After a very successful experiment called “Colorado” and the subsequent continuation of the line represented by the Oregon project, Garmin presented to the GPS enthusiasts a new portable gadget - GARMIN Dakota 20. A tourist navigator is an integral part of travelers and ordinary fans of outdoor activities. nature, to do without which in some cases is extremely difficult.
The choice of the optimal and really necessary gadget for a trip sometimes turns into a lottery - you're lucky, not lucky, so let's try to consider the new product from all sides, taking into account the opinions of experienced specialists and reviews of ordinary owners of the device.
Equipment
The box, where the GARMIN Dakota 20 navigator is conveniently located, is surprising in its small size. Nevertheless, the following things fit perfectly inside:
- the device itself;
- long and pleasant to the touch lace;
- a disk with a manual for the gadget;
- instructions in book form in Russian and another five languages;
- USB adapter for connecting the navigator to a computer;
- warranty card and booklets with advertising and somewhere useful information.
Glamorous and stylish carabiner, as in the case of the Colorado and Oregon, alas, no. There is also no additional software on disk or on micro-SD like cards and other useful programs. But, in any case, the internal memory is present (850 MB) and for the correct operation we “pump” GARMIN Dakota 20 cards. User reviews are approximately the same in their opinion regarding the navigation applications used - these are “Roads of Russia. RF TOPO 6.32 ".
Appearance
The new Dakota, compared to the previous generation Oregon, looks like a sort of little sister. The weight of the device was significantly reduced, but this did not affect ergonomics for the worse - the gadget lies perfectly in both male and female hands, and experienced hikers and amateurs of tourist navigators of the eTrex series will see a serious competitor: the dimensions of the GARMIN Dakota 20 are almost identical to " eTrex. "
The touch display occupies almost the entire front of the navigator, and on the side, somewhere under the thumb of the right hand, only one button is conveniently located. It performs several functional actions: turning the device on or off, as well as changing the backlight level of the device or capturing the screen (whichever is configured). Judging by user reviews, many people liked this minimalism - do not get confused in the numerous buttons with inscriptions in a foreign language, or even without them.
The selection of gamma is quite sensible, and the gadget looks discreet and somewhere even elegant - perhaps because of the stylish strip that runs along the entire perimeter of the device and has a copper-metallic shade.
Design and ergonomics
Judging by the tactile sensations, the black plastic of which the GARMIN Dakota 20 GPS is made has a rubberized base, due to this, the device does not slip in either the hand or on a damp surface, which is very convenient.
The gray plastic that frames the screen looks solid and tough, protecting the device from all kinds of scratches and damage. In addition , the device’s touchscreen is additionally protected by high sides, which helps protect the screen in the “face down” position. At the same time, the USB port also has protection, equipped with a severe-looking rubber plug that cannot be separated from the case, so you won’t lose it.
At the bottom of the GARMIN Dakota 20 is a mount for a special strap. This is one of the most important elements of the device, a kind of insurance against falling to the ground, into water, snow or somewhere else. The size of the mount itself has increased slightly compared to models of previous generations and, if desired, the gadget can be attached not to the cord included with the device, but, for example, to a narrow sling. In any case, on the navigator’s lid you will always find slots for the firm mount from Garmin with a snap hook.
In order to isolate the device from water, an elastic band around the perimeter of the battery compartment is provided on the case, and a removable cover with a plastic side is already pressed against it. Under the battery is a standard micro-SD slot that can “eat” almost all card formats, up to the last class SD HC.
GARMIN Dakota 20 screen
The review, of course, cannot do without comparison with the previous generation of Oregon series navigators. The last navigator, of course, wins in screen size and resolution - the picture is smoother and more understandable, and there are more different types of data. But this is not a reason to rank the new gadget among poor relatives. You can work with the menu, compass or maps quite comfortably on the GARMIN Dakota 20.
Firmware from the manufacturer, and variable from interested lovers, will help to slightly improve the display of the interface and individual details of the menu, maps and the same compass, so the device’s functionality and the perception of data from the navigator remains approximately at the average level. In any case, the ergonomics of the screen remained at their best, and there were no critical problems in user reviews.
The only thing that owners note as a fly in the ointment is brightness. The screens of the latest models from Garmin, including the Dakota, unfortunately, are inferior to the transreflective displays of previous generations. Here, a big plus goes to the competition of the eTrex series. The GARMIN Dakota 20 backlight, set to the minimum level, almost fades, but at high settings the screen comes to life, while burning a significant part of the battery.
