First Find

[ShooterToo]

I made my first find this past week using a Garmin Rino 120. I've had the unit a while and used it when hunting for the radio feature. I would like to upgrade to a color unit for geocaching. I am a little leary of the Colorado based on some issues I've read about on other forums. Should I go for the Vista HCx or have the bugs been worked out of the Colorado? This unit would also be used occasionally on trips.

[+LifeOnEdge!]

I made my first find this past week using a Garmin Rino 120. I've had the unit a while and used it when hunting for the radio feature. I would like to upgrade to a color unit for geocaching. I am a little leary of the Colorado based on some issues I've read about on other forums. Should I go for the Vista HCx or have the bugs been worked out of the Colorado? This unit would also be used occasionally on trips.

 

Considering your comments on the Colorado and the lack of comments about the two GPSmap 60/76 units, and also based on your number of finds (thinking that you may lose interest at some time), I would think the Vista HCx is a perfect choice. I have an older Vista C and is my loaner for non-cachers. It is still a gorgeous, vibrant, and clean unit that anyone would be proud to own. (Shoot, now that I describe it, maybe I should sell it!)

 

Good luck caching, regardless of your choice.

[ShooterToo]

My only experience with any handheld units are the Garmin Rino and Etrex Vista. I gave my Vista to a friend when I got the Rino set. I would like to upgrade to a color unit but don't know anything about the GPSmap Units. If those might be a more viable choice I'll start looking at them too.

 

Thanks for the imput.

[+Artsifrtsy]

I've had my Colorado for 3 weekends now - It was an upgrade from an Explorist 400 - I absolutely love it - paperless cacheing makes it so easy to cache anytime - I've even gone on my lunch hour. The screen is awesome. Many of the details that people are concerned about are the details of the features that are on their old unit. The Colorado is a new platform and it's very smart and easy to use.

Edited March 7, 2008 by Artsifrtsy

[+Red90]

Don't get the Vista, the compass and altimeter are of little use.

 

The Etrex Legend Hcx is the best bang for the buck.

 

Now....the Colorado is the greatest single handheld caching device out there..... It really is. So if you have the money, go that way. There are no "issues" preventing it from working 100% as a caching device. Mostly a lot a "wants" and a few minor bugs.

[+Red90]

Don't get the Vista, the compass and altimeter are of little use.

 

The Etrex Legend Hcx is the best bang for the buck.

 

Now....the Colorado is the greatest single handheld caching device out there..... It really is. So if you have the money, go that way. There are no "issues" preventing it from working 100% as a caching device. Mostly a lot a "wants" and a few minor bugs.

[+nicolo]

Don't get the Vista, the compass and altimeter are of little use.

 

The Etrex Legend Hcx is the best bang for the buck.

 

Now....the Colorado is the greatest single handheld caching device out there..... It really is. So if you have the money, go that way. There are no "issues" preventing it from working 100% as a caching device. Mostly a lot a "wants" and a few minor bugs.

I agree.

[+nicolo]

Don't get the Vista, the compass and altimeter are of little use.

 

The Etrex Legend Hcx is the best bang for the buck.

 

Now....the Colorado is the greatest single handheld caching device out there..... It really is. So if you have the money, go that way. There are no "issues" preventing it from working 100% as a caching device. Mostly a lot a "wants" and a few minor bugs.

Hey, I already agreed! No need to reiterate!

[+julianh]

Don't get the Vista, the compass and altimeter are of little use.

While many geocachers seem to think the compass and altimeter are "of little use", I personally find them both to be very useful, and would not want to buy a GPSr without either. (I use my Summit HC for more than just geocaching, but I find the compass is actually VERY useful even for geocaching!)

 

I think a lot of people who dismiss the compass altogether either:

 

a) Don't calibrate it properly, or;

 

Don't understand how the compass screen switches between magnetic compass mode (at very low speeds) to GPS movement direction indicator mode at (user-selectable) higher speeds, or;

 

c) Don't understand that the magnetic compass can spin wildly when you are within a couple of metres of a "GoTo". This is because you are nearing the precision of the GPSr itself, so even if you are standing still, your computed position can be changing by a couple of metres every second. (Particularly if reception conditions are sub-optimal - and remember that the high-sensitivity receivers are very good at getting a "lock" in sub-optimal conditions, but the actual location accuracy under such conditions may no be great.) When you think about it, if you are within say 5 metres of a particular target location, and your computed position can jump to a new random position within a 5-metre radius (say) every second, the indicated bearing from your computed location to your target WOULD change dramatically every time you do one of these "virtual jumps". When this happens, if the indicated distance to your target is less than about 10 metres, it is probably time to put your GPSr down, and start using your eyes!

