Explorist Xl

[+gpsjeep]

Has anybody here purchased the Explorist XL yet?

How do you like it?

I'm torn between what I want to get. ExploristXL, the 500 or wait until maybe the Garmin 60CX comes out. Just don't know.

-Jeff

Edited December 12, 2005 by gpsjeep

[+JohnnyVegas]

If you are going to wait for the new Garmin you are going to have quite a wait. It is not on the Garmin website, form my experiance in dealing with Garmin in the past once the 60CX is listed on their web site it will another 3 or 4 months before the dealers get them. Garmin should have them listed on their web site when the winter trade shows(Outdoor retailer, Consumer electronis show, and the Shot show). These shows are in Jan and Feb.

 

As far as the 500 vs the XL, form what I have read the CL is a big version on the 500. If you want to use the GPS for vehicle navigation I would get the XL, the larger screen is going to be easier to read on your dash. If you want one to hike with then get the smaller explorist 500.

I have had my 500 for 9 months or so and I like, I am looking to buy the XL in the spring, I just spent my toy money in a new camera.

Edited December 13, 2005 by JohnnyVegas

[+fishDog]

I have had my XL for about 3 weeks now. I was coming from a Sportack Pro. I love the screen size of the XL. I have loaded about 200megs of maps onto a 1gig Sd card. I have found the unit very easy to use once you understand the format. All I need now is a dash mount.

[+GOT GPS?]

The Garmin 60Cx without the sensors will be very good on Batteries, with a run time over 20 hours on a pair of batteries.

 

The Explorist XL is really nice, with a big Map Screen of 240x320, but this thing can be hard on batteries, at about 17 hours or so on 4 AA's.

 

The Explorist 500 is nice, but too small a screen for the Driver to see well, but with this GPS, you can order a few spare flat Lithium-Ion batteries cheap on E-Bay.

[+htimsda]

The Garmin 60Cx without the sensors will be very good on Batteries, with a run time over 20 hours on a pair of batteries.

 

The Explorist XL is really nice, with a big Map Screen of 240x320, but this thing can be hard on batteries, at about 17 hours or so on 4 AA's.

With the low cost of rechargeable batteries, is this really a concern? It may be for a few select people that spend really long periods outdoors with the unit always on and don't want to carry a large number of batteries. But for most users, it is more than enough for a full day of geocaching. Charge the batteries at night and you are good to go.

 

I use the XL and absolutely love the screen size over the 500. I don't care about how many batteries I have to stick in the thing, as long as they last while I'm out for the day.

[+gpsjeep]

This is good to hear.

The battery issue isn't really an issue with me. I'd prefer the AA's anyway.

Does anybody else have some feedback on this Explorist XL?

-Jeff

[+pghlooking]

I just ordered mine tonight. Anyone have any links to accessories such as carry case and windshield mount? I don't want to get the screen scratched and since theres so much more screen than on my sportrak color...

[+JohnnyVegas]

The battery not an issue for me, when I get around to ordering the XL it is going to live on my dash and run of a cig lighter adapter 95% of the time. I will still use my 500 while out of my truck.

[+embra]

I just ordered mine tonight. Anyone have any links to accessories such as carry case and windshield mount? I don't want to get the screen scratched and since theres so much more screen than on my sportrak color...

For a screen protector, recommendations are for the invisibleshield. The XL is too new for anyone I know of yet to have customized one to that size, but I think this guy will do it for you if you submit the screen size you need.

 

If the 500 is any forecaster of the XL accessory market, it will take some time for things to catch up. Magellan will probably get a mount of some sort out within a month or three, and you'll be best off shopping around for a case that is designed for more general use but can accommodate the XL's size.

[+sorlipm]

Just got the 600xl 2 days ago, and i love it. easy to read without my reading glasses. still learning the format tho. the file system is kinda funky

[+gpsjeep]

I was just at Bass Pro to take a look at these XL's.

I haven't actually seen one up close. Only on the web.

Very impressive looking. The screen is awsome. Seeing that the size of the XL is a good bit larger than the rest of the Explorist series, I wonder if it has a larger patch antenna. Would it really matter?

 

Hey fishDog,

Compared to your Sport Track, how do you like or dislike the weight difference or the feel of it? It feels heavier than the Meridian I use to have.

 

-Jeff

[+pghlooking]

I have Streets and Destinations North America V 4.00f. I want to be able to place these maps on my XL, at least till I get DR. When I save to the hard drive it saves them as a .img file. I know it needs to be a .mgi or .imi but I don't know how to convert them. Is there a patch somewhere for this version like there is for the Worldwide basemap? Any suggestions for this. Thanks.

[+fishDog]

I have had my XL out caching for the last 3 weeks with about 30 finds... The XL does have more weight, but it does not cramp me up by the end of the day... The XL actually fits my hand better than the Sportack...

