Wanting Input On Which Handheld Gps I Should Get

[+Kabuthunk]

Long story short, I've been pondering getting a GPS unit for quite a while now. Mainly, I was pondering it for camping and when going on vacation and the like (ie: where the #@$#@ is that dadgum hotel?!?).

 

However, as of late, a number of my family members have gotten into Geocaching (purplemonkeydishwasher is my brother... can't remember the usernames for the others). Looking into it, it looks like it'd be quite fun to do while biking around and soforth. Hence... researching into this, I've come up with some things that I would like a GPS unit to have if possible, and some features I would absolutely want it to have. What I'm needing is for suggestions as to which I should get and whatnot.

 

Basically, I'm looking for preferably mid-range. Not bottom of the line, not top model. Just... something fairly decently good.

 

Absolutely need to haves:

Submersable - Last thing I need is to trip and drop it in a puddle and have it not work again. Never mind this water-resistance, I don't want to worry about puddles or... yeah, you get the idea.

Basemap - Want to be able to download maps for it. Yeah.

Channels - I think pretty much everything is 12-channel, but I'm not sure.

Memory - want to be able to expand the memory. Nuff said.

WAAS - Or whatever that extra-accuracy thing is. I think most GPS units have this as well.

Paths - Track-back, routing, whatever it's called. Where it can show me the path that I travelled, and not rely on me just setting a waypoint somewhere and I have to find my way back to it myself. I have no clue what this feature is even called.

Rocker keypad thing - That type of 'rocker' keypad or whatever else it's called. Apparently infinitely easier to work with the GPS, and from what I've played with in stores, they're right

Computer interface - When I hook it up to my computer, I don't want it to be a horrible debacle to try to work with it. Nothing too fancy needed, just not a frustration.

External antenna jack - Just... yeah, really want to have that.

 

Want to haves:

Bike mount - I don't know if all units are able to fit into some generic bike mount, but yeah... would be nice.

Moving map display - Would be nice, but if it doesn't have it... eh.

Optional power source - Some systems apparently you can tell it what type of batteries you're using, or to go from the car outlet instead of battery or some such.

What type of display - I've heard black and white saves a lot of battery life, so I'd probably want to avoid colour. Also, I've heard it's easier to see b&w when it's sunny. I wouldn't want to bother with buying a colour with that fancy nonreflective screen. So B&W if possible. Also, preferably not a stupidly small screen. Not obnoxiously large, but not microscopic.

Waypoints I think everything comes with 500. I'd want no less than that, but more is always better if there's a neglegeable price difference.

3-D waypoints - get both horozontal and vertical saving of the point. Yeah... it'd be nice.

Ability to hold it vertically - The guy at S.I.R. was telling me some GPS systems have to be held horozontally, and some can be held pretty much any which way. Preferably, I'd want the latter. No clue if he was just BSing me though.

 

Aaaand yeah, that's all the points I know offhand. I'm sure there's other things I should be looking at as well.

 

Hence... if anyone has any suggestions as to what other aspects I should pay attention to, or know of any brands/etc that fit what I want... please reply with some info. Also prices if possible (even more if possible in Canadian, as I'm in Manitoba ).

Edited August 8, 2006 by Kabuthunk

[vertigojunky]

I would most certainly suggest the Garmin 60CX for you. You can also save 50 bucks on this unit right now as they have a mail in rebate offer so the value is very good. The 60c doesn't have the expandable memory (not to mention it's discontinued) and the CSX has the altimeter/barometre etc which is probably more than you need, it's also a battery hog.

 

This unit has everything you are looking for. I would suggest it over the etrex series only because you mentioned you were looking at getting into geocaching. The 60cx has a much better quad helix antenna desinged for better reception in heavier tree cover.

 

Submersable - submersable in a meter for 30 minutes. From what I understand its about neutral boyancy in fresh water too. So it shouldn't sink like a brick either.

