Garmin GPSMAP 66i Review/First Impressions

[@backinthewoods2022]

Just picked this up for my first bwca trip this Monday 3 days solo. Good channel nice job👍subscribed

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Glad it was helpful! Enjoy and be safe out there!!

[@20Hikecdt23]

Thank you. Its a very fine device as you have said and presented.

[@xavieragnelli5426]

Oh love your section talking about the micro-USB. That was stop on and hilariously sarcastic. Probably my favorite part of the video. This is a nice device but Jesus’s can they possibly make it more complicated to learn how to use it? Loading routes from third party apps, explorer, GAIA, AllTrails etc. It’s hard to learn

[@AdventureTravelandScuba]

do You know if InReach charges activation fee every year or it is a 1 time fee having hard time to understand that part on the website?

[@sctenz]

Great video. Very informative! The battery was almost a deal breaker for me, but went with the 66 over the explorer due to better maps. I heard the lithium battery was needed for the power requirements of the 66. Thanks for sharing.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

I'm glad it helped! I will say that the 66i gets pretty good battery life so the internal battery isn't as big of an issue (though it is for e-waste), but I still really wish it had USB-C.

[@rainypath96]

Same here... I figure I always carry a portable power pack when I’m backpacking anyway. Plus hikingguy says he’s used his heavily for two years with no issues.

[@workmates]

"big issue, figuring out what to do" like that quote haha, good vid!

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Haha sometimes you don't know! It might take you a while to decide if you want to turn around or keep going or call for help or whatever, but you want to at least let someone know that something is up, in case something worse happens.

[@JustinHEMI05]

On sale at Cabela's for 499. Received 10% more Cabela's club. Received 5% more for military. Used a 100 dollar Cabela's gift card I won at work. = Just paid 297 shipped! No brainier. Your review helped me decide.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Glad I could help! That's a great price. Enjoy!!

[@christophmuller830]

Have you also tried the GPSMap 66sr and compared from the GPS accuracy? I want to have a GPS device and a satellite emergency call and am considering whether I should buy the 66sr + InReach Mini 2 or 66i alone. The 66i has unfortunately no multiband.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

I have not! I actually hadn't heard of it until you posted this comment. Personally I've found the GPS accuracy of the 66i to be fine. Multiband would be nice but I wouldn't carry 2 devices to get it. One of the reasons I got the 66i is specifically so I wouldn't have to carry a GPS + satcomm device. I'm sure Garmin will add multiband to the 66i soon enough but it is kind of annoying that they launched a new GPS with the same body (66sr) and didn't offer it with inReach. It seems the 66sr also still uses microUSB. For shame. Maybe the next gen will finally have USB-C, multiband, inReach, and who knows, maybe some durable buttons.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Hi Christoph, I'm not sure if you ended up making a purchase, but Garmin just released the GPSMAP 67i, which has multiband along with inReach functionality, exactly what you were hoping for. They did include USB-C this time as well.

[@workmates]

Thanks for sharing, taking my 66i to Patagonia in 2 weeks, got a lot to learn!

[@TechnicallyRugged]

You're very welcome! Would love to hear your experiences using it in the field after you get back!

[@CrazyQuady]

Nice, I looked pretty hard at the inreach mini after I broke my leg. I might still pick something up like this.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

The Mini is compelling if you really don't need maps (which most people don't, honestly). And, for the money, it makes sense to pick the option right for you. But the 66i is sweet, man. I hope it stands the test of time. I bet Garmin will put out a version with USB-C in like a year and I'll have to switch. lol

[@CrazyQuady]

It would be really cool if there was a cost effective phone on the market that had the capabilities that these Garmin's have as far as call/text without a cellular signal

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Ha, yeah... a proper satphone with Android and everything else you'd find in a regular cellphone (including a good camera!) would probably be mad spendy..... but pretty awesome.

[@QuasiMotoUSA]

I am selling my mini, use it for backcountry fishing in Montana wilderness, and solo motorcycle trips. It’s small and light which is a plus. A negative is that its so small that with my aging eyes i have a hard time seeing the screen!! Also, even though you pair it to your earthmate app on your iPhone to text, in my experience its kinda slow to upload texts and sometimes fails to do so. I think that has to do with the small size and power compared to a larger model.

