Oregon 450 vs Garmin 62s

[ubievol]

Both units have some attractive pricing right now.

 

The touch screen of the 450 seems like it would be very convenient as typing in data would be much easier than the button input of the 62

 

But

 

An online review picks the 62s as having the best reception.

 

From experienced users, which to choose and why? Primary use would be geocaching.

 

Thanks for the help!

[+lamoracke]

I have been wondering this question. I have/had a 60 and I also have an Oregon 450. I have been debating getting a 62.

 

What bothers me with the Oregon.

 

1. Switching from off road routing to on road takes way more buttons than it did on the 60 CSX.

2. Sometimes the Oregon just loses it and all my GSAK download waypoints/caches go away whereas the manually loaded ones stay.

3. You can't delete geocaches on the fly so if you want it removed from your screen, you have to mark it found even if you did not. Can delete when you get home of course.

4. Battery low messages get repeated over and over. Did not do that with a 60. You got one warning. Also, a 450 uses up batteries way faster.

 

My point is, if you figure it out, would love to know. The Oregon 450 works but I miss a lot of basic things the 60 had in routing and cache maintenance. However, I imagine the 62 is more like the 450 Oregon than the 60.

[+Chief301]

I can't debate 2,3, & 4, but I don't find it's that much trouble to go from on-road to off-road and back. Two taps does it. "Where to" > "Recalculate on/off road".

 

It's taken me awhile to get my Grocaching profile set up for maximum efficiency....there's probably some things you can do with the menu to streamline your workflow.

 

Back to the OP's post....I have the Oregon 550 and after using the Etrex Legend HCX for awhile the touchscreen is a godsend. Much easier to input coordinates, field notes, etc. Of course, I realize the Etrex's little joystick arrangement is different from the 62's interface, which I haven't used.

Edited September 2, 2013 by Chief301

[+lamoracke]

Oh, I thought you had to go into settings, routing, then change it...just change it from the where to screen. Well, that saves a few buttons.

[+Mineral2]

Any accuracy differences are nitpicking. My 450t will put me right on top of a cache that was properly sampled for its coordinates. Does it bounce around a bit under tree cover? Yes, but usually only 30 feet or so. I'd expect even the 62s to do that. Thing is, if you really need pinpoint accuracy, you need an industrial survey-grade GPS.

 

In this case, you really just need to decide if you want a touch screen or a button interface. I agree that the touch screen is better for typing, but don't expect to type like you would on your smart phone. I still only use it for small names and descriptions, lengthening everything at home with Basecamp.

[ubievol]

So would you say that the touch screen is not really that useful?

[+Walts Hunting]

I would go with the oregon. I have had the 450, 550 and now the Montana (waiting for US release of Monterra for next one).

 

1. I use profiles on the home page for one touch switching.

 

2. Well known problem with all Garmins since the 60/62 series. In field recovery has been mentioned many times so I won't repeat.

 

3. True of all Garmins in the Oregon, Dakota, Etrex, etc. it is how garmin does it on all newer ones.

 

4. Probably true. The biggest consumer of energy on any device is the screen and the touch screen probably does use a bunch. I used rechargeables then and always had a four pack of fresh batteries in my pack.

 

Personally I could never go back to joystick after a touch screen. It makes everything so much easier.

[+Mineral2]

So would you say that the touch screen is not really that useful?

 

I would still call the touch screen useful... more useful than the buttons. But, it's not like a smart phone where you can easily type or swype whole sentences quickly. The button interface is worse because you have to scroll through the whole alphabet to get to the letter or symbol you want. But with either interface, I only make very short references. For example, if making a note in a geocache log, on the gps, I might only write "wet log" or even just "wet." I'll abbreviate track or waypoint names - (GMM for Grandmother Mountain, Float for Float Trip 2013, and so on.) Of course, there's always the option to go back and input the full names when you have more time, or just change them on the computer.

 

I find that the touch screen is a much better interface for scrolling the map and getting to each menu item/page. Just my preference. The new Oregon 600's have a more modern touch interface with multi-touch gestures. I imagine that the Monterra, built on the Android OS, will include the option for a Swype keyboard. But I even prefer the old Oregon 450s touch screen to the button style of the GPSmap 60/62 series or the joystick in the eTrex line.

[+Chief301]

I do find it's much easier to input text with the touch screen, but it's still not at all like using a smartphone....for one thing, the letters are laid out alphabetically and not in QWERTY style like on a phone, so typing is a little awkward, plus it requires a little firmer pressure on the screen than any smartphone, so you can't just fly through the typing like you might be used to. Still tons better than having to scroll around and click letters with a little joystick, though.

 

Like Mineral2 said, you won't want to type lengthy logs but you might just put in a couple of words to remind you of something you want to remember about the cache. Myself, I don't even do that, I usually don't do more than 8 or 10 caches in a day and its pretty easy to remember the details by the time I get home.

