schmidtj

I believe the preloaded maps (and future updates?) reside in internal flash storage. If a future map update is too large to fit in this internal storage will it automatically spill over to the SD card or will I be SOL?

HumVee

There's two different kinds of map categories when it comes to Garmin devices. That's not to mention all of the different map types that Garmin offers (road map, trail map, nautical charts, etc.). The different map types I'm talking about are base maps (that came loaded on your device) and additional maps. I don't think that Garmin would ever release a base map update for your device that wouldn't fit in internal memory. Additional maps can be loaded to internal memory, if the GPS unit has sufficient room Many Garmin units have no additional internal storage at all, and rely on you installing an memory card to add additional maps and other files. Some Garmin units (the economy models or older models) don't have a memory card slot and don't have much or any internal storage for additional user maps and files. If you try to load an additional/supplemental map to internal storage, and run out of room - the map build fails, and you are notified. You aren't left with a partial map build that fills up the internal storage.

I looked up the specifications of your GPSMAP 60CS, and it looks like one of the models with no memory card slot - but it does have 56 MB of internal storage available to you. That's not a great deal of room compared to todays models (that have up to 850 MB of internal storage plus an memory card slot). Still, it should allow you to install map tiles for a small region that you needed better topographical maps for, and update or change it as needed. You can buy a huge map which has a coverage area requiring 2 GB (2,000 MB) or more of space on your computer, but you don't have to load the entire contents of that map onto your device. Using the software provided by Garmin, you can select a set of map tiles for the area you're currently interested in, and save those to your Garmin GPS unit.

schmidtj

Actually I have a 2610 Street Pilot which I added a 4GB CF card but that's a moot point since there are no further updates for it nor will Garmin/Navteq produce any.
My concern was aimed at my yet to arrive Nuvi 1490T which I believe has 2GB (don't quote me on that) internal memory with 200MB free (don't quote that either).
I would think a few years down the road a new map database would easily exceed 2GB and was hoping the spilage would just go the the micro SD card or perhaps the entire map database would go there.
I don't want to end up with (another) Garmin GPS I can't update.

HumVee

The Garmin nüvi 1490T comes with a full version of City Navigator NT (either North America or Europe, depending on the SKU # purchased) preloaded in internal memory. Future updates of the preloaded map would be designed to fit within the internal storage for that model. I believe that each map file must be contiguous (all one piece). I do not believe that Garmin would design a map update that could "spill over" into other storage.

It's much more likely that when Garmin found a need to add a bunch more details or features to a map that would result in much larger file sizes, they would retire their current map version (City Navigator NT) and start selling new GPS units that could use the new map version plus the "older" NT version maps. That's what happened when the StreetPilot 2620 was replaced by the StreetPilot 2720. The 2620 (& older models) took "City Navigator" maps (which Garmin stopped providing updates for) while the 2720 could take either "City Navigator" or the new "City Navigator NT" maps.

I understand your concern about buying a new GPS unit, and fearing not being able to get updates for it in a few years. It's a valid concern, and a good thing to check for. The best you can do is check to see what the very latest Garmin GPS units are able to use for maps, and see if your unit you're considering purchasing matches those formats. In this case, the 1490T is one of the newest units, and accepts CN NT maps. Since the very latest Garmin GPS units still come with and support CN NT maps, I think you'll be safe for the next serveral years....

schmidtj

Fortunately the initial investment for the 1490T is nowhere close to what I paid for my SP 2610 when it was the newest thing on the block. That with a half dozen City Navigator updates at a C Note each makes giving up my 2610 even more painfull.
The 1490T's unlimited map updates for a fixed subscription cost keep the expense down going forward as well. I want 5 years out of the 1490T after that it's gravy.

