GPS for me to Geocache and wife to drive with.

[+jamie.kay]

I am looking for a gps unit that my wife and I can use. My wife needs one to get around easily. I want her to have a unit that is easy to use and will speak the directions also. I want one that I can use to geocache (new at it) and possibly use hiking in national parks.

 

Does such a thing exist? Are there two models you would recommend together? My parents have lent me a Legend CX they won. Is this good for the geocache end of it? We want to spend around $500.

 

Thanks for any/all comments.

[Newdogg]

You can get a Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx wich has autorouting capabilities but is an excellent geocaching unit also. But I wouldn't get it for dedicated vehicle navigation uses as it is a hand held unit with a small screen. I have a NavMan Icn530 for my car and a Garming Etrex Legend for geocaching. For my budget, I love this combo. The Navman was less than $300, has autorouting/re-routing, sd card slot, and large 3.5" color touch screen stylus pen, can search by address.....alot of features dedicated to navigate the streets. The Legend is rather basic but was less than $150 and is perfect for geocaching, especially a newbie like myself. There are a lot of people here with much knowledge, and I'm sure they will chime in soon.

[+embra]

Voice prompts are a great feature for car use, but I don't think there are a lot of handhelds that have the feature. One that is mentioned here as a good crossover is the Garmin Quest or Quest2. The Q1 has 128MB memory, while the Q2 has all the US detail maps preloaded.

 

A possible drawback for hiking is that the Quests use a rechargeable Li-Ion battery that can't be replaced in the field. You're supposed to get up to 20 hours use on a charge. Also, my reception under foliage is pretty crummy; an external antenna worn on a hat or something would probably solve that problem.

 

If you start with a unit that has voice prompts, make sure that it can load waypoints. Many of the Magellan Roadmates, for example, route to addresses but don't do waypoints.