Great review mate, I've watched quite a few of your videos between the rhino and this unit. Thanks for the time taken to show people the workings of each unit

Thanks for the review. I'm a hiker and ended up upgrading from the Montana 650t. This time I didn't want a camera and I carry a stand alone plb so I went with the 700. My only gripe is that they don't openly disclose that the 700 doesn't come with full topo maps, just topo active which is very basic, no cpt roads, minimal contours. I had to buy the Aus/NZ V6 sd card and load them on via base camp. You just can't stick the card in the back and switch the unit over in the settings. The 700i and 750i come preloaded with v6. It was still cheaper for me to buy the 700 and sd card than buy a 700i, only just. Also, my Montana 650t was preloaded with v5 maps which have more cpt roads and tracks. V6 has dropped some cpt roads and you can't buy a v5 sd card and load it onto Montana 700 as it isn't compatible only previous models are.

Great review! Glad that I viewed your review before purchasing. Actually drove over my Montana 680T during a wild hog hunt. Before replacing decided to check out the latest and greatest. I certainly will not be purchasing the 750I now that the facts around the smoke and mirrors have been explained. Was looking forward to the birds eye view. But I guess I'll wait another few years to see if they can ever configure it to worthy clarity. Cheers!

extensive review Daz hope that battery life gets sorted

I've owned many garmin handhelds since 1998 and latelty used the Montana 680t. I bought the 700. First let me say I love it. Now it is a brick and worried that would kill it for me. But after many hours and days of backcountry I've grown into it. It fits easy into my LLbean hiking shirt pockets. And for longer day hikes I found a Niteeze wide case for it to fit and attach on my shoulder strap at chest level. Being it uses a light weight lithium ion 3100 mah battery Idon't notice a weight difference or bulk difference over the 680 montana. 3 2450 mah AA's the 680 held weigh in for sure. The function,screen and the other featurs makes it a great unit. I get long battery life due to it's optional menu settings. I run it all day tracking and after 5 hrs say I have near 75 or 50 % left. I carry a optional Lithium Ion OEM pack for back up on those planned long days.

It looks a really good unit Daz , Can't wait to hear how it performs on your next hunt 👍

Good, honest review mate, well done. I agree with you on the Birdseye imagery, this is one of the features that as hunters we want and is vital for detail.

Good video looking forward to purchasing one when I can find one

Spot on review. Internet needs more like this Thanks!

Excellent review mate! Your honesty is a very expensive gift to us all 👍 If only Garmin would release a Rino product combined with the Inreach functions similar to the Garmin Alpha 200i

Top stuff Daz. It sounds like I'll be holding onto my Garmin Inreach Mini tethered to my phone as this combination works a treat and is simple, reliable with the battery lasting for ages. If it aint broke no need to fix it. Thanks for a great review👍👍

Woohoo your back with some new content.. nice..

Hello. After the photo is taken is there a geo marker (point) with coordinates to follow to reach the place again?

Hi Daz Very informative review. Can you please tel me who makes the teddy bear fleece jacket you’re wearing? Thanks

Hey Daz… how have you found the 750i long term now for bike and bush? I too am looking for a device to use on my adventure bike and back up for my rino in the bush.. was also looking at the zumo xt2..

Morning mate thanks for the review. Do you find the larger size to help or a hinder while hunting. I find the small 2.5 in screens crap to work with and I am torn between the Montana with its 5 in screen and the alpha 200i which has a 3.5 in screen. Also has the battery issue been fixed?

Great review - thanks for doing it! My 10 year old Delorme Inreach SE finally just died and I'm looking for a replacement. Garmin says the InReach Explorer+ is unobtainable and they have no idea when they will be available again. Trying to choose between the gpsMap 66i or the Montana 700i. My use cases are very similar to yours, with 80% vehicle based, and 20% tromping through the brush looking for game.

Excellent review mate. Often is the case with ordinary folks like us, who don't have enough complete knowledge and understanding about these new devices. Ends up buying a unit and of course paying big bucks for it, without knowing whether it is useful for the intended purpose. Thank you for the details information, which will certainly help some of us make purchasing decisions at least somewhat easier. Cheers mate

Battery life should be addressed before release. It’s called R&D.

Is the camera worth it for a 100usd more? are you able to text images with the geotag info to garmin for S&R?

What a great and honest review.

