GNS 430W Data Card

[David Mazer]

I brought my data card home to update it and it fell apart.  It fell apart!  The metal plate came off and the circuits/chips are about to fall out. I don't think putting it back in the unit is a good idea in case it falls apart inside the slot.  So, should I get it fixed, glue it together and pray, replace it?  I'd love to replace it but I think Garmin charges $200 for the silly little thing.

 

I'll call Garmin tomorrow but I dount they will offer to fix it.

 

Any suggestions?

[OR75]

i cannot remember how it is built but a possible option could be to buy the non WAAS version ( cheaper) and use the frame to built around the chip

[Glenn]

In IMC you and your passengers have a lot riding on your 430W.  Let your conscience be your guide.

[Mooneymite]

 A few years ago, I had a long correspondence with a Garmin Rep about the ridiculous cost of the data cards.  With memory chips being so cheap, it's pretty obvious Garmin is just charging "what it can".

 

The rep stead-fastly maintained that these memory cards are "very special" and that they have to pass all sorts of quality tests that make them expensive and well worth the price Garmin charges.

 

Apparently durability is not one of the tests.  As far as I've been able to determine they are cheaply made and Garmin knows that after a certain number of removals for up-date that we'll have to buy replacements.

 

While I don't want to see Garmin go out of business by giving its products away, there seems to be plenty of middle ground for a huge price reduction on the cost of the WAAS memory cards.  However, based on my conversation with Garmin they have no interest in what consumers think.  The rep hinted that on future products, memory cards would not be interchangeable and that the unit, the subscription and the cards would all have to be factory matched to preclude sharing data cards between users.

 

While I generally like Garmin products, it seems Garmin has lost touch with the consumers.

[timpercarpio]

I think you have to bite the bullet and buy a new data card. I have two and just keep switching them.

[Marauder]

From what I can tell there is nothing special about the card itself. There are either encyrpted or hidden files that allows it to be identified by the GPS. I ran into a similar problem with my Aspen MFD microSD. If I remember correctly I could dump the Seattle Avionics data onto a blank microSD and have it work. But to have it work with the Jepp nav data, I needed the "Special" microSD.

[DonMuncy]

I am not absolutely certain, but I think my 430 card was the one in the unit before I updated to WAAS and the one I'm still using. I have never taken any great pains to be careful with it and it has been updated every 38(?)days for about 8 or 9 years.

[David Mazer]

My non-WAAS card wouldn't work with my upgraded WAAS unit.  If yours does, that is great for you and I wish I knew why yours works and mine doesn't.

 

The Aspen micro SD card is easily replaced, I've had to do so, but you need to be sure you get the right speed (6 or higher, I used a 10).  Then I restored the disk image I made from someone elses Aspen card onto the micro SD card and it worked fine.

 

As long as the cord reads fine, my conscience is completely clear.

 

I finally used a version of super glue and carefully glued it back together using very little glue with no signs of glue squishing out between the parts.  It updated fine in the Skybound unit and now I'll try it in the 430.  Wish me luck.

[MARZ]

eBay is a great place I bout my spares for less than 100

[KSMooniac]

The W cards are 4x the capacity of the non-W cards, so that is the major difference.  I too am upset with the card prices from Garmin, but fortunately they don't need to be purchased frequently.  Buying Jepp data every month, though, is painful since it is just repackaged federal data.  I don't see why we can't just download it from an FAA website instead.  

[chrisk]

 I don't see why we can't just download it from an FAA website instead.  

The FAA should clearly provide the data in a standard format and for free.

[Marauder]

I don't see why we can't just download it from an FAA website instead. The FAA should clearly provide the data in a standard format and for free.

It is my understanding the FAA does make it available and companies like Jepp, Garmin and Seattle Avionics put it into a format that is readable for their devices. I believe they still may produce the update CDs with the data on it. I appreciate the convenience of being able to download it, but paying $200 for a "special" SD is robbery...

[Raygun15E]

The NGA (National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency) produces the data. Like posted above, it can be available depending on who you are. The problem is getting the data to 'talk' with the hardware. I too wish I could just download the data to a card and then upload it into the airplane. That's what I do at work every month...