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recomendations on Gps Choice


epbrenner

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Of these units what are the pros and cons? Are they all still in production or old models soon to be forgotten if repair is needed.

 

Garmin Extrex Legend Hcx

 

Garmin Extrex Vista Hcx

 

Garmin Gpsmap 60Csx

 

Garmin Oregon 400T

 

In what order would you guys place these units for Geocaching. I am new to this ,travel in a converted Eagle Trailways bus and want to learn this sport. Don't need the gps except to be really good for this have nav. system already in bus.

 

Thanks for any help I am already a Busnut now going to be a cach-nut.

 

It all started with an article in April issue of BCM ( Bus Conversion Magazine ) on Geocaching.

Thanks ED

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I do my paperless part of caching with my iphone and use the 60CSx for the actual caching. Pro is that little beast is easier on the batteries than my phone. Has great reception and is a rugged little thing.

 

If you want all the bells and whistles though (paperless, fancy touch screen etc.) you might want a higher end model.

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If you read a lot of review, you will find that the GPSMAP 60CSx is the best bang for the buck. Like Chokecherry said, "Has great reception and is a rugged little thing." I read a lot of good things about the Legend and the Vista also, but the 60CSx out performed the others hands down. I ordered mine online and should be getting it next week.

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They're all great units, but the Oregon is the ONLY one on that list that can do paperless caching. That may not mean much to you *now* but trust me you'll love that feature if you really get bit by the Geocaching bug!

 

In my opinion the Vista HCx and 60CSx are basically the same, both have nearly identical abilities. The choice between them is form factor.

 

The Legend HCx is great too, but would come last place in that list (for me)

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If your willing and able to pay out now, I'd go ahead and get the Oregon...I started out with a very simple, used Etrex Legend, and it works great, but if you really get into caching, I'm assuming you'll end up wanting to go paperless. Where we live is pretty windy, so it starts becoming a pain when every time you open your door your papers go flying around the vehicle! That, and, our printer doesn't work so I have to hand-write out all the info I want, generally. I'm saving up now to get either the same oregon, or either the magellan explorist gc or the Delorme earthmate pn-40...I haven't decided yet.

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I am going to throw one more GPSr into the mix... The Garmin Oregon 450. It has a better, more viewable screen than the 400. It also has the paperless caching feature which is priceless in my opinion. Why spend extra money on the preloaded topo maps when there are plenty of great, FREE maps available at GPSfiledepot? If you don't think those are good enough, spend $30 and get a one year subscription to Garmin's Birdseye imagery and download fantastic satellite imagery of everything you need from there? The maps don't expire when your subscription does, so download every thing you could possibly want and store it on your hard drive, then move the maps around via micro sd cards. PCNation has the Oregon 450 for $341, BEFORE the $50 rebate... that brings the price down to $291! (Beware though, Amazon doesn't have the rebate available) Plus you get free 3 day shipping OR $11.90 overnight shipping if you just gotta have it tomorrow! I just replaced my 60 CSx with a new 450 and I am not looking back!! Good luck and happy caching! - G

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I'll second the Oregon 450. I just got mine last week and really like it. The paperless geocaching is really nice, I load in a bunch of caches in my area and just hit one when I have a few minutes. Don't have to plan ahead and carry paper printouts and descriptions. My main use is on an ATV, the fairly large screen is a nice upgrade from my Rino 530hcx.

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I love my Oregon 400t for the paperless features... but I love the stability (accuracy) of my Map60CSx.

With the right GSAK macros and tweaks...you can get alot of info loaded into the Map60. Not quite paperless, but close IMO.

 

If I were to recommend a GPS, I would say Map60CSx is the way to go.

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The Oregons and Colorados are really the only way to go for geocaching anymore, unless another company really picks up the pace. I have a Colorado 400t, which is essentially the same as the Oregon, except it has a click wheel instead of a touchscreen ( I don't trust myself with a touchscreen). Using Pocket Queries, you can load the limit of your caches in about 2 minutes, which for me is 2000, the higher end Oregon is 5000 I believe. Once you have these in, you can scroll through a list, or look on the map and find what cache you would like to grab. All you do is click on it and the cache description, hint and recent logs are displayed on your screen just like if you're on the geocaching website. They also have specific symbols on the map, instead of the generic "treasure chest" like the older garmins have, so you can distinguish if it's a traditional, multi, virtual etc. Also, from what I have read, the Colorado has a slightly better GPS fix than the Oregon, but this is up for debate.

 

Another cool feature is the 3D map view. If you're bushwacking up a mountain and want to know if it is easier on the other side, you can pop up the map and scroll around and actually look at it, although it is slightly pixelated unless you use Birdseye (another amazing feature which I won't go into detail about). This comes in really handy if you don't like to read contour lines, especially for beginners (luckily the Army really taught me well, so I just use this feature to show off the unit more than anything).

 

You said that you had a navigator in the bus, which is great. With these two units, you can have auto-routing capabilities as well in case that goes down. The list really does go on and on, but I'm convinced the Colorado or Oregon are the pinnacles of geocaching GPSr's. (No I don't work for Garmin, but if they offered me a better gig...)

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Even with my very limited experience, I would certainly recommend a GPS that can do paperless caching, and it seems alot people agree and find this ability a huge bonus.

 

I recently purchased the Garmin Dakota 20 and am very happy with it, although some take issue with the smaller screen size. People also complain about screen visibility in different lighting conditions, but I just don't get this as I've never had problems. I think some people don't use the backlight... if so, it's understandable that it would be hard to read. I have the backlight timed for 2 minutes and I still have the same lithium batteries in it from install.

 

For me it came down to cost vs. options, and with Dakota priced below the Oregon but with most of the same features, it was a perfect fit for me.

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Garmin Gpsmap 60Csx - Still the best all around GPS on the market. Cons. Not true paperless, but you can massage data with GSAK to get much of the cache page data into the unit using the POI loader

 

Garmin Extrex Vista Hcx - Similar to the 60CSX but in a smaller package. Cons: chipset isn't as good as the 60CSX so reception is a notch below. Rubber gasket tends to come lose. Pros: Compact and light weight

 

Garmin Extrex Legend Hcx - Same as the eTrex Vista but no magnetic compass or barometric altimeter. Some say that is a pro and others would call it a con.

 

Garmin Oregon 400T - Cons: Screen is difficult to read in sunlight. Reception isn't up to the standards of the 60csx. Pros: Easy to use, fully paperless caching

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We started geocaching last summer and after reading as many online reviews as I could decided to get an Oregon 400t. It's got everything you need and is easy to use, even for a beginner. I love it. It is a little dim and if you use full backlight you eat a lot of batteries. That would be my only beef with it.

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