a family of spies

the vista has more features, but for strictly caching I much prefer the oregon. The short answer is that going paperless is worth a huge amount to me. I happen to work for a prominent GPS company so I was able to get a discount when selecting my unit (and sorry, I can't help everyone on here get discounts as well) Also navigating using the touch screen vs the "joystick" on the vista is much better in my opinion, at least for how I use the unit. link below outlines the differences between the items: https://buy.garmin.com/shop/compare.do?cID=...areProduct=8703

Ditto - go with the oregon

I noted in another post that my family just changed from an etrex vista hcx to an oregon 200. we only use the unit for weekend caching w/ the family and for that purpose the oregon has been exceptional. The accuracy doesn't seem to be quite as good as my old unit, but going paperless more than makes up for the slight drop in accuracy!!! I think you will find the entire experience more enjoyable if you go w/ an oregon due to the ease of use. Plus you will be able to use Wherigo with the colorado or oregon.

I just got an Oregon 200 and LOVE it. We just do basic family geocaching and the ease of use and going paperless has been great. If cost wasn't an option I would have purchased the oregon 500 series in order to add a camera. if your other unit(s) are coming apart after a month is it due to heavy use or poor construction? if it is poor construction i would think that you wouldn't have an issue getting it repaired/replaced under warranty.