RoadMate 1340 - Magellan

[+DARMA6]

I just purchased this GPS (Roadmate 1340 by Magellan) for my 12 year old son,

On sale 98.00

It was recommended by the man at the store, for the ease of use.

 

I`ve never geocached before, but am soooo excited about joining the game as a family.

I consider myself a pretty computer savy lady, but... I"m getting NOWHERE!!! HELP

 

I was able to download the cache's coordinates from the website to my pc. (.log format)

but nothing shows up in my GPS (ANYWHERE)

I downloaded a "Vantage Point" program, but that is not recognizing my GPS *shesh*

 

No software came with my GPS,

Am I suppose to be looking for a program that works between computer to GPS, or what?

Or did I get taken for a fool buying this GPS even though the sales man knew it was for geochaching?

 

Thank you for any help possible, even a reference to another place to look.

Feeling a little desperate here

Tracy K.

Mom of 3

 

Am completely ready to return this model if I've made a mistake,

Can I get some suggestions about what you recommend?

I only have about 100- 150 to put towards this tool.

Edited March 1, 2010 by Knight_tracy

[+godavid]

Hello dont worry i did the same thing as you did i bought the same model as you did and tryed to work it intill i was blue in the face i to0k it back as someone from this geocaching.com site said and i got a Garmin eTrex Vista its a little bit m0re money but well worth it `it downloads very very easy and i say to tAKE it back and get one that you can download what you need to have a family fun outings i say get the Garmin eTrex Vista have a bless day †

[+godavid]

I know that m0st people are on a buget such as me i bought the cheaper one ,and i didnt want to spend alot of money but after you get it or if that you get it you will have yrs of fun with it if that you have family or little 0nes they t00 will enjoy going 0ut on weekend or other days if it does not download the info that you need take it back and save ur money intill you have a enough money that you can get a Garmin of your choice it will be worth it in the long run trust me i have a great litlle device that make it so easy to down load the info to find the cachings,anyway good luck in and i hope the best that you can get Gps have a bless day †

[+briansnat]

The RoadMate is designed for vehicular navigation and is a poor choice for geocaching. You can use vehicle units for geocaching but it is akin to playing tennis with a baseball bat or using the heel of a shoe as a hammer. It works to a point but there is a far better tool for the job.

 

Battery life is insufficient, batteries are not field replaceable, there is no compass navigation screen (a key feature for geocaching), it isn't waterproof or durable and it simply is not physically designed to be held in the hand.

 

If you want the GPS chiefly for geocaching I suggest you return it and get yourself an inexpensive hand held unit. The Garmin Venture HC provides a good mix of ease of use and price (around $120 if you shop around). The Lowrance Eudura Out and Back is a bit more expensive than the Venture HC. Not having experience with it, I can't address its ease of use, but it is a full featured unit that many geocachers are happy with. The DeLorme PN20 is a great value and I've seen it sold for as little as $100. Its a flawed unit but if you can find it for around $120 or under it's a hard to beat value.