Zen,
Fairly new to geocaching and only a little more familiar to my 12! I have nothing to compare it to but I like my 12.
PLUSSES
- hooks up fast / gets good reception in mild to moderate forest coverage / can put it in your pocket to climb a hill, or warm it up, and not lose your hookup / batteries last pretty well even with a 15 sec. backlight setting.
- When the cover gets heavy above, I have had success using the position page and manually(in my head) stepping in the direction of the desired waypoint to get closer to it.
MINUSSES
- No download capabilities / no compass /
There must be something good about the standard Model 12, mine is a 1998 version, and they still make the same one!