Any New Garmin Units?

[zcoyote12]

Anyone know if Garmin is coming out with anything new this year. I am surprise they are still making the Etrex unit and surprized they have not come out with a new model for th 60 series even thou it has probably been one of there best sellers.

[NordicMan]

Maybe at the upcoming CES Garmin (& all other brands) will show what's on their drawing boards. The newest Delorme PN-60w just popped onto the horizon!

 

Personally I'm still frustrated NO ONE has come up with a reasonably priced "rugged" GPS/PDA/smartphone that would work well for Geocachers and for other outdoor pastimes.. and no the NuviFone isn't even a contender

Edited January 6, 2010 by NordicMan

[+splashy]

Would be better if they cut down the amount of models and try to perfect the remaining models.

They sure have to many models and nobody understands why.

[+g-o-cashers]

Not much from Garmin at CES (at least for outdoors types). The only thing introduced recently is the Oregon 450/450t. We might see something new as we get closer to summer.

 

http://www.gpsfix.net/garmin-announces-oregon-450/

[+ryan3295]

We might see something new as we get closer to summer.

 

Is that a hint??

[+PirateKatz]

Anyone know if Garmin is coming out with anything new this year. I am surprise they are still making the Etrex unit and surprized they have not come out with a new model for th 60 series even thou it has probably been one of there best sellers.

 

This 60 series has been on the market for a long time but for a lot of uses, it is the epitome of what a handheld GPS should be -- It's accurate, reliable, rugged, simple, and can withstand years of heavy use. When it is phased out, I hope it is replaced with a similar unit.

 

As for eTrex line, I feel they fill a niche. My only complaint regarding them is that there are so many different models with similar names that they're hard to keep track of. I've been using my eTrex Vista for the past 8 years and just upgraded to a Vista HCx this week, as well as bought two Venture HC's for my nephews over Christmas.

 

I hope Garmin continues to run the eTrex line for the foreseeable future. There are a lot of people out there who want either an entry level GPS or are simply not interested in things like 3D terrain rendering, touch screens, paperless caching, etc. In all honesty, I'm still somewhat blown away with good the new eTrex's are...

[+user13371]

... frustrated NO ONE has come up with a reasonably priced "rugged" GPS/PDA/smartphone that would work well for Geocachers and for other outdoor pastimes...

Rugged is easy; you can buy an OtterBox for just about anything. If any manufacturer saw a real market for it, they could make a smartphone practically bulletproof and the manufacturing costs would not be much higher than a more standard model.

 

But WATER proof? It's do-able, but not cheap or easy. Phones usually have holes in them that can't be easily sealed up and still work properly. Would you buy a sealed-body cellphone with induction charging and a bluetooth headset?

Edited January 7, 2010 by lee_rimar

[mtbikernate]

... frustrated NO ONE has come up with a reasonably priced "rugged" GPS/PDA/smartphone that would work well for Geocachers and for other outdoor pastimes...

Rugged is easy; you can buy an OtterBox for just about anything. If any manufacturer saw a real market for it, they could make a smartphone practically bulletproof and the manufacturing costs would not be much higher than a more standard model.

 

But WATER proof? It's do-able, but not cheap or easy. Phones usually have holes in them that can't be easily sealed up and still work properly. Would you buy a sealed-body cellphone with induction charging and a bluetooth headset?

 

my toothbrush has induction charging.

[+user13371]

Yes, but used in a conscientiously applied program of oral hygiene and dental care, would it prevent bluetooth?

[+Redwoods Mtn Biker]

There could be announcements at the SHOT show or Outdoor Retailer later this month. If not, you'll probably see some product releases come spring. I don't see Garmin discontinuing the 60/76 or eTrex series. I do expect to see more Dakota models though.

[Vlad]

Yeah, the Garmin 60CSX - it would be great to see an update to that unit...

[flyjazz]

I don't see Garmin discontinuing the 60/76 or eTrex series. I do expect to see more Dakota models though.

 

Gosh,I thought the Dakota is a eTrex replacement,same goes for the 60/70 = Colorado/Oregon series.

[+Chrysalides]

Gosh,I thought the Dakota is a eTrex replacement,same goes for the 60/70 = Colorado/Oregon series.

One thing I learned here is never, ever suggest that the Colorado or Oregon is a suitable replacement for the GPSMap 60csx. It may be old, but the loyalty of owners border on the fanatical. And, in their defense, they have good reason.

 

To me, however, the convenience of paperless on the Oregon is more important than the merits the 60csx has as a GPS receiver. And as a receiver, the Oregon is good enough for my needs. It's something everyone needs to decide for himself / herself.

[+jotne]

The reason for 60 series to not die, is the superior display in bright daylight.