Additional screen features
Additionally, "Dakota" is equipped with a screen lock from accidental touches, which is very convenient and at some points very useful. When the device is turned off and then turned on, the backlight level returns to the default settings, and the timeout can be changed in the menu (the minimum value is 15 seconds).
In the Oregon series, background screensavers were made in the form of various pictures, such as raindrops, car wheels, ears of wheat or other touching painting. GARMIN Dakota 20 (instructions for changing the background) offers several options for filling with a color gradient. On the one hand, this is not bad: the monophonic gamut does not dazzle, the details of the menu are clearly visible, and it seems to be more impressive. But, on the other hand, the last series allowed you to download your favorite screensaver from a computer so that it pleases the eye. The new Dakota, alas, is deprived of this opportunity.
Interface
There are no surprises or innovations here - the Dakota menu is absolutely identical to the Oregon functionality: clear and large icons like the Windows platforms are convenient and quite intuitive. The display of menu items on the screen can be turned off, then there will be more free space.
The only thing users complain about in their reviews is the lack of looping in the menu items, that is, reaching the end of the list, you have to roll it back to rise to higher positions.
There are custom profiles for users, some owners are concerned about the lack of built-in software for viewing images (although why this function is needed in the navigator). In addition to working with the menu, you can adjust the page “Motion counter”, filling the functional window with the necessary data according to your preference: coordinates, time, height, longitude, speed, distance to the next object, etc., up to ten windows.
As an alternative to standard layouts with pictures, like a pedestrian or a car, it is possible to set up counters without unnecessary graphic stylistics - it will be convenient for those who appreciate the information received in their pure form.
Localization
After the first power-up, GARMIN Dakota 20 immediately offers to “communicate” in Russian (coordinates determine points). If someone is unlucky, you can always configure the interface language in the menu. Users in their reviews note that since the past generations, translation has significantly improved, many spelling and other obvious language errors have been fixed. For example, "On" now translates correctly - "On", and not "On" as it was in the "Oregon" models.
At the time of connecting the navigator to the computer or loss of signal from the satellite, the user sees Russian, and not some other language. But the stopwatch for some reason still counts not - as it should be - seconds, but the time of day. Nevertheless, translators still have something to work on, about 10% of the menu remains in English, like Sight'n'Go. If you don’t want to wait for a custom translation, then you can always download amateur firmware for the navigator from unofficial sites, where amateurs corrected everything and even added their own chips and various lotions.
Offline work
Campaign gadgets from eTrex remain the undisputed leader in energy consumption, which manage to extend battery life at medium intensity up to 30 hours, and this is on one set of simple alkaline batteries.
Naturally, Dakota, with its touch screen, is not able to overpower the performance of eTrexes, but nevertheless the manufacturer assures us of the 20-hour operation of its device, which is very good (in any case, better than the performance of previous generations of navigators) .
It is worth noting that the ambient temperature significantly affects the quality of battery life, so do not be surprised if your device does not last more than 12-15 hours in late autumn.
Stress Test: Cold
Judging by the cost, the GARMIN Dakota 20 navigator (the price is about 20 thousand rubles) must withstand fire, water and much more. For the purity of the experiment, the "camp" conditions the gadget provided a conventional refrigerator. The device was turned on and left for exactly one hour in the freezer compartment with a temperature of -15 degrees.
After the allotted time, it turned out that such a low temperature did not affect the device in any way - it continued to work properly, and travels on menus and maps went without any twitching or delay. The only thing you can complain about is the reduced battery charge.
Stress Test: Water
With seemingly childish adventures such as falling into a small puddle, the Dakota gadget is quite calmly coping. According to the manufacturer, the new navigator is able to withstand immersion to a depth of 1 meter and stay there for half an hour. “Field” tests at the bottom of an 80-liter aquarium for the same 30 minutes showed that the device was not damaged at all and works, as before, without freezes and no brakes. Water could not penetrate either the USB plug or the battery compartment.
Summarizing
The GARMIN Dakota 20 navigator (February 2016 price is 20 thousand rubles) is considered the younger "brother" of the Oregon series, so travelers with reasonable and more or less moderate needs will fully appreciate it.
Pluses of model:
- The platform supports raster maps;
- convenient touch control;
- small dimensions;
- intelligently thought out ergonomics of the device;
- normal translation of the interface into Russian;
- solid volume (for the navigator) of internal memory;
- micro SD card support;
- support for wireless protocols with other Garmin navigators;
- built-in compass on three axes.
Minuses:
- faded backlight;
- cannot be used in tandem with a laptop as a GPS receiver;
- sometimes problematic loading (adaptation) of cards to the device;
- small screen;
- no useful software included;
- The manual for the gadget could be more detailed.