Oregon Beta 2.93 — A Mixed Bag, but Worth Trying
Like many other Oregon users I’ve been putting the beta 2.93 software through its paces since it was released a little over a week ago. The biggest change in 2.93 according to Garmin’s release notes is an improvement in GPS performance. After running a number of tests, several head-to-head against the Garmin 60csx, I would agree that at slow speeds under dense cover the Oregon is finally on par with the 60csx. In several of my test runs it actually did better. But there’s a catch, with this increased sensitivity the tracklogs display a lot of noise and are 10-20% longer as a result. Hopefully Garmin can clean up the noise without impacting the accuracy because I’m really enjoying the improved responsiveness of the receiver.
The track plot below was taken from a two tests on two different days between the 60csx and Oregon over the same course. The yellow reference is about 25′ wide and both the 60csx and Oregon do well staying inside that path during the tests. In previous tests the Oregon would frequently lag and drift outside the reference by 40′-50′.
This release also included some minor fixes for the Custom POI (now called “Extras” on the WhereTo? menu) feature. In addition many users are noticing improvements in WAAS lock with an open view of the sky. Under tree cover the Oregon still quickly loses WAAS — no change there from previous software versions.
So what’s the catch? There have been two widely reported issues with the 2.93 beta code. I have read at least of a dozen reports of random shutoffs and decreased battery life with beta 2.93. For some reason these issues only impact some Oregons but not others (I haven’t seen either problem on my 400t).
If you are really craving improved GPS performance I would suggest trying this release to determine if the random power offs and decreased battery life affect your Oregon. If you’re one of the lucky users who doesn’t see the issues or who is willing to live with it then 2.93 is probably the best release going for Oregon. If you are unfortunate enough to see these problems roll back to 2.85. Directions on how to do this are available on the wiki.
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March 19th, 2009 at 11:09 am
I did not see any Extras section in the Where to menu. And can we do a sub category reserch like we can do on the legend HcX? Example : If im looking for a restaurant, can i do a research for chineese restaurant only? I can do this on the legent HcX with same map but not on the Oregon! Can anybody help me?
March 19th, 2009 at 11:40 am
Jowel80… Extras only come sup if you have custom POIs loaded.
and no, no sub categories for preloaded POIs.
March 19th, 2009 at 11:57 am
You have to load custom POIs using the Garmin POI loader or GSAK before you can see the Extra’s menu under WhereTo? There are different databases under Extra’s if you load your custom POIs the right way.
As maingray said there still isn’t category support for built in POIs.
March 19th, 2009 at 4:35 pm
Anybody knows if it going to be possible in the future to get sub category search for preloaded POIs?
March 22nd, 2009 at 4:26 pm
Greetings, fellow Oregon users-
Just an additional data point:
I’ve been running 2.93 on my 400t since it was released – and have yet to experience an unexpected shutdown, nor reduced battery life (contrarily: without connecting it to the recent firmware upgrade, I was just thinking the other day that battery life had definitely improved).
I’ve done no rigorous testing like that documented by Scott – thanks for all the effort!
March 23rd, 2009 at 9:02 am
hello,
well.to me i had to roll back to 2.86: ( 2 times )
i had no significant signal accuracy improvement compare to my wifes oregon 300 running herself 2.86 software.more thant that my unit running 2.93 was shutting off a couple of times a day while on geocaching and even routing driving.so to me that 2.93 is not good,both my units are oregon 300 i live in Canada,Quebec,Montreal.
March 25th, 2009 at 6:17 pm
[...] real test will be whether the problems users reported with poor battery life and random shutoffs in beta 2.93 are addressed or not. Post here or over at 2.94 beta thread on the Oregon wiki to let us know [...]