What about the new garmin oregon 400t

[+pieslicer]

What is the best type of gps to use when you are out and about. How much money should a beginner plan on spending on a good gps.

Edited September 16, 2008 by pieslicer

[+manicgecko]

I do quite fine with my Colorado (I also use it for travel), and Skidz uses my older garmin (sorry can't find it right now to give you the brand). We got our first from e-bay for $70. There were some listed for $30 but this one seemed more 10 year old friendly. There is also a forum here that deals in used supplies, I haven't checked it but there should be some good used supplies there.

 

For 1st time cachers I recommend the following - especially if they are under 10.

- waterproof

- drop resistant

- easy to hand enter coords (esp if you like multis)

- AA or AAA batteries (Skidz must eat his)

- small enough that it can be stashed in a bag / large enough to read the pointer arrow

 

Will wake have Skidz bring me his tomorrow and I will get the make if you have further ?'s.

[+StarBrand]

You can spend as much as your budget will allow.

 

A $90 basic Yellow Garmin eTrex "H" will lead you to as many caches as the Oregon 400t at $600.

 

All else is just bells and whistles. But here are some basic tips.

 

Get a color screen.

Get a unit with a USB interface.

Get a unit that can expand and grow with you (mapping capabilities, autorouting, memory) at least a bit.

Take a close look at battery life.

 

low end: (see above)

Mid level: Garmin Legend HCx ($190)

Mid High: Garmin 60CSx ($300ish)

High: Garmin Oregon Series ($450 to $600)

[XC_Tracker]

We have been using our Garmin eTrex since we started nearly 4 years ago. Quite simply, we just need something that tells us where the cache is located. We bought a new eTrex H when they were on sale so we can keep using the simple unit.

 

A good GPS is relative to what you want it to do. I don't care for the built in map feature so the low end works best for us. (I'm an old school,cartographer minded, geocacher) - most people like the built in maps though, and they are handy I suppose. Part of the fun for us is finding our own way to get there, you know getting there is half the fun!

 

Really, the best thing to know is that you need a portable GPS that will take a little wear and keep going.