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Avionics

GTN Owner Survey: High Satisfaction

When Garmin introduced the GTN700 and 600-series navigators nearly two years ago, buyers hoped for substantial improvements over the dominant but aging GNS530 and 430. The wish-list for the second-generation, all-in-one navigators included a more modern display and integrated charting—including airways. Skeptically, the market expected a touchscreen feature set. Garmin delivered all of the above, of course. But are the improvements enough to satisfy the demands of buyers ready to put their 15-grand-plus on the shop counter for a single-box upgrade? Does the touchscreen create havoc in turbulence as many feared? To find out, we recently conducted an in-depth GTN owner survey on our sister site, avweb.com, where we heard from 256 owners. The survey revealed a healthy level of owner satisfaction and perceived product value, although we heard a smattering of complaints.

Larry Anglisano
Verified

Edited By:

Omar Filipovic

When Garmin introduced the GTN700 and 600-series navigators nearly two years ago, buyers hoped for substantial improvements over the dominant but aging GNS530 and 430. The wish-list for the second-generation, all-in-one navigators included a more modern display and integrated charting—including airways. Skeptically, the market expected a touchscreen feature set. Garmin delivered all of the above, of course.

But are the improvements enough to satisfy the demands of buyers ready to put their 15-grand-plus on the shop counter for a single-box upgrade? Does the touchscreen create havoc in turbulence as many feared?

Larry Anglisano

Editor in Chief Larry Anglisano has been a staple at Aviation Consumer since 1995. An active land, sea and glider pilot, Larry has over 30 years’ experience as an avionics repairman and flight test pilot. He’s the editorial director overseeing sister publications Aviation Safety magazine, IFR magazine and is a regular contributor to KITPLANES magazine with his Avionics Bootcamp column.