimensions. The g2 Vision data card also enables auto guidance technology on compatible units - searching all the chart attributes to suggest the best navigational course to your destination.
For help in navigating harbours and channels - or locating marinas and resorts - g2 Vision cards offer a growing database of aerial reference photos. BlueChart g2 Vision capabilities are only available when the optional card is loaded in a compatible chartplotter.
The GPSmap 5015 (RRP £4,500 inc VAT) and GPSmap 4010 (RRP £1,800 inc VAT) will be available in March.
For more information visit www.garmin.co.uk
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