Basemap - world basemap, topos/city maps load overtop

Channels - Reciever is Sirf chip. Much better acuaracy.

Memory - 64 meg base memory but it is expandable anyway.

WAAS - enabled, should pick up within 10 feet 90% of the time.

Paths - Will track routes, breadcrumb trail etc etc.

Rocker keypad thing - very user friendly, ergonomic keypad

Computer interface - loads to any pc.

External antenna jack - equiped

 

Want to haves:

Bike mount -This i'm not so sure about, I don't think garmin has one for the the 60 series, but you may try an aftermarket part.

Optional power source - external power jack

What type of display - Colour, contrary to what you were told, the colour screens actually have BETTER battery life. Newer technology, more efficient. display is 2.2 x 1.5

Waypoints: 1000

 

Hope that helps!

Edited August 8, 2006 by vertigojunky

[+thefiveofus]

garmin does make a 60 series bike mount and there are after market mounts too (ram mount, e.g.).

 

also, I had thought that the csx processor was faster than the cs ... e.g. can do real time pan on the map, faster calcs, etc. you'd have to weigh the costs and other factors. I did a comparison of my friends cx to the csx and there was a clear difference..his is probalby about a year old, so unless they updated the processor on the cx when the csx came out, I'd still think there's a difference

 

also, the 76 series is basically the same unit, mostly a different form factor, and does actually float (if that's a concern, e.g. mostly for boating).

 

take a look in there, there are a lot of posts on both of those units.

[+Kabuthunk]

Actually, that does help quite a bit. Also because your mention of 'altimeter' reminded me that I'd want 3-D waypoints if possible, so I added that into the optional section

 

Otherwise, I'm still open to suggestions from anyone, or thoughts as to what else I should look for.

 

Man, I SO want to go out and start this... but at the same time, I'm trying to avoid rushing into buying a GPS that doesn't fit me

[+sayter liften]

i did my research and finally settled on the e-trex vista. it has everything that you could want except for the tri-axel compass that will work in any posistion. the e-trex is easy to use and works very well with my computer when i download maps and it has a 24 mb memory.

[vertigojunky]

i did my research and finally settled on the e-trex vista. it has everything that you could want except for the tri-axel compass that will work in any posistion. the e-trex is easy to use and works very well with my computer when i download maps and it has a 24 mb memory.

 

Well, as it stand Garmin is discontinuing everything execpt the CX and CSX for all their handhelds. That will also include the Etrex series. So there will only be the Legend CX and Vista CX in that series. Simplifies things quite a bit.

 

Both the CX and CSX are essentially the exact same unit now. I know when these units first came out there were some performance differences, but there really are not to speak of with the latest models anymore, other than the altimeter/barometer feature of course.

 

Like I said, the rebate is available right now on the 60 series, so it's a good time to nab it. The 76 series had a rebate going a month ago, I find it alternates between the two of them lately.

 

I hope the Vista works well for you! It's a great little unit, its size makes it pretty versatile too. Great if you want to slap it on a bike!!!

[+Kabuthunk]

Blagh. Alrighty, it looks like the price of the CX or CSX is a little out of my price range (seeing it online for about 500 american... meaning like... a kajillion canadian ). There anything offhand that has most of these features for preferably a lot less $?

 

Edit: Hmm... looks like the Garmin GPSMap 60 looks not too bad. I'll have to kinda cross my fingers on finding it though, since Garmin has yeah... as Vertigo said... discontinued dang near everything.

 

Blah. I need a good side-by-side stat comparison page for a ton of gps units.

 

Any suggestion if I rip off of my 'needs', the compass, expandable memory, and pretty much ignore most of the 'wants'?