Hi mate, after having the GPS for a while has your thoughts on tne unit changed. Im after a new unit now after losing mine in the bush 🥲

The part that has steered me away from this unit is that it doesn’t have the pinging feature to find your friends location like the Rino. The radio i can live without but the location of your group is invaluable in my opinion

Very honest review mate👍 think i will stick to my rhino 750 at this stage so saved me a fair bit of cash with this review👍👊 mind you Priya in the post below was possibly a bit more into the review than me😂😂😂😂😂😂

Exactly what I wanted. Those 3 things your mentioned of in reach is same for me. Northern BC Canada. Thanks

Awesome Review ive been done over with a garmin gos before , hopefully starlink or amazon come up with something vetter eventually

Hi there …. Something it wasn’t clear to me is whether you can share your location or track your mates location as you do with the rinos. If so can they work with the rinos as well Can you please confirm if this is possible with the Montana

Is the Rino 750's map size still tolerable after using a 5in screen ?

Great video as always mate! I have a Rino 750 but no InReach (yet). Would you suggest getting an InReach to pair with the Rino or sell / donate it to a mate and just get the Montana? Also, on my Rino it does my head in ALWAYS having to recalibrate the compass every time I turn it on. How do the montana hold up once calibrated or do you not need to considering the sat connection? Cheers bud!

Thanks for the great review. I have a InReach Explorer+ and a Montana 689t. This looks like a great product to eliminate carrying 2 devices.

I saw something about optional public land maps so you know if you are on public or private land. How does that work?

G’day Daz, thanks for another very informative review.I’m not as tech savvy as you so I’ll stick with what I’ve got.I’m annoyed that Garmin have possibly misled the consumer on the functionality and performance of this new device.Poor battery life is not acceptable for a device marketed to the hunters and adventurers around the globe.I think Garmin may see a drop in sales if there products fail to live up to hype/advertising put out by their marketing department.Cheers, Rob.

Misleading- Yes, you can sync the Garmin "collar" with the Montana IF you also have the handheld unit that comes with the collar. In other words, you have to buy an $800 Handheld/collar unit to then sync it with your $800 Montana. You cannot sync it up to a collar alone.

Thanks for your great review, decided to buy the 750i based on your review as I intended to mount it to a bike/ATV, and like you I have been a victim of Garmin Australia's piss poor advertising. After purchasing the 750i from a local supplier in Melbourne the first on-line update removed TopoActive and install Full Topo V6, no big deal you say, well I already had it on SD with Hema so I don't need it, Then Garmin after numerous calls to they 1800 help number, I am told the unit's faulty send it back, 2 weeks later Garmin rings me and tells all's ok we decided to change the map in the all 750i's sold in Australia to full Topo v6 but left 700 and 700i with TopoActive . Strangely it also came with TopoActive Africa. Garmin's admitted fault as they had not updated their advertising, no problem I said send me a 700i and refund the difference, but they can't do that only a full refund. Got to say Garmin's customer service is a 1 out of 10.

have they up graded battery life mate? i just bought one for snowmobile in north east US

Hi mate whats the best way to download birdseye,via wifi or on a pc

Do you know anything about an issue with using Apple products (MacBook) and the Garmin Montana? I saw a review that said that they could not update their Montana with their MacBook. They said it was a glitch and was hoping that Garmin would get it fixed.

Great review!

Has anyone used 700i in cold weather -30c. What’s the touch screen function like

is it a dead duck without a plan? or is the plan mainly for the sos feature?

Thanks Daz - i'll stick with the inreach for a while longer, battery lasts for days and carry my Icom UHF

Great review, I was looking at one of these but will now probably get Inreach Mini instead. It would be could if it had the ability to take a sim card so you don't have to carry your phone and the Garmin 750i.

