Alphawolf

I am a back packer. For my use, I NEVER want a rechargeable battery in my unit. I want the same batteries as other equipment in my pack. In my case, I use AAA lithiums in my headlamp, and my GPS (Garmin Foretrex 101). I want the safety and redundancy of matching power sources for my equipment when I can do it. I could care less about color screens and the mapping software. I carry National Geographic Topo maps I print myself (both sides) on waterproof paper and a magnetic compass with me (That doesn't require batteries). My GPS needs only to give me coordinates and waypoint storage. I can easily do a 5-7 day back packing trip on one set of AAA lithium batteries and come back with plenty of power left over. Obviously, these are my needs. But, being the lightest unit available, the old Foretrex 101 (I even took the wrist strap off) is backpacking perfection to me. The new stuff is fun. It is "cool". But, it has no place in my back pack. I have an E-Trex Vista HCx, with 2 GB of maps loaded into it, including the 1:24,000 series. But, it will never be with me on a back packing trip. It's batteries don't match my Princeton Tech headlamp and it is heavier than my Foretrex 101.

Someone brilliant did a hack for the earlier Topo version that redefined the map segments into larger pieces. It worked like a charm. Has anyone accomplished the same for the new 2008 version?

"Calibrating" A GPS receiver is an often misunderstood and erroneous myth. Don't feel bad though, in selling these things for 8 years, it is a very, very commonly asked question. Remember, you can have 3 completely different systems working inside that little baby. You have a GPS receiver, a compass and an altimeter. You calibrate the altimeter (and trust me, this is a very, very, temporary calibration) and the compass, but there is just no possible way to "calibrate" the GPS receiver. Nothing about the altimeter or the compass calibration affects the GPS accuracy in any way.

A new release? I wonder what they would change? The maps themselves can't be any better than the current version, and it hasn't been out all that long. (Sorry for the duplicate post...I don't know how to just delete an entire post!)

A new release? I wonder what they would change? The maps themselves can't be any better than the current version, and it hasn't been out all that long.

I suspect the mapping data/detail itself hasn't changed a bit. Just all the bells and whistles associated with the progam.

Unless you are in serious mountainous country, or you just feel like spending $100 to have the maps with all the squiggly contour lines, you can do just fine without topo maps. I know very, very many successful cachers that don't use topo maps. Most caches are not in rugged terrain, far, far from a road where topo maps would be of much use. I use mine for backpacking in the far removed backcountry where there are no roads. I use my street programs where there are roads.

Anybody else notice we never see a posting like this about Magellan products???

I hate to say it, but it just isn't surprising to me... We had a go around on Magellan's "issues" about a month and a half ago here: Previous discussions about Magellan

I absolutely do not want a touch screen on a field unit! In my car, it is just fine. Out walking...No thanks!

Funny cos your profile says you work for the Dept of Defense, or is that your part time job between teaching and selling GPS and backpacking ??? What is so funny about me working full time for the Dept. of Defense, working part time at Sportsman's Warehouse, and backpacking? My day has 24 hours in it, and I have 7 of them every week, just like you. I also do wildlife photography, teach GPS navigation to county S&R teams, and enjoy live theatre on occasion. Is that funny too? Perhaps the most constructive post would be to retell some experiences you are having with customers concerning the Tritons when they start coming in. All the rest is irrelevant. I can't speak of something that nobody can get their hands on yet...But, I can at least predict what I'm betting will be the most common complaint I will hear about after they hit the shelves. As Dr. Phil likes to say..."The best prediction of future behavior is the past behavior" (or something like that.) Anyway...I'm just callin' 'em like I see 'em. I make just as much money selling Magellans as I do Garmins, so I am happy to put either in a customer's hands.

Funny cos your profile says you work for the Dept of Defense, or is that your part time job between teaching and selling GPS and backpacking ??? What is so funny about me working full time for the Dept. of Defense, working part time at Sportsman's Warehouse, and backpacking? My day has 24 hours in it, and I have 7 of them every week, just like you. I also do wildlife photography, teach GPS navigation to county S&R teams, and enjoy live theatre on occasion. Is that funny too? Perhaps the most constructive post would be to retell some experiences you are having with customers concerning the Tritons when they start coming in. All the rest is irrelevant. Irrelevant? Really? I'll try and remember that next time an unhappy Magellan customer plops his unit down in front of me...

Funny cos your profile says you work for the Dept of Defense, or is that your part time job between teaching and selling GPS and backpacking ??? What is so funny about me working full time for the Dept. of Defense, working part time at Sportsman's Warehouse, and backpacking? My day has 24 hours in it, and I have 7 of them every week, just like you. I also do wildlife photography, teach GPS navigation to county S&R teams, and enjoy live theatre on occasion. Is that funny too?

Well this thread is about the Triton series, not about how bad Magellans customer service is. So if you have nothing to contribute please go to the Magellan bashing thread or in the event that there is not one please feel free to start one. So how big are they and how do much do they weigh. Well, go up to the top of the page where DaddyA says "I know I won't be forking out the money for one until I see good reviews, and the things are proven to work." I simply pointed out some really big issues about things that don't work...namely their customer service. And he wants to wait 'till he gets good reviews. These are hard to find when it comes to customer service. I don't seperate the hardware from the rest of the company...

