The Garmin Montana 700 is a great device and it excels in what it is supposed to do – navigate us through the toughest terrains, be as durable as a bullet and let us record our travelled paths. But as any electronic device, it is only useful if it has the power to function.
The standard Li-Ion battery pack supposed to power the device for 18 hours, in reality this turned into only 6-8 hours depending on the backlight brightness of the display. On some days this might not be enough and we require a constant connection to the motorcycle battery. Which is supposed to happen with the Garmin AMPS powered mount, which works fine, until it does not work anymore. Worn contacts due to vibrations can be a real deal and make charging impossible. I encountered this issue on my first device and had to replace it.
But it made me think – is there a better way to use this device than rely on a wired connection to the motorcycle’s battery. What if I travel and have a rental motorcycle and can’t connect a wiring to the battery? So I decided to try out the Garmin AA battery pack.
Note: This battery pack is only compatible with the non inReach versions of the Garmin Montana line.
I bought rechargable batteries on the internet to use with the device and a charger that can be charged with a USB C and micro USB cable, to make it more convenient for travelling. Plus, I can easily recharge the batteries in my backpack with a portable power bank.
I bought the 3300mAh type, with the hope they last a bit longer due to the bigger capacity. They do fit a little tight but still fit in the case.
The Garmin Montana AA battery pack costs 40 USD on Amazon and does not include the batteries, they need to be purchased separately.
What I first noticed is that the AA battery pack is thicker than the standard pack and makes the overall device more bulky than it is already. However, if mounted on the handlebar, this is not noticeable and it still fits into the standard mount bracket.
Make sure you change the setting on to the correct batteries you are using, in this case NiMH. If you are using non-rechargable ones, you might want to change to Alkaline. However, Garmin recommends to use the rechargable type for the AA battery pack.
When installing the batteries, make sure you charged them fully and pole them correctly for proper function.
You will see the small battery logo on the top right screen. And compared to the standard logo it will look slightly different showing the battery level with bars.
I have tested the pack on a few day tours now and have gotten around 10 hours of riding, with medium brightness and only GPS mode. If you activate GLONASS as well, it might drain the battery a little bit faster.
What I have noticed is, that the battery level indicator is not very accurate. After 1-2h of usage it will show a battery level of around 50% and a few hours more it will show that the battery is almost empty and the light is flashing red. However, I have still gotten the full 10 hours of operations before the device shut down by itself.
The AA battery pack is a useful add-on for the device, especially if you are on a rental bike, or do not want to wire it to your battery. Also, it might be a good solution if your contacts are worn and do not charge the device any longer.
