GARMIN 010-10268-00 Cigarette Lighter/PC Cable Adapter Reviews

• A Must Have for Road Trips

  
  By A6YG6W296K3CZ on 2001-03-01
  This cable combines the cigarette-lighter adapter and the pc-data cable into one harness. If you want to go on roadtrips, this accessory is a must have. There is only one cable connector on the Garmin eTrex GPS receivers - you can only connect one accessory. That means that if you want to have the cigarette-lighter adapter and the pc-data cable attached, this is the only way to do it! I also highly recommend DeLorme Map Pack 8.0 which includes Street Atlas USA 8.0 and AAA Map'n'Go 6.0.
  
  

• USB cable would be even better

  
  By on 2002-01-11
  This cable works just fine, but it is too short and it requires a serial port. Since all of my serial ports were in use with my printer, palm pilot, etc., I have to disconnect the screws/pins and reconnect each time I want to transfer data. There's no reason Garmin couldn't have created this with a USB connection. Welcome to the 21st century.
  
  

• A must have for the driving explore

  
  By A1CRKXZHTI95AI on 2001-11-04
  Garmin GPS's have fairly good battery life, but after a couple of days of using your Garmin in a car, the batteries are going to be dead. Drive a long distance in one day, 15+ hours, and the batteries in your Garmin will be dead. This can be very anonying if your out RV'ing or Off-Roading for the weekend or the week.

  So Garmin has fixed this problem by making a Cigarette Adapter and PC Interface cord that attaches to your Garmin GPS.
  Now you can cruise around all day with all of the features of your Garmin GPS turned on, and don't have to worry about the batteries dying. I think that is a big plus.

  My only complaint is that I wish the cord was longer. It's good length, but some how I feel that I am going to need a longer cord one day and it's going to annony me that it is not.

  So, if you drive alot with your Garmin GPS, get this and save money on batteries.
  
  

• Great GPS Accessory

  
  By A1DZM5N7UEBV25 on 2002-09-22
  Not only do I go geocaching (..., to learn more), but I also use my GPS in the car with me basically all the time; especially on long road trips. I do think that my GPS does have a good battery life by itself, considering that many other electronic devices like this tend to go through batteries like there's no tomorrow. But, the batteries do get worn down if you leave the GPS on for quite a while, like when you're driving. Hence, that's why I bought this product.

  First of all, I decided to get this adapter with both the cigarette lighter plug-in and the computer adapter because I not only wanted to plug the GPS into my car, but I also wanted to download waypoints from the internet to store onto the GPS. Like I said, I go geocaching, and before I had this adapter, I had to manually enter in all of the coordinates to each of the waypoints. It can be done, but it does take up a lot of time. Instead, now I can just plug this adapter into my computer, along with the GPS, and download all of the coordinates to their own waypoints onto the GPS. I also saved all of my waypoints that I had already stored onto my computer, as a back-up measure. In case they ever get deleted off the GPS, for some reason. In summary, the computer adapter is definitely a time saver if you find yourself manually entering waypoints.

  Secondly, I used the cigarette adapter plug-in during my summer vacation. I was on the road for 1,000 + miles, with my GPS plugged in the whole time. The great thing is, I didn't go through any batteries the entire trip! Sure, they did drain a bit because I used the GPS outside of the car, but I'm sure I would have been going through new batteries every day without the adapter. One more thing that I liked is that the GPS does not turn off when you turn your vehicle off. If you have batteries installed in the GPS, it will automatically power off of them when you turn off your car engine. It does this flawlessly, too.

  All in all, if I could, I probably would give this product 4.5 stars. My major gripe with this produce is that Garmin does not provide USB support. My computer only has one serial port, and I already had another device plugged into it. So I have to swap them whenever I want to use this. USB would probably transfer the data between the computer and GPS faster. Also, the price of this product is a little steep, as well; I don't think Garmin would hurt that much to lower their MSRP a little bit.
  
  

• It is a Crazy World

  
  By A197BQFMF77D24 on 2004-03-25
  It is crazy how over-priced this cable really is. It is crazy that I actually bought it. If you don't mind the price, this cable is well made. I finally upgraded the firmware of my Geko 201 with this cable. BTW, the bootleg version of this cable costs almost as much, and probably costs more after you add the shipping cost. See what a crazy world we live in?
  
