Noob Question About Garmins

[Blueyedevil]

Does Garmin make a GPS that uses memory cards like the Magellans? I was at a local outdoor store today and the salesman said that Garmin does not make a handheld unit with a memory card but that they are coming out with one soon.

 

Is this correct?

[+Miragee]

Unless you do a lot of traveling and need lots of maps loaded all the time, I don't see a need for memory card.

 

My GPSr, a Garmin Vista C, has 24 MB of memory and it holds all the maps I need for my normal caching area.

[+aka Monkey]

This is the only serious shortcoming to the Garmin units, in my opinion. I just sent their support department an email about this this morning, and they said they'd pass the word along. No mention of them coming out with a unit, but I'll keep my fingers crossed.

 

As for it not being necessary, that's totally subjective. If you're only using it for geocaching you don't need it. If you're using your GPS as a navigator on a multi-state trip it's a godsend.

[CenTexDodger]

It really depends on where you are at and what you are doing. With My 60cs I put City Select maps for a trip to New Mexico from Central Texas and had enough room left over for Topos for a good chunk of New Mexico. People that live in population dense areas can't put as much data. I do think people make way too big a deal over the whole "memory card" thing. I think some people automatically assume that Garmin Units are seriously flawed because they do not have expandable memory, without really giving them a try.

[Blueyedevil]

I live in a "Tri-state" location and I think having maps loaded on a card would be of great value. I do want to start caching but my main use for a GPS would be navs in wilderness areas and for emergency uses so having multiple groups of data ready to go and not having to download it from a computer would be ideal.

 

I think Garmin is prolly better that Magellan STILL because of the batteies and the amounts of assy. out for Garmins and the computer connections. As to the actual performance of the two.......I am a NOOb so I still got alot of learning to do. If Garmin made a unit with card memory I would buy one now but since they don't......decisions!

[Blueyedevil]

This is the only serious shortcoming to the Garmin units, in my opinion. I just sent their support department an email about this this morning, and they said they'd pass the word along. No mention of them coming out with a unit, but I'll keep my fingers crossed.

 

As for it not being necessary, that's totally subjective. If you're only using it for geocaching you don't need it. If you're using your GPS as a navigator on a multi-state trip it's a godsend.

 

A "guy" that worked at a sporting goods store told me that he had "heard" that Garmin was bringing out a memory card based unit and I might want towait to purchased a GPS until they come out.

 

B.S.? I don't know.

[+Redwoods Mtn Biker]

A "guy" that worked at a sporting goods store told me that he had "heard" that Garmin was bringing out a memory card based unit and I might want towait to purchased a GPS until they come out.

 

B.S.? I don't know.

At Outdoor Retailer, a Garmin rep told me that a unit with expandable memory would be coming out next year.

 

Rich Owings

www.MakeYourOwnMaps.com

www.GPStracklog.com

 

"We were desert mystics, my friends and I, poring over our maps as others do their holy books." - Edward Abbey

[+briansnat]

Unless you do a lot of traveling and need lots of maps loaded all the time, I don't see a need for memory card.

 

My GPSr, a Garmin Vista C, has 24 MB of memory and it holds all the maps I need for my normal caching area.

I find that to be the case as well. The 56 megs in my 60CS covers all the area I travel regularly and if I go somewhere else, it takes me 2 minutes to load maps.

 

Memory cards aren't all they are cracked up to be. The first time you head out with the wrong card in your unit, you learn that fast as I did while using a Lowrance with a memory card.

 

Still, I wouldn't complain if Garmin added more memory to their units. Half a gig would be nice.

Edited October 2, 2005 by briansnat

[+junglehair]

I agree that I would like to see a Garmin with a memory card, but in 3.5 years of caching, I've needed to use a memory card once. I live in Rochester, NY and used it for the trip down to Florida this spring for GeoWoodstock III.

 

I have a Magellan Meridian Platinum with a Memory Card, and a Garmin 60c. I use the Garmin for everything, and only loaded the MeriPlat with maps/caches along the route to Florida. We really only used it once when we stopped in Virginia for the night, and I was able to load the caches for that area.

 

I travel a fair bit and use the GPS for navigation all the time. In September, I went to geocaching events in New Jersey, Ohio, and Eastern New York. They were all a minimum 4 hour drive. The Garmin 60c was able to hold all the maps I needed for each of these trips. I did have to load the appropriate area for each one, but with a USB connection, they load pretty quick.

[marty621]

The discontinued eMap (great unit) and the StreetPilot used changeable data cards.

[+Audion64]

The 8mb of my Etrex Legend will not even load the entire Chicagoland area because of the urban density. So I do see the need for either more memory or a unit that can take cards. But I'm not ready to jump ship to Magellan just for the cards after reading so many complaints about the firmware in the Explorists.

 

I'm a noob so bear with me... is there a way to tell the mapping software to lower the detail level or maybe not load the location of every Starbucks... that's gotta be eating about half my memory right there!

[CenTexDodger]

The 8mb of my Etrex Legend will not even load the entire Chicagoland area because of the urban density. So I do see the need for either more memory or a unit that can take cards. But I'm not ready to jump ship to Magellan just for the cards after reading so many complaints about the firmware in the Explorists.

 

I'm a noob so bear with me... is there a way to tell the mapping software to lower the detail level or maybe not load the location of every Starbucks... that's gotta be eating about half my memory right there!

I know what you mean about the POIs, they take up a lot of room. However, you can fit all of Illinois, Indiana, parts of Iowa, Missouri, Kentuky, and Wisconsin in the 115 mb of a 76c. My point is you don't NEED a memory card, just bigger internal memory.

[+Audion64]

I know what you mean about the POIs, they take up a lot of room. However, you can fit all of Illinois, Indiana, parts of Iowa, Missouri, Kentuky, and Wisconsin in the 115 mb of a 76c. My point is you don't NEED a memory card, just bigger internal memory.

NOW you tell me!