Garmin 12 Spontaneous Deletions

[The Great Guide]

I've had a Garmin 12 for the last 4 years. I had about 200 GPS locations stored for several large lakes like Rainy, LOW, Lac Suel, etc. Recently I went to Canada for some ice fishing. We were going to the back country and I took my GPS along. I changed batteries prior to leaving home. When I arrived in Canada and turned on the Garmin a message appeared that said all the GPS point had been deleted. In the last four years I've carried this unit all over the country and on over 50 fishing trips. I changed the batteries many many times. I've connected it to my boats electrical system and used the power point in my truck. I have never had any problems with spontaneous deletions. The unit worked flawlessly on my recent Canadian trip and I even tried to make it delete waypoints by taking the batteries out. I've used it driving to and from work and cannot make it delete without using the menu. Fortunately I recorded all the waypoints on my maps that I wanted to save, but it will be a pain in the butt logging it all back in. Has anyone else had this happen?

Does anyone know why this happened?

And, BEWARE.

TGG

[sib]

Sorry for your headache, you were smart to back up your waypoints.

This isn't directly related to your topic, but it's something I've wondered about.

There are 2 sets of batteries in hand held gps, one for power(AA's) and one for storing memory that's supposed to last 10 years. We know that cold weather effects batteries performance, so what I wondered is how cold weather effects the memory battery. I mean if you leave your GPS in your car during the winter how will that effect, if any, the life of those memory batteries?

I was on LBDN last weekend and I was using my Megelan 315 to mark some good spots. One thing I did notice is that when my GPS was cold, it really slowed down the scrolling speed of the menu as I scrolled thru the letters to name the waypoint. I then put the GPS in an inside pocket and the next time I marked something it scrolled at normal speed thru the letter menu.

[JasonMN]

TGG,

I am not sure why that would happen but I know it sucks. I have had the same thing happen on my LMS350.

I have a Garmin GPSMAP76 with the PC interface cable. I would recommend getting the cable for your 12 (same cable works for both I think). It will make the re-entry of all your waypoints much easier because you can use a computer keyboard to enter them rather than tediously using the GPS. It will also allow you to have a permanent backup in case it happens again and will give you the ability to apply Garmin software updates to your GPS. I paid $18 for mine on Ebay. There is plenty of free software out there for simply uploading/downloading waypoints.
http://www.easygps.com is one of them.

I see one of the features in the software updates for your unit is "Enhanced unit battery life with Power Saver mode."

Garmin updates are available here:
http://www.garmin.com/support/download.html

HTH

Jason

[JasonMN]

Looks like you can pick up a cable for $10.95:
http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?MfcISAPICommand=GetResult&query=garmin+12+PC+cable&ht=1&st=2&SortProperty=MetaEndSort&BasicSearch=++

[Hookmaster]

Jason,

Have you used the software at easygps.com? I also have a GPSMAP76 and the PCX5 software that worked with my Garmin 38 doesn't work with the new unit. I've tried the fixes that Garmin has listed on their FAQ page but they don't work either. Garmin wants you to buy one of the Map Source CDs which all have the waypoint management software.

Do you have any of the Map Source CDs? I might buy one if they are worth it.

Formerly John in MN

[livebait]

does easygps allow lowrance users the same options?
have downloaded it but my x15 is not hre yet to try anything with it, and if it does not work then i do not want to start entering waypoints from my map.

thanks for the info this looks like a great place for gps users.

[JasonMN]

John,

I have used easygps with my gpsmap76 before and it worked great. It even has a function where you can pull up a online map for any of your waypoints. This is a nice feature for those unknown waypoints.

I do have a couple of the Mapsource CDs. Roads and Rec and Metroguide USA. These serve no fishing use but the road maps do blow away the base maps the 76map comes with. The waypoint/route/track management is great too. Is it worth the $$$$?? Questionable for me. If you use your unit for driving a lot it probably is.

HTH!

[JasonMN]

you can get the Mapsource CD's at wholesale prices here:
http://www.onlinemarine.com/cgi-local/SoftCart.exe/online_superstore/electronics/gps/gps.htm?L+scstore+rnjf6578ffe84fe8+1015208508

[wallytap]

I had my internal lithium battery go bad and it deleted all my waypoints.Write em' down.......

[JasonMN]

livebait,

The Easygps website says it supports Lowrance products but nothing about x15 specifically. I would assume it will work. Maybe someone with an X15 and a couple of spare minutes can download it and try it???

[RD]

I have had several Garmin GPS units. I have never lost any waypoints but I did get an message on my 12Map saying the internal battery was low. I had to send it back to Garmin who fixed it for nothing, even gave me a new cord that came with the unit. If you have not updated the software on your system, you might try that. On the Garmin web site, you can read what problems each version fixes. The upgrades are free and easy. I always back up my waypoints and routes on my computer. There is some good free software on the Web if you don't have the Mapsource software.

[Sunshine]

Make sure that if you order the hot spots map that it's version 4. They added alot of lakes recently. I would hate to see you buy an older version because it looked like a great price.

[Hookmaster]

I tried the Easy GPS software last night and it worked fine for the Garmin MAP76 and a Garmin 38. Much easier to use than the Garmin PCX5 software.

Formerly John in MN