Reason for that is the limited color need on 60 series compare to Oregon/Colerado. It is told that the new Oregon 450 should have better display than 400/300. Not sure if that would be the same or better than 550.

[TakeoK]

I just bought my very first GPS and the number of options from Garmin is just crazy. If you think it's confusing for you guys... imagine how confusing it is for someone buying their first unit who doesn't know the first thing about GPS units! You almost have to hire a full time research assistant for a week. There are what... seven eTrexes, nine Oregons... four Colorados... three 60's. And they're all almost identical. And why... in 2010... does anything come with a black and white screen? Really. I also love how you'll compare two units and find out that the only difference (aside from a $100 jump in price) is an SD card slot and a digital compass. The same unit basically. They just didn't solder on the 25 cent SD card slot and compass chip. And they charge an extra pile of cash. They really need to simplify. Take a page from Apple's book. When you buy an iMac... you have basically two choices... big or bigger. There should be no more than two models in each line. I'd say.

 

By the way... I ended up with a Dakota 20. Love it so far. I chose it over the Oregon for it's small size and weight. I want to use it in as many scenarios as possible so it should be great for that (hiking, biking, running, backpacking and search & rescue). A lot of SAR folks use the 60... but I wanted something small and intuitive that would be lightweight and easy to use for other activities. I would never take a 60 on a 10K run for instance. LOL.

[+jotne]

If you thought handheld is a big mess, look at the Nüvi series.

All the GPS in gray is current sold models.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Garmi....C3.BCvi_Series

[+tachoknight]

Count me in as one of the fanatical 60csx owners; I brought it with me on a trip the day after Christmas and the thing has been darn near perfect, with the exception of the compass needing to be re-calibrated (something that was pointed out to me on the forums here).

 

In the couple of weeks I've had it I've dropped it into the snow multiple times with zero problems. I've used it in a snowstorm in the middle of downtown Chicago and the accuracy has been spot-on.

 

The things I have come to really like about it:

• Rugged - It takes being completely caked in snow without a hitch
  
• Awesome screen - Perfectly readable in all conditions, including direct sunlight
  
• Insanely sensitive receiver - I turned it on inside the house to plug it into the computer and in the time it took to go to the kitchen for something, it had locked onto 3 satellites, just sitting on the desk
  

Here's what I'd love to see if they ever come out with an updated model

• A compass that doesn't require calibration all the time.
  
• Higher resolution screen with better drawing - the way it draws text at an angle is quaintly old-school, but can sometimes be hard to read
  

[TakeoK]

If you thought handheld is a big mess, look at the Nüvi series.

All the GPS in gray is current sold models.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Garmi....C3.BCvi_Series

 

Ha. Yah. The fact the such a matrix is even necessary speaks for itself. I'm thinking maybe Garmin is a company of Poindexters with Star Wars actions figures on their desk and limited social skills. LOL. Not very customer-focused to be making things so confusing. When an updated model comes out (like the Oregon 450 replacing the 300) they should clear out the channel and immediately discontinue the old model.

Edited January 9, 2010 by TakeoK

[+BlurplexOK]

The Garmin 60C and 60CS are now discontinued. Some 11 models total of the Etrex are also on the list.

Edited January 11, 2010 by BlurplexOK

[+okvalle]

There is now the Garmin nüvifone A50

I guess it's also good for geocaching

[vith]

There is now the Garmin nüvifone A50

I guess it's also good for geocaching

 

hi

 

do you have experiance with this gsm-gps ?

how do you configure the settings for easy geocashing?

[+ecanderson]

Good luck finding an A50. The Garmin/ASUS relationship doesn't seem to have worked out.

 

http://www.garminasus.com/en_US and hit "Shop"

[+Damedflor]

If you live in Quebec, Videotron has been giving 'em out for free for the last 2 months. It's a great phone that makes geocaching easy with the C:GEO app available for free.

[+StarBrand]

The Garmin Montana and a lot of videos for it are out.

[Pineapple Dan]

I am surprise they are still making the Etrex unit

 

The Etrex is a great GPS, still have mine from 2003 it's still perfect and in many ways better than my Foretrex 401. Love the fact that it has a serial port, makes it easy to interface with PIC microcontrollers and that sort of thing. It would be sad to see that thing go. I suppose they could improve on it a bit, but change it too much and they might make a mess of it

 

also hope they never discontinue the watch format GPS like the 401.

Edited May 27, 2011 by Dankoozy

[+Egnix]

Garmin just announced three new eTrex models and they are all on a new platform (which includes paperless caching!):

Press release

[+CacheFreakTim]

Garmin just announced three new eTrex models and they are all on a new platform (which includes paperless caching!):

Press release

 

There is already a thread on the new etrex units here.

[yogazoo]

My thread from this morning had dropped a bit but the new Rino's are out.