A Cheap Man's AVMAP for APRS

A while back I found an article on using a Garmin Nuvi 350 in conjunction with an Argent Cable to be able to view some of the APRS symbols on an Automotive type GPS device.  After a little research and some digging through my old stuff, I found my Garmin Nuvi 350 that I bought many years ago (you can also find these on eBay).  All I needed to do now was buy the cable.  I found Argent's Web Site and ordered the right cable.  From there I hooked everything up to my Kenwood TM-D700a, and instantly begin to get APRS data showing up on the map displayed on the Garmin Nuvi 350.  From what I understand the 350 is the only one so far that shows the APRS Symbols.  The secret to this is the Fleet Tracking Software installed on the Garmin.  There are other models that have this software, but the 350 is the only one to display the symbols on the map.  In order to make this work, you MUST power the Garmin via the rear connector using their cable.  The Argent cable plugs into the side mini-USB port.  The other end of this cable plugs into any of the Kenwood radios with the built in TNC.  There are also cables for other radios available, here is information on the Yaesu FTM-350R setup.  Here are some of the pictures associated with this setup:

This is the Garmin Nuvi 350:

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This is a wide area shot of San Antonio, Texas with the APRS reports showing as black dots:

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This is the menu on the Garmin:

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Click on the "Favorites" option and you get list of APRS Stations Received:

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You can click on any Call Sign for it's location:

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By pressing the - sign you can zoom out:

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This is the Argent cable:

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It plugs into the side mini-USB port of the Garmin:

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This is the power cable from Garmin:

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It plugs into the rear connector of the Garmin, it is a right angle mini-USB plug:

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For more information, click on the underlined links in the above paragraph.  Rod K9ROD