  
• Garmin PC Interface Cable
  By A2FQ8V7Q1QW40P on 2003-02-26
  This item is an absolute must for operating your GPS unit out in the field when connected to a computer of some sort. Simply relying on the Garmin GPS's internal batteries leaves you with only an eight hour window of operation while if the unit is attached to an external power source one can expect unlimited usage.
  
  
• Works great but designed wierd
  By on 2004-03-25
  The way this cable should have been made is with the Y connection near the cigarette lighter adapter instead of near the GPS. If the gps is placed on the dashboard, you have a cable stretched across your passenger seat to the laptop which gets in the way but I have used this cable and it works well.
  
  
• Functional and Well-Built
  By A3PSPECSWXY9ZV on 2001-09-30
  I regularly carry my eTrex GPS from vehicle to vehicle and connect it to my laptop everyday for downloading waypoints and track information. This cable makes it easy to utilize my etrex regardless of the environment. Best of all, the cable is sturdily made and looks like it will last for many more trips. This is also the only cable that will allow you to both power your GPS and connect it to a computer while in a vehicle, as must if you plan on using mapping software in the car.
  
  
• Nice product that should be included in the GPS unit.
  By A1UFCJSBHCLIA2 on 2001-10-02
  This is a nice product that can charge your GPS unit and connect to your laptop. The only question i have is why Garmin doesn't include it with the GPS unit. The emap unit comes with the serial cabel anyway, it shouldn't cost much more to upgrade it with this. Instead we need to buy it seperately and have one extra PC cable wasted....
  
  
• Beware
  By A3KPEAIMHYQVDX on 2005-11-16
  This cable, though listed under accessories for the Garmin eTrex Vista C, does not fit this gps. Works fine with the older model eTrex so I won't lower the overall rating but want other Vista C owners to be aware. It is a listing error, not a cable error.
  
  
• Terminals subject to damage
  By A2V4KSG1HQDIQL on 2001-07-30
  It's a marvelous idea, but when you're using the plug-in adaptor in your car (particularly a small car like my Jeep), there's a really good chance the PC plug can be damaged by being stepped on or whatever. Perhaps a better idea would be to make each adaptor so that it could be plugged into a socket at the point where they join into the main cable going to the eTrex. That way, you could simply leave each plug inserted into or near its appropriate device. Despite this, potentially serious, flaw the device worked well and was, I feel, worth the money and then some. Batteries do get expensive.
  
  
• USB cable would be even better
  By on 2002-01-12
  This cable works just fine, but it is too short and it requires a serial port. Since all of my serial ports were in use with my printer, palm pilot, etc., I have to disconnect the screws/pins and reconnect each time I want to transfer data. There's no reason Garmin couldn't have created this with a USB connection. Welcome to the 21st century.
  
  
• USB is Possible
  By A2U5QX5ATT4T1B on 2002-10-03
  As a certified Computer Technician, I bought a Etrex to connect to a PC i have mounted in my truck, used to play music and display navigational software on a lcd screen. I found out that the software (along with many others) support a connection to a gps device, allowing the software to track your location real time on a map. Very handy, I just set the destination, and it tells me where to go! This cable allows battery free operation, and I hate buying expensive batteries! Although I do agree the cable could be longer, it functions, thus its handy to have. I would like to comment on the usb remarks. I have not tried this yet, but there is a usb to serial adapter available for PC's in need of an extra serial port. Cheers!
  
  
• works as advertised
  By A19ML5L4T8RKOL on 2002-11-07
  Mush have if you have a GPS and topo map software
  
  
• Great quality product for a basic unit
  By A2FLVZNZBTVK27 on 2006-06-30
  Garmin continues to amaze me with their technology. The Etrex is one of the most basic GPS units that you can buy (also the cheapest). Without the cable, the Etrex is wonderful for nearly all GPS needs that arise. But with this cable, the Etrex is extremly powerful! With free software on the internet, you can send/receive information quickly from your computer and GPS.
  The power option on this cable is also very convenient for long trips. I use my GPS in my vehicle quite a bit, and it is very handy knowing that when you get out of the vehicle, the disposable batteries within the eTrex have not been used. A dead GPS is worth absolutely nothing!
  
  If you are just getting started into geocaching or other types of basic navigation, the eTrex and this cable is a very satisfying combination. The only reason that I gave it 4 stars is that the connector pin that attaches to the GPS tends to slip out with a minimum amount of force (not the cables fault). Depending on how you look at it, this is also a convenience if you need to disconnect the cable quickly.
  
  

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