[@nemanjarasula1599]

Was eyeing out the Explorer + but will get the 66i instead. Lot more features. Do i need maps for the trip i am going on, not really but will be a nice feature to have when needed. Like yourself i mainly want SOS and messaging but seeing the price difference between the explorer and 66i is minimal it is a logical choice to get 66i

[@sbfam4639]

I’m wanting one for BWCA trips. Did you need buy any lake maps for BWCA? I heard you could and you could see campsite’s and portage’s. I have never used a gps before but want to get one just for the BWCA

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Yes, Garmin has BWCA specific maps for $100 - a bit steep, but averages out over many trips. They seem to include some quite old campsites that are no longer active, so some newer campsites may not be on the maps either, but I haven't found any campsites that weren't on the GPS (yet). There are portages, campsites, land topo, and even water topo for a lot of lakes in the BWCA.

[@senderosnorberto5443]

Good evening. Excuse my writing. I am using the google translator. In a very short time I am going to buy the garmin gpsmap 66i and my question is how to charge the battery. An external battery of mobile phones can be used. Best regards.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

The port on the GPS is MicroUSB, so you can charge it with a wall charger or an external battery pack, as long as you have a MicroUSB cable.

[@bugspraybug]

I just picked one up and the battery seems to be draining really fast even with the device turned off. How do you find the battery life now that you have had it for a while?

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Mine still holds battery fine when it's powered off, and I get pretty good longevity on my trips. I probably get somewhere around 30 hours of tracking (GPX only, no inReach) before I need to charge it? But I haven't timed it. If your battery is draining significantly while powered off, I'd contact Garmin, as it doesn't sound normal to me.

[@mat-ventures]

Thanks for the detailed review. I think I'm going to wait for Garmin to make a model that uses AA batteries

[@TechnicallyRugged]

You're welcome! A model with AA batteries and USB-C would make a lot of sense.

[@toejam7606]

The ones without in reach use batteries. Personally when I go out I don’t need to text or twitter, so I forego all the safety boi stuff

[@TechnicallyRugged]

@@toejam7606 Understandable. Like I said in the video, I want to do some deeper backcountry excursions where having a satellite communicator as a safety net is a big plus. Expect the unexpected!

[@robertm3951]

Satellite communication takes too much power for AA batteries, but it should still be removable

[@NoneYaBidness762]

@@TechnicallyRugged but if the batts die...

[@karlmyklejord7174]

Fellow BWCA-er with a couple questions: 1. Does it support lake maps (depth) in the BWCA? 2. Does it have camp or portage information for the BWCA?

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Hey there! The Garmin BWCA maps DO have lake topo for most BWCA lakes. Not all, but most. As well, campsites and portages are on the map. Unfortunately the maps seem to be a little outdated, as some listed campsites are no longer active sites and haven't been for some time. I stopped at 2 on LLC last year that looked like they definitely were or could have been sites 5-10+ years ago, but had no fire grate and plants were reasonably grown back. SO, it has some old sites, and I'd be willing to bet there are some newer ones that aren't listed. But I haven't had any issues resulting from that, other than a little extra time spent checking those old sites. I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions!

[@pahuntnut]

here is what i am trying to find out. With my Oregon, I mark camp, wander where i want and at end of day Hit "go to" pick camp, and it points me in the right direction and tells me how far i am. Can the 66I do that.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

I haven't done that yet, but I don't see why not. There is a routing feature but if you're not on a known/mapped trail, you will likely just get a compass and distance as the crow flies. I've messed with the routing feature like twice. I'd be shocked if the Oregon can do that but the GPSMAP can't.

[@billhackley3540]

7ish months later, have you used it enough to determine if it was a good purchase. have had the 64s for years and love it, but a close call has me looking hard at the 66i

[@TechnicallyRugged]

That's a great question, Bill. The value assessment is something I haven't been able to fully do yet because I've only taken one trip with it. HOWEVER... I have 4 day, 5 day, and 4 day trips planned for Sept/Oct and will be bringing it on all of them. My thoughts boil down to this - the 64s is an excellent choice if you just need navigation. There is no reason to upgrade from a 64s for that reason. But for weather and peace of mind/SOS capability via satellite, you'll need a separate device. You could snag an older used InReach Mini or something of the sort to keep cost down and have the same functionality. It'll cost you a lot less than a 64s+66i. For brand new buyers who think they want the satellite capability, I'd push them to a 66i all day. But for owners of a GPS already, it really comes down to this question: how badly would you prefer to keep all of your navigation and communication capability in a single device that is lighter and smaller than two separate devices? I can't answer that for you, but I can tell you it's something I wanted, and I was willing to splurge. So far, it's done what I've asked of it, with minimal issues (some freezes, but a reboot worked). If you don't need it today/tomorrow/this year though, I'd wait to see if Garmin releases an updated version with USB-C, and maybe a better processor. At worst, they don't release one by next spring, and you buy a 66i at current prices or lower (during sales, or for a used device, or just normal pricing). At best, they come out with an updated device that has what the original should have had, and you pay roughly the same as you would now for a device that doesn't have those features. I hope this helps, Bill!

