Suggestions Wanted

[KAMPWYO]

Howdy Everyone,

I am looking for suggestions for a hand held for caching that could be used for Routing/Travel while on the road. I have a laptop and use Delorme's Street Atlas 2005 for Automobile Navigation, which I love by the way, but would go to a hand held, for smaller sizer and more convenience if possible. Any maps available that have similar detail I see with Delorme? Would concider any/all options at this time. Thanks in advance. Ken

[+briansnat]

Depends on how much you want to spend and your primary planned use. If you are chiefly a hiker, hunter, backpacker, geocacher, etc.. and want a unit will also route on the road, something in the Garmin Map 60 or Map 76C series would be a good option. If you want something smaller, one of the newer eTrex C or CX units will fit the bill.

 

If your primary use will be routing in your automobile, with ocassional short geocaching jaunts and hikes the Garmin Quest or Quest II are excellent choices.

 

If you're on a budget and you don't live in a major population center, consider something like the Garmin GPS V.

 

Magellan also has some very good offerings, but their road mapping/routing software isn't quite up to Garmins.

 

 

Moving this to the GPS Units and Software forum

Edited January 31, 2006 by briansnat

[peter]

I agree with Brian's suggestions. At this time it appears that Garmin's handhelds offer the most flexible auto-routing capabilities.

 

Note that you'd also need the mapping software. The GPS V and the Quest models include the CitySelect-NA (or -Eur if you're in Europe) maps and also come with dashboard mounts and cigarette-lighter power cords. But if you opt for the LegendC/Cx VistaC/Cx or one of the 60C/CS/x or 76C/CS/x models then you'd need to get the CitySelect or CityNavigator maps separately (do not get the MetroGuide-NA or -Eur maps since those aren't designed to support the autorouting feature).

[+Thrak]

I'd day the Quest, Quest II, or GPSMAP 76C or GPSMAP76CS.

 

[Edit]

What briansnat said.

Edited January 31, 2006 by Thrak

[+mantis7]

I Agree with the 76 C suggestions!

[+Chuy!]

I use Garmins; someone else can provide suggestions for Magellan, Lowrance, Cobra, etc...

 

If on a budget, the Legend C with optional mapping software (City Select). That will be approx $200 (at offroute.com) for the Legend C and $145 for the navigation kit which includes DC adapter, mapping software, and three types of mounts for your car (bean bag, windshield mount, or semi-permanent adhesive mount.)

 

If you have the funds, the new GPSMap60CSX. Approx $500 plus the navigation kit.

[KAMPWYO]

Thanks for the feeback..

 

I will add I borrowed a Etrex Legend C on a trip to Phoenix just a month ago. Looked up one cache to drop off a couple of Travel Bugs. The Etrex Legend C is a fine unit for caching but was pretty limited for automobile routing. Driving in heavy traffic I like to see at least a mile down the road so you could make lane adjustments, the screen size was pretty limited and detail was poor. For auto routing the Etrex wasn't that great. Also never figured out how to route to a address.

 

I have been considering the Map60 model. Larger screen, added memory and has all the auto gizmos. Basic price starts at about $500 and I could add the mapping software to start and follow up with the accessories if the mapping software looks good. I don't know if you can easily route to an address with this model? With a caching type GPS it is very easy to get back to a way point, such as your motel,etc. But I need to be able to route to an address also, such as flying into an airport and driving to an address that you have never been to before. The laptop/Delorme software does this very nicely, but my laptop weights in at 9lbs and is a pain to have as a carry-on.

 

I am still checking out options,

 

Thanks again for the input,

 

Ken

[peter]

I have been considering the Map60 model. Larger screen, added memory and has all the auto gizmos. Basic price starts at about $500 and I could add the mapping software to start and follow up with the accessories if the mapping software looks good. I don't know if you can easily route to an address with this model?

If use for car driving is a major consideration then I'd urge you to take a close look at the Quest that's been mentioned. It retails for about $350 *including* the detailed CitySelect maps and car mount plus power cord. And it gives you verbal instructions about upcoming turns when plugged into the cigarette lighter (whereas the other handhelds just give beeps). It also has more memory (115 MB) than most of the other Garmins (other than those with microSD cards). The more expensive Quest II has the whole US and Canada in internal memory and 140MB still free.

 

Both are actually smaller and lighter overall than the 60 or 76 models and about the same as the LegendC/VistaC but with a larger screen (display is the same as the 60 & 76 color models). It's mainly designed for car driving but is easily handheld when walking as well. Disadvantages are: 1) it has an internal Li+ battery which is very convenient but limited to a 20 hour charge without the option of popping in some AAs 2) the orientation is landscape style which some find a little less convenient when walking (but it fits on the dash better), and 3) the swingout antenna maybe a bit more vulnerable when hiking than those of the other handhelds.

 

All of the units discussed so far let you enter an address. Just press the FIND button and you get menu choices for POIs, Waypoints, Exits, Cities, Intersections, and Addresses. Choose Addresses and you can enter the number, street, city, and/or zipcode.

[+Jamie Z]

I wish this weren't the case, but if one of your primary uses is for auto navigation, the handheld Magellans will not suit your needs as well as Garmin (as far as I know).

 

I bought an Explorist 500 to use mainly for geocaching, but I opted to spend $100 or so to get DirectRoute, which will add autorouting to the Explorist. I use the autorouting all the time. While the GPS gets me where I need to go virtually every time, I'd prefer it were a little more customizable. Magellan's autorouting consists of on or off. You can't select which type of roads you like, or sections to avoid, or anything else. The routes it gives are a little funky sometimes.

