Those among us who live and die by the numbers (and who of us don’t?) may find Garmin’s GNX displays an excellent new option. Here’s what they’ve told us about them, and as soon as we see them live and online, we’ll report back.
The 7-inch GNX 120 and 10-inch GNX 130 have high-precision glass-bonded monochrome ultra-glow LCD displays that show over 50 marine and vessel parameters, including depth, speed, wind, and navigational data. With fully customizable user profiles, the GNX 120 and GNX 130 allow the screen layout to be configured to the user’s preferred setting. Five display configurations are available, including single, dual and triple functions, plus Gauge and Graph mode.
Easy to set up, calibrate and use thanks to the on-unit capacitive touch buttons, the GNX 120 and GNX 130 are also NMEA 2000® certified and can seamlessly share sailing data between other NMEA 2000-enabled Garmin devices. The ultra-glow anti-fog displays on the GNX 120 and GNX 130 overlay white or color digits on a black background, providing high contrast and visibility no matter the environment. If a different backlight color is desired, the display can be tailored by choosing from seven different pre-set colors, or hundreds of custom colors can be created.
Designed to be mounted at the base of the mast or above the companionway, the GNX 120 and GNX 130 instruments are the thinnest and lightest displays available in the market today. Both units can be flush mounted, and for a unique glass mast look, the GNX 120 can be flat mounted with an optional carbon fiber mast bracket. The GNX 120 and GNX 130 can be controlled from a distance using the new GNX Keypad, an optional accessory that features four different buttons dedicated to preset configurations. The GNX keypad allows sailors to adjust background lighting of all displays from the touch of a button. Another benefit of both the GNX 120 and GNX 130 is power consumption. Only .36 watts is consumed during the day with no backlight, while .4 watts is used at night when only a mid-level backlight is required. This allows for more time on the water without running the boat motor or generator for extended periods of time.
The GNX 120, expected to be available in February 2015, will have a suggested retail price of $899.99, and the GNX 130, expected to be available in May 2015, will have a suggested retail of price of $1499.99. For more information, visit www.garmin.com/marine.
