Garmin Rino 650...any good?

Too expensive for me. My Rino 530 cost me enough a few years ago that I will not upgrade till I have to. That being said the only shortcoming is the small screen size for map viewing. Back when I got my 530 cell phones did not have so many options. I use my 530 in conjunction with a 7.5 minute GPS program on my PCs. With a bit of practice you will be able to find places on the GPS maps ony your PC and using the Garmin find places to hunt on the first try.

Wher I hunt cell phone coverage is spotty so I have to use my 530 and also carry a cell. If yo have good coverage where you hunt a good cell with the appropriate apps might be a better choice.
 
Only buy the Rino 650 if you have other friends that are running Rino’s or plan on getting them. Otherwise you are paying for a feature that you won’t use (being the radio). My hunting buddies and I all run Rino’s and they are great for keeping track of each other within a reasonable distance that is dictated by terrain. One them does have a 650 the only thing that I have noticed is that it seems to require compass calibration every time you turn it on ( I do that anyways with my 530). Otherwise he does not seem to have a problem running the touch screen with lite gloves on.
 
I dont know if this is the case with the newer generation Rinos, but not all the models have an electronic compass. What that means is the unit detrmines what direction you need to walk (bearing) buy using the gps reciever so in order to do that you must be physically moving in order for it to tell you which direction to walk.... If you think about this its a real annoyance and can be a huge inconvenience in areas of poor satellite reception.

You have to read the package specs carefully, the units with an electronic compass will be clearly identified as such (much like anything made from titanium will proudly say so). If the package does not state it has an electronic compass.... It doesnt. The decieving thing is some of the more expensive models dont. If I recall correctly, its only the odd number series that have the electronic compass. Like I mentioned earlier I dont know if they addressed this issue in the newer generation Rinos, the ones with the digital camera.

Ive been using my old Rino 130 (with elec. compass) for years its been an excellent unit. Ive had 3 other friends that bought the more expensive 520 model and all have sold them due to it not having an electronic compass.

The ability to transmit your waypoint to another Rino is a huge benifit especially when hunting and you need help. Having a 2 way radio built into one gps unit is one less gadget to pack in the field.
 
We used Rino 530s when we did field mapping in my Geological Field Methods class and Structural Geology class. They worked really well to keep track of which groups were where in the field. The radios and the 'send location' were really handy, but as previously mentioned, only really good if you have buddies with similar features on their GPS units. They seem really easy to use after a small learning curve. I actually have a Rino on my 'want to buy' list.
 
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