[+embra]

I have Streets and Destinations North America V 4.00f. I want to be able to place these maps on my XL, at least till I get DR. When I save to the hard drive it saves them as a .img file. I know it needs to be a .mgi or .imi but I don't know how to convert them. Is there a patch somewhere for this version like there is for the Worldwide basemap? Any suggestions for this. Thanks.

There is a way to do this...but after you read it, you'll probably find the price of DR to be not quite so formidable.

[+WeekendWarrior1]

My sister bought one for my BIL for X-Mas. It came here so he wouldn't see it. So of course I had to open it and take a look at it. That sucker is huge!. I put some batteries in and turned it on. Nice big ol' screen. Buttons are huge too. They are easy to push. The joystick is easy to move around in all directions. I have a ex500, so will probably not get an XL. Just want to wait and see what comes out next year before I buy another one. -WW

[+GOT GPS?]

Anybody have pictures yet of the Explorist XL in action yet?

 

Here is a photo of the GPS showing the Map screen.

 

Is it possible to show saved tracks on the screen, and to view multiple tracks on the screen also??

This is something I can do on a Garmin, but was wondering If I could do it on the Explorist XL.

Edited December 17, 2005 by GOT GPS?

[+EScout]

Regarding Tracks showing on the map screen, the new active track shows black. When you load a saved track it shows as blue. The most I can see on the map screen at one time are the new active track (black) and one saved track (blue.)

 

This is on my Explorist 500.

[+Jamie Z]

Escout,

 

Can you confirm, by looking at the internal memory as a drive from your PC, that the basemap is actually 28 megs as advertised? I have a feeling that it's a typo, but I could be wrong.

 

The basemap in my 500 shows up as 8.16 megs.

 

Jamie

[the federation]

I don't see on the specs anywhere does the xl have a compass with it? I don't want to derail the thread and make this a should have or not thread it is just a must for me when caching.

[freeday]

Sorry, no compass

[+GOT GPS?]

The Explorist XL has a 64meg chip I believe, and I can compare this with the SporTrak TOPO, in that GPS has a 108 meg TOPO basemap, so it is possible this thing has a better basemap than a Exp 500

 

If you could Autoroute on the Basemap of the Explorist XL, that would be cool, and also would be cool if they made it possible to autoroute between regions on the memory card automatically.

[+WeekendWarrior1]

You can't autoroute on the basemap. I took a look at it and it's just a basic basemap. I live in Houston and took a look at downtown on the XL. Theres nothing there but I-10, I-45, 610. Nothing in between. And that's @ 100ft. -WW

[+OxygenDestroyer]

The Garmin 60Cx without the sensors will be very good on Batteries

 

I see people say this frequently. Am I mistaken in thinking that you can just turn the sensors off (on the 60cs) and get the same battery life as the sensorless units?

Edited December 19, 2005 by OxygenDestroyer

[+gpsjeep]

Sorry, no compass

Surely it must have a compass

[BD5]

Sorry, no compass

Surely it must have a compass

Nope, It is based on the 500, so no electronic compass or barometric altimeter.

Therefore it should be more robust as i hear the 600 is buggier than the 500.

[the federation]

if not an electronic compass doe it have the same compass the meridans have? I assume it is a magnetic compass? or simply a compass screen that moves when you are moving vs an electronic that gives direction either way.

[BD5]

I'm sorry, i should have been a little more specific.

Magellan's page on the XL.

Magellan's link to their manual which includes specs.

The XL has a compass page, but it is only a GPS based compass. That is, if you stand still, it won't update. It bases its direction on your last two known points.

By electronic compass, I meant a magnetic compass that is built into the device and appears electronically.

So no, no magnetic compass. For the price, i might have expected one. But the screen and base memory are worth it.

 

Damo.

[+wibskey]

Escout,

 

Can you confirm, by looking at the internal memory as a drive from your PC, that the basemap is actually 28 megs as advertised? I have a feeling that it's a typo, but I could be wrong.

 

The basemap in my 500 shows up as 8.16 megs.

 

Jamie

Jamie,

 

I just checked my XL and the basemap is 28MB.

Though it's no more detailed than the basemap on my Sportrak for my area...

 

wib

[+Jamie Z]

Jamie,

 

I just checked my XL and the basemap is 28MB.

Though it's no more detailed than the basemap on my Sportrak for my area..

Very odd. That ruins my "typo" theory.

 

Wonder what takes up 20 more megs that doesn't seem to show up on the map.

 

Jamie

[+Team Cotati]

Try the eXplorist 210. That unit seems to be perfectly suited to geocaching. Unless you have identified specific needs that that unit cannot meet. In that case, the 400 would more than get the job done. ;-) Have fun caching.

[+EScout]

Escout,

 

Can you confirm, by looking at the internal memory as a drive from your PC, that the basemap is actually 28 megs as advertised? I have a feeling that it's a typo, but I could be wrong.

 

The basemap in my 500 shows up as 8.16 megs.

 

Jamie

 

Basemap on eXplorist 500, 8.17MB. Rev. 5.1.57, Feb 7 2005.