Posted for Matt Reeves <mattreeves@yahoo.com>:

Steve,

I flew behind a Garmin 430 IFR color moving map for 6 months and loved
it.  It also had the 340 audio panel
and was the easiest I've ever used.
Garmin is also coming out with a   transponder in June that interfaces
with the 530 (possibly the 430 too but I'm not sure about that) and has
a TCAS type feature and will show other
traffic right on your screen.  I
LOVE garmin and find them very easy to use.  UPS says they have easier
features for less money but I've heard
that's up to the beholder.  The
only complaint I have is on the 430 and
530, you don't have a NRST
button.  You have to flip to another
screen first which takes just a
second.  Then you have the nearest
airport feature there.  They are both
IFR approved and I got my instrument
rating in a plane that had one and
now, I am decided that's what I'm putting in my Lancair.
I'm not sure about this, but was
told that it also had an internal   battery backup in case of an electrical failure.  I was told it lasts
about 1/2 hour.

The prices have come down considerably
since they first came out.  I
know my eye doctor spent $12k on the  430 when it first came out.  My
understanding is that the 530 has the same features as the 430, just a bigger screen.  Also, I heard it can
provide weather information from
satellite.  It is also a COM so I
think if you add up all of the
features and you are getting a pretty  good deal with the whole thing at once.
I've flown airplanes without the Garmin
430 in IFR conditions and let me tell
you that having a little moving map
feature and KNOWING where you are
every minute helps ALOT.  When I'm
following a radial on just a NAV and
using a DME, I'm ALWAYS second guessing
myself thinking I'm messing up
and I might get lost = something you
don't want to do in IFR conditions.
I can do it, I just feel my stress
level is a little higher.  The 430
made my flying ALOT more enjoyable.
I've used other color moving map
GPS's and had a difficult time figuring
out how they work.  I don't want
to be wasting time doing that in case
an emergency came up = I might
miss something.  The Garmin 430 was
natural and easy to use.

The 430 is a DME, COM, NAV, GPS,
Moving map, and a ton of other things
and you can select just about ANY feature
you want.  My IFR checkride
FAA examiner laughed cause he covered
up my DG and asked me what I would
do.  Then gave me headings to turn to.
Of course the fluid compas is always
there but it lags we all know.
So, I flipped over to the DG feature
on the 430 and it tells you your
heading just like the compas only
there is no lag, and there's no
magnetic radio deviation.  He didn't
really know about GPS's that much
and wondered how I made every turn
perfectly, (cause he was staring at
the fluid compas the whole time) so
I showed him and he was amazed (for
an old guy).  Then I did it without
the GPS and proved it could be done,
just with a little more work and a
little more thinking and a little
more waiting.  Now, he's addicted
to Garmin the same as me.

Buy it.  You'll LOVE it and I don't
even work for Garmin!!!!
Your flying in IFR and VFR will be
more enjoyable and safer.  Just
select an approach and from wherever
you are, you can select vectors to
final or waypoints.  It's great.
You won't ever get lost!!

By the way, that TCAS transponder
I spoke of is supposed to retail at
$5000.  They have one for $1200 and
another one for around $1800 with a
few more features.  If you already
have one, all you need is the 430/340
and an indicator which I don't
believe is included.

Matt

[ the gtx330 mode s transponder available
in July is an extra 3" deeper than
http://www.garmin.com/products/gtx327/
and isn't pin compatible but does display
traffic on a 430/530 in the terminal environment.

I fly behind a http://rob.com/rob/530/
but use the g195 more, even during
approaches, and amended clearances.
this is most likely because the g195 has been
with me for 6 years and the 530 only
since aug00.  The 530 has sids and stars
and depicts the missed approach that
the g195 doesn't but old "processes"
die hard.

There are good simulators available on
http://www.garmin.com/products/gns530/
http://www.garmin.com/products/gns430/
to get a feel if the larger screen
is worth the money. (I'm not so sure)

in the LEG2 I wanted the smallest possible stack
because I'm hoping the software in the SFS
will keep me happy, so I went with the
smaller UPS stack (and lots of room for
"experimental" stuff :-)  -Rob  ]