Explorist GC screen brightness

[+mudmonkey2618]

Does anyone with the new EXplorist GC from Magellan have this issue :

when the backlight feature goes off the screen is very, very dark. yes i can tilt it around to catch the sun to see it , but it is still quite dim to me. and if i am wearing sunglasses forget it or if in the woods also very dim.

 

I guess i want to know if everyone who has this gps has the same issue or if its just mine and i should contact Magellan.

 

oh and yes i have the update 1.4 installed

 

thanks

 

Vicki

[+gpsblake]

It's not you, the Explorist GC is unusable without some sort of backlight on. My main issue with the unit is that it is real slow updating the compass when you are walking slow, makes it really hard to zero in on the location of a cache.

[+TheOfficeMaven]

The Explorist GC does not have an electronic compass (it relies upon the GPS signal) and so it will never be accurate when standing still or moving slower that about 3 mph.

 

I really like the idea behind the Explorist GC, but to make a dedicated geocaching unit without an electronic compass built in just seems plain silly to me.

 

I know lots of folks will tell you that they have no problems finding geocaches using GPS units without a built-in compass, but from my experience, it sucks doing so. You just can beat having an accurate compass that works while you're standing still (as it's very hard to walk faster than 3 mph while you're trying to hone in on a geocache in thick ground cover, etc.).

Edited July 27, 2010 by TheOfficeMaven

[Flying Spaghetti Monster]

Yes, the screen is dim without the backlight on - it's not just your unit.

 

For the electronic compass, just use the sun and moon icons and you accomplish the same thing. No need for an electronic compass with this feature.

[+Redwoods Mtn Biker]

All high-resolution TFT screens suffer from this problem. It's why Garmin chose not to go hi-res with the 62/78 lines.