 

Used properly, I find the compass works very well indeed!

 

Hope this helps!

Edited March 7, 2008 by julianh

[+Red90]

With all do respect. I have owned around 6 Garmin GPS units since 1998 and have had one with compasses since then. I've also found over 1700 geocaches.

 

Trust me that I know very well how to use the compass.

 

With the new units, the change in location happens quickly with little movement making cache searching very easy. The compasses require you to be stop, have no metal around and hold it just right. It is much easier to have it off and move a few feet to align the arrow.

[+DustyWalker]

I use my GPS on an almost daily basis for work and have used it to find hundreds of geocaches. I have owned two different units with an electronic compass- a Vista and a CSx. I would not but a GPS without an electronic compass.

[+Team CowboyPapa]

.....................the compass and altimeter are of little use.

 

Roger that. My GPSr has neither electronic compass nor barometric altimeter, so how does it work?

Well, when I'm within 30' of the cache as indicated, I just point in the general direction and say to my grandchildren, 5 and 7, it's somewhere over there and..............................

[+julianh]

With the new units, the change in location happens quickly with little movement making cache searching very easy. The compasses require you to be stop, have no metal around and hold it just right. It is much easier to have it off and move a few feet to align the arrow.

 

The compasses require you to be stop

Not so - I have mine set so that when standing still or at a slow walking pace, it is using the magnetic compass. I have the threshold speed set to 5 km/hr, and I find this works great for me.

 

have no metal around

Well, I don't wear any big chains or anything, but my wrist watch and belt buckle don't cause any disturbance at all, unless I hold the GPSr right up to them.

 

hold it just right

I don't find that holding it horizontal plus or minus 15 degrees or so is much of an issue. Within that range of accuracy, I find that the compass is very steady.

 

It is much easier to have it off and move a few feet to align the arrow.

I can stand still and the compass will point straight to the target - not sure why it is easier to have to move to get a bearing, and the lose it as soon as you stop?

 

My comments are based on a new Summit HC, and before that, the old B&W Vista. Before the Vista, I had the original yellow eTrex (no compass), and I was won over straight away when I upgraded to the Vista wit a compass (and altimeter). I can't speak for the way a Colorado works, or any other brand, as I haven't used one. True, you don't NEED a compass to go geocaching, but I am genuinely perplexed by the reports of users who seem to find them a hindrance. I genuinely believe that they are a useful feature. To each their own, I guess.

[ShooterToo]

Thanks for the advice. I may wait just a bit before buying, but I think it will either be the Colorado or Vista. Who knows maybe the price of the Colorado will drop between now and summer and surely more bugs will be worked out.

[+Miragee]

I have the Vista HCx and occasionally use the compass, instead of digging around in my pack for my other compass. I also like the fact that even when I stop, or slow down, the arrow continues to point towards the cache, unlike the way my friend's Legend HCx works. For the small difference in price between those two units, getting the Vista HCx was a no-brainer.

[GPS-Hermit]

I keep a magnetic wrist compass on my watch band for $8 and I just rotate the GPS compass to align to north on the GPS with North on my megnetic compass. That works fine while standing still and the bearing is calculated anyway so it is always correct. Since you should never go out without a real compass. Why not use it for bearing. Works for me and its cheap. Very very very cheap. I assume the baro has to be set by a known altitude on the same day - true or not ?????.

[+julianh]

I assume the baro has to be set by a known altitude on the same day - true or not ?????.

I set the barometric altimeter of my Summit HC to a known altitude at the start of each day, and have auto-calibrate on. Most of my days start at home, and I know my home elevation. Interpolating between the contours of a topo map (if you have a paper one, or have topo maps installed on your GPSr) is another option. The unit will then keep accurate elevation all day, with an accuracy of about plus or minus 10 metres under even severe reception conditions (if you have a high sensitivity GPS receiver), plus or minus 5 metres is more typical in my experience.

 

If you don't know your actual elevation at the start of the day, you can initially calibrate the altimeter to the GPS elevation at the start of the day, once you have a good 3D fix, but remember that this can be out by 20 to 50 metres or more. However, if you have auto-calibrate on, your barometric altimeter will generally get better accuracy as the day progresses.

 

(Yes, I know there are forum users out there who think this is impossible / defies physics / is pure snake-oil / etc, but it actually works! I have the test results to prove it.)

 

Hope this helps!

[+hogrod]

I don't use the electronic compass very often but really like the barometric altimeter. I like to view my track logs elevation profile and when using my 60Cx(no barometric altimeter) the track log elevation is all over the place, I was amazed at how much more stable my VistaCx is with its barometric altimeter.

 

Since my VistaCx has sensors you can use the compass screen and get your current elevation even without having any satellite signal.