Will My Old Gps Unit Be Good Enough?

[+slimey]

I've got an old GPS unit - Magellan GPS 2000 XL - which I've had for 8 or 9 years (but rarely used).

 

I'm just about to have a start at geocaching, and was wondering if this unit would be suitable. The biggest problem I've noticed is that it only has 2 decimal places for the minutes (i.e. it shows 53' 00.00N). Is this going to make it too inaccurate for geocaching?

 

Thanks,

 

Simon

[+welch]

Going only to two decimal places will probably make it a little more difficult but not impossiable. Depending on your latitude the third digit is about 5.25ft, one in the second digit is 10times that (so ~52ft). Meaning your search area is going to be larger (52x52 vs. 5x5) from the start. With with the error that normally accures the cache isn't probably not right inside that 5x5 anyways, but you won't have as a good an idea about where to 'center' your search. Try geocaching, if it you get into it you'll proably want to buy a newer more feature unit anyways.

 

If possiable on your gps unit, you may want to chang it to UTM coords. Which will make each tick a meter, instead of 52ft.

[+Cardinal Red]

I think you should buy a new GPS. A brand new $100 unit will blow away your nearly 10 year old unit. A GPS is a computer. How many people do you know still using a 10 year old computer. But that didn't answer your question.

 

That 2 decimal limitation means your least significant digit will represent roughly 50' +/- (in both the North and West direction). So with plenty of determination there would not be a Cache you can't find. Just scour every square inch in a 100' Radius. And hope the hider didn't miss the coords by 50'.

 

You would also probably find that converting Groundspeak Cache Coords to UTM Coords would give you finer resolution. How many digits will your unit accept/display in UTM?

 

Try a few easy (Diffficulty 1) Caches with your old unit. See if you really are going to stick with this. As soon as you decide you are going to stick with this, buy the best new unit you can easily afford.

 

If you have any questions about UTM, post again.

 

I just read Welch's post before posting my response. We said basically the same thing, but he types faster.

[+welch]

"I just read Welch's post before posting my response. We said basically the same thing, but he types faster."

Thats a first, I usually go to repond and when I finally post like four people have already answered the question!

[+slimey]

How many people do you know still using a 10 year old computer.

 

Errr, me?

 

How many digits will your unit accept/display in UTM?

 

Well, it says I'm currently at 30 645677E, 5695916N if I switch it to UTM

 

Try a few easy (Diffficulty 1) Caches with your old unit.

 

Yeah, there's a couple around where I live which I was going to try tomorrow to get started with. I'll probably order something like a eTrex Venture off ebay (as I can get for for the same price I can get a basic eTrex in the local shops)

 

Many thanks,

 

Simon

[+slimey]

Gah! I don't believe it... Was just fiddling with the GPS unit, and I found out how to switch on the third decimal place.

 

Oh well, there goes my excuse to buy a new GPS unit...

 

Lets go geocaching...

 

Simon

[+Night Stalker]

There are plenty of more excuses that you can use. You obviously need color, and have you considered the benefits of auto routing.

[+Airmapper]

Uh-Oh, I think he getting hooked. Look out, we haven't come up with the 12 step program for addicted Geocachers yet. But then again, nobody has wanted to stop yet.

[+Thot]

One of the biggest problems with some (most/all?) older units, they don't provide for entering target (cache) coordinates and then guiding you to the location. You have to try to match the real-time coordinates it is displaying with the target coordinates to locate the cache. I know some people do it this way but this is a very painful way to do it. I helped a newbie begin geocaching who had an older with this limitation. I though he was going to have a heatstroke walking around almost aimlessly in the Houston heat. Then plowing through a good length of dense woods. None of this was necessary or would have happened if he had a modern unit.

Edited October 9, 2005 by Thot

[+slimey]

Well, I went out geocaching today, as there's 2 caches within 2 miles of my house, and it was a nice afternoon to go out with the family.

 

One find, and one DNF. The unit I've got does allow me to enter landmarks, and show the direction to them. Both caches were in fairly dense trees, and I found that as I was wandering around the coordinates would jump around a fair bit. If I stood still for a while, the coordinates would stabilise back t what they should be.

 

I'll probably stick with this unit for a while, and save up for something like the Garmin Map 60CS.