[ubievol]

well i guess yet another option would be to enter short notes in a log book of some kind, or into the smartphone, instead of directly into the GPS with plans to final edit later.

 

text entry aside, any other features that stand out on one unit over the other? scrolling? map detail? screen legibility? more intuitive usability?

 

thanks again

[+Chief301]

I find the general usability of the Oregon 550 is much better than my previous unit, but that was an Etrex Legend. I've never used the 62 but I've heard some folks love 'em. One of our local very active cachers, Bamboozle, has owned and used almost every GPS ever made, including the 450 and the 62s, and he has stated on the forums many times that he much prefers the 62s. I've heard the same from several other cachers, it seems to be the gold standard of GPSr's.

[+Mineral2]

The 62 series is a few years newer than the Oregon 450 series, so it sports a more reflective screen (similar to that of the Montana), but to be honest, I don't have much of a problem reading the 450's screen, even under trees or on cloudy days without the backlight on. I believe the pixel size is similar, so detail and readability are similar. It's really going to be about whether you prefer a touch screen or not. When in doubt, head over to your nearest outdoor store and play with one of each (Assuming the 450 is still in stock).

[+Lieblweb]

We have both the 62 & the 450.

 

Accuracy is the same.....some days, they'll be identical and other days they'll be off only slightly. Not anything to complain about either way.

 

Touch screen is nice, but you will get 'accidental' touches getting you off the screen you were originally using. You can lock the screen - but - you're still pressing buttons to get back where you were before. Touch screen is over-rated (I think).

 

The 62s buttons (lack of touch screen) are easy to use and not annoying (like you'd think they'd be).

 

The 62s screen is much crisper & clearer than the 450.

 

The 62s has become our favorite over the 450.

[+BAMBOOZLE]

We have both the 62 & the 450.

 

Accuracy is the same.....some days, they'll be identical and other days they'll be off only slightly. Not anything to complain about either way.

 

Touch screen is nice, but you will get 'accidental' touches getting you off the screen you were originally using. You can lock the screen - but - you're still pressing buttons to get back where you were before. Touch screen is over-rated (I think).

 

The 62s buttons (lack of touch screen) are easy to use and not annoying (like you'd think they'd be).

 

The 62s screen is much crisper & clearer than the 450.

 

The 62s has become our favorite over the 450.

 

We own both and the above is true.

The touch screen can be very annoying especially when panning the map screen.....also multiple touches are often required.....in general, the buttons work way smoother and faster than the touch screen.

[ubievol]

Lieblweb and Bamboozle, what about entering text on the 62? Is it a non issue because you make notes on another device or it just does not bother you or ...... ?

 

This discussion is really helping me understand differences that I can't see at REI (plus they are out of stock), and I appreciate everyone's comments.

[ubievol]

Oops -- I just re-checked pricing. Somehow I thought the 62s was close to $200 but I must have misread -- the 450 is $175 and the 62s is $350.

[+Mineral2]

Oops -- I just re-checked pricing. Somehow I thought the 62s was close to $200 but I must have misread -- the 450 is $175 and the 62s is $350.

 

The 62s was on sale for $250 until yesterday. Looks like they (REI) still have the 62sc marked down as of current.

 

REI doesn't have any 450's left, so you'd have to play with the Montana or Oregon 600 for comparison, which is not really fair because they changed the software a bit (a lot on the Oregon 600) as well as the touch screen itself (more responsive and multi-touch on the 600). But... if you're willing to spend $350 on the 62c, you might as well entertain the idea of $400 for the Oregon 600. One nice thing about the new Oregon, it's got a dual axis screen, so you can use it in both landscape and portrait mode. You can also choose to use a QWERTY keyboard over the ABC arrangement.

 

But... in the end, it's really about deciding if you like touch screen or not, so just play with a touch screen device and decide if it's for you.

[+BAMBOOZLE]

Lieblweb and Bamboozle, what about entering text on the 62? Is it a non issue because you make notes on another device or it just does not bother you or ...... ?

 

This discussion is really helping me understand differences that I can't see at REI (plus they are out of stock), and I appreciate everyone's comments.

 

I never enter text......I would assume the touch screen would be better for this.

I understand the Oregon 600 screen is like the Montana....this is a bright beautiful screen and responds well to touch, far superior to the 450.

[+Lieblweb]

Lieblweb and Bamboozle, what about entering text on the 62? Is it a non issue because you make notes on another device or it just does not bother you or ...... ?

 

This discussion is really helping me understand differences that I can't see at REI (plus they are out of stock), and I appreciate everyone's comments.

The only time we enter text is for naming a new waypoint or similar short wording. It's not annoying in that aspect.....

We don't use the GPS for logging purposes and/or field notes.