Garmin nuvi 200 series, any good for geocaching?

[spacejam1]

My parents just gave me this unit for Christmas. Just went out to play with it on my first adventure and didn't find it. Guess I need a little practice reading the maps. At one time I was away from the "flag" on the map of the gps and it said I was within 30 feet of the coordinates. But yet the map on Geocaching.com shows the cache to be across the street. Hummm.

Any help or hints on finding a cache would be great. Anyone else have a Garmin nuvi series system? The person at the store said a LOT of hunters and what not come in to get that particular model for finding their way in the woods.

[+briansnat]

The Nuvi 200 is designed for automobile use and is a poor choice for geocaching and outdoor use. It has very short battery life, batteries are not field replaceable, it is not waterproof, not rugged, doesn't have a navigation screen and isn't even physically designed to be held in the hand.

 

The person in the store gave you some bad information.

 

The Nuvi is excellent for automobile navigation, but for outdoor pursuits like geocaching, hiking, hunting, mountain biking, etc., you should get a unit designed for that purpose. Something like a Garmin Venture HC, Legend HCX, Map 60CSX, Vista HCX or Oregon are the kind of tools you should be looking at.

[+TazDevil091102]

I have a nuvi 200 and it is good to put caches on for the auto to get you close to the cache but I use my 60CSx to get to the cache after the nuvi gets me close

Edited December 29, 2008 by TazDevil091102

[+popokiiti]

My parents just gave me this unit for Christmas. Just went out to play with it on my first adventure and didn't find it. Guess I need a little practice reading the maps. At one time I was away from the "flag" on the map of the gps and it said I was within 30 feet of the coordinates. But yet the map on Geocaching.com shows the cache to be across the street. Hummm.

Any help or hints on finding a cache would be great. Anyone else have a Garmin nuvi series system? The person at the store said a LOT of hunters and what not come in to get that particular model for finding their way in the woods.

There is actually a Garmin Nuvi that was due to be hitting the stores in the third quarter of 2008. It is waterproof, good for marine and auto, and.......geocaching! (according to the literature.) Have a look at Garmin's website, it is a bit more pricey than the 200 series, but maybe you can trade up? I loved my auto GPS - made a recent drive a lot less stress! The new one also has batteries that are user replaceable, I believe.

Good Luck!

[+xjjoe01]

My parents just gave me this unit for Christmas. Just went out to play with it on my first adventure and didn't find it. Guess I need a little practice reading the maps. At one time I was away from the "flag" on the map of the gps and it said I was within 30 feet of the coordinates. But yet the map on Geocaching.com shows the cache to be across the street. Hummm.

Any help or hints on finding a cache would be great. Anyone else have a Garmin nuvi series system? The person at the store said a LOT of hunters and what not come in to get that particular model for finding their way in the woods.

There is actually a Garmin Nuvi that was due to be hitting the stores in the third quarter of 2008. It is waterproof, good for marine and auto, and.......geocaching! (according to the literature.) Have a look at Garmin's website, it is a bit more pricey than the 200 series, but maybe you can trade up? I loved my auto GPS - made a recent drive a lot less stress! The new one also has batteries that are user replaceable, I believe.

Good Luck!

 

That is the 500 series. Garmin's website list them.

 

Joe sends

[shanshel]

I, too, just got the nuvi 200 from my mom for Christmas (was there a sale?) I agree, it is great for the auto, but I have some trouble with it outside of the car. It's clumsy (I have already dropped it numerous times) and while I have found a few caches, I rely heavily on clues as the unit only gets me near the cache. It's good for now while I'm investigating this as a hobby.

[+ThePachecos]

I really enjoy my nuvi and it works great once you learn all of its secrets. The manual is kind of lacking in information. I have the toughskin for my nuvi and I have dropped it and it keeps going like a champ. I dont know if i would drop it in the water just to see if it would work, but I probably wouldn't do the same to my 400 dollar unit either.