 

Simon

[+Prime Suspect]

One of the biggest problems with some (most/all?) older units, they don't provide for entering target (cache) coordinates and then guiding you to the location. You have to try to match the real-time coordinates it is displaying with the target coordinates to locate the cache. I know some people do it this way but this is a very painful way to do it. I helped a newbie begin geocaching who had an older with this limitation. I though he was going to have a heatstroke walking around almost aimlessly in the Houston heat. Then plowing through a good length of dense woods. None of this was necessary or would have happened if he had a modern unit.

It's not that hard at all. While my old GPSII+ does show an arrow, it doesn't show distance in feet. The best way to find GZ was to switch to the coordinate display and match up the coordinates. All you need to do this is a compass, and the ability to remember which direction to move to increase or decrease the numbers. Takes about 5 minutes of practice, and pretty soon, it becomes second nature.

 

While my "main" GPS shows feet, I still keep the GPSII+ in my backpack, and sometimes still use it under heavy tree cover.

[peter]

One of the biggest problems with some (most/all?) older units, they don't provide for entering target (cache) coordinates and then guiding you to the location.

To which units are you referring? The old Garmin single-channel models from the mid 90's (such as the GPS45) certainly let you enter waypoints and do a GOTO to them. The Magellan units from that time and the old Eagle models (later became Lowrance) did as well. In fact the only models I know of that have a problem doing a GOTO to a specified waypoint are some of the relatively recent Cobra models that automatically cancel the GOTO when you get within about 100 yards of the target (but there are workarounds for this as well).

[+denali7]

i started with an old magellan unit (pioneer) that only went two decimal places. it didn't give distances in feet, so i wouldn't know that i was getting away from the cache until i covered a tenth of a mile--very frustrating. i did manage to find my first 4 or 5 caches this way, including a couple pretty challenging ones. it definitely served as a way to get started in this hobby, and to figure out what i wanted when i bought my next one!!

[+HaLiJuSaPa]

I don't think it's that hard to use your coordinates vs. the waypoints to find things. While I admit it's easier to have the GPS "tell" you how close you are, I think the above is more fun and again, not too much more trouble. I get quite a charge when I match the coordinates, look around for a sec, and whoomp, there it is....

[+KA7CJH]

The Magellan GPS 2000 XL is a good Geocaching unit. I found my first 8 or 9 caches with it. Even used it for placing my first 3 caches and everyone seems to be able to find them. The only problem is it takes just a bit longer to zero in on coordinates.

 

Chris (KA7CJH)

[+budd-rdc]

I have navigated without the arrows on the GPSr before, especially doing intermediate stages of multicaches. It's not difficult, but using the arrows is still much easier.

 

Things can get interesting when you cross the International Date Line, the Prime Meridian, or the Equator when the GPSr switches from W to E and/or N to S.

 

But to answer the OP's question, yes, your old GPS should be good enough as long as you are willing to adapt to it.

[+Stephanie2427]

Slimey I had the same unit when I first started. The most aggrivateing thing I found about it is it would not get a lock on my position. It had to be a clear day without a tree in site before I could get a lock. Then if I walked near a tree it would unlock. It is well worth it to get a new one if you can afford it. I bought the Garmin etrex. It is a huge difference and so much easier to use.

[+IVxIV]

Slimey I had the same unit when I first started.  The most aggrivateing thing I found about it is it would not get a lock on my position.  It had to be a clear day without a tree in site before I could get a lock.  Then if I walked near a tree it would unlock.  It is well worth it to get a new one if you can afford it.  I bought the Garmin etrex.  It is a huge difference and so much easier to use.

Yea that's one of the most frustrating problems with the earlier generation GPSr's, they would take seemingly forever (sometimes never ) to achieve or maintain a signal lock.

 

My first GPSr was a Magellan 4000XL. When it was new I thought it was amazingly powerful, but being my first unit I really had no frame of reference to know how it compared. I guess it probably was as good as any other brand/model that was available at the same time.

 

Years later I upgraded to a Magellan 315, and WOW! Satellite lock within a minute or two! I couldn't bear to use the 4000XL even as a backup GPSr after tasting the good life lol, so I sold it,

 

Then a few more years later I upgraded again to a Lowrance iFinder Pro, and WOW again! Satellite locks in about 20 seconds!! Not to mention a host of other perks like mapping capability and memory card support. I'm still using it now & am at this time quite content.

 

But,.. I can't wait to see what my next upgrade is going to be like