[@billhackley3540]

@@TechnicallyRugged thank you for the response. yeah garmin likes changes i like your idea of waiting a bit.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

@@billhackley3540 You're very welcome! If Garmin updates it with USB-C I'll be a little salty because it's something I want, but isn't enough to cause me to sell the 66i and buy the updated version. Keep in mind as well that if you have any maps downloaded to your 64s, they are tied to that device specifically, and you have to re-buy them for the 66i (or get them on a microSD card to swap between units). It's super annoying and I talked to a Garmin manager on the phone for almost an hour about it back when I bought the device. Buying a few hundred dollars of maps every time you buy a new device is unacceptable to me. MicroSD cards are fine as long as you're not in between regions where you'd have to be swapping cards often (or even have multiple cards with you). Otherwise you risk losing the card and swapping is annoying. Hopefully they figure out a way to authorize and de-authorize devices so you can move maps when you throw them $500+ for a new device. BUT I DIGRESS! Thanks for watching Bill.

[@spencerbeymer6215]

this may be a dumb question.. since your phone can connect and send messages are you able to access internet, and emails when you do not have normal cell service?

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Not a dumb question! You can only send text messages (and update Twitter & FB status). To get full data would be pretty crazy... maybe with Starlink we'll have small-ish receivers that can be brought into the backcountry in a few years.

[@robertm3951]

There are satellite internet services, but they are insanely slow. It only really makes sense for SMS and short text-only email messages. Even voice calls over satellite are not worth it because of the delay. SMS is the best way to communicate over satellite.

[@JWalking]

Is the installed lithium battery replaceable?

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Not by the end user, no. It is unfortunate but might have been necessary to keep the device size as small as possible.

[@RaymondoLeeTravel]

Really want one. Still using oregon 550t

[@taekwondokid66]

Got ya beat! Oregon 450

[@tolkien11]

Very helpful. Thanks alot.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

You're very welcome!

[@anamargaretlowery2046]

I bought the 66i and the Zumo XT for my motorcycle . The Zumo XT has even an older charging cable! Different from my 66i? What the heck Garmin? Terrible charging now I have to bring 2 old type of charging units. :(

[@TechnicallyRugged]

I'm sorry to hear you've been burned by this. :( It's sad isn't it? My guess is they are trying to reuse as much stuff as possible and keep things cheap and they're not updating to newer circuit boards/microprocessors that support USB-C. You'd think for the amount of money they charge for these devices that they'd use modern hardware, but they seem committed to using obsolete tech in brand new devices.

[@kayasper6081]

I have several Garmin products, among them the Garmin GPSMAP66i. They all are a real struggle to understand and use, very anti intuitive. The service centre/helpdesk is very limited. Although their products look quite promising, I would not advice buy any of them. I lost lot of time with them, money and frustration, while I could have enjoy actually making trips in nature in stead.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

I do agree that the menus are a bit counter-intuitive and their GPS units have always seemed sluggish to me. However they have functioned fairly well for me, with an occasional reboot or something, but no data loss (yet). I'm sorry to hear your experience though. Have you found any better alternatives, as far as a merged GPS and satellite communicator goes?

[@outdooraddicts8666]

Can you send those msg to multiple people?

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Yep! Whenever you send a message, whether you type it or use the quick text, you can select multiple recipients (and pick the method, i.e. SMS or email).

[@stevenlaubach7222]

I also have the Garmin GPSMAP 66i can anyone please tell me if and how i can turn off sending my position every time i send a message? Every time i send a message it does an inreach link.com and gives my position on a map. How can i disable that from showing?

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Go to explore.garmin.com and sign in. At the top, click Account. On the lower right of that page it has check boxes for SMS Message Confirmation. Under that, there is a check box to include a link to your location, so disable that and you’re good to go! Hope this helps.

[@stevenlaubach7222]

@@TechnicallyRugged I appreciate this so much!!! Darn just tried it like 10 times and i have icon on Explore Garmin.com temporarily down. Brrrrr

[@TechnicallyRugged]

@@stevenlaubach7222 You're welcome! Keep trying... they had a ransomware issue recently that took down like ALL of their services. They are still getting everything back up and running.

