Product Description

Whether you're exploring new coastline or cruising your favorite bay, BlueChart Americas v7 contains the most detailed marine cartography around. These electronic nautical maps give you peace of mind when navigating offshore. Version 7 additions include rigs and artificial reefs for the East Coast and the Gulf of Mexico.

Main Features

Note: These functions of this product work with nearly all Garmin GPS units, excluding the GPS 100 family and panel mount aviation units.

Product Details

• Brand: Garmin
• Model: 010-10317-00
• Dimensions: 2.00" h x 8.00" w x 8.00" l, .65 pounds

Features

• Interactive viewing of detailed nautical chart data
• Features include shading between depth contours, spot soundings, navaids, port plans, wrecks, obstructions, inter-tidal zones, and more
• Cursor movements over the chart provide descriptions for contour depths, chart number, navaid name, and more
• Includes information from the paper chart used in the digitization process such as chart number, name, scale, revision date, and Notice-to-Mariners date
• See product description for compatibility information

Amazon.com Product Description
Garmin's exclusive line of BlueChart marine cartography products is designed to provide interactive viewing of detailed nautical chart data. These detailed electronic nautical charts look just like paper charts when displayed on your Garmin chart plotter. Descriptive details for features typically found on nautical charts can easily be viewed with a simple key press. Cursor movements over the chart provide descriptions for contour depths, chart number, navaid name, and much more.

BlueChart data includes shaded depth contours, intertidal zones, spot soundings, wrecks, navaids, port plans, restricted areas, cable areas, anchorages, and more. Additionally, BlueCharts include information from the paper chart used in the digitization process, such as chart number, name, scale, revision date, and Notice-to-Mariners date.

Three MapSource BlueChart CD-ROMs are available: Americas, Atlantic, and Pacific. The Atlantic CD-ROM covers Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. One CD-ROM contains BlueChart data for an entire region. MapSource BlueChart is a Microsoft Windows-based program that uses Garmin Unlock technology, allowing you to use one coverage area from the CD-ROM when initially purchased and to purchase additional coverage areas. Internet access is recommended for the unlock process.

Compatible products include these Garmin marine chart plotters: GPSMAP 176, GPSMAP 176C, GPSMAP 182, GPSMAP 188 Sounder, GPSMAP 232, GPSMAP 238 Sounder, GPSMAP 2006, and the GPSMAP 2010. BlueChart CD-ROMs are also compatible with Garmin GPS receivers that accept map data, including the GPSMAP 76, eTrex Vista, and eTrex Legend.

Customer Reviews

The Good and Bad
The BlueChart Maps provide plenty of detail and are fairly simple to read on your device. The programs are also fairly simple to load on your PC, unlock and upload onto your Garmin device. There is one major flaw to this software...when you buy the CD you can only unlock one very small portion of the maps, if you want to unlock additional maps on your CD you need to purchase an unlock certificate for each region you wish to unlock. IMO if you buy the CD you should be able to access and use the ENTIRE CD. Just another way to rip off the consumer!

What a ripoff!
There aren't many choices for nautical chart software for the Garmin 76cx so I sprung for the Bluechart Americas package expecting it would cover at least a few of the 10,000 lakes up here in Minnesota. Well, they did manage to cover Superior and even Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake, but they missed a little something called the Mississippi River (at least the northern half) and the other 9,997 lakes. What's unbelievable is the unlock process. Holy cow! I can choose to unlock the Rainy Lake area for the $100+ I spent for this package but if I want Lake Superior it's another $100+!! Wow, I wasn't expecting that I would get all of the Caribbean or Lake Titicaca (Peru) for the initial price but I certainly expected they would include the only two lakes covered in Minnesota for the same price. What a colossal rip off! It's pretty rare to find blatant examples of unfair business practices in this day and age but I think this falls in that category. Incredible!

Garmin Support is AWFUL
Six weeks now and I still don't have this GPS running. Wait 45 minutes for tech support to get on phone, then they have to hand you off to someone else which means another 45 minute wait. Their instructions and web site are not intuitive and are very unclear. A friend who is a software designer can't figure this convoluted mess out. The best help is through others who have struggled with this and posted remarks and solutions on the internet. I would not recommend Bluechart Americas to anyone. This was supposed to help me navigate in my kayak, but it is giving me ulcers. This is a good stock (GRMN) to short. It just has to go down.