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New to Geocaching,would this GPS be okay?


Sophie!

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Hello all,I have just recently found out about geocaching and need a GPS to use for it. I found one for sale,it is a Garmin Legend Etrex HCx . I understand I would need to buy maps for it,since this is new.

Is this a good model? First time using a GPS too,so it sort of needs to be newbie friendly too.

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I used to use a Legend HCX, but I upgraded pretty quickly to on Oregon 650. Are you buying it used? I didn't think they made the Legend anymore.

 

The main drawback of the Legend, at least for Geocaching, is that it does not support paperless caching....that is, you can download waypoints to it which will give you the name of the cache and the coordinates and that's it. A paperless unit has all the cache info on it....descriptions, hints, recent logs, etc.

 

Do you have a smart phone by any chance? There are several Geocaching apps out there for various platforms. They range in price from free to 10-15 bucks. That would be a much more economical way to get started.

Edited by Chief301
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I used to use a Legend HCX, but I upgraded pretty quickly to on Oregon 650. Are you buying it used? I didn't think they made the Legend anymore.

 

The main drawback of the Legend, at least for Geocaching, is that it does not support paperless caching....that is, you can download waypoints to it which will give you the name of the cache and the coordinates and that's it. A paperless unit has all the cache info on it....descriptions, hints, recent logs, etc.

 

Do you have a smart phone by any chance? There are several Geocaching apps out there for various platforms. They range in price from free to 10-15 bucks. That would be a much more economical way to get started.

 

This is a new in package model,so never used.

 

I have an older smart phone but no data plan,and wouldn't be feasible to get one now. Though I have been looking at plans.

 

So for what I understand,this gps is just a gps,so I put coordinates in and then it leads me to it.Which is fine,I would plan which ones I would want to find.

 

What made you decide to upgrade from this model? Was it lacking some feature? Is there a feature that this one doesn't have that would be really great to have?

 

Thanks so much for your reply.

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I used to use a Legend HCX, but I upgraded pretty quickly to on Oregon 650. Are you buying it used? I didn't think they made the Legend anymore.

 

The main drawback of the Legend, at least for Geocaching, is that it does not support paperless caching....that is, you can download waypoints to it which will give you the name of the cache and the coordinates and that's it. A paperless unit has all the cache info on it....descriptions, hints, recent logs, etc.

 

Do you have a smart phone by any chance? There are several Geocaching apps out there for various platforms. They range in price from free to 10-15 bucks. That would be a much more economical way to get started.

 

I was about to upgrade to a paperless unit too, but I'm really glad that I tried a Android and a free app first. I seldom ever use any of my GPS units for geocaching anymore.

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I have an older smart phone but no data plan,and wouldn't be feasible to get one now. Though I have been looking at plans.
FWIW, I know people who go geocaching with smartphone apps without data plans, using wifi to load geocache data into their apps before setting out.

 

I've used GPS devices without paperless capabilities, but after doing a lot of geocaching with my phone apps, I wouldn't want to go back to that. A GPS device with paperless geocaching capabilities doesn't cost that much more than one without, and it's a big improvement in functionality.

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I have an older smart phone but no data plan,and wouldn't be feasible to get one now. Though I have been looking at plans.
FWIW, I know people who go geocaching with smartphone apps without data plans, using wifi to load geocache data into their apps before setting out