I’ve been reading the posts about the Lancair vs Cirrus and have seen comments saying the UPSAT user interface is not as intuitive as Garmin’s.
I use both the panel mounted GX55 and a RAM mounted GPSMAP295 in my TB20 and I, for one, find the UPSAT interface much easier to use. Whenever I’m loaded down with IFR chores and have to make a GPS entry, I always change the GX55 first and catch up with the Garmin later when things settle down. Granted, the 295 is no 430, and its button interface (versus the 55’s knobs) may be a factor, but I also like the 55’s more selective declutter features and soft keys.
It seems obvious that we’ll someday see “glass cockpit” (er, “silicon cockpit”?) primary flight displays in the Cirrus. Maybe it will be a Garmin display, which would presumably work well with the existing Garmin avionics. See the press account below. GARMIN SETS STAGE FOR NEW GENERATION OF PRODUCTS
With the purchase Thursday of Sequoia Instruments, Garmin made its first public move toward the development of a complete primary flight display system. Sequoia, based in Los Gatos, California, is a research and development company that has among other products a GPS-aided air data and attitude heading and reference system (ADHRS). The solid-state sensors in an ADHRS provide navigation-critical data such as attitude, heading, and rate information for aviation, marine, and land applications. An ADHRS is necessary to drive the next generation of primary flight displays. The flight displays will replace conventional flight instruments, giving light aircraft all-electronic displays similar to those enjoyed by larger aircraft for more than a decade. Garmin paid about $5 million in cash for Sequoia’s technology and assets.