[+Bergie Bunch]

I have a nuvi 200 and it is good to put caches on for the auto to get you close to the cache but I use my 60CSx to get to the cache after the nuvi gets me close

DITTO with my 680 and 205

Edited January 6, 2009 by Bergie Bunch

[+rtreit]

My brother gave me a Nuvi 760 for Christmas for car use and have had lots of fun going out with the kids and learning about geocaching. We just started and have found six caches so far with the Nuvi no problem. It seems very prone to losing signal in tree cover, but does very well out in the open.

 

So I think you can definitely have lots of fun geocaching with a Nuvi and get decent results. For us it has been a great way to try the sport out. But now that we're hooked, I have a handheld on order (60CSX) and we're all excited for it to arrive. After balancing the Nuvi precariously on a stump while digging for a cache and then wincing when it toppled off, and after almost dropping it in a stream, I'm pretty sure it would be only a matter of time before it was eaten by geocaching.

[+rtreit]

Accidentally double posted...

Edited January 6, 2009 by rtreit

[G-armi-N]

i also use nuvi for the time being... somehow its relialble and i was able to find caches... if you want to know your exact coordinates just go to main screen (where to and view maps screen) you will see on the top the sinal strength just touch that for about 5-6 seconds it will give you your exact coordinates.

[+ThePachecos]

i also use nuvi for the time being... somehow its relialble and i was able to find caches... if you want to know your exact coordinates just go to main screen (where to and view maps screen) you will see on the top the sinal strength just touch that for about 5-6 seconds it will give you your exact coordinates.

 

That made my life a lot easier since I hate the little flag.

[Fonrein]

I have a nuvi 250 (got it cause it was on sale and cheap) and I only really use it for caching.

 

I have no real frame of reference but I think its pretty good for caching.

Of course it has its problems, the most obvious are that it sometimes jumps around a few metres when you're not moving, and when you first turn it on it shows you as being where you were when you last turned it off. Also, the battery life, as mentioned, isnt great, maybe 5 or so hours when on constantly.

However, I think its pretty useful, about 80% of the time it leads me right there no problems, and the rest of the time its either a little (5 or so metres) off or jumps around a bit because of trees/stormy weather etc.

 

Just make sure its always switched to 'off-road' mode so it doesnt snap to the nearest street, and pedestrian for the same reason.

 

Given that it might take like 20 seconds or so to settle at the GZ so that you know you're actually there, I think its pretty good.

 

Of course, Im used to suburban caching so it might differ in the woods..

[+ThePachecos]

most of the people that say bad things about the nuvi have never used one.

[+briansnat]

most of the people that say bad things about the nuvi have never used one.

 

I don't think anybody is saying bad things about the Nuvi. It is a fine unit for automobile use. I have one and love it, but it isn't meant for geocaching and other outdoor use. A hand held GPS is a far better tool for the

job. The sport was designed around the capabilities of a hand held unit.

 

You can use a butter knife as a screwdriver, you can use a baseball bat to play tennis, you can drink Champagne from a beer mug, you can use a blowtorch to make toast and you can use a Nuvi for geocaching.

[+ThePachecos]

most of the people that say bad things about the nuvi have never used one.

 

I don't think anybody is saying bad things about the Nuvi. It is a fine unit for automobile use. I have one and love it, but it isn't meant for geocaching and other outdoor use. A hand held GPS is a far better tool for the

job. The sport was designed around the capabilities of a hand held unit.

 

You can use a butter knife as a screwdriver, you can use a baseball bat to play tennis, you can drink Champagne from a beer mug, you can use a blowtorch to make toast and you can use a Nuvi for geocaching.

 

and I am contending that it makes a fine geocaching tool because the reasons that you give for it not being a geocaching/unit are not valid.

[+briansnat]

and I am contending that it makes a fine geocaching tool because the reasons that you give for it not being a geocaching/unit are not valid.

 

If insufficient battery life, lack of a compass navigation screen, lack of durability, lack of water resistance and poor ergonomics are not valid reasons for you then that's great. They are valid issues for many geocachers.

[+Ike 13]

My grandmother got me one for Christmas. I tried it out for a few small runs. It worked well so I upgraded to a premium membership, so I could go paperless. Sometimes the area is off, but a majority of my runs are out in the woods, in the small towns. It has some problems locating a satellite once in awhile, but I think that is more due to my location. I made my biggest run today probably going to 30 locations, and had no major issues. I would love to upgrade one day to an Oregon or something made for caching, but I'm a teacher and right now this works fine.

