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Garmin Rino 120 Waterproof GPS / FRS / GMRS

Garmin Rino 120 Waterproof GPS / FRS / GMRS

List Price: $269.99
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Not too bad but has some issues.
Review: This unit works fairly well. I can tell you that the radio feature of it does not seem to work as well as a regular FRS radio. I was in a situation where I was standing right next to someone with a regular radio and they were picking people up that I could not hear. My communication abilities were not as good as the rest of our group. They were trying to talk to me several times and I never heard them. I am not sure if this radio just doesn't have the transmit strength of a regular FRS radio. I am also not sure if it possibly has a higher squelch threshold which would cause it to not hear as well as other radios.

Overall it is not a bad product. I will be interested to see version 2 of it. It think they will fix some of the minor issues that it has.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Amazing Power in a Small Package
Review: When I ordered this product, I read many reviews and tried to get a good background of the Rino 120 to see if the product was worth purchasing. I have had 2 other GPS units, and still have an older GPS III from Garmin and really like the capabilities of that unit. The changes that have happened since purchasing the GPS III are truly amazing. The 120 is packed with so much stuff that I find out new things about it frequently. The greatest benefits (in my opinion) are having a gps and radio incorperated into one unit (less to carry). The Position Reporting is also a HUGE new deal. One can see all sorts of potential uses for Position Reporting - from military operations , to seach and rescue, to rounding up the kids on a camping trip. Other features include the moving map, an alarm clock, calender, and other little trinkets
After the initial position fix, satellite aquisition is much quicker than the old GPS III. Between SA being switched off and the new WAAS system, I have achieved accuracy (based on what the unit says, of course) of 7 feet.
Light and compact, battery usage is not as bad as I had figured, still on first set and my existing headset (motorola frs radios) works fine with this unit.
The only downsides to this unit are you have to watch Garmin's software update page for changes, I have owned the unit a month or two and have already done two updates, mind you the updates are free and the 120 comes with the data cable, while I think the 110 does not. The other thing I noticed is that the factory loaded basemap is somewhat crude - roads have been "straightened out" to make the map simplier - not really a surprise though from what I have seen with gps's and maping software.
Overall I think that the 120 is a fantastic new tool, with great new features. While pricey for a frs radio, it is fairly cheap for a maping GPS and (in my opinion again) a great price for a unit with both a radio and gps.


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