Customer Reviews:
 A Great MultiPurpose GPS April 7, 2008
15 out of 15 found this review helpful
I've had my 400t for a couple of weeks now and have had it on several day hikes. I've also used it in the car hooked up with the car kit. Overall, I'm very pleased with my purchase. Is it perfect? No, but the last firmware update dealt with the most egregious issues and it seems to be improving all the time. The shaded topo maps are great-looking and extra features like those for geocaching are a welcome addition. The rock-and-roll controller works well when operating the unit with one hand.
I would suggest using either high-capacity (2500 mA or higher) NimH or lithium batteries for maximum battery life. In addition, make certain to set the battery type correctly. If set incorrectly, the unit may indicate low battery, even when the batteries have life left in them.
My biggest complaint is the woeful inadequacy of the manual. It is more of a quick start guide than a detailed manual. There is an online Wiki that can be helpful, but Garmin should release a much better document.
 nice allround navigation tool April 1, 2008
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
Pros: this is undoubtedly an excellent GPS. It does an excellent job in both outdoor and car navigation (with optional Garmin maps). The screen is very detailed and the display is usually very clear. The rocknroller is actually a very nice tool for quickly entering data.
Cons: creating custom maps for the 400t is very laborious, as it only can take vector maps. It does not communicate with Oziexplorer, but this will probably be solved. It is a bit too big and heavy; it is not as light as my old Etrex.
Best GPS I Ever Owned March 28, 2008
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
This is an extremely cool GPS.
The screen is gorgeous. Big and sharp. The Topo 2008 maps look so cool with shading and 3-D.
The new control wheel really makes it easy to use. Far easier than any other Garmin unit.
It is well built, looks very cool and feels really good in your hand.
The recent firmware updates have solved most of the problems early buyers encountered when it first came out. I have no real complaints or problems that bother me.
I use it for hiking, biking, and driving. I put a 8GB SD card in and was able to load a lot of maps. I am really enjoying using it on my weekend explorations here in New Mexico.
I highly recommend it. Well worth the price.
Field Test of the Garmin Colorado 400t March 2, 2008
7 out of 9 found this review helpful
The new Garmin Colorado 400t, one of a series of four Colorado models, was introduced in early 2008 as a next-generation handheld GPS. The Colorado lives up to that promise with an innovative new control wheel, easy-to-use menu system, big, sharp color screen, 3D map viewing, and more.
There's a lot to cover, starting with the "Rock 'n Roller" input wheel and companion menu system. With the Colorado, for the first time ever, I was able to pick up an advanced handheld GPS and work my way through virtually all of its features just by intuitive selection and a little bit of experimentation, with no manual needed. That's a big plus, and a step forward in GPS design. What's more, the Rock 'n Roller wheel is so easy to use and compact, you can operate the unit one-handed (or rather, one-thumbed).
The wheel part of the Rock 'n Roller rotates clockwise and counterclockwise, and can be used to move through menu lists on the screen, or to zoom in or out on a map. The wheel also responds to up, down, right and left presses to pan a map, for example. The "enter" button is positioned in the middle of the Rock 'n Roller to make menu selections, etc. Overall, the wheel is an ingenious and complete navigation tool (there are only two more buttons on the unit) that has been compared to an iPod control.
Rest of the review...
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Wonderful for the Amateur February 20, 2008
67 out of 69 found this review helpful
I'm not one of those extreme high-end geocachers. I just love a walk in the woods. However, I want to find the cache when I go to look for it. Last year I upgraded from a Garmin Explorer to a 60CSX and was in love. Unfortunately that got stolen. I've saved my money and now have the Colorado 400t. It's everything my 60CSX was and more. The new rocker control is a lot easier to use than the controls on the 60CSX or the Explorer. The accuracy is fantastic. With the City maps plugged in the road navigation is wonderful. This really is the best GPS unit I've used for hiking & caching. I'm really impressed with the ability to swap between profiles, using the Automotive until I hit the trail and then switching back to the Geocaching mode. Start up time & satellite acquisition are good. They're now supporting SD instead of the mini-SD cards and that's a good choice on Garmin's part. A lot of the new interfaces are improved over the old ones plus, like the old ones they're customizable.
Like everyone else, the fact that only one cache at a time is visible is a pain, but all the other features quickly wash that away. I haven't found the maps to be inaccurate, but then I mainly use it for off-road hiking and the hills, mountains & streams are pretty solidly in place, even in Massachusetts. It is a little dim in bright sunlight.
Despite these small shortcomings, this is a wonderful GPS unit. I intend to get years of use (and hang on to it more tightly).
UPDATE: Garmin released a software patch that fixed the problem with displaying multiple cache's. That's one less of the few and small negatives to worry about. I'm still loving this GPS unit.
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