 

P.S. I use and old camera case that I can strap around my waist or on my belt if I have to take it on a hike to prevent dropping it and getting wet.

[+ThePachecos]

and I am contending that it makes a fine geocaching tool because the reasons that you give for it not being a geocaching/unit are not valid.

 

If insufficient battery life, lack of a compass navigation screen, lack of durability, lack of water resistance and poor ergonomics are not valid reasons for you then that's great. They are valid issues for many geocachers.

 

So what unit do you have. Can I drop it in the water and will you take your unit out in the woods without spare batteries? Have you found every single cache by just using the device? I don't think you will say yes to all of these questions. I know several ways to combat all of the things you mention. Ultimately it comes down to this. If you know how to use the device it is an awesome geocaching device. If you can't use it then go spend an extra 150.00 on something that does the same thing.

[+Zatahra]

The NUVI 200 is good for Geocaching as an assistance tool for getting you to the location, but even in offroad mode it still leaves a bit to be desired. It is good, however, to help you with paperless caching, as it can hold all the cache info & hints using a macro on GSAK. I've been doing it this way for about 5 - 6 months now and found it quite convenient, since I don't have one of those new-fangled Colorado's or Oregon's.

[+briansnat]

So what unit do you have. Can I drop it in the water and will you take your unit out in the woods without spare batteries?

 

I have several units, Garmin Geko, Magellan MeriGold, Garmin 60CS, Garmin Vista, Garmin 60CSX, Magellan Roadmate and a Garmin Nuvi. I've also owned a Garmin Legend and had long term use of a Lowrance iFinder H20.

 

I can (and have) drop my hand helds in water. They are waterproof to IPX7 standards. One day I slipped and fell twice on ice with my 230 lbs plus a 40 lb backpack coming down full force on my 60CSX. I expected to see a smashed unit each time. The only thing that was hurt was my hip which had a large bruise roughly in the shape of my GPS. Another time I slid down a bolder strewn slope on my backside for nearly 100 yards not realizing that my 60CS had fallen from its clip and was following me down attached by its lanyard, bouncing on the rocks all the way down. Had a few scratches but it still works great. I doubt my Nuvi would have survived either.

 

I regularly take my handhelds out for a full day of caching without spare batteries. I can get a full day of geocaching out of all of them and two full days out of the Garmin 60's. I've used my 60CSX on a 4 day canoe trip and a 3 day backpacking/geocaching trip. The great thing about these units is that if the batteries die I can just slip in a new set and in an emergency I can pull batteries out of a flashlight or digital camera and slap them in. Can't do that with a Nuvi. My Nuvi only gets a max of about 4 hours on a charge after which if I'm away from a power source, it's about as useful for navigation as a rock.

 

I know how to use my Nuvi and have used it for geocaching. That is precisely why I know how lacking it is in that department. If someone is just spending their geocaching day driving between guardrail and lamp post caches it can do the job, but once you step away from the car, or for backcountry use it is a very poor tool. There is no need to combat your GPS if you have the right tool for the job.

[mamaleeo]

Just got a nuvi 260w over the holidays , I have very little knowledge of caching ,but have a few youngins who would love to visit some of the caches at the parks within a few miles of the house.

I have downloaded all the caches in my area, and there are many, so maybe ill post after trying a few and give you a perspective of a brand newbie and how hard it was to use.

I have found that outside of traveling ,which i do very little of, a mobile gps is a waste, and could be considered a hazard while driving. Those two or three times a year I do travel it would be nice to have, if it doesnt get me lost or killed lol.

[+modejaal]

I have a NUVI 310 and I have never used anything else for Geocaching my friends Three R one have a Nuvi 200 and they have found 100 caches, my battery lasts about 5 hours and I have been using it for 2 years,I also use it in my car. So enjoy

 

Modejaal

[+medi_first]

I have the nuvi 250 and I have done 40 caches with it over the last year. Have not had any problems finding caches. I downloaded a macro that now allows me to add pocket quirries with alerts to it, so it will be even easier now with paperless caching.