Which unit for a lady with bad eyes and low tolerance for techy things?

[+Modoc'n'Penelope]

Hey Everyone,

 

What GPS unit would you recommend for a 65 year-old lady with bad eyes and a low tolerance for complicated technological devices? Oh yeah, and she has a limited budget, of course.

 

Here are the requirements:

- minimum 3" wide screen, bigger is better here

- touchscreen is probably best

- paperless geogaching capable

 

A friend of hers has a Nuvi 500 from 4 years ago that seems to be capable of getting the job done, with little complication. Was that device marketed for driving or handheld? What comparable device is Garmin making now?

 

Based on my limited understanding of the choices, it seems the larger screen and lower price is achieved in the automotive units (at least with Garmins). Is that right? And besides battery life, what are the biggest problems she may face if she goes that route, as opposed to spending $400+ on a handheld? Does Garmin make "paperless" units found in the automotive section on their website? It doesn't look that way. :/

 

Thanks is Advance!

Modoc

Edited March 20, 2014 by Modoc'n'Penelope

[+Styk]

Hi

 

I had a 500, they are a multi use GPS for the car, bike, boat or walking with geocaching capability. Personally I found it harder to find caches as it would wander bad near ground zero compared to any other unit I have own and I've owned a lot of them.

 

Also, changing settings to switch between modes was a bit cumbersome as was physically handling the unit, no place for a lanyard, unit s a bit on the large size.

 

I would look at an Oregon 450, right around $200 these day, recently discontinued but a very stable unit and easier to use the the nuvi500/550.

 

Other nuvi's can be made to work also but thats a bit "techie" too.

[+gpsblake]

Larger screen does not always mean easier to read.

 

etrex 10. Black and white with low resolution, which makes all the characters larger and easily readible. It is very simple to use. And under 100 bucks.

 

Montana is also very readible and it's a huge unit but way up there in price.

 

Can't remember if the fonts on units like the Oregon or 62 can be made bigger or not.

[+Harry Dolphin]

Hey Everyone,

 

What GPS unit would you recommend for a 65 year-old lady with bad eyes and a low tolerance for complicated technological devices? Oh yeah, and she has a limited budget, of course.

 

Here are the requirements:

- minimum 3" wide screen, bigger is better here

- touchscreen is probably best

- paperless geogaching capable

 

A friend of hers has a Nuvi 500 from 4 years ago that seems to be capable of getting the job done, with little complication. Was that device marketed for driving or handheld? What comparable device is Garmin making now?

 

Based on my limited understanding of the choices, it seems the larger screen and lower price is achieved in the automotive units (at least with Garmins). Is that right? And besides battery life, what are the biggest problems she may face if she goes that route, as opposed to spending $400+ on a handheld? Does Garmin make "paperless" units found in the automotive section on their website? It doesn't look that way. :/

 

Thanks is Advance!

Modoc

 

I think I shall have to say Harrumph! I'm male, older than that, and have always have vision problems. Cataract surgery ten years ago transformed me from 20/1200 to 20/20 (but with major problems). (I now focus at 24" or 4' or beyond. Those are the only two options.) Garmin nüvi is for driving. It can be used off-road, but severe battery problems. (I will admit never having tried using the nüvi for off-road.) When our eTrex Vista Hcx died, we went for the eTrex 30. Techie problems resolved by my techie brother. I think we paid about $250 for the eTrex 30. Works well for me and for my caching partner who is also extremely nearsighted. Using GSAK. we load both the nüvi and the eTrex 30 with the GPX files. So, yes, the eTrex 3 and the nüvi 455 are both 'paperless'.

[+Modoc'n'Penelope]

Hey Everyone,

 

What GPS unit would you recommend for a 65 year-old lady with bad eyes and a low tolerance for complicated technological devices? Oh yeah, and she has a limited budget, of course.

 

Here are the requirements:

- minimum 3" wide screen, bigger is better here

- touchscreen is probably best

- paperless geogaching capable

 

A friend of hers has a Nuvi 500 from 4 years ago that seems to be capable of getting the job done, with little complication. Was that device marketed for driving or handheld? What comparable device is Garmin making now?