[@kb2425]

How's the Garmin treating you?

[@TechnicallyRugged]

It's been good! I had it freeze up twice on me during my June BWCA trip, but I was able to reboot it by holding the power button. The inReach functionality worked as expected and sometimes the updates came within a minute of requesting them, provided a fairly clear view of the sky. Battery also seemed to last longer than my GPSMAP 64s, both tracking at the same intervals, so that's comforting. As long as you charge at camp nightly (or every other night), you shouldn't have to worry about it dying on you on the water/on the trail. I will probably do a follow-up video at the end of the season (Nov/Dec-ish) after I get the chance to use it on a couple more trips.

[@robertm3951]

I would pay extra for one with a removable battery even if it was an expensive custom battery.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Yeah, that would be nice. With USB-C as well of course! It'd be good to have a backup so you don't need to plug the device in while you're on the go, especially in inclement weather.

[@theoriginalLP]

My man, just buy a higher capacity power bank. It's is a modern substitute for removable batteries. You can charge other devices with it, whereas with AA batteries or custom batteries you cannot. I only do day hikes, and it is used every time for phones and smart watches. I don't go hiking without it. Imagine if you went hiking for several days. Camera will die or you will need to carry additional batteries (which are heavy), phone will die, smart watch will die, and you don't want this to die... If you don't use any of these devices, even better. The power bank will last longer.

[@waywardspirit7898]

Great review thanks....But 100s of thousands of dollars for a couple to few week camping trip? Damn, I though sailing my boat to Mexico was gonna be expensive at $20,000 for a whole year of living.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Haha, I didn’t say it super clearly but I said “hundreds or thousands”. It definitely doesn’t cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to go to Alaska for a few weeks. :)

[@Lord-Snowflake]

Alaska for 2 to 3 weeks,,,,come on bro, don't be tight, don't ask others to split the cost,,,come on

[@TechnicallyRugged]

What would you do? My friends and I share costs for things we will all use (like canoe rentals, tows, shuttles, bait) because it seems only fair that if we are sharing an item or service, we share the cost.

[@Lord-Snowflake]

@@TechnicallyRugged I think they'd each buy have one,, people disappear all the time.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

@@Lord-Snowflake Well sure, it would be great if everyone had satcom/a PLB, but we wouldn't be splitting up individually. The furthest apart we'd be is maybe a couple hundred yards fishing a stream.

[@toejam7606]

I think your cheap arse should make them pay for gas and tire wear since your driving.

[@TechnicallyRugged]

@@toejam7606 My friends and I split gas cost no matter who drives, anytime we go on a trip. I don't think that makes any of us cheap, just fair. :)

[@pahuntnut]

You cant use AA batteries for sat communications. just not enough power and you would be eating batteries like candy. Your livin in the past man, liven in the past lol. Through hikers dont carry a wad of batteries with them to power their phone and gopro. You carry a charger and a solar panel to keep the charger at 100%

[@TechnicallyRugged]

I don't actually know how much power the satellite component draws, but I doubt the built-in Li-ion battery in the 66i has any more longevity than the rechargeable NiMH battery pack for the 64s line. For the 64s they say it gets 16 hours of battery life, for the 66i they say 35 hours at 10min tracking and 200 hours at 30min tracking. I definitely think the 66i has better battery life than the 64s with fresh AAs, definitely, but if you could recharge AAs inside the body, then you could have some disposable spares for emergencies and still use rechargables in the unit. I use tracking on both the 64s and 66i and the 66i seems to get ~50% better battery life, but not 100-400% like Garmin's numbers would suggest. Also, a solar panel probably weighs more than an extra pair of AAs or two. If you are trying to do hundreds of miles, you're going to get food resupplies which could get you more batteries. Carrying a solar panel around (probably 1-2lbs itself) seems like something most thru hikers would never do. I'm all for better battery life and rechargeables, but internal batteries are bad for the environment (usually the device just gets trashed when the battery is dead, instead of being swapped out by the vendor) and they preclude any possibility of quickly achieving a fully charged device in a pinch (like swapping in a fresh battery). I'd be fine with a swappable Li-ion battery even if it was $50, but in this case you can't even do that. It's not ruining any of my experiences and so far it hasn't been a big deal, but I like to call it out.

[@vrzn]

Micro USB... One reason to wait and not get this model

[@TechnicallyRugged]

Yep... hopefully an updated version with USB-C comes with a few other improvements as well.