GPS with touch screen and direct sunlight?

[+maurycy]

I am using handheld GPS on my bicycle which means that the screen is exposed to direct sunlight for a 6 or more hours. For the last 4 years, my old Triton 400 has held up just fine without any case discoloration or screen issues. But I am curious about the new touch screen GPS units. Any idea if the touch screens are affected by long direct sun exposure (screen de-lamination, etc)?

 

Thanks

[+Mineral2]

I am using handheld GPS on my bicycle which means that the screen is exposed to direct sunlight for a 6 or more hours. For the last 4 years, my old Triton 400 has held up just fine without any case discoloration or screen issues. But I am curious about the new touch screen GPS units. Any idea if the touch screens are affected by long direct sun exposure (screen de-lamination, etc)?

 

Thanks

 

No. Sunlight does not degrade touchscreens. Rocks, on the other hand, will degrade any screen.

[+ecanderson]

I've had my Oregon 450 on my bike for a lot of caching runs, and have not seen any issues.

 

The bad news - sunlight (among other environmental things) CAN eventually change the resistivity of the digitizer on a resistive touch screen.

The good news - if it ever happens, Garmin makes recalibration of the touch screen a real snap. So far, I haven't had to recal mine.

So I'd have zero concerns about units like the Oregon on a bicycle.

 

Capacitive screens don't seem to have quite the same issues, though in direct sunlight, they can have somewhat more glare issues depending upon the screen.

[+maurycy]

Thanks for all the replies. I guess, I will pull a trigger on one of those touch screen GPS units. I like my Triton 400 but it is not fully compatible with paperless geocaching without going thru extra steps.