I've successfully used my Garmin foretrex 201 with my old desktop for many years.

However, I've recently purchased a new laptop, and after the purchase, I discovered that it doesn't have the correct 15 pin male connector to connect to the 15 pin female GPS connector.

Can anyone suggest a way to connect my existing GPS to my new laptop? Is there an adaptor available? Can I use a USB cable?

Hi Yagon,

Just another thing for you to keep in mind. If you have windows vista you will find the software that comes with the serial to usb cable may not work. I went through the painful fun of buying and trying and wasting alot of time in the end to buy a navi and keep the garmin as a backup and still download on old computer.

Hope this helps,

Carl

Thanks for the help. I am using Windows Vista. Is there anyway to use the Garmin with Vista? I won't have an old computer to download files.

Just make sure that the serial to USB adapter has Windows Vista compatible software. The serial port should just look like a normal serial port to the computer when the drivers are loaded.

OK. I've bought a Manhattan USB to Serial Converter model 205146.

I've installed the drivers and connected the GPS (Foretrex 201). In G7toWin, I've gone into the Configuration setting and changed the Com port to USB.

However, G7toWin can't 'see' the GPS unit. I receive an error message that says "USB Error: open_Garmin_USB: Failed getting USB Handle".

Can anyone help me connect this?

Most likely haven't selected the correct "Com port" for the unit

Depends on your computer, but I think for most it would be COM3 -- a 'serial' port, not a USB port.

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yagon said...

OK. I've bought a Manhattan USB to Serial Converter model 205146.

I've installed the drivers and connected the GPS (Foretrex 201). In G7toWin, I've gone into the Configuration setting and changed the Com port to USB.

However, G7toWin can't 'see' the GPS unit. I receive an error message that says "USB Error: open_Garmin_USB: Failed getting USB Handle".

Can anyone help me connect this?

The PC should hide the fact that the com port is connected via USB. As far as any application is concerned, it should be talking to a COM port, and there should be no mention of USB.

Your G7toWin program should be set to use whatever COM port the Manhattan adapter is configured as. If you have selected USB it is probably try to talk directly using USB, which your Garmin doesn't have.

If it was windows XP you could go into Control Panel -> Device manager -> Ports(COM $& LPT) and it should show you what COM ports are available. It may show up with the driver name tell you which COM port number to use.

Of course, to make it more confusing some laptops have built in COM ports that don't have a physical connector until you use a docking station, so sometimes there is already a COM port, but you can't use it!

OK, I've finally got it working - after much trial and error, COM6 is the port that worked.

Thanks for everyone's help.