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Is my yellow Etrex Garmin any good


Imadogman

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Quenstion from a newbie/novice. I have an Etrex Garmin -- yellow one with black sides. No apparent model but looks like it was made in 2000 to 2003 by the manual which I downloaded.

 

It does not seem to have the capacity for me to put in a GPS location. So while I can go somewhere and mark a spot and get back to it, I can't define a spot in advance. Or at least how to do that is not obvious to me. I am not an idiot and this may seem like a stupid question to GPS expoerts. Do I need to buy another GPS unit? I got this one as part of another purchase and have been looking for ways to have fun with it. Help!! Thanks.

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I've got an old yellow eTrex too. I just enter coordinates by hand. Mark your current location, but before you save the waypoint, edit the coordinates, and possibly edit the name. You have only 6 characters for the name, so current 7-character GC codes (e.g., GC12345) won't fit. I strip the "GC" and use just the remaining 5 characters (e.g., 12345).

 

It is possible to download coordinates to the old yellow eTrex. You'll need the correct serial GPS cable, and unless you have an old computer with a serial port, you'll also need a USB serial adapter. You'll also need software that can talk to the eTrex over the serial GPS cable, but that's available on most platforms.

 

Personally, I'd rather spend the money on a new unit with a high-sensitivity receiver and a USB interface. Until then, I use Neongeo on my Android phone for most geocaching, and load coordinates into my old yellow eTrex by hand when I need its durability and/or battery life.

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I've got an old yellow eTrex too. I just enter coordinates by hand. Mark your current location, but before you save the waypoint, edit the coordinates, and possibly edit the name. You have only 6 characters for the name, so current 7-character GC codes (e.g., GC12345) won't fit. I strip the "GC" and use just the remaining 5 characters (e.g., 12345).

 

 

If I want to enter GC codes in my old yellow eTrex, I eliminate only the C and use the G12345 (for example); that keeps all the geocaches on the "G" page.

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I purchased two of the etrex yellow GPSr to use in a class I was teaching. I went ahead and bought the cables needed to be able to download from GSAK or Mapsource. Like was mentioned above you can load up to 500 caches in these units. I have loaded each one with caches around my area for my kids to use after homeschooling is done. Then if they want to they can take a walk to the State Park and find some caches they have not found yet. They are a good unit, but you cannot add maps to them since they do not take a micro sd card. This can be a little discouraging if you come to a creek and it doesn't show it on the GPSr. It only shows where you are and where the cache is. Use this one for a while to find some caches. When you can afford it purchase another unit that is a little better. Anyway you look at it just have fun.

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Quenstion from a newbie/novice. I have an Etrex Garmin -- yellow one with black sides. No apparent model but looks like it was made in 2000 to 2003 by the manual which I downloaded.

 

It does not seem to have the capacity for me to put in a GPS location. So while I can go somewhere and mark a spot and get back to it, I can't define a spot in advance. Or at least how to do that is not obvious to me. I am not an idiot and this may seem like a stupid question to GPS expoerts. Do I need to buy another GPS unit? I got this one as part of another purchase and have been looking for ways to have fun with it. Help!! Thanks.

 

I own several old units and a few new. Trust me on this, unless you're nostalgic get rid of the old. 20 or 30 bucks, whatever you can get. Then buy a gps with high sensitivity receiver. Some are under $100.

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Quenstion from a newbie/novice. I have an Etrex Garmin -- yellow one with black sides. No apparent model but looks like it was made in 2000 to 2003 by the manual which I downloaded.

 

It does not seem to have the capacity for me to put in a GPS location. So while I can go somewhere and mark a spot and get back to it, I can't define a spot in advance. Or at least how to do that is not obvious to me. I am not an idiot and this may seem like a stupid question to GPS expoerts. Do I need to buy another GPS unit? I got this one as part of another purchase and have been looking for ways to have fun with it. Help!! Thanks.

yes

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Quenstion from a newbie/novice. I have an Etrex Garmin -- yellow one with black sides. No apparent model but looks like it was made in 2000 to 2003 by the manual which I downloaded.

