BU353 & Laptop - Will It Work?

[BattlePope]

Hi there.

 

The Questions:

 

Is the BU353 SirfStar III USB receiver suitable for geocaching with a tiny laptop? Or is it worth spending an extra ~25 pounds to get the Garmin eTrex H? For either option, which is the best software?

 

Some Background information:

 

I've just started geocaching. My girlfriend introduced me to it, and it's her birthday coming up (this coming Monday, to be precise). I thought I'd surprise her with a GPS, as neither of us own one, and we could start geocaching together. I'm a poor student, so I thought I had stumbled across a bargain in the BU353, a USB GPS receiver. She has a tiny laptop (one of these new-fangled netbooks), so in my mind we would simply connect the receiver, and set off, laptop in hand.

 

In this frame of mind, I ordered the BU353, and set off to find some suitable software. I found a friend of mine had Microsoft Autoroute installed (the European version of Streets & Trips), and he let me have a go at it. It was pretty easy to use, but to me it seemed the maximum zoom level would not be precise enough to find geocaches. I expect the receiver will have some way of giving very precise coordinates on our position, but will this be enough? From the looks of it Autoroute is very much for driving, is there a more specific software for smaller-scale things like geocaching?

 

Now I'm thinking I should send the BU353 back when I get it, and get the Garmin eTrex H instead -- it's 25 pounds more, but it is a self contained unit and presumably will be more convenient and accurate than a laptop/USB receiver combo.

 

Please help me out -- I really want to make my girlfriend's birthday special

 

Thanks very much,

 

Will

Edited December 2, 2008 by BattlePope

[TermiteHunter]

Well think about lugging a laptop (no matter how small) around in the woods or park, jumping streams and logs in the rain. Don't slip and fall. The etrex will be much easier and I doubt the software you will have on the laptop will provide a compass to point you in the right direction. Handheld is the way to go. Download files (if your a premium member GPX) or input the coords and let it point the way.