I can find many comparisons of the Garmin and Avidyne boxes /when they came out/. Back then, the IFD had a few interesting features that the GTN’s did not. But Garmin has been very active and caught up. I know some of these key features are now on the GTN, either because I used them when doing my IR in 2019 or they are on the Garmin simulator.
So to my question, to those who use both boxes:
how do the GTN’s and IFD’s compare today with their latest respective software? Features, ease of use, etc…
Reliability? How is the Avidyne support in Europe these days?
Arne, I’m still not sure about the radius-to-fix, if it works in IFD or not. There are fewer trainers for IFD (no PC or Android at all, only Apple) but SkyDemon has got a direct integration with IFD. Everything else I think is the same (including Enrout VNAV etc).
I don’t have much experience with the GTN. But my SR22 is now equipped with 2 × IFD440, and I love them.
The integration with Skydemon is fantastic. Transferring a flight plan takes me 5 seconds. There’s also the iPad app IFD100 that allows me to control the units and access all my Jeppesen charts (the IFD440 screen is too small for them).
The most recent version includes visual approaches.
I think GTN vs IFD is often down to brand preference and budget.
There should be loads more input here. Where have all the owners gone?
One avionics installer commented that the GTN software updates are much faster than IFD ones, but that could be due to other differences which he didn’t understand.
A general comment I’ve heard is that IFR is closer to the Collins (FMS) user interface and thus a lot more powerful, plus all the functions are on keys, whereas some GTN ones need the touch screen.
But the above is nothing new.
Just remembered another thing – IFD allows for an external bluetooth keyboard, unlike GTN. :)
The lack of specific input on this is astonishing. Not sure what it is telling us. Maybe almost nobody has used both?
Peter wrote:
The lack of specific input on this is astonishing. Not sure what it is telling us. Maybe almost nobody has used both?
To have used both some would have to fly two separate aircraft once in a while.
Usually a comparison ends in a religious Apple vs Android or Mac vs Windows situation. In any case, once installed that will be the favourite. It’s tough to find a unbiased comparison because so much is personal opinion.
I’m not sure there are that many people with experience on both. Perhaps some instructors.
I have an IFD540/440 pair in my panel and flew as copi on a plane with a GTN 650 in July. That was the first time I actually saw one being used. UI similar to Garmin’s portable GPSs. IFD is more like a big iron FMS.
With the IFD there are usually several ways to achieve something. This is by design, on the basis that all pilots have different preferences and of course think their way is the best. Avidyne says, for example, that 40% of customers never use the separate KB and don’t see how it’s useful while the other 60% have it mounted on the yoke, hardly ever touch the panel unit, and can barely imagine flying without it. Same with the IFD100, an ipad app that emulates the IFD and communicates with the panel unit. But it’s not an EFB like SkyDemon or EasyVFR or ForeFlight. Anyone with an IFD540 likely doesn’t get so much benefit. But it is a real boon to anyone with an IFD440 since the IFD100 emulating an IFD540 adds the big screen to the small real estate of the IFD440. Neither of these features are available on the GTN series.
As far as the time to load IFD databases is concerned, this must be old information. At least for navdata and obstacles, the longest time is turning on the unit and waiting for the selection menu. The actual update takes seconds, definitely less than a minute. The only update that does indeed still take a while are the charts. These also take a long time to download to USB using JDM so it’s likely data volume and USB transfer speed related.
@chflyer, I think many functions of IFD100 are covered in Garmin Pilot, and unlike Avidyne, Garmin Pilot exists on Android & Apple. That is the challenge with IFD – if you are an Android household (we’ve got something like seven devices?), you haven’t got much choice. The trainer doesn’t exist on anything but Apple, which also limits things a lot, especially for a renter, I’m not aware of any remotely-accessible trainers either (even at a cost), that you could access from a PC, for example.
But, SkyDemon integration doesn’t exist on GTN as well as an external keyboard. In some cases the amount of panel space also leaves you no choice but to install IFD.
While things above are more about he choices you’ve made earlier (and many cases you could just spend your way out of the problem by buying multple Apple devices and using those for flying only), the problem with IFD for me would be comparing the count of installed IFD vs installed GTN and also for the IFD installers vs GTN installers – how much experience there is in the IFD (or Garmin for that matter) installation & maintenance in your area.
Yes, and you’ve reinforced and expanded on what I said. All valid points. I’ve seen comparisons on various US forums and choice usually boils down to personal priorities and opinion. Getting all the considerations pro/con will make for a long list. Garmin is the gorilla in the business, and there is strong resistance in the avionics shops to dealing with anything new/unknown, especially in Europe where Garmin has practically no competition. Some of the reasons are valid, other less so. I’m amazed sometimes that any competitors are left. A bit like selling internal management on buying something other than IBM in the 1970s. No one ever got fired for buying IBM.
I have no idea of the Garmin Pilot capabilities today. Can one manage a GTN 650 with it? Enter and change nav/com frequencies and so on, or enter/modify an active flight plan directly?
Coming back to the OP, I don’t think it is possible to get a realistic answer to the reliability question, only isolated data points which aren’t representative. As far as support is concerned, Avidyne engages with customers in a way that Garmin does not, as far as I have seen. Avidyne concentrates on the US market. They’ve done quite a bit from a software perspective to support European customers with new features for “free” (update manpower cost is on the customer), but don’t have any European office. All support is provided out of the US, certainly for cost reasons. So anytime a unit needs to be repaired it goes back to the US, which is a $500 shipping bullet to bite. I don’t know what return shipping from the EU to Garmin UK costs, but likely less than $100.
Wiring an ADL to the IFD has been possible for years. I don’t know about the GTN. With the latest software, it is also possible to connect the ADL and other portables to the IFD via wifi (both directions) to display wx and tfc.
RF approaches are in the latest IFD software release.
