GPS for geocaching

[sleepnsurf]

I have recently picked up geocaching and am thinking I should get a good GPS to go with the sport. I have been using my Android which comes with Google maps and GPS till date but am keen on something more professional. Any ideas?

[+Lineman101]

I have recently picked up geocaching and am thinking I should get a good GPS to go with the sport. I have been using my Android which comes with Google maps and GPS till date but am keen on something more professional. Any ideas?

 

Love my e-Trex 20 with paperless caching.

[+L0ne.R]

I don't love my paperless Garmin GPSMAP 62S. I've had it for 14 months. Frequently have to reboot the thing by pulling the batteries. Yesterday in a 4 hour period I had to reboot 3 times. Then it died. I let it sit for about a half hour with the batteries out and it's working again. Also, often the hands of the compass spins around in what seems like random directions. I follow the numbers (meters), if they are getting lower I'm going in the right direction. Maybe I have a lemon. Loved my GPS 60Cx but it wasn't paperless.

[+Ma & Pa]

I don't love my paperless Garmin GPSMAP 62S. I've had it for 14 months. Frequently have to reboot the thing by pulling the batteries. Yesterday in a 4 hour period I had to reboot 3 times. Then it died. I let it sit for about a half hour with the batteries out and it's working again. Also, often the hands of the compass spins around in what seems like random directions. I follow the numbers (meters), if they are getting lower I'm going in the right direction. Maybe I have a lemon. Loved my GPS 60Cx but it wasn't paperless.

 

MA loves her Oregon 450. It is a good unit and very accurate and she really has not had problems with it.

 

I dont like the 450 because I dont want touchscreen. In my mind the touch screen's major advantage over other gps units is when you are typing field notes. You simply touch the letters.

 

I have a 62S which I really like. The major problem to me is that the compass has problems after changing batteries. This means that I usually have to recalibrate the compass after changing batteries. The 62S seems harder on batteries than the oregon, but maybe I have a brighter setting because of my eyes.

 

The advantage of not having touch screen in my mind is that there is a cursor on the map screen and I can quickly place the cursor over street and caches to get the names without choosing those items and it does not disturb the waypoint or cache that I am currently aiming for.

 

PAul

Edited September 24, 2012 by Ma & Pa

[+BAMBOOZLE]

I don't love my paperless Garmin GPSMAP 62S. I've had it for 14 months. Frequently have to reboot the thing by pulling the batteries. Yesterday in a 4 hour period I had to reboot 3 times. Then it died. I let it sit for about a half hour with the batteries out and it's working again. Also, often the hands of the compass spins around in what seems like random directions. I follow the numbers (meters), if they are getting lower I'm going in the right direction. Maybe I have a lemon. Loved my GPS 60Cx but it wasn't paperless.

 

MA loves her Oregon 450. It is a good unit and very accurate and she really has not had problems with it.

 

I dont like the 450 because I dont want touchscreen. In my mind the touch screen's major advantage over other gps units is when you are typing field notes. You simply touch the letters.

 

I have a 62S which I really like. The major problem to me is that the compass has problems after changing batteries. This means that I usually have to recalibrate the compass after changing batteries. The 62S seems harder on batteries than the oregon, but maybe I have a brighter setting because of my eyes.

 

The advantage of not having touch screen in my mind is that there is a cursor on the map screen and I can quickly place the cursor over street and caches to get the names without choosing those items and it does not disturb the waypoint or cache that I am currently aiming for.

 

PAul

 

IMO the 62S is the best unit in the field for geocaching....I have about 2 dozen units.

You normally need to calibrate the compass after changing the batteries ( true of all units using the 3 or 2 axis compass)...takes only a few seconds.

Since I started using the Sanyo Eneloop 2500 batteries in the 62S, 90% of the time I do not need to calibrate it. Even with Eneloops in our Oregon 450 the 62S gets far better battery life ( backlight set the same on both units)

[+BAMBOOZLE]

I don't love my paperless Garmin GPSMAP 62S. I've had it for 14 months. Frequently have to reboot the thing by pulling the batteries. Yesterday in a 4 hour period I had to reboot 3 times. Then it died. I let it sit for about a half hour with the batteries out and it's working again. Also, often the hands of the compass spins around in what seems like random directions. I follow the numbers (meters), if they are getting lower I'm going in the right direction. Maybe I have a lemon. Loved my GPS 60Cx but it wasn't paperless.

 

Something is wrong here.....as you say, it may be defective.

Try a hard boot , back to factory settings , and install latest firmware.

All that failing, maybe let Garmin have a shot at it.

[+L0ne.R]

I don't love my paperless Garmin GPSMAP 62S. I've had it for 14 months. Frequently have to reboot the thing by pulling the batteries. Yesterday in a 4 hour period I had to reboot 3 times. Then it died. I let it sit for about a half hour with the batteries out and it's working again. Also, often the hands of the compass spins around in what seems like random directions. I follow the numbers (meters), if they are getting lower I'm going in the right direction. Maybe I have a lemon. Loved my GPS 60Cx but it wasn't paperless.

 

Something is wrong here.....as you say, it may be defective.

Try a hard boot , back to factory settings , and install latest firmware.

All that failing, maybe let Garmin have a shot at it.

 

Thank you Bamboozle. I've followed your instructions. Can't wait to get out in the woods and find a few caches to give this new firmware a good workout.