Edited August 9, 2006 by Kabuthunk

[+LadyBee4T]

Don't be afraid to look outside the box! I am going to plug a Lowrance unit. I know that most here have garmins but when I did the research before Christmas I felt that Lowrance gave the most bang for the buck (C or US ) I have a Lowrance iFinder h20 c and I really like it. It can hold 1000 waypoints. It doesn't hook up directly to the computer but uses a sd card so to me its not a hassle at all. Right now I have a 1 gig card in it and have probably a couple thousand waypoints and also most of Michigan maps and I haven't really even begun to load up the card. It has a very large screen and is 16 channels. It also came with the car adapter. The specs also fit the new sirf III chip but lowrance doesn'tconfirm it. Mine doesn't lose reception under heavy tree cover and I do mean heavy!

 

Give these units a look see. Without the mapcreate program they ran about $230 US but I just saw the noncolor unit on pricegrabber for $137 shipped. It doesn't have the same sirf chip though. The plus packages include the mapcreate programs but now sure what is available for Canada.

 

Take a look maybe you also might like one. Just my 2 cents worth!

Edited August 9, 2006 by LadyBee4T

[+CJOttawa]

Blagh. Alrighty, it looks like the price of the CX or CSX is a little out of my price range (seeing it online for about 500 american... meaning like... a kajillion canadian ). There anything offhand that has most of these features for preferably a lot less $?

 

Edit: Hmm... looks like the Garmin GPSMap 60 looks not too bad. I'll have to kinda cross my fingers on finding it though, since Garmin has yeah... as Vertigo said... discontinued dang near everything.

 

Blah. I need a good side-by-side stat comparison page for a ton of gps units.

 

Any suggestion if I rip off of my 'needs', the compass, expandable memory, and pretty much ignore most of the 'wants'?

 

LeBaron Canada has the 60Cx for $469CAD (subtract the current $50 USD rebate and you come close to $400)

If that's still too pricey, they have the eTrex Legend Cx at $299CAD.

 

I wouldn't skimp on the expandible memory.

Edited August 9, 2006 by af895

[vertigojunky]

Blagh. Alrighty, it looks like the price of the CX or CSX is a little out of my price range (seeing it online for about 500 american... meaning like... a kajillion canadian ). There anything offhand that has most of these features for preferably a lot less $?

 

Edit: Hmm... looks like the Garmin GPSMap 60 looks not too bad. I'll have to kinda cross my fingers on finding it though, since Garmin has yeah... as Vertigo said... discontinued dang near everything.

 

Blah. I need a good side-by-side stat comparison page for a ton of gps units.

 

Any suggestion if I rip off of my 'needs', the compass, expandable memory, and pretty much ignore most of the 'wants'?

 

LeBaron Canada has the 60Cx for $469CAD (subtract the current $50 USD rebate and you come close to $400)

If that's still too pricey, they have the eTrex Legend Cx at $299CAD.

 

I wouldn't skimp on the expandible memory.

 

 

I totally agree with the previous post, don't skimp on the expandable memory. I am carying a gpsmap 60 for about 184.00 CDN as well as a 60c for 324.00 CDN. That's about par for up here. Still, if given the choice i'd still grab a CX model, even if it means getting the Etrex over the 60 series. Lookup the Legend CX, you can get the expandable memory and save about 150 bucks without the quad helix antenna.

 

If you want a side by side comparison. Garmin's website does that very well. You can put several units side by side too.

 

Don't be afraid to look at other brands too, Garmin just happens to be my niche thats all.

Edited August 10, 2006 by vertigojunky

[+capjap]

I see no one has suggested the explorist line. I have a 500 and I love it. It has all the features you are looking for, plus it is colour. You can get a b&w 400 for even cheaper. It comes in a package for around $300 that I think is an excellent deat.

 

The 210 has 22 mg of memory but is not expandable. It's probably enough memory, but I like using SD cards to hold even more stuff.

 

Only drawback to 500 is the lithium battery...but I bought a battery pack that replaces the li-ion battery and you can use AAA's. It is available to buy without the li-ion battery for $50 less.

