tijolima Posted November 23, 2009 Share Posted November 23, 2009 I am totally new to this thing called geocaching but am giving this to my family(kids 5 & 8) for Christmas. I've been doing my research on GPS and found the PN-40 on Amazon for 199.99 and thought this was a killer deal so I ordered one immediately. Did I do okay for a first GPS or did I jump into the deep end too soon? I am attending the Minnesota GCA breakfast this Saturday and am hoping to learn alot and was going to get advice on which GPS to buy but I felt I couldn't pass this deal up! Quote Link to comment
+Chi-Town Cacher Posted November 23, 2009 Share Posted November 23, 2009 Congratulations on getting one very sweet deal! I paid $300 a few months ago and that was a very good deal at that time. There are some people who say the Delorme PN-40 has a steep learning curve. Personally I didn't find it any harder to learn than the Magellan or Garmin that I'd owned previously. Yes, like any new electronics toy it will take a little getting used to, but it doesn't mean it's unlearnable. There are 2 pieces of advice I'd like to give you. First of all if you CLICK HERE you will find a thread over in the GPS and Technology forum here on Groundspeak that has lots of really good info for new Delorme PN owners. Second if you find yourself in need of assistance when you start using your PN-40 go to the GPS and Technology forum and there are some very smart folks over there that try to help us newer folks. Again, congrats on your awesome deal! I'm sure you'll love it!!! Quote Link to comment
+Chi-Town Cacher Posted November 23, 2009 Share Posted November 23, 2009 You've definitely got an excellent plan by planning on attending a local geocachers meeting. You'll find that generally speaking geocachers are very friendly and like to help each other. Not as many people use Delormes as Garmins, but ask around at the meeting and maybe you'll get hooked up with a local PN expert who can show you some shortcuts to use on a PN-40! Quote Link to comment
+Gitchee-Gummee Posted November 23, 2009 Share Posted November 23, 2009 'Grats from us, too. PN-40 is a good choice, as would most any of the newer ones have been. But....... you cannot beat the deal!! Learning curve is fairly steep with PN-40 (so I am told, but am waiting for ours to arrive also ). As with anything else, once you have it mastered, you probably wouldn't like a different one. Opinions run very strongly. If you read through the forums, you will see what I mean. Have fun, and teach the younguns well. Quote Link to comment
+FatherAndProgeny Posted November 23, 2009 Share Posted November 23, 2009 I am so jealous. I paid 335 for mine with maps. I love my 40! I hate the battery life. Get the rechargeable power pack. You cannot live without it on the 40 unless you own a battery company. With the rechargeable pack I do not spend a fortune on batteries. In fact I am getting a second pack for Christmas so I can go longer than 7 hours. Quote Link to comment
NordicMan Posted November 23, 2009 Share Posted November 23, 2009 Congrats dude you got yourself an excellent deal on a fine GPSr You're gonna love it, and you definitely won't out-grow it anytime soon! "steep learning curve" I don't think I've ever heard that said about the GPSr itself, but have heard it said about the included Topo software Quote Link to comment
+briansnat Posted November 24, 2009 Share Posted November 24, 2009 Great deal for $199. It would be hard to find a better GPS at that price. It is a good unit with some serious flaws that are easily mitigated by coming in under $200. Be prepared to spend some time learning that crappy mapping software that it comes with, and you would be wise to invest in a good charger and rechargeable batteries, but overall you got yourself a gem of a unit for under $200. Quote Link to comment
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