HumVee

Yes, the Garmin nüMaps Lifetime subscription service is a wonderful thing. For hardly more than the cost of a single update, you get quarterly updates for one road map package on one device, for the functional life of that device (or until Garmin retires City Navigator NT and stops providing updates for it). It's a wonderful deal. I hear what you're saying about the steadily declining costs of purchasing GPS units, too. The increasing popularity of GPS devices is yet another boon for GPS users. Competition and economies of scale in mass manufacturing have helped drive prices down for all of us!

schmidtj

I can purchase a one time Map Update on an SD card so why can't the lifetime map update download put the updated maps on an SD card as well? That way I'm limited only by the size of the SD card.

HumVee

nuMap Lifetime map updates work exactly the same as the nuMap one time updates. I my believe that if you purchase a lifetime nuMap update for the City Navigator NT map that came preloaded on your device, then you can choose to apply the update to a storage card. The update is locked to the serial number of your GPS unit you purchased the update for, so it won't work if you take it out and plug it into another Garmin GPS unit.

After you download and install the update, I think you'd just select the storage card when you went to build your map set, and it'd build a supplemental map file. Does anyone know differently?

schmidtj

I was poking around the Garmin NuMaps and there is a paragraph describing exactly what we are discussing. Ther MAY be a future update that won't fit in the internal memory and you have an option to reduce the amount of maps you have in the unit or install the map update to an SD card (which I need to supply of course). The SD version is locked to the specific unit unlike if you purchase the map preloaded on as SD card direct from Garmin which is unlocked.

HumVee

Thanks, schmidtj, for the info on the nuMaps update option to reduce map tiles or apply the full update to external memory.
About the preloaded Garmin map cards: They are locked - just not to a specific GPS unit. They are keyed to the internal serial number of the SD (or microSD) card they come on. You can not copy the files over to a larger storage card and have them work (the Garmin cards are all 2 GB, I believe). Also, you can not buy nuMap updates for them. If you feel the desire for an update, you must purchase a new version of the map card.
That is why I prefer the DVD/CD versions to the other map versions that Garmin offers. I like being able to use the maps in MapSource or BaseCamp as well as on my specific GPS unit. Plus I have the peace of mind of having redundant copies of my expensive maps, and the ability to move the data to larger data cards as needed. You get some of that with the downloadable map option, but not all. The "most" mapping products reference in the DVD/CD paragraph appears to refer to topographical maps. These maps (at least with current Garmin topographic map products) do not appear to be locked to a device, so if you have more than one Garmin GPS, you can load your Garmin topo maps to any and all of the devices....

schmidtj

I found the following statement:
"
Garmin's MapSource software is a free download available via Garmin's website, and can be used to send map sets, waypoints, routes, and tracks to the GPS. You can also retrieve data from the GPS onto the PC, if needed.
MapSource, in addition to being a free download, is also automatically installed whenever a Garmin map update is installed. "
Here:
Garmin nuvi 1490T Review (GPSmagazine.com)

Is the statement not true?

HumVee

I don't believe that statement is true...but I already had MapSource loaded onto both my home and work computers before I purchased my Garmin map updates. Installing MapSource downloaded from Garmin is easy to do, although you have to install TrainingCenter first to get the update to run. Search the forum - there's losts of threads regarding this. If you get stuck, let us know.

When you install MapSource, it only has a very basic map, and is not useable for turn-by-turn routing. Once you install a City Navigator NT (or older non-NT version) roadmap onto your computer, MapSource automatically detects it and allows it to be selected from a map selection drop down list. The same is true if you install Garmin topographic maps - but of course, there's no turn-by-turn direction capabilities on those....

I don't know what happens if you are purchasing nuMaps Lifetime subscription for a City Navigator NT basemap that came pre-installed on your device. The best case scenario would be that once you installed it on your computer, it would be available in MapSource. Bundled CN NT basemaps weren't discussed in the Garmin Knoweledge Base entry I found....

Since you're considering purchasing nuMaps Lifetime for your nuvi, and you don't currently have a City Navigator NT product installed on your computer (I'm assuming here), perhaps you could go ahead and try this out and report back?