This review didn't help me much in what I was seeking though it definitely strengthen my believe I should choose not to buy Garmin again. I was, actually am in market for replacement for my old 62s unit, that worked flawlessly for 9 years. It's still working but I am counting days till it will give up suddenly. I hoped this Montana would be solid replacement, as the old Montana looks a little obsolete, but none "review" helped deciding if it is worth buying or not. I primarily need it for navigating on enduro travels on and off the main roads. Does it work with gloves? Is it fast enough? I recently bought Garmin DEZL for my job. Bought it based on some "reviews" praising its capabilities. Over a single month I went from "it's alright, I can live with that" to "what a piece of crap, I could have bought a satnav for third of the price and have the same performance". So this little adventure made me rethink, if I really want this Montana or not. Certainly a transflective display is a selling point, something I absolutely love. But then, there are lcd displays with high brightness for outdoor use so.... Weather app caught my eye and I am glad you mentioned it being dependent on a phone. One feature down. Plasticy cradle doesn't look appealing to me and Touratech isn't planning to make a holder for it, I checked. You know, the lockable holder with silentblocks mitigating vibrations. Only thing being currently positive above tablets is the weight, that is on the lower side.

Now you've worked out this unit, if you had your choice again what else would you have tried? or would it still have been this unit due to all the positives?

As usual great "HONEST " review Daz.. l've been looking at them in lockdown and was also a bit sus on the reviews available.. cheers.

Between this and the Iridium satellite phone, which would be better for emergency situations? Thanks!

Any update on the battery 🔋?

Great video buddy

Daz have you any updates on the Montana? Did a patch fix the battery life? As you realise the older we get the bigger and higher resolution screens we appreciate. Whilst the phones are very good the screens are little small when looking at large terrain, especially when on location and planning the next days movements with a group of mates. Hence my interest in the Montana. For this purpose and after watching your reveiw I am thinking a iPad with a good 'off cell connection, app is a better option.

You stated that you can see the detail of a car or even the person standing next to it on Google Earth - really.... I's love to see the version you are using. Other that that it was a great presentation.

Hey Daz great review...the jacket that your wearing m8,who makes them I want one .

Cheers daz, think I’ll take my mini of eBay for the time being. Really feel for ya mate I’d be pissed off how far off the mark Garmin has hit with the Montana

Good straight up review.The Garmin maps are shit to the point I don't bother using them.

Cheers for the review mate and Im glad I watched this. The battery life for me is a big let down for me at the end of the day if you can't get back to camp on foot for a day and sit it out then something goes south big time your battery is going to be buggered.

Anyone had any issues not receiving messages ?

8:10 I am very curios if your did your battery endurance test on a counter inside a building? Is it possibly the unit was consistently searching for the Iridium network causing increased battery drain? I'd suggest you place the unit on a small resting spot outside in view of the open sky and see if you get battery run times closer to Garmin's claims. Please report back we love to learn from this testing. Cheers, #SeattleRingHunter

Would you buy it again

Did you use the camera on the Swedish backpackers💁🏽‍♂️ and mark there location 🤔

So, I have had a Montana 700 since Dec 20. To date I have not been able to use the device because of the following issues: - Device wont follow a simple route WP1 => WP2 =>WP3 etc - Compass freezes when moving - Device doesn't change from WP1 to WP2 when you get to WP1. - Compass screen doesn't calculate time to next WP and estimated time to the end point I have tried multiple things routeing setup, compass setup, compass calibration etc...even tried Ordinance Survey Garmin UK 25k maps Nothing seems to work. Have been trying everything that Garmin Support say, but nothing is working. Have you experienced anything like this or any of your followers? Really not impressed with this "high end" very expensive device.... Would love to hear back from you or anyone with similar issues. Maybe it is me...maybe I am being stupid....but I do have an old GPS Map 62s which works fine with routing and also a Fenix 6 x which also works... Any help appreciated. CDJewell

They need to make a gps well as emergency and a UHF in one

I want one!

looks like you are not downloading Highest Quality Images on the Birdseye Direct. Of Standard, High and Highest, it looks like you are set "High" which is quite grainy when fully zoomed in. If you want to reply with a Lat/Lon, I'll do test and let you know what I find when downloading your area, but from the US Servers

Inreach explorer + still can not be beat on battery life which is most important in the backcountry. I was dissapointed with the 750i and 700i in regards to battery life

cant believe the cost and no case!

Gotta be connected to WiFi to get the weather map

I never buy the first of any model of anything until it’s proved itself.

Definitely more cons than pros!

It be too clear too close because then you get into military grade stuff

For around $1000 might be better to just buy a iridium sat phone

I sent mine back. Its JUNK

Cant justify the price. Its just not worth it. With Onx off road maps being 29.99 a year for premium, theres no reason to purchase this. plus the Garmin maps SUCK in comparison.

sounds crap....

That island accent is hard on the ears.