help! im new!

[the griswalds n dogs]

hi, i am new to geocaching and need a gps receiver cheap. at the moment i have a samsung gt-s5600 but it hasnt got gps, and also a nokia e63 with gps. i have read the nokia needs a bluetooth receiver to complete it, but am unsure whether to just buy a cheap but good gps receiver or a bluetooth receiver for the phone. all the technical websites are frying my small brain cell!!!!any suggestions gratefully received. shan grant

[+kunarion]

unsure whether to just buy a cheap but good gps receiver or a bluetooth receiver for the phone

Unless that setup (phone+receiver) gives you direction and distance, it's no good. I think you'll use direction and distance to the cache, most often.

 

If you're caching in civilization, a phone is fine, at least for beginning. But once you want to venture into the woods, you'll appreciate a sturdier GPSr, which is waterproof, has better battery life, things like that. You have til the after-Christmas sales to figure out what features you'd like.

[Motorcycle_Mama]

What's your budget? ($100, $200, more?)

 

What things are important to you? (interfacing with a computer, turn-by-turn auto directions, loading all the cache data, ease of use, number of features?)

 

What type of terrain will you be traveling over? (urban, suburban, forest, mountain?)

 

What type of maps do you want to be able to load? (street, topo, satellite, custom?)

[+Ecylram]

What's your budget? ($100, $200, more?)

 

What things are important to you? (interfacing with a computer, turn-by-turn auto directions, loading all the cache data, ease of use, number of features?)

 

What type of terrain will you be traveling over? (urban, suburban, forest, mountain?)

 

What type of maps do you want to be able to load? (street, topo, satellite, custom?)

Good but cheap GPS is the better bet.

[Andronicus]

Get a new Android Phone (free with a contract usualy). The geocaching apps are realy good, and will likely get better soon (when the API is opened up). Most new phones have good GPS chips. If it does not, you can use a cheep bluetooth puck. They are cheep, but as good or better than a handheld (for sencitivity and accuracy, not ruggedness).

 

See the link in my signature for some more info on that.

 

Edit: Maybe try to find one that you can get an otter box for. That should make your phone as rugged as a hand held GPS. The best part of this stratagy is convinience! Who want to have to carry around 2 devices when you could carry around 1. Oh, and Android's google maps has a fully functioning automotive GPS like function (google navigate). A lot of cachers have a GPS in their car for navigating roads to near the cache, then a hand held GPS for finding the cache, and a cell phone for, well, phoning. Your Android phone will do all of that + act as a mp3/movie player etc.

Edited December 17, 2010 by Andronicus

[+LukeTrocity]

Get a new Android Phone (free with a contract usualy). The geocaching apps are realy good, and will likely get better soon (when the API is opened up). Most new phones have good GPS chips. If it does not, you can use a cheep bluetooth puck. They are cheep, but as good or better than a handheld (for sencitivity and accuracy, not ruggedness).

 

See the link in my signature for some more info on that.

 

Edit: Maybe try to find one that you can get an otter box for. That should make your phone as rugged as a hand held GPS. The best part of this stratagy is convinience! Who want to have to carry around 2 devices when you could carry around 1. Oh, and Android's google maps has a fully functioning automotive GPS like function (google navigate). A lot of cachers have a GPS in their car for navigating roads to near the cache, then a hand held GPS for finding the cache, and a cell phone for, well, phoning. Your Android phone will do all of that + act as a mp3/movie player etc.

QFT

[+Jenischmeni]

Despite the fact that I am an experienced cacher, I bought the Magellan eXplorist GC. It's available for $150 through the Groundspeak store and several other outlets. It's very easy to use and very accurate.

 

I have a Droid, but it is my least preferable way to hunt a cache. Often it is very inaccurate. It's battery life is only a few of hours when using it as a caching device. It's not practical on a trail. I'd run down my battery before I was finished with the hike. (And then what if I needed to call for help?!)

 

As has already been mentioned, you're going to want something that withstand the rain and occasional dropping into the mud!

 

I think you'd be wiser to keep the phone as a phone (and in your pocket) and pick up a cheap GPSr.

 

Just my two cents worth