 

I like using gpscity....calgary based. They ship quickly and you save pst. The shipping is less than the tax.

 

GPSCentral is also in Calgary. I have not used them, but have heard good things about them. They have these units too. They have a bundle for the 500 that is an excellent deal.

 

http://www.gpscity.ca/item-magellan-explor...xplorist210.htm

http://www.gpscity.ca/item-magellan-explor...xplorist500.htm

http://www.gpscentral.ca/products/magellan/explorist400.htm

http://www.gpscentral.ca/products/magellan/explorist500.htm

[+Kabuthunk]

Well... random note... I've decided to save up for a bit... and go for the Garmin 60 csx. The theory being the usual 'why get something less than specifically what I want, and then be disappointed X number of months/years/whatever down the road'. Offhand, I can't even see what other features they can cram onto there other than longer battery life or being lighter or some such... so it should be a good investment to hold me for a fair number of years.

 

So hence... the decision has been made. And I shalt geocache. In around 1-2 months :{

[+Fhantazm]

You are forgetting about the newly released Venture Cx, which is the exact same as the Legend Cx but yellow in color and does not come with a memory card(has to be purchased seperately). I got one for $199 from Bass Pro Shops. I also just bought a Garmin 60csx and compared the 2 on several caches tonight. The CSX is a little better under tree cover, but not a huge amount. Also the electronic compass makes a difference as well. But for $199 American , you really cant go wrong with the Venture!

 

 

 

Well, as it stand Garmin is discontinuing everything execpt the CX and CSX for all their handhelds. That will also include the Etrex series. So there will only be the Legend CX and Vista CX in that series. Simplifies things quite a bit.

 

Both the CX and CSX are essentially the exact same unit now. I know when these units first came out there were some performance differences, but there really are not to speak of with the latest models anymore, other than the altimeter/barometer feature of course.

 

Like I said, the rebate is available right now on the 60 series, so it's a good time to nab it. The 76 series had a rebate going a month ago, I find it alternates between the two of them lately.

 

I hope the Vista works well for you! It's a great little unit, its size makes it pretty versatile too. Great if you want to slap it on a bike!!!

Edited August 12, 2006 by Fhantazm

[+DocDiTTo]

I'm personally holding out for a CSx myself. I have a Vista and a Legend (the older non-color models) and I've used a CSx. I definitely want the Sirf chip - it makes a huge difference in reception. (I was standing inside a highway rest stop waiting in lline for coffee and had 8 sats locked in... talk about SENSITIVE!!)

 

Sure the CSx is pricey, but the $50 rebate makes it a little sweeter. It's autorouting navigational capabilities are really what did it for me. Some units won't auto route - meaning, after you tell them to go to a waypoint, if you run off course you need to manually tell them to go to that same waypoint again, so they re-calculate the route. The CSx just realizes you're off course and automatically changes the route based on your location. To me, that's a very important feature!

 

I think the CSx is a great unit, even though it has a couple minor quirks. It'll be my next GPS, once I get the extra $400 saved up....

[+HaLiJuSaPa]

You can't go wrong with the CSx, I'm sure you'll be happy.

 

But in case you start to feel you can't wait or you find it hard to save up, the people commenting on Lowrance here are spot on. They get great reception and good accuracy. And they tend to be less in price than the Garmins. MapCreate usually comes with the US and Canada combined; I have an iWay 100M for my car (which can also be used for caching, though there are other models more geared for caching) and this was the case here (the software had both the US and Canada). Any of the iFinder series that includes MapCreate will work for you (I also have an iFinder GO, an inexpensive GPS that does not let you upload MapCreate, so its base map only has the US).

 

One other piece of advice given your Winnipeg location. If you decide to cache in cold weather, buy a pair of Energizer Lithium batteries, they will perform better in weather near or below the freezing mark.

 

Good luck and enjoy! We got into caching from our relatives too (our brother/brother-in-laws are marksun and likesun).