DeltaNyne Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 (edited) Ok, About 15 mins ago i was very lucky to come in to a reasonable amount of money. I can spend up to £500 on a new gps for geocaching. I have one x garmin already for driving but its not very rugged so i don't want to use it for cacheing any more. My question is this - iv read the topics about various gps units, the pro's and the cons - I am leaning towards an Oregon. BUT - is it suitable for the UK and Europe as i am unlikely to ever need usa maps etc. Apologies if this is an easily answered question i should have been able to find the answer to, im aware this is my first post and its asking for help before iv even said hello but im very excited and money will be gone in approx 2 hours when the wife gets home so i need to spend it asap!... Edited April 3, 2012 by DeltaNyne Quote Link to comment
+54kgx2 Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 I bought an Oregon 2 weeks ago for using in the UK and am very happy with it. I went for the package with GB OS maps included. I was using an iPhone 3G before so the Oregon 450 is a big step forward. Cost under £350 also came with the carabiner clip and a CD from the company for open street maps - haven't used CD so can't say whether it's any good or not. Quote Link to comment
+Croesgadwr Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 Ok, im very excited and money will be gone in approx 2 hours when the wife gets home so i need to spend it asap!... Sounds like my wife is related to yours.... Seriously, I've never used an Oregon but I know of several people who own them. I can't say I've heard too many complaint about 'em!! You mention maps, before you go spending vast amounts of cash on maps, check out 'talkytoasters' free maps, they are excellent. You just need to ask and someone will point you in the right direction. Croesgadwr North Wales Quote Link to comment
DeltaNyne Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share Posted April 3, 2012 (edited) Wow - thanks for the speedy replies guys! LOL @ "Sounds like my wife is related to yours...." I think moor research is required so iv banked £500. The pn-40 sounds good to. ARRRGH, info overload! Maybe this will help matters. I would like a gps that has UK and Europe map capabilities Accuracy DURABILITY - im notoriously good at breaking things. Paperless is good Longevity - dont want to be upgrading for some time. Currently i use a blackberry and a garmin road gps, i have had many garmins over the years and like how they work - the missis has an android phone with app Berry and android are both excellent. I think i need to rest and re read some of the info tomorrow as iv just go t back from 3 day's working away- the problem is we are going on a 4 day cache mission round the south uk on friday till monday and its already tuesday. Would be nice to get new gps before we go. That said it will take me time to learn how to use it. Hmmm, but then again, 4 days cache ing is an ideal way to get to grips with a new gps. Edited April 3, 2012 by DeltaNyne Quote Link to comment
+The Blorenges Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 You might find this comparison table helpful when considering your choices: Choosing a GPS - Comparison table of features. MrsB Quote Link to comment
+Walts Hunting Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 I am sure the Garmin allows English but does it have British language. Quote Link to comment
+shantz_uk_&_cleverclogs Posted April 3, 2012 Share Posted April 3, 2012 We have an Oregon 300 and use it all over the UK and worldwide, have various maps and they all work really well. Here is the link to Talky Toaster. Quote Link to comment
DeltaNyne Posted April 3, 2012 Author Share Posted April 3, 2012 (edited) The advantage of a Garmin is that there are loads of free maps available, and as pointed out for UK you can't beat the talkytoaster ones. I've done side by side comparisons of the Oregon versus the new Etrex series. The Oregon screen is far more difficult to read in bright sunlight or dull conditions. You also need to consider whether you prefer touchscreen (Oregon) or button (Etrex). Also the Etrex uses the GLONASS satellites as well as GPS, and in comparison with a GPS only system appears more accurate. Course you could splurge the lot and buy a Montana Hmm, some very good points there thankyou, im ok with touch or button. The satellite/reception and accuracy point is a big one though. Now i need to go check out a Montana - iv never even heard of one!!! - I take it there good? Thankyou mrs B + shantz_uk_&_cleverclogs for the links - free maps are extremely appealing Thankyou everyone, im really impressed with the reply's and help being offered. EDIT---> just looked up the Montana, its well with in budget - anyone used one? it looks v impressive Edited April 3, 2012 by DeltaNyne Quote Link to comment
+shantz_uk_&_cleverclogs Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 It's also very big! Size puts me off ... but otherwise it's apparently an awesome GPS Oh and after all these years when i have been told size dosnt matter you come out with a comment like that and burst the bubble Quote Link to comment
team tisri Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 The Montana is a great unit (I have the 650). The huge screen is very nice and I found it much easier to read in any form of light when compared to the Oregon 300 I looked at a while back. Of course that huge screen does have a price to pay, the unit is big and heavy and it's not something you can just clip on your belt and forget about the way you can with a smaller unit. For stealthy urban caching something the size of the Montana doesn't blend in the way a smartphone or a compact unit like a Dakota does. That said if you prefer to blend in by wearing a hi-vis vest and clipboard then the large GPS unit could be considered as being part of the act. Personally I love my Montana but still sometimes find it a little cumbersome to work with. Quote Link to comment
+eusty Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 It's also very big! Size puts me off ... but otherwise it's apparently an awesome GPS I thought the same so went for the 450.... Quote Link to comment
DeltaNyne Posted April 5, 2012 Author Share Posted April 5, 2012 (edited) Thanks again for all the replies - Re the size - ill be honest i like the bigger screen, for subtle urban caching i can/do use my Blackberry to great effect. I shall use goggle to find out if the Montana uses GLONASS satellites as well as GPS and probably go down that route. Has anyone had any issues with durability of the Montana? Apologies if i dont reply for a few days, we head of tonight (thursday) for a long weekend cache adventure - got a few T5's in the itinerary and some long walks as well as a few cache and dash layby rest breaks planned. Nothing to stringent just playing it by ear and keeping it flexible. Not back till Monday evening. So yea, i now have a van to convert in to a mobile cache hq and sleeping quarters Have a good week end all - hopefully ill be back with stories of adventure Edited April 5, 2012 by DeltaNyne Quote Link to comment
DeltaNyne Posted April 5, 2012 Author Share Posted April 5, 2012 Etrex series is the only Garmin GPS that so far uses GLONASS wow - sussamb - even quicker than google! - thankyou Quote Link to comment
+davemcwish Posted April 7, 2012 Share Posted April 7, 2012 The other thing you want to consider is if you're likely to do Wherigo caches. As far as I'm aware it's just the Colorago and Oregon series that support this. I've got an Oregon 550 with Talky Toaster's Maps as it's been really good for me. Quote Link to comment
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