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Wanting to buy a good starter GPs


SWAK9802

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I'm looking for a good starter unit for my family. We are new to Geocaching, but our interest has been peaked quite a bit after coming across this nice community recently. I'm looking for a unit that the whole family can learn to use, including my 5 and 10 yr olds. Preferably around $50. If any of you still have one available I'd be happy to talk details.

 

Thanks

SWAK9802

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There are lots of older model usedGPS units to be had for about 50 dollars. They won't have mapping capabilities but you will be able to make a visible trail right on your screen and be able to back track by following your footsteps back to your starting point.

 

One unit does come to mind....the Garmin EMap. It has mapping capabilities and I often see them sell for about 50 dollars on Ebay. They are quite reliable. Most come with PC cable and 12 volt adapter too but since these 2 items sell for close to 30 dollars each, you can expect to pay a few dollars more....but are they really necessary. These accessories do not make the GPS more accurate and reliable.

 

These older units do eat batteries a bit faster.

 

If you are real persistant, you can find a new or almost new Lowrance GO for 50 dollars. The Lowrance GO has a pretty good basemap of the U.S. Or one of those yellow Etrex...with no maps.

 

Maps are fun to have if you want to hike to a location where you do not already know the coordinates but for geocaching, you already have the coordinates and you usually travel over a worn path or trail.

 

Buying a GPS with mapping obliges you to buy the mapping software which costs over 100 dollars new, no matter what price the GPS is.

 

I was lucky enough to buy a used Lowrance IFinder Pro with the Freedom Map of the province of Quebec (where I live), plus an exterior antenna and car adapter for 85 dollars plus shipping of about 12 dollars. But that is almost twice what you want to pay.

 

I have used a Garmin 12 and a Lowrance GlobalNav 200 in the past. I bought them for around 20 dollars even though that was a few years ago. They both worked very well and I sold them for the price I had paid for them. I even made a PC cable and car adapter cable for the Garmin 12 for about 5 dollars each. There is a web site on how to make these cables and where you can buy the plug (5 dollars) that fits into these older Garmin units.

 

They did not have WAAS. My IFinder has WAAS and I am not that much impressed by the WAAS. Even the old Garmin 12 could indicate which side of the road I was driving.....95% of the time. And this was just with the GPS unit sitting on the dash of my vehicle. My GlobNav 200 would even work on the rear seat of my vehicule.

 

You can expect accuracy within 45 feet with any GPS unit. When hiking or exploring with these old units, all you have to do is make sure that you have a good view of the sky before creating a waypoint. However, I have seen some of these older units sell for the price of more recent units. Don't pay more than 20 or 30 dollars for such a unit in excellent condition.

 

One nice unit to look out for is a gently used Garmin Legend. However, they are popular and are quickly snatched up by people wanting to buy their first GPS unit. This unit has a basemap that you can add more detailed maps. You should be able to find one for about 50 dollars...without cables and detailed mapping software. The Garmin Vista, which has more memory and larger screen sells for about 80 dollars.

 

Search the other messages here in this forum about what to buy as a starter unit. There is a lot of info. Right now, you need more info.

Edited by phern47
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Thanks for the thorough information Phern47. I've been watching ebay and this site as well for the units people have been posting, trying to get a feel for what is out there. I've also read the guides to buying a unit listed off the main page, which was very helpful. The Garmin Legend is the one I've had my eye on, but I'm by no means bent on a particular one at this time. I wasn't aware the maps would cost me that much more on top of the unit, that was a good bit of info for me.

It's going to be a fun learning experience when I do get that first unit and we are able to start out our Geocaching experience. I look forward to posting my family's FTF!

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Thanks for the thorough information Phern47. I've been watching ebay and this site as well for the units people have been posting, trying to get a feel for what is out there. I've also read the guides to buying a unit listed off the main page, which was very helpful. The Garmin Legend is the one I've had my eye on, but I'm by no means bent on a particular one at this time. I wasn't aware the maps would cost me that much more on top of the unit, that was a good bit of info for me.

It's going to be a fun learning experience when I do get that first unit and we are able to start out our Geocaching experience. I look forward to posting my family's FTF!

 

If the GPS is just for geocaching, maps are really not necessary. All you really need is a unit that can point you to the cache and get you within 50 so that from there, you can figure out where the cache is hidden. Any GPS unit, no matter how old or cheap can do that. The newer GPS models without mapping are a bit faster and a bit more accurate. The most recent models are even a bit faster and are much more sensitive to the signals coming from the satellites. If you live in an area where there are mountains, gullies, ravines, lots of heavy tree cover or in a large city, the more sensitive GPS units really help.

 

GPS units with mapping (plus the detailed topographic software that you must buy) are really great for someone who wants to go exploring. Where I live, there are thousands of small lakes and ponds full of brook trout. I also do a lot of hunting. When I drive 20 miles north of where I live, there are no more cities, villages, no marked roads....all the way to the Hudson's Bay. When I travel along the logging roads, my GPS shows me small nearby lakes that I did not even know existed. Yes, I can see these small lakes on a detailed paper map but since the road is not on the maps, it's really hard to determine exactly where I am on the map. There are also remote large bodies of water where a person can get lost amongst the islands and bays. Yes, my old GPS units were great for these large bodies of water because I could back track the trails I had made on my blank screen but now, I can see ahead of where I am going and look for those places where streams or small rivers dump into the large body of water. These places usually offer better fishing. I can also see the shortcuts back to my starting point.

 

However, GPS units with mapping cost more and you have to add the cost of the software.

 

BTW, if you look at my profile, I haven't done any geocaching yet....lol. However, I really hope to change that soon. There were very few caches in my area but now, this activity is becoming quite popular where I live.

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When you get one of the cheap used handheld GPS's with no mapping and use it for a week or so, tell your wife your getting her a Garmin Nuvi in car GPS. That way your buying the mapping GPS for "her" :huh: to use daily and then you'll all use it for geocaching and save money on gas(it should pay for itself pretty fast even if you know your area). I did the above and it worked like a charm :D.

 

Buying a new mapping GPS that does routing)vista HCx $233.00 + mapping software $100+ = over $333.00 and you only end up with one unit.

 

Buy the below and spend under $269 or less if you buy a used GPS for $50 and everyone's happy :D

 

Etrex H - $83 on Amazon

 

Nuvi 200 - $186 on Amazon(comes with the mapping software)

 

$269 total and if you get into geocahing big time you could upgrade to one of the expensive handhelds in the future keeping the Nuvi200 for your wife(of course) and sell the cheap one for close to what you paid.

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Actually, I am "the wife" and I'm trying to convince my husband to get into the fun with me. He's a bit skeptical and thinks it's going to be more frustrating than fun.

We'll really only be using it for Geocaching, so from the sounds of it the map feature isn't going to be a necessity.

Thanks again for the useful information, I have a few bids out there, but so far the prices have gone well beyond what I'm willing to spend on a used unit.

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See if you can find a Geko 201. Compact, inexpensive and very easy to use. Small enough for the hands of a 5 year old, but it's a good unit that will get you to the cache. I've seen it for under $100 online new and probably half that used.

 

Next up is the eTrex H (make sure you get the H, it's important). It's around $89 new and has the ultra high sensitivity receiver for good reception under trees.

Edited by briansnat
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