Boating World

On Track

You may never have to stop and ask for directions again (not like you did anyway).

February 1, 2003

You may never have to stop and ask for directions again (not like you did anyway). With the NAVMAN Tracker 5500 ($679.95), navigation is made simple, and getting lost could become an activity of the past.

Installation of the unit is easy. You only have to drill three holes to mount the bracket, and the unit mounts on a single screw to the bracket. Flush mounting the unit is also available; a template is provided for guidance.

When you power-up for the first time, the unit prompts you to go through setup, and it takes just minutes to complete. The main displays are easy to find by pressing the DISP button. You navigate through the functions by using the cursor key to highlight a selection and then pressing enter. Once you get into each function, it's really self-explanatory

The Chart Display gives you basic navigation, and you get a general idea of where you are. You can also see where other marked waypoints were. To get to a specific waypoint, the Highway function is very useful. The Tides Display is also useful, whether you're fishing or cruising.

One drawback of the unit is that the screen size is a bit small; however, having easy access to backlight and display contrast makes viewing comfortable in either daylight or lowlight conditions. - Bryan Umstattd