Garmin GPS72 pc connector

[Jomo]

Hello all,

can anyone point me in the direction of getting the correct cable for connecting a garmin GPS 72 hand held to a PC for waypoint updates.

TIA

Ian

 

[little_roundtop]

The online manual is at http://www8.garmin.com/manuals/GPS72_OwnersManual.pdf. PC connection info is near the back. Easiest way is to make up your own cable. eBay have the Garmin connectors available.

 

[doug748]

This is worth looking at:
http://lynks.co.uk/cables.html
Mine has the standard serial cable which is ok but you may not have a serial interface if you computer is newish.

 

[Lodesman77]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/USB-Interface-data-Cable-Garmin-GPS-III-72-76-PC-/350154909143

Wish I'd found one of these when I first got mine - I have the standard serial cable with a serial to USB adapter; no serial port on my netbook...
.

 

[Fantasie 19]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/USB-Interface-data-Cable-Garmin-GPS-III-72-76-PC-/350154909143

Wish I'd found one of these when I first got mine - I have the standard serial cable with a serial to USB adapter; no serial port on my netbook...
.

Ditto....!

 

[Jomo]

Thanks for the replies, part now ordered

 

[Amulet]

Hello all,

can anyone point me in the direction of getting the correct cable for connecting a garmin GPS 72 hand held to a PC for waypoint updates.

TIA

Ian

Hope I'm not teaching you to suck eggs. Implied but not stated in any of the replies:

The GPS72 gives serial output not USB.

The newer GPS72H gives USB, output so any USB cable will work.

Assuming you have the GPS72 (no "H") then, if your computer has an RS232 serial input, all you need is the (readily available) cable to connect it.

Almost no laptops have a serial input. Your only recourse in that case is to buy a Serial to USB adaptor. N.B. this is NOT just a cable - it contains the hardware to convert from Serial to USB. Sometimes this is moulded into the USB plug, sometimes it is in a small plastic housing half way along the cable. You will have to install the driver sofware to make it work. None of this is difficult.

Over the years I have set up several systems like this without any trouble. However, one time I found that the navigation software was responding to stale GPS data - a few minutes behind the actual position. On a couple of occasions this was downright dangerous. The conclusion (from forum discussion) was that the conversion software was to blame - probably caching data. In that setup I had created the conversion hardware using a generic serial to USB adaptor which didn't "know" it was meant for real time navigation. I have since replaced it with an explicitly Garmin compatible cable and driver software and the problem has gone away.

 

[RobbieW]

Once you have your cable you may find you need a utility like GPSU to handle waypoint conversion between the Garmin and whatever else you use for nav.

If, for example, you use OpenCPN - export your route, open the route with GPSU and upload to the Garmin - simples

 

[Jomo]

Thanks Amulet and Robbie for the further updates. I already possess a USB to serial converter, and imagined (like all things computer) that data transfer wouldn't be particularly intuitive. However, will just be using for waypoint uploads, so no requirement for live usage.
Like the converter Robbie, will give it a go.

Ian