Garmin Oregon 450 vs 550

[+FDWhitey]

Hello all!!!

 

I am coming here for you wealth of knowledge on Handheld GPS units for Geocaching. I have been Geocaching for a little over a year and started with a Magellan eXplorist GC. It is a nice unit and perfect for beginners... its time to upgrade!!!

 

I am looking to stay under $300 and get my monies worth. I am looking for a GPS unit that is a little more accurate and not overly complicated to use.

 

In my searches I think I have narrowed it down to the Garmin Oregon 450 or 550. Most of the research I have done puts these two units as the best options in my price range. But, are these the best units in my price range for Geocaching? If so, which one should I go with?

 

Thank you for your comments, knowledge and experience!!!

[+gpsblake]

Identical except for the camera.

[+Cardinal Red]

Hello all!!!

 

I am looking for a GPS unit that is a little more accurate and not overly complicated to use.

 

In my searches I think I have narrowed it down to the Garmin Oregon 450 or 550.

Thank you for your comments, knowledge and experience!!!

Let me say I love my Oregon 450t now. Last month I wasn't so sure. It was basically a glorified PDA for a little while (descriptions, hints, logs). I was very familiar with several Garmin non-paperless units and had the opportunity to buy a gently used Oregon 450t paperless because it was a little too confusing for the original owner. With help from friends, a little reading, and a lot of hands on use with the Oregon we have a better understanding of each other now. At first I wouldn't even think of leaving the house without my trusty 60csx along because I didn't trust that I would be able to operate the Oregon efficiently. With time came experience and confidence in the Oregon. What I am trying to say is that the Oregon is a great unit and is easy to use AFTER YOU UNDERSTAND IT A LITTLE BETTER. Don't expect to take it out of the box, turn it on and just go. Never gonna happen.

 

And my manual (came loaded on the Oregon) is for the 450, 450t, 550, 550t. The 550 units have a camera, and the "t" units have topo. I had heard stories that there might have been some differences in display brightness between certain of those models. Possibly only in the early units? The manual treats them identically except for the camera and topo.

[+kellyrenae]

i took my 450t out today for first time and was very frustrated! I downloaded some caches and selected one and hit go. The screen went to the map with no arrow or anything telling me how close i was to it. i had to pin it right on the cache icon to get the little info box to show up and there it would tell me but getting the pin on there was extremely hard and it kept moving around. Im sure I was doing it wrong and there is a much simpler way to navigate to the cache. I just havent figured it out yet! I did find the cache i was looking for, so it worked out LOL

[+kellyrenae]

i took my 450t out today for first time and was very frustrated! I downloaded some caches and selected one and hit go. The screen went to the map with no arrow or anything telling me how close i was to it. i had to pin it right on the cache icon to get the little info box to show up and there it would tell me but getting the pin on there was extremely hard and it kept moving around. Im sure I was doing it wrong and there is a much simpler way to navigate to the cache. I just havent figured it out yet! I did find the cache i was looking for, so it worked out LOL

 

well i feel dumb...i just went into the doc files for my Garmin and found out I needed to go to the compass to navigate to the GPS! doh! Well now i will have to go back out and test it out to see if it works! Sorry folks....

[+fbingha]

i took my 450t out today for first time and was very frustrated! I downloaded some caches and selected one and hit go. The screen went to the map with no arrow or anything telling me how close i was to it. i had to pin it right on the cache icon to get the little info box to show up and there it would tell me but getting the pin on there was extremely hard and it kept moving around. Im sure I was doing it wrong and there is a much simpler way to navigate to the cache. I just havent figured it out yet! I did find the cache i was looking for, so it worked out LOL

 

Once you hit "Go", hit the [X] then go to "Compass" and off you go.

 

If you have directional maps, you can also choose "Where To" then "Change Route Activity" then "Automobile Driving" to get directed until close enough to switch "Route Activity" back to "Direct Routing" (Compass Mode).

[+kellyrenae]

i took my 450t out today for first time and was very frustrated! I downloaded some caches and selected one and hit go. The screen went to the map with no arrow or anything telling me how close i was to it. i had to pin it right on the cache icon to get the little info box to show up and there it would tell me but getting the pin on there was extremely hard and it kept moving around. Im sure I was doing it wrong and there is a much simpler way to navigate to the cache. I just havent figured it out yet! I did find the cache i was looking for, so it worked out LOL

 

Once you hit "Go", hit the [X] then go to "Compass" and off you go.

 

If you have directional maps, you can also choose "Where To" then "Change Route Activity" then "Automobile Driving" to get directed until close enough to switch "Route Activity" back to "Direct Routing" (Compass Mode).

 

I wish I had known that before i went out. I was really getting frustrated! But thank you for helping me out. I am now super excited to try again! Just got to get all this snow to melt now!

[+Chief301]

I have had the Oregon 550 for about a year now and I'm still discovering some of the tricks it can do. It has SO many features and options for setting up the various profiles that there are just an infinite number of ways you can set it up to suit your tastes. It does take a little hands-on time to get comfortable with it, but once you do it's a great unit.