 

It does not seem to have the capacity for me to put in a GPS location. So while I can go somewhere and mark a spot and get back to it, I can't define a spot in advance. Or at least how to do that is not obvious to me. I am not an idiot and this may seem like a stupid question to GPS expoerts. Do I need to buy another GPS unit? I got this one as part of another purchase and have been looking for ways to have fun with it. Help!! Thanks.

 

I own several old units and a few new. Trust me on this, unless you're nostalgic get rid of the old. 20 or 30 bucks, whatever you can get. Then buy a gps with high sensitivity receiver. Some are under $100.

 

I'm sure the OP will want to update very soon. However, they have no finds yet. If they can use this one and find 10 or 20 caches first, it would give them a much better idea on how much they might want to invest in this hobby, before they lay out the bigger bucks. Just saying.

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To manually enter waypoints:

Use the upper right button to page thru until you find the page marked "Menu". The first one on that page should be "Mark". Click the lower left button and "Mark Waypoint" page will appear wtih a little guy holding a flag. Use either of the 2 upper left buttons to page down to the coordinates on the bottom of that page and then click the lower left button one time. That will pull up a screen where you can enter the coords you want. Using the middle left button will take you to each number in the coords. When you get to a number you need to change then click the lower left button. That will pull up a small box in the middle of the screen. Using the 2 upper left buttons move thru until the number you need is highlighted. Once your number is highlighted then click the lower left button which will move you to the next number in the coords. Continue that until you have your coords entered that you want. When you are finished changing the coords then using either of the 2 upper left buttons click down until "OK" is highlighted. Click the lower left button and that will take you back to the little guy holding the flag. The coords at the bottom of the page will be highlighted. If those coords are correct then using either of the 2 upper left buttons click until "OK" is highlighted. Click the lower left button and the new waypoint is entered.

If you want to find your waypoint you just entered then click the upper right button until you return to the "Menu" page. Using either of the 2 upper left buttons page down until "Waypoints" is highlighted. Click the lower left button. That will take you to the "Waypoints" screen. You will need to remember what you called that waypoint that you entered. If you didn't name it then it will be a sequential number. The left side of that screen has the waypoints broken down into sections "0-9"; "A-D"; E-H"; etc. One of those should be highlighted in that column. Using the 2 upper left buttons click down until you reach the section where your waypoint is located. So if you named your waypoint "Home", click down until you highlight the "E-H" and then click the lower left button. That will highlight the right side of the column where "Home" should be listed. Highlight "Home" and click the lower left button. That will take you to the "Review Waypoint" page. There you can delete, go to the map, GOTO, and project. At the bottom will be the coordinates you entered. If you want to GOTO, then highlight and using the bottom left click once. That will then have that waypoint as your GOTO.

I hope the above are clear enough. It's easier to do than explain. If you need more info just ask away.

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Quenstion from a newbie/novice. I have an Etrex Garmin -- yellow one with black sides. No apparent model but looks like it was made in 2000 to 2003 by the manual which I downloaded.

 

It does not seem to have the capacity for me to put in a GPS location. So while I can go somewhere and mark a spot and get back to it, I can't define a spot in advance. Or at least how to do that is not obvious to me. I am not an idiot and this may seem like a stupid question to GPS expoerts. Do I need to buy another GPS unit? I got this one as part of another purchase and have been looking for ways to have fun with it. Help!! Thanks.

 

I own several old units and a few new. Trust me on this, unless you're nostalgic get rid of the old. 20 or 30 bucks, whatever you can get. Then buy a gps with high sensitivity receiver. Some are under $100.

 

I'm sure the OP will want to update very soon. However, they have no finds yet. If they can use this one and find 10 or 20 caches first, it would give them a much better idea on how much they might want to invest in this hobby, before they lay out the bigger bucks. Just saying.

 

Absolutely. I still have my Legend Blue, but after recently being forced to use it - Holy cats what a worthless piece of....

 

I just picked up a hcx for $75. Time to catch up.