All of the Explorists (except the XL) have the same body = the same case, bike mount, car mount, swivel mount. Software = DirectRoute, Topo They already come with the power/computer cable needed. And the 400, 500, 600 already have the DirectRoute DVD (unlocking it is a separate purchase online) included in the box. Wow, you can support the whole series with the same 6 accessories. Must be rough for the purchasing agent to keep on top of inventory and reorder it in timely manner to keep in stock. But since everyone is purging their Explorist line, I would expect that once accessories are gone, they wouldn't bother to be reordered. Or does that only make business sense to me? But back on topic- The Magellan Triton Series. When you went through the entire orientation/sales spiel from the Magellan reps. recently about the unit, but they didn't show you anything that isn't already available, did they show you the 2000? Or do you have other brands with a built in camera, voice recorder, and a LED flashlight? Actually what I meant by that, is they didn't offer any information about the entire series that wasn't already available everywhere. In fact, they didn't have any to show us at all. Come to think of it, he didn't have a single piece of merchandise...Just some brochures.

All of the Explorists (except the XL) have the same body = the same case, bike mount, car mount, swivel mount. Software = DirectRoute, Topo They already come with the power/computer cable needed. And the 400, 500, 600 already have the DirectRoute DVD (unlocking it is a separate purchase online) included in the box. Wow, you can support the whole series with the same 6 accessories. Must be rough for the purchasing agent to keep on top of inventory and reorder it in timely manner to keep in stock. But since everyone is purging their Explorist line, I would expect that once accessories are gone, they wouldn't bother to be reordered. Or does that only make business sense to me? But back on topic- The Magellan Triton Series. When you went through the entire orientation/sales spiel from the Magellan reps. recently about the unit, but they didn't show you anything that isn't already available, did they show you the 2000? Or do you have other brands with a built in camera, voice recorder, and a LED flashlight? Actually what I meant by that, is they didn't offer any information about the entire series that wasn't already available everywhere. In fact, they didn't have any to show us at all. Come to think of it, he didn't have a single piece of merchandise...Just some brochures.

I believe you might be referring to "Selective Availability". It was an intentional degredation of accuracy we had to put up with several years ago. It is now turned off. But, there is still inaccuracies as part of GPS. You can consistently count on around 12-20 ft. of accuracy with that unit. This is as good as it gets? 20' can be as good as a mile at times. Well...The key word I used is "consistently". You can do better at times, but you can't count on it.

Not totally correct. Read down about 4 posts and Clyde ,the author of GSAK and after that Robert Lipe the author of GPSbabel have this to say about the C330. http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=178109 Well, I was assuming that they meant as a stand alone GPS without using software to program. I stand partially corrected.

Hey DaddyA...Did ya notice the nearly complete lack of Magellan accessories compared to the Garmin line? What Sportsman's Warehouse did you visit?

"So I take it that you have nothing to offer in the way of information on the Triton GPSr and how the NG maps will work on that unit, nor have you anything to offer on the touch screen, the larger screen, or anything else of value concerning the Triton series of GPSrs. John" Nope...Unless you count 8 years of dealing with Magellan customer service (or lack of it) as something even remotely related to the Triton series. I've been through the entire orientation/sales spiel from the Magellan reps. recently about the unit, but they didn't offer anything that isn't already available. I am a backpacker, and the units are way, way too big and heavy for my interest.

You cannot put coordinates into a C-330, nor will it show coordiantes in any format.

I believe you might be referring to "Selective Availability". It was an intentional degredation of accuracy we had to put up with several years ago. It is now turned off. But, there is still inaccuracies as part of GPS. You can consistently count on around 12-20 ft. of accuracy with that unit.

Some elaboration: The build quality of Magellan products is OK. But, for all intents and purposes, it seems that customer care is virtually non-existent with that company. I have dealt with them from the point of sales for 8 years now. In that time I have had to listen to many, many horror stories from frustrated customers coming back to me when Magellan failed to help them. Also, If I could show you a picture of my GPS accessory wall it would knock your socks off, the difference between Garmin stock and Magellan stock. We can't get any accessories from Magellan. It looks shameful. We have Garmin accessories by a ratio of 20:1 and I'm not exaggerating. As far as NG maps: "...Have you tried the NG maps on a computer screen?" Yes...I have about 5 states worth, and they are my "maps of choice" for any back country map needs I ever have. I simply cannot imagine using them on a GPS screen, but that is a personal thing. I just like the "big picture' when it comes to maps. Besides...I always, always have a real compass and a paper map with me in the back country, so I would have no interest in seeing the same maps on a small screen. It would just drive me nuts. I would never trust my GPS alone as my sole source of maps, so why duplicate? We do not have the Tritons in stock, and I haven't heard yet when we might get them.

I work at Sportsman's Warehouse selling & teaching GPS. I have done this for 8 years now. For what it's worth: Based on my experience with every brand we have ever carried in those eight years, and based on talking to countless customers in those 8 years: I would never personally touch a Magellan. Period. And as for the NG maps on the receiver: I have no desire whatsoever to view these maps on an itty bitty little GPS screen. I'll just continue to print my maps out on paper, thanks.

Well...At least for Garmin refurbs., they have an identical warranty to a regular GPS...So, what do you have to lose?