 

That said, I have to repeat that the Explorist gets me where I want, which is the most important thing in an unfamiliar area. When in San Antonia recently for the first time, I drove straight up to the Alamo and found a place to park. Come time to leave, I routed out of the city. No headaches, and that's what I like best.

 

Next GPS I get though, will almost certainly be the Garmin Quest 2, for it's auto navigation features. My Explorist will get in-the-woods-caching duty.

 

Jamie

[KAMPWYO]

Thanks eveyone for the feedback,

 

I think the best option for what I need would be to look to the cheaper Etrex Legend C or CX for caching needs and then look into a seperate unit for auto navigation. This is the kind of info I needed to hear.. Total output might be close to the same, but the two seperate devices will be better served for their purpose. I just didn't want to spend the bucks to get a Map60 all decked out and not be happy with the unit for auto use.

 

Thanks for all of your suggestions,

Ken

[+naviguesser74]

i like having just one device -- a BT palm with TomTom Navigator. You can put the cache locations into TomTom and see them on the map. Then, when close, switch to GPS-type software, I like GeoNiche, to get closer.

[appletree]

Do not rule out the Quest for hand-held use until you try one. The antenna isn't all that fragile, but I keep it folded down and attach a small, light external antenna for better reception when the Quest is in my pocket or clipped to my belt. The battery lasts a long time, though maybe not long enough for a 3 day backpack with the unit on most of the time and the backlight in use, but I doubt many people have had the battery die in use. Considering the included maps and its great in car navigation features, it's a steal at the current price.

[vfrpilot]

Depends on how much you want to spend and your primary planned use.  If you are chiefly a hiker, hunter, backpacker, geocacher, etc.. and want a unit will also route on the road, something in the Garmin Map 60  or Map 76C series would be a good option.  If you want something smaller, one of the newer eTrex C or CX units will fit the bill.

 

If your primary use will be routing in your automobile, with ocassional short geocaching jaunts and hikes the Garmin Quest or Quest II are excellent choices.

 

If you're on a budget and you don't live in a major population center, consider something like the Garmin GPS V.

 

Magellan also has some very good offerings, but their road mapping/routing software isn't quite up to Garmins.

 

 

Moving this to the GPS Units and Software forum

If you're on a budget and you don't live in a major population center, consider something like the Garmin GPS V.

 

No doubt, if you're looking to break in- the V is an excellent choice. I use one daily & it gets me everywhere, to every address & even into new developments which aren't yet on the map.

I don't know what is meant by

major population

, but I navigate into Philadelphia with it - into center city Philadelphia in fact at times & its great.

 

All the advice I've read is excellent & I'd die for many of the suggestions myself.

(I currently upgrading from the V (I have two of them) but would whole heartedly give my recomendation.

 

just my 2 cents

Edited February 2, 2006 by vfrpilot

[+briansnat]

I have been considering the Map60 model. Larger screen, added memory and has all the auto gizmos. Basic price starts at about $500

 

$500? Are you in Canada? The Map 60 should come in well under $250. Took me about 3o secconds to find it for $239 at Offroute.com. I'm sure it can be found cheaper.

 

think the best option for what I need would be to look to the cheaper Etrex Legend C or CX for caching needs and then look into a seperate unit for auto navigation. This is the kind of info I needed to hear.. Total output might be close to the same, but the two seperate devices will be better served for their purpose.

 

Depends again on what your primary use is. As previously mentioned, the Quest units will handle both uses quite well and if you spring for the Quest II it still will cost less than getting two units.

 

Another option is getting a StreetPilot for the car and a cheapie handheld for geocaching, but the Quest and Quest II bring you the best of both worlds.

 

If you are a backpacker or someone who spends all day in the woods, the rechargable battery in the Quest units might be a deal breaker, but for your average day of geocaching the battery life is good enough.

Edited February 2, 2006 by briansnat

[peter]

If you're on a budget and you don't live in a major population center, consider something like the Garmin GPS V.

 

No doubt, if you're looking to break in- the V is an excellent choice. I use one daily & it gets me everywhere, to every address & even into new developments which aren't yet on the map.

I don't know what is meant by

major population

, but I navigate into Philadelphia with it - into center city Philadelphia in fact at times & its great.

I think Brian's referring to the limited memory (19MB) that the GPS V has for downloaded maps. I have one myself and find it to be sufficient for driving around the San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose metro area. And I've been very happy with the way the GPS V routes me to unfamiliar locations. We recently drove from SF to Las Vegas and it was great for that trip as well. I left a few dull stretches of I-5 uncovered by detailed maps but was able to load everything else including a sizable area around LV. But if I were usually driving all around the LA/San Diego area, I'd constantly have to reload new maps due to the density of map data in that area and it wouldn't be very practical (especially with the slow RS-232 loading; about 45 minutes for a full reload).

 

The GPS V currently retails for about $250 including the CitySelect-NA street-level maps and automotive accessories and I've sometimes seen it for $200 or a little less. In comparison, a Quest (which has the equivalent accessories) retails for about $350. For the extra $$ you get 115MB of memory vs. 19MB, a color screen, much faster processor (quicker re-routes, faster screen drawing), USB instead of RS-232 interface (a few minutes for downloading new maps vs. almost an hour), and voice directions instead of just beeps. Both strike me as good value for the cost compared to most other units on the market.