 

Based on my limited understanding of the choices, it seems the larger screen and lower price is achieved in the automotive units (at least with Garmins). Is that right? And besides battery life, what are the biggest problems she may face if she goes that route, as opposed to spending $400+ on a handheld? Does Garmin make "paperless" units found in the automotive section on their website? It doesn't look that way. :/

 

Thanks is Advance!

Modoc

 

I think I shall have to say Harrumph! I'm male, older than that, and have always have vision problems. Cataract surgery ten years ago transformed me from 20/1200 to 20/20 (but with major problems). (I now focus at 24" or 4' or beyond. Those are the only two options.) Garmin nüvi is for driving. It can be used off-road, but severe battery problems. (I will admit never having tried using the nüvi for off-road.) When our eTrex Vista Hcx died, we went for the eTrex 30. Techie problems resolved by my techie brother. I think we paid about $250 for the eTrex 30. Works well for me and for my caching partner who is also extremely nearsighted. Using GSAK. we load both the nüvi and the eTrex 30 with the GPX files. So, yes, the eTrex 3 and the nüvi 455 are both 'paperless'.

GSAK?

[+splashy]

Whatever you decide, don't buy a Gps without a SD card slot. Maps these day tend to be very large, therefore you NEED an SD card.

Goto the gpscity site look at the different models an see the video's.

Remember there is always a learning curve and it might be a good idea to rent or lend one before buying.

[+BAMBOOZLE]

Hi

 

I had a 500, they are a multi use GPS for the car, bike, boat or walking with geocaching capability. Personally I found it harder to find caches as it would wander bad near ground zero compared to any other unit I have own and I've owned a lot of them.

 

Also, changing settings to switch between modes was a bit cumbersome as was physically handling the unit, no place for a lanyard, unit s a bit on the large size.

 

I would look at an Oregon 450, right around $200 these day, recently discontinued but a very stable unit and easier to use the the nuvi500/550.

 

Other nuvi's can be made to work also but thats a bit "techie" too.

 

I own a 500 and its great for the car and also paperless.....not so great on the trail.

I also own a Oregon 450 and a 62S.......I much prefer the 62S and they are on sale at Cabelas for $199.99. The 450 is a nice unit and can be had for less than $200 also.

[+Modoc'n'Penelope]

Thank you for the replies everyone! Bamboozle , what do you like about the 62s over the 450?

[+Kolenka]

Thank you for the replies everyone! Bamboozle , what do you like about the 62s over the 450?

 

While Bamboozle's reasons will probably be different, there's a couple reasons I can think of comparing the 64s to the 450 & 600.

 

While lower resolution, the 62/64 screen has higher contrast. So topographical lines are darker and easier to see, and more track colors are actually visible. The colors Garmin uses for the map on the 600 are fairly low contrast, and the 450 reflects more glare. Making both harder to see when the backlight is off, and in strong sun, even when the backlight is on.

 

The antenna does appear to be a hair more sensitive. Not by a wide margin, but it was measurable. May not matter once you consider the bulk it adds to the 62.

 

Touchscreen vs buttons is a bit more of a personal preference, but I can see the advantages of both. The Oregon will be faster to enter text into (waypoint/track names, geocaching notes). The 62 will be easier to use with gloves. The 62 also has enough ways to quickly jump around the UI to make up for the lack of touch. I don't really consider either one "better" in this area, and it is your use of the device that makes the difference.

 

In the end, I think the biggest obvious advantage is the screen contrast. It just can't be hand waved away. Depending on exactly what makes your vision bad, the 62 screen may be easier to see, despite being smaller. And features on the screen are roughly the same size as on the Oregon, so it more means you see less of the map at any one time. For me, I'm a bit torn. They are both good devices, and I like each for different reasons.

[+BAMBOOZLE]

Thank you for the replies everyone! Bamboozle , what do you like about the 62s over the 450?

 

I like the brighter screen and I've always preferred the quad helex ant.

The biggest reason is it often takes me multiple pokes for the screen to register and panning the map is a real pain even when using two hands.....I do the driving and the 62S is easily operated by my non driving hand, I can't operate the 450 with one hand.