 

The camera is the major difference between the 450 and the 550. It's not a great camera (3 megapixel, IIRC) but it serves the purpose and geotags your pics to boot. Also, the 550 comes with a set of rechargeable batteries and a charger whereas the 450 does not.

[+BAMBOOZLE]

For what it cost( $200 at times ) I think the 450 is about the best you can get.

[+phlatlander]

I bought an Oregon 550 last January after a friend lent me his 450 for a couple of weeks. A bit of a learning curve but an excellent unit. At the time the price difference between a 450 and 550 was only $25 at GPScity.ca. Good deal for an acceptable camera, 2 NiMH batteries and a slick charger (works in NA and Eu).

 

If you can afford to wait for a sale, either Oregon is a good gps - water proof to boot and the touch screen works well down to about -20c .

 

My O550 is used for daily dog walks in the outskirts of Winnipeg MB CA and funny thing, I seldom remember to use the camera. We recently did a trip down the Danube and I had loaded maps for several countries and city maps for Budapest and Prague. The O550 worked flawlessly and other members of our tour group were simply amazed.

 

Sometimes you see the strangest things when you're out walking and then you remember your gps has a camera!

[+DragonsWest]

I went with the 450, not 't'. I get my maps from gpsfiledepot and have been largely happy with them. As for camera, I prefer to carrying dedicated devices for camera work.

[+kunarion]

i took my 450t out today for first time and was very frustrated! I downloaded some caches and selected one and hit go. The screen went to the map with no arrow or anything telling me how close i was to it. i had to pin it right on the cache icon to get the little info box to show up and there it would tell me but getting the pin on there was extremely hard and it kept moving around. Im sure I was doing it wrong and there is a much simpler way to navigate to the cache. I just havent figured it out yet! I did find the cache i was looking for, so it worked out LOL

 

well i feel dumb...i just went into the doc files for my Garmin and found out I needed to go to the compass to navigate to the GPS! doh! Well now i will have to go back out and test it out to see if it works! Sorry folks....

I did the same thing on my first cache. I saw a little arrow, which was fine for getting to the cache area, not so good for the final approach. So eventually I found that compass screen. Fortunately, this was in a little wooded area where I could wander for a while and try various screens to see what worked for me.

 

Now I start in the Automotive profile (I bought routable street maps), then switch to the Geocaching Profile usually within 528 feet, and select the Compass.

[+kellyrenae]

it has the best reviews (450t) that Ive seen and Ive been researching for about a year now before deciding to purchase the O450t..i was going to get the 500 or 550 but the camera isnt worth the extra $ when my smartphone has a MUCH better camera on it.

[+Mastifflover]

I recently was also trying to decide between the 450 and the 550. The 550 was actually a couple dollars less than the 450 on Amazon so it was a no brainer. The camera is not the greatest but it takes decent enough pictures and is usually quicker since the Gps is already in my hand. It took me a couple of frustrating hours to get the hang of the Oregon coming from a 60csx but now I'm loving it.

[+Foothills Drifter]

Howdy......

I upgraded earlier this month to a Garmin Oregon 450 (from a G.Vista HCx)

I didn't need a camera so....that was the way to go for me.

I can now retire my PALM ONE sense the 450 has all the info the Vista did not.

I do not use the maps... I always use the compass (I do write down a note or two...)

Either one is good.

 

Vern / Foothills Drifter...

[+kellyrenae]

just wondering if you have to download all your geocaches on the oregon. I know my android app finds them automatically and there is no need to download..for instance if your walking a trail and want to know if any geocaches are nearby, can you find them on the oregon or does every one have to be already downloaded. The reason is that i took a walk with a friend on the spur of the moment and wanted to find some geocaches but I couldnt figure out on my Oregon how to find nearby ones, so i figured it wasnt possible.

[+gpsblake]

Got to have the caches downloaded into your Oregon 450/550, hopefully future generations of handheld GPS units will include options (bluetooth, wifi) to download geocaches into your handheld GPSr unit on the fly,

[+FMT15]

.

Edited April 21, 2013 by FMT15

[+kellyrenae]

Im still learning how to work with the Oregon. Now I have to try to figure out how to d/l multiple caches in an area without having to do them one by one. I know there is a way and Ive been reading about it. I'm a little slow to find things out, for example, I just realized I could go to the map on the geocache site and see all the geocaches in my state, rather than entering in the zip code or city and getting a list. Sure as hell makes it easier for hunting a specific region or park reserve or wherever

[+coggins]

Im still learning how to work with the Oregon. Now I have to try to figure out how to d/l multiple caches in an area without having to do them one by one. I know there is a way and Ive been reading about it.

http://www.geocaching.com/pocket/

[+kellyrenae]

does anyone know how to get rid of the red pin on the map? It really is an annoyance when trying to do things on the map.

[+ecanderson]

Probably happening because when you go to 'swipe' the map to scroll it, you're holding in one position too long and it thinks you're trying to mark a point.