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Thanks for the excellent support for this Aussie tadpole. Wadcutter -- your post was especially helpful. Much appreciated. I'll see if that works out for me. Mobile phones have a lot of areas in Aus with no signal so not sure if the GPX functtion would work on those. Looking at the new GPss the ones where you can download terrain maps look pretty good. I am primarily seeking to use this equipment to track down old gold mines that can be fossicked. So if I find a nice nugget I will buy myself a new GPS. I call it nature's cache!

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I've got a yellow etrex H.

If yours is not an H, that would make a big difference, although it doesn't say it on it, I don't think.

Anyway, you'll know once you use it. If the caches are regularly off 80 feet + then you've got a really old model that doesn't have WAAS enabled. That will be a problem.

 

I used a unit that wasn't WAAS enabled to begin with. The unit was regularly 100 feet off. It was a problem when caching alone, so if you're having problems finding things, then try caching with someone with a newer GPS for a while to see if yours is accurate. People new to this game regularly have trouble to start. I did too. But if the GPS is off that makes it rougher.

 

I used it for a while anyway though.

When I finally ruined it in a huge rain storm I figured it was a good thing and got the yellow one I've got now. It's an H and is incredibly accurate.

 

I used that one for a couple of years.

It doesn't not store the cache information in it, only the coordinates. After a while I wanted a unit that has the hint and cache page information in it (paperless). So now I've got an Oregon 400T. It is really great, but my old yellow etrex H is still more accurate. When I after a tough hide, especially in the woods or somewhere where the signal can be interrupted, I use my old etrex H.

 

The nice thing about having a second GPS too, is that when you cache with someone new to the game you can hand them one of them, so you both can play.

Or recently I took out a small group and I handed them both out, so people could all get a chance to find one. It makes a big difference in people enjoying the game.

 

So, test out the one you've got. See if it works.

Find someone to cache with from a local event if you can.

See if yours is accurate.

 

A paperless unit is great, and they sell fairly cheap ones these days.

But you can use one that's not paperless for a long time to see if it's a game you're going to keep doing.

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My yellow Etrex is one of the early versions. While not the best under heavy tree cover it will get me within a few feet of caches. It does a whole lot better than 80 to 100 ft. It gets me as close as any other GPS I've used. It's more than accurate enough for caching. The yellow Etrex doesn't have all the bells and whistles a lot of GPS but it will work just fine for caching.

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I know this thread was from 2012 but, I just wanted to personally thank Wadcutter for his valuable information!  I have an original first gen Yellow Etrex that I used to find several caches and I love this little unit!  It's basic but, it works.  I just dug it out after who knows how many years to start geocaching again and I can't get my easygps to work with it.  The oldest Etrex it shows is the Etrex 10 and it won't find a comm port either.  I have the adapter and via USB it shows as comm4 but, easygps doesn't even give me that option.  So, I thought I wouldn't be able to use it but, Wadcutter's instructions reminded me how to manually enter coordinates and I'm back in business!  Yes, I have a much newer and better unit (595) and I'll use it to get me close via roads but, I want to use the Etrex for the hiking portion.  I like the simple arrow and the trackback feature.  Again thanks to Wadcutter!  You really helped me out!

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20 minutes ago, Turbo Ghost said:

I know this thread was from 2012 but, I just wanted to personally thank Wadcutter for his valuable information!  I have an original first gen Yellow Etrex that I used to find several caches and I love this little unit!  It's basic but, it works.  I just dug it out after who knows how many years to start geocaching again and I can't get my easygps to work with it.  The oldest Etrex it shows is the Etrex 10 and it won't find a comm port either.  I have the adapter and via USB it shows as comm4 but, easygps doesn't even give me that option.  So, I thought I wouldn't be able to use it but, Wadcutter's instructions reminded me how to manually enter coordinates and I'm back in business!  Yes, I have a much newer and better unit (595) and I'll use it to get me close via roads but, I want to use the Etrex for the hiking portion.  I like the simple arrow and the trackback feature.  Again thanks to Wadcutter!  You really helped me out!

Same here! It's our trusty little cheap old unit that does exactly what we need it to !

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