+geofry25 Posted February 16, 2013 Share Posted February 16, 2013 (edited) Afternoon, I tried dedicating time to reading reviews, varous forums, comparing models, etc bt I gave up. I pulled the trigger today on an Oregon 550t. Seems to have the maps, card slot (not sure what that would store but I assume off device storage for caches and waypoints I add?, if I figure out how to do that of course). I havent done much caching the last couple years and was using a droid when I started a few years back. Tried getting back into it using my bionic but my GPS on the phone just isnt working (for anything) so i grabbed the Oregon. I bought a hard case, card, & car package. Amazon had a pretty decent price but like every other lazy n00b out there I wanted to know your thoughts. Thanks for taking the time to read or reply in advance folks. Any Oregon users with any high level hints who woul dlike to share would be appreciated as well! Edit:I cant spell either apparently, sorry... Edited February 16, 2013 by geofry25 Quote Link to comment
alandb Posted February 16, 2013 Share Posted February 16, 2013 (edited) I also have a 550T. Hopefully you will like your Oregon as much as I do mine. It is an excellent choice for caching IMO. That said, I think you will find the on-board 100K Topo map pretty worthless (at least I did). The 100K Topo map is not very accurate, often showing your position off by a few hundred feet. Also it is not street routable. But don't worry, as there are lots of maps available for Garmin units including many good free maps. What came with the car package? Does it include a City Navigator map? If not, you might want to try the free Open Street Maps ( http://wiki.openstre...Garmin/Download ). For Topo and trail maps, take a look at GPS File Depot ( http://www.gpsfiledepot.com ). I also like the Garmin Birdseye satellite imagery (not free) which transparently overlays the other enabled maps. As far as the micro SD card, in addition to waypoints and geocaches, you can store maps and BirdsEye Imagery. Also you can direct the JPG files from the Oregon's camera to the SD card instead of internal storage. I have an 8 GB card in my Oregon, and I use it for all the maps mentioned above, geocaches and waypoints (GPX files), BirdsEye images, and pictures. I removed the Topo map that came with the 550, so I have plenty of internal storage as well. If space gets tight on my SD card, I may move the Open Street Map NA or the BirdsEye images to the internal storage. Edited February 16, 2013 by alandb Quote Link to comment
+splashy Posted February 16, 2013 Share Posted February 16, 2013 (edited) Sooner or later you HAVE to learn and you better do it NOW, it's nice you bought a T model but if you invested time you knew you could save yourself some $$ by not needing a T, because the gpsfiledepot Topo maps are much nicer and free. Goto the gpscity site and checkout the video's, this might help a bit for now You bought a very nice model BTW. Edited February 16, 2013 by splashy Quote Link to comment
alandb Posted February 16, 2013 Share Posted February 16, 2013 I agree with you splashy about the extra cost of the T model. When I got mine about a year ago, I was able to get the T model refurbished for a little less than a new non-T 550 (on Amazon). The only 550 refurb I could find at the time was the 550T. You do get about 3GB additional internal storage with the 550T over the 550. But I would not pay extra for the T because with cheap micro SD cards the additional internal storage is not needed. Quote Link to comment
+geofry25 Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 So it sounds like and extra hundred for the t bought me maps in don't need and internal storage I technically could live without? Car kit not that fancy, car mount, power cable, something else, no secrets though Quote Link to comment
+Chief301 Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 I've been using a 550 for awhile now and couldn't be more satisfied. The free maps from GPSfiledepot.com work just fine. I would suggest, though, taking a goodly bit of time to play with the Oregon before going out caching. It is VERY customizable and there are lots of different profiles and settings to get familiar with. Take the time to get familiar with the settings and get it set up like you want it (which will probably change over time as you get some experience with it) Quote Link to comment
+geofry25 Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 No software* Quote Link to comment
alandb Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 (edited) So it sounds like and extra hundred for the t bought me maps in don't need and internal storage I technically could live without? Car kit not that fancy, car mount, power cable, something else, no secrets though Yeah, if you can, I would cancel the T, get a 550 and save the $100.Use the savings to buy a premium membership to Geocaching.com and Birds Eye subscription. You will still have money left in your pocket. Edited February 17, 2013 by alandb Quote Link to comment
+geofry25 Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 Premium affords what extras if ya don't mind? What's Birdseye? Quote Link to comment
alandb Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 Premium affords what extras if ya don't mind? What's Birdseye? Premium membership will give you Pocket Queries, which is the best way to load geocaches to your device. Birdseye is satellite imagery that can display on top of the map. You can download the area that you will be geocaching or hiking in and it gives a nice visual reference for the area. For example if you are searching for a specific geocache, you might be able to see on the satellite image that it is near the center of a large tree, or on a specific lamp post in the parking lot. Quote Link to comment
+geofry25 Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 Read up on the premium benefits, thanks. I'll check out Birdseye. I'm entering into the gps indecisive zone now,even though I have pulled the trigger, lovely Quote Link to comment
+Gitchee-Gummee Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 Read up on the premium benefits, thanks. I'll check out Birdseye. I'm entering into the gps indecisive zone now,even though I have pulled the trigger, lovely 550 with or without the T is a fine unit... but without Premium Membership you are unable to use it to it's full potential. Pocket Queries alone are worth it. Sort of like owning a Ferrari without a steering wheel. Nice to look at but little else. Adding: Whether you use the microSD card or not, the potential is still there when you do want to. Quote Link to comment
+wmpastor Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 Head out in the morning & find a cache! It'll stop the buyer's remorse. Users say it's a great unit. Put it to a field test using just the basic features at first, & enjoy! Quote Link to comment
+geofry25 Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 Wish I could head out today. It beautiful here in Tampa today. Unit arrives this week. Regarding the sd card, I'm getting that, I see it's value. I'm also clear on the premium membership. The question I'm staring at this am is the value or even need of the topo maps that come with the T. Do these free maps from gpsfiledepot effectively replace those? It sounds like they do or at least can? Are they more accurate or something? The extra 3GB is negligible I suppose as far as on board storage but 100 bucks is 100 bucks. Quote Link to comment
+geofry25 Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 Found this thread for reading over my morning coffee. Thanks everyone... http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=227334 Quote Link to comment
+splashy Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 The free gpsfiledepot map are MUCH better then the Topo map on your gps, Meaning, If you can switch to a non T unit do it now. Quote Link to comment
+geofry25 Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 Thanks again splashy. With the oregon being around for a while should I expect to have to update firmware or anything such as that? Will it be ready out of the box minus maps and adding caches? Quote Link to comment
alandb Posted February 17, 2013 Share Posted February 17, 2013 (edited) The last firmware update on the Oregon 550 was in mid-November (version 6.10). I am sure there will be future updates, but they don't seem to come out as often now on the Oregon as they once did. I get an occasional unexplained glitch on my Oregon, but for the most part the firmware is pretty stable. Edited February 17, 2013 by alandb Quote Link to comment
+geofry25 Posted February 17, 2013 Author Share Posted February 17, 2013 Thanks, I'll check the version when I get it and go from there. Ordered a 500 and will return the "t" when it gets here. I'm pretty sure I can figure out the adding of the maps, formats, etc on the sites mentioned. Going to go with the premium membership and see how that works too. Thanks for everyone's input Quote Link to comment
+splashy Posted February 18, 2013 Share Posted February 18, 2013 There's no need to wait, you can Download the Basecamp from Garmin and install then download the needed maps. Quote Link to comment
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