gps in pocket

[perseides02]

Can a gps be held in the pocket or under a jacket and still have reception of the satelit. If yes witch one.

 

thanks

[+larryc43230]

Can a gps be held in the pocket or under a jacket and still have reception of the satelit. If yes witch one.

 

thanks

I own a Garmin 60CSx and a Garmin Oregon 550t, and they both maintain good locks on the satellites when I keep them in my coat pocket or inside my jacket, even in the woods.

 

On the other hand, after an incident a couple of weeks ago, I will never again stuff a GPS unit into an outside pocket and scramble around looking for a cache. My 550t fell out while I was leaning over, and it wound up buried in more than a foot of snow. I thought I'd lost it until spring before my caching partner spotted it after about an hour of searching for it. To add insult to injury, we never did find the cache we were looking for.

 

--Larry

[+StarBrand]

Any unit with a high sensitivity chipset is going to be far more likely to work in your pocket than one that does not.

 

I know my Garmin Colorado 300 does well in a pocket.

[+dfx]

yeah modern gps chips have no problem inside a pocket or jacket, however older chips (older sirf II for example) will lose reception pretty much right away if you put them in a pocket...

[+jsarche]

Whenever I ski, I put my Colorado 400T in a coat pocket, and it records tracks and maintains satellite reception just fine. Depending on the building, it will even keep its satellite lock inside the lodge during lunch. I don't think a few layers of fabric -- or my body -- does much to block the GPS signals.

[+RonFisk]

Can a gps be held in the pocket or under a jacket and still have reception of the satelit. If yes witch one.

 

thanks

I own a Garmin 60CSx and a Garmin Oregon 550t, and they both maintain good locks on the satellites when I keep them in my coat pocket or inside my jacket, even in the woods.

 

On the other hand, after an incident a couple of weeks ago, I will never again stuff a GPS unit into an outside pocket and scramble around looking for a cache. My 550t fell out while I was leaning over, and it wound up buried in more than a foot of snow. I thought I'd lost it until spring before my caching partner spotted it after about an hour of searching for it. To add insult to injury, we never did find the cache we were looking for.

 

--Larry

 

I had a similar problem with my 550t. It fell out of my shirt pocket while I was searching for a cache in the bushes. I did manage to find my 550t after about 45 minutes of searching and didn't find the cache until he next day. Since then I have learned to attach my GPSr to a lanyard around my neck. Better safe than sorry. Both my 550t and my 60CSx work great when in a pocket or backpack, by the way!

[+briansnat]

Can a gps be held in the pocket or under a jacket and still have reception of the satelit. If yes witch one.

 

thanks

 

Depends. My 60CSX gets reception in any pocket, under my jacket and inside my pack.

 

My Delorme PN40 loses reception in my pocket. I never tried to put it in the pack because if it doesn't get reception in my pocket, no way would it get it in the pack.

 

The Lowrance Sierra I've been using gets reception in my pocket and I haven't tried it in the pack yet.

 

My older Garmin eTrex units would nearly always lose reception inside my pockets.

[+larryc43230]

Since then I have learned to attach my GPSr to a lanyard around my neck. Better safe than sorry.

Same here. At one point, I felt sure we just weren't going to find the thing, and I realized how much money and time it would cost to replace it. The welcome screen on my unit displays my personal information, so I could hope that whoever found it would be kind enough to return it. I'd rather not depend on that, to be honest.

 

--Larry

[+Cowboy Camper]

Since then I have learned to attach my GPSr to a lanyard around my neck. Better safe than sorry.

Same here. At one point, I felt sure we just weren't going to find the thing, and I realized how much money and time it would cost to replace it. The welcome screen on my unit displays my personal information, so I could hope that whoever found it would be kind enough to return it. I'd rather not depend on that, to be honest.

 

--Larry

 

Not sure I'd want the lanyard around my neck, but...

 

Our newer Garmin eTrex Venture HC's (daughter and myself) came with a ridiculously long lanyard, far longer than a typical wrist strap, and I think we like them a lot! We've come to use them on our wrists as they have a slip lock included to close the lanyard around the wrist. If we drop the GPS, the farthest is will fall is about half an arm's length. Perfect, IMHO.

 

To answer the Signal Question, the Garmins can hold a lock in the basement apartment we live in. I was Impressed! My newer Magellan Triton can hold a signal sometimes as well. If they'll work in a basement apartment, surely they'll hold a signal in the field in a pocket.

 

Even my oldest Magellan eXplorist 210 kept a signal in the field, but it Never worked in the apartment.

 

Interesting thing though. The Magellan's didn't include a lanyard at all. I wonder why that is, cause I Prefer having it now.

[+tec_64]

I have a MAP 60Cx. I zip it into my sleeve pocket (between my shoulder and elbow). Works great and I always zip so it doesn't fall out. The zipper is not metal.

 

Your body (the water in it) does more to attenuate microwave signals than most clothing fibers (non-metallic). In your pack, place it near the top and make sure there and no metal objects on top or beside the antenna. Some folks even purchase an external patch antenna compatible with their unit and affix it facing up in their hat (but not under the metal button, if the hat has one), and keep the GPS in a pocket.

 

tec_64

[+Redwoods Mtn Biker]

Your body (the water in it) does more to attenuate microwave signals than most clothing fibers (non-metallic). In your pack, place it near the top and make sure there and no metal objects on top or beside the antenna.

 

What he said. ^

 

Putting the unit in your pocket will certainly impact the accuracy of the tracklog, if that's important to you.

 

If I don't want to carry it, my favorite locations are a top zipper pocket on my daypack (hiking) or the back mesh pocket on my CamelBak (biking). If I want access while hiking, I'll clip it to a shoulder strap. What you should strive for is to get it as high as possible, with as clear of a view of the sky as possible.

[+JSWilson64]

My Oregon 300 wasn't too happy about being stuffed in a pocket before acquiring satellite lock. After I sat it on the ground for about 90 seconds, it locked on and was fine in the pocket for the rest of the hike.

[GermanSailor]

Can a gps be held in the pocket or under a jacket and still have reception of the satelit. If yes witch one.

 

thanks

Yes, speaking of:

 

60CSx

Etrex H

 

GermanSailor

[NordicMan]

If you still have doubts about how much various materials obstruct the GPSr signal,, go outside and try a test!

 

Stand outside with the GPSr in front of you and let it get a good signal lock. keep it on the screen that shows satellite signal strength. Next, take your "test jacket" and place it over the GPSr and yourself, sorta like a little tent so you can still see the GPSr display while the jacket is covering it completely. Watch the signal strength meter!

 

If the signal strength doesn't drop by much then THAT jacket passes the test!