The 450 is very nice, though, if you want touchscreen and its better for in putting data but that's something I don't do.

[+user13371]

Nobody said (or asked) what kind of geocaching this person will be doing, or if there are other uses intended for the GPS.

 

So I'm gonna go in a completely different direction. IF she's going to be a fair-weather, around-town and city park kind of cacher... consider a smartphone instead.

[yogazoo]

IF she's going to be a fair-weather, around-town and city park kind of cacher... consider a smartphone instead.

 

If you've got bad eyes I would suggest staying away from a smartphone. Even with good eyes, viewing a map on a cell phone in bright sun can be a pain.

[+The_Incredibles_]

IF she's going to be a fair-weather, around-town and city park kind of cacher... consider a smartphone instead.

 

If you've got bad eyes I would suggest staying away from a smartphone. Even with good eyes, viewing a map on a cell phone in bright sun can be a pain.

 

Depends on the phone. The screen on my Samsung Note 2 is MUCH easier to see in bright sunlight than my Oregon 550.

[+The_Incredibles_]

Thank you for the replies everyone! Bamboozle , what do you like about the 62s over the 450?

 

I like the brighter screen and I've always preferred the quad helex ant.

The biggest reason is it often takes me multiple pokes for the screen to register and panning the map is a real pain even when using two hands.....I do the driving and the 62S is easily operated by my non driving hand, I can't operate the 450 with one hand.

The 450 is very nice, though, if you want touchscreen and its better for in putting data but that's something I don't do.

 

I tried out my friend's 62S and felt it had a really steep learning curve. I wouldn't recommend it to someone who's a technophobe.

[+BAMBOOZLE]

Thank you for the replies everyone! Bamboozle , what do you like about the 62s over the 450?

 

I like the brighter screen and I've always preferred the quad helex ant.

The biggest reason is it often takes me multiple pokes for the screen to register and panning the map is a real pain even when using two hands.....I do the driving and the 62S is easily operated by my non driving hand, I can't operate the 450 with one hand.

The 450 is very nice, though, if you want touchscreen and its better for in putting data but that's something I don't do.

 

I tried out my friend's 62S and felt it had a really steep learning curve. I wouldn't recommend it to someone who's a technophobe.

 

I have to disagree here....I'm 67 and really not in to tech stuff. On both the 450 and 62S I didn't have to hardly look at the manual, just popped them out the box and started poking.....everything VERY intuitive. On the 62S once you have the Geocaching Profile configured just like you want it ( takes just a few minutes ) you're good to go. Once the ribbon menu is set like you want it you just toggle it with two buttons and occasionally press the enter button. The map is easily panned using one hand and two buttons zoom it in or out.

There is a learning curve to everything but I found the 450 and 62S ( same software ) to be easier to learn than just about anything I've had to learn lately including a new remote I just got from Cox

[+MaliBooBoo]

I have to disagree here....I'm 67 and really not in to tech stuff. On both the 450 and 62S I didn't have to hardly look at the manual, just popped them out the box and started poking.....everything VERY intuitive. On the 62S once you have the Geocaching Profile configured just like you want it ( takes just a few minutes ) you're good to go. Once the ribbon menu is set like you want it you just toggle it with two buttons and occasionally press the enter button. The map is easily panned using one hand and two buttons zoom it in or out.

There is a learning curve to everything but I found the 450 and 62S ( same software ) to be easier to learn than just about anything I've had to learn lately including a new remote I just got from Cox

I agree with you on this unit being intuitive for a button unit, however the small size of the screen makes it less ideal for someone with bad eyes in my opinion. Montana would seem to be a good choice, but doesn't meet this person's criteria due to its cost.

[+davemcwish]

Putting aside the cost for the moment, I'm also in the category of not very good eyesight and needed to replace my Oregon 550 with the Montana. Having done a side-by-side comparison in the field the Montana just edges it by virture of screen size; the newer Oregon (600 series) being much clearer than the 550.

 

As for the learning curve, there will be one for any GPS unit so I'd suggest the best way for her to learn is meet up with some cachers in the local area and ask for help; one lady asked me for help as she'd go a Montana and seeing mine came over for a chat. I was more than happy to help.