 

One other thing, do you find that the text on your keypad is wearing off or this just another lemony thing about my particular 62s? Here's a photo:

 

[+BAMBOOZLE]

I don't love my paperless Garmin GPSMAP 62S. I've had it for 14 months. Frequently have to reboot the thing by pulling the batteries. Yesterday in a 4 hour period I had to reboot 3 times. Then it died. I let it sit for about a half hour with the batteries out and it's working again. Also, often the hands of the compass spins around in what seems like random directions. I follow the numbers (meters), if they are getting lower I'm going in the right direction. Maybe I have a lemon. Loved my GPS 60Cx but it wasn't paperless.

 

Something is wrong here.....as you say, it may be defective.

Try a hard boot , back to factory settings , and install latest firmware.

All that failing, maybe let Garmin have a shot at it.

 

Thank you Bamboozle. I've followed your instructions. Can't wait to get out in the woods and find a few caches to give this new firmware a good workout.

 

One other thing, do you find that the text on your keypad is wearing off or this just another lemony thing about my particular 62s? Here's a photo:

 

 

Wow. I've had mine a year or so and after about 2000 searches I don't think it shows ANY wear ( I'll confirm when I get home )

The button wear and case squeaking have been much wrote about on the forums ( pictures of buttons included)...my ears are bad so I wouldn't hear squeaking.

Maybe they have done something about keypad wear....not sure.

Here is a interesting link re button repair.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/GARMIN-GPSMAP-62-62s-62sc-Astro-320-rubber-front-buttons-case-repair-spare-parts-/251047893754?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a739edafa&nma=true&si=d4lP9%2BF6864YJzLoKUPptQr%2F6tE%3D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

 

Looking at the symmetry of the button wear in the picture I was wondering if it could have been caused by a case or cover of some kind.

 

I only had mine a month or two when a firmware upgrade cured the " sticky " problem......since then its been my favorite unit by far.

[+Night Stalker]

While we are discussing the shortcomings of the 62S, I might as well add my complaint. I did not buy a touchscreen because I thought that I would be able to use the 62S without the backlight being on. I am used to the 60CX which is easily visible inside the car our out without the backlight being lit. I find that it is impossible to use my 62s to navigate to the cache area in my car without using the backlight. I have removed the colored background from the maps like someone suggested and it helped a bit, but not enough. Since we are not using a touchscreen why is it so dark?

[+L0ne.R]

I don't love my paperless Garmin GPSMAP 62S. I've had it for 14 months. Frequently have to reboot the thing by pulling the batteries. Yesterday in a 4 hour period I had to reboot 3 times. Then it died. I let it sit for about a half hour with the batteries out and it's working again. Also, often the hands of the compass spins around in what seems like random directions. I follow the numbers (meters), if they are getting lower I'm going in the right direction. Maybe I have a lemon. Loved my GPS 60Cx but it wasn't paperless.

 

Something is wrong here.....as you say, it may be defective.

Try a hard boot , back to factory settings , and install latest firmware.

All that failing, maybe let Garmin have a shot at it.

 

Thank you Bamboozle. I've followed your instructions. Can't wait to get out in the woods and find a few caches to give this new firmware a good workout.

 

One other thing, do you find that the text on your keypad is wearing off or this just another lemony thing about my particular 62s? Here's a photo:

 

 

Wow. I've had mine a year or so and after about 2000 searches I don't think it shows ANY wear ( I'll confirm when I get home )

The button wear and case squeaking have been much wrote about on the forums ( pictures of buttons included)...my ears are bad so I wouldn't hear squeaking.

Maybe they have done something about keypad wear....not sure.

Here is a interesting link re button repair.

 

http://www.ebay.com/...=p2047675.l2557

 

Looking at the symmetry of the button wear in the picture I was wondering if it could have been caused by a case or cover of some kind.

 

I only had mine a month or two when a firmware upgrade cured the " sticky " problem......since then its been my favorite unit by far.

 

Found a great forum discussion about the keypad, complete with photos that show the same wear and tear after 10 months. Here's what was written about the 62 keypad:

 

Note that I haven't simply worn through the black, but even through the next (white) layer, and into the underlying grey layer. I've looked closely at both units under a microscope and it's clear that the 62s buttons are made from a very fragile rubber with an extremely thin protective layer on top...as soon as this is slightly scratched, the underlying layers rub away rapidly (in contrast the 60CSx rubber, while equally soft, simply does not abrade as easily). And my wear is not from my fingers - it's mostly around the edges where the unit rubs against my clothing and the vegetation I'm walking through. I'll admit I'm hard on my GPSs (note how the rubberising around the sides of the 60CSx is worn), and I'm quite happy to accept cosmetic wear & tear...but before long the 62s button wear will no longer be cosmetic, as no-one who isn't very familiar with the unit will be able ti use it once the buttons become illegible...

 

That last line is what I'm worried about. Probably in a few months I'm not going to be able to use the buttons because I can't read them anymore.

[+hzoi]

Buttons on my 60CSx squeak and are pretty worn out, looks like the same issue persists in some 62's.

[+BAMBOOZLE]

While we are discussing the shortcomings of the 62S, I might as well add my complaint. I did not buy a touchscreen because I thought that I would be able to use the 62S without the backlight being on. I am used to the 60CX which is easily visible inside the car our out without the backlight being lit. I find that it is impossible to use my 62s to navigate to the cache area in my car without using the backlight. I have removed the colored background from the maps like someone suggested and it helped a bit, but not enough. Since we are not using a touchscreen why is it so dark?

 

I set my backlight for max bright and the timer for 1 min............basically, whenever I'm using it the backlight is always on ( I did my 60 CSx the same way).....even with the backlight being used I get all day ( 10-12 hrs ) out of the Sanyo Eneloop 2500's on the 62S.