Garmin RINO 530 HCx Arrives for Review
The newest Garmin RINO HCx units are soon to be in stores, and we are pretty happy to be able to review the Garmin RINO 530 HCx ahead of its launch. The unit continues Garmin's line of handheld GPS units with built in radios and the unique ability to "poll" other RINOs to see where they are in relation to you, displaying the results right on the map.
The new "HCx" units (Both the RINO 520 HCx and RINO 530HCx) are a pretty big step up from their older siblings; with FRS and GMRS radio capabilities for a 5 watt and claimed 14 mile range, as well as two things that will make the GPS functionality worlds better: 1) High sensitivity receiver, which will hold signals in the foliage a lot better, and 2) Micro SD card capability which makes storage of a TON of map data possible without revisiting your computer for frequent downloads.
I also got an older Garmin RINO 520 for comparison sake. The RINO 520 does not have the high sensitivity receiver. The units are a little bit bigger than I expected but have a pretty good little belt clip that was also on the Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx model too. It makes the unit easy to carry, snap in and out while moving with a quick thumb action. The RINO 530 HCx comes with a rechargable battery pack that I am a little curious about. There is an available alkaline battery adapter but right now I am charging the units and hoping that they last our two day hike in the mountains of NH.
We are heading up to the Mizpah Springs hut for an overnight, and plan on our groups taking a couple of different pathways, so it will be nice to be able to keep track of the other group while hiking up the mountain.
See our announcement post for more information on the Garmin RINO HCx line.
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Posted by Scott Martin at August 2, 2007 6:42 AM
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