What Is Better?

[+TeamAO]

I'm in the market for a GPS, and I read the poll on what GPSr's people have , 60c comes up very often. Which makes me think it must be good. Vista C rarely comes up, but side-by-side comparison makes me think it may be better. I can't tell which one would be better for overall hiking and geocaching. Would the Vista C's digital compass, altimeter, and barometer make me better off on a hike? I'm lost on this topic.

 

 

Which one is better overall?

[+Mr Lost]

I'm in the market for a GPS, and I read the poll on what GPSr's people have , 60c comes up very often. Which makes me think it must be good. Vista C rarely comes up, but side-by-side comparison makes me think it may be better. I can't tell which one would be better for overall hiking and geocaching. Would the Vista C's digital compass, altimeter, and barometer make me better off on a hike? I'm lost on this topic.

 

 

Which one is better overall?

What do you mean by 'better'?

 

Granted, the garmin line has excelent flight characteristics, such that one can expect seven, or possibly even eight skips out of one when thrown sidearm, AND the Magellan series gets extra points (and distance due to heft), as its flat construction will yield many, many skips, BUT it must be thrown absolutely flat (parallell) to the surface of the water. The clear winner is the eXplorist line, as they are ergonomically shaped to fit the hand, the rounded constructuion yield a forgiving flight and surface contact characteristics such that the probability of maximizing the skips across a surface of water (even a little rough) can be had.

 

OK, OK, I kid!

 

'Better' CAN have many different characteristics depending on your end use. Will you be geocaching exclusively with it? Do you plan on using the autorouting features a lot? Is memory important to you? Size? Battery stamina?

 

Answer these questions (for starters), before you really get serious about shopping.

[+The Jester]

Also ask what do you know how to use? And what do you need to use? An altimeter is nice, if you know how to use it & need it. If all of the use is in a car you don't really need it. If you are wilderness travel it might be more useful (finding the trail branch at 11,342 feet). Also, if you lose or damage your unit all those functions are lost, while having a separate compass & altimeter means you can still navigate. The same for maps in memory - remember the saying about all your eggs in one basket?

[HugoOne]

There's another saying: have one egg and watch it really close

 

Seriously though, The Jester is correct, if you know that you need it ok but if in doubt you probably don't

[+IVxIV]

@ Mr lost. Good 1

 

Have you tried skipping a Lowrance iFinder yet? They're nice & flat on both sides so might just take a gold medal in skipping lol

 

AlphaOmega have you considered a Lowrance in your decisions? They give about the best bang for the buck in the industry.

[+Sputnik 57]

As for poll results, the Legend C and Vista C models are much newer, so they have less market penetration, and therefore fewer loyal adherents. On the plus side, the Vista C is a bit smaller, and has its button placement on the side. On the down side, the Vista C has less than half the memory of the 60C, and has the button placement on the side . . .

 

The fairer comparison is the Legend C to the 60C, or the Vista C to the 60CS. The 60CS has an electronic compass and barometric altimeter, like the Vista. The Legend/Vista has 24MB of user accessible map memory, while the 60 series has 56MB. The Legend/Vista uses a patch antenna, while the 60c/S uses quad helix, which tends to perform better under tree cover. The Legend/Vista has the smaller housing and "click stick" key pads of the etrex series. The 60C/S has button placement on the face of the unit, and uses a rocker pad instead.

 

If weight and size are critical factors (or if you just like the ergonomics of the Vista C) I would go that way. If memory for user loaded maps is key, and you prefer the feel of a baked potato to a walkie talkie, go with the 60CS.

 

More info on these units in the FAQ in my signature line.

[+Greymane]

Everyone has opinions about the different models and manufacturers. The best way to approach this is to find a store that sells different models AND has samples you can check out. Then, play around with the different models and see which fits you best. Functions vary very little between the manufacturers for a given class of GPSr. What really matters is how comfortable you are with the layout and menus.

 

Just my two cents.

[+briansnat]

If small size is important to you, the Vista C is better. If the 56 megs of memory in the 60C is important to you, then its better.

[+JohnnyVegas]

For my 2 cents I would say go with the Magellan explorist 500, but they are all going to work for geocaching. Make a list of the features you want

 

Do yu want a Magnetic compass?

 

Do you want an barometric altimeter?

 

Do you want a barometer?

 

Is size an issue?

 

How many hours do you cache at a time (Battery life)?

 

Do you want a GPS that uses an SD mamory card for map storage so that you can expand the memory?

 

Do you need a color screen? want and need are not the same.

 

How do you want to spend?

 

Unless you know what you want it is hard to make a selection. As Greymane said,

The best way to approach this is to find a store that sells different models AND has samples you can check out. Then, play around with the different models and see which fits you best. Functions vary very little between the manufacturers for a given class of GPSr. What really matters is how comfortable you are with the layout and menus.

 

When you find a shop that carries GPSr ask the sales person how much they have used one, find someone that sells them and uses them is going to be the real challenge. Most of them have not experiance with a GPS in the real world.

[+Recdiver]

I have a Vista C and the 60cs. From what I've found with using both:

The Vista C fits my hand better, but I don’t like the buttons & joystick.

The 60cs is a little bulkier but I like the buttons/controls better.

I do use them for Auto-routing and more memory on the 60cs is nice and I can load the entire state on it from the City Select software and can load twice as many waypoints at one time with the 60cs.

However I usually have my laptop with me so I could update the maps and waypoints if needed for the Vista C.

I like the screen on the 60cs better, especially when driving; my old eyes don't have to work as hard reading it.

As far as antennas go, while navigating tree lined forest service roads the Vista C didn’t lose satellites as often as the 60cs did. While walking through the woods they both seemed to lose signal at the same time. If you believe the accuracy readout it appeared the 60cs had it better but inside of 35 feet it didn’t much matter.

Minor things, when hanging from a neck lanyard for an extended period of time the Vista C was more comfortable. However I like the auto mount on the 60cs better. I use RAM mounts for both and it's just easier removing & replacing the 60cs.

I don’t much use the electronic compass on either, and I carry a separate compass. The altimeter is nice for trips so you can see how high you’ve been. If I had to do it over again I wouldn’t let the electronic compass or altimeter influence my buying decision.

ymmv

Edited July 19, 2005 by Recdiver