New to Caching, GPS question..

[LoveDisappears]

My friend is selling a Garmin Nüvi 255W for $115 and it's portable, so I figured it would be good for Geocaching. But with some searching, a thread from this site from 2008 with the same question, a few people said that it isn't really good for Caching. I was wondering why? If it's portable and all.

 

Should I stay away form car GPS's and just get a handheld? I'd rather get a car one so its killing 2 birds w/ one stone lol.

 

Thanks!

[+PCIJOHN]

Go to Garmins website and check out the Nuvi's do a compare and one of the specs is Geocaching friendly I think the 500 is the lowest one geocahce friendly

[+PCIJOHN]

website hiccuped double post

Edited May 24, 2009 by PCIJOHN

[+hogrod]

The nuvi 255W isn't water proof & is very awkward to carry so you will probably drop it damaging the screen. For the Price I would buy the 255w anyway just to get started, then you have a great unit for getting you to each cache site(turn by turn directions) & could use it to try and find a few caches in the meantime.

 

After awhile I would just buy a cheap gps for in the woods, something like the Venture HC wold be great(USB pc connection, 24mb map storage, water proof, ect.).

Edited May 24, 2009 by hogrod

[LoveDisappears]

Thank you all for the responses!

 

hogrod:

You said at that price to just get the nuvi for roads ect. Could be doing the new "get directions" feature that I've been doing be the same thing pretty much then? Lol. I should probably just get a handheld one then.

 

One more question. If the Nvi is portable, what's the difference between that and the Venture in getting the job done. I'm a little confused on that part lol

 

TIA!

[+twolpert]

I think the main issue here is ruggedness/water resistance. Handheld units like the Venture are designed to be carried outdoors. They are a bit more resistant to damage when dropped, banged on rock outcroppings, and just generally abused. They are also usually water-resistant (at last to IPX7, meaning they will survive a brief dunking or a rain shower). They are also built in a form factor which makes them easy to carry. None of this is usually the case with automotive units like the Nuvi line.

 

That said, I didn't bother to look up the specs on the Venture. You should definitely check that sort of thing out before choosing a handheld. Garmin's web site has good information about each unit.

 

Note that not all handhelds are capable of road routing. Even those which are usually require you to purchase separate software (such as City Navigator for Garmin units). Exceptions are the DeLorme PN-20 and PN-40 which include routable maps.

 

If there's an REI near you, you may want to visit them to check out handhelds. They carry a wide variety and the sales people are (usually) knowledgeable and helpful. Although prices will be higher than what you would pay online, they have a no questions asked refund policy which is outstanding if you later decide you've made a mistake.

[LoveDisappears]

I think the main issue here is ruggedness/water resistance. Handheld units like the Venture are designed to be carried outdoors. They are a bit more resistant to damage when dropped, banged on rock outcroppings, and just generally abused. They are also usually water-resistant (at last to IPX7, meaning they will survive a brief dunking or a rain shower). They are also built in a form factor which makes them easy to carry. None of this is usually the case with automotive units like the Nuvi line.

 

That said, I didn't bother to look up the specs on the Venture. You should definitely check that sort of thing out before choosing a handheld. Garmin's web site has good information about each unit.

 

Note that not all handhelds are capable of road routing. Even those which are usually require you to purchase separate software (such as City Navigator for Garmin units). Exceptions are the DeLorme PN-20 and PN-40 which include routable maps.

 

If there's an REI near you, you may want to visit them to check out handhelds. They carry a wide variety and the sales people are (usually) knowledgeable and helpful. Although prices will be higher than what you would pay online, they have a no questions asked refund policy which is outstanding if you later decide you've made a mistake.

 

Thank you so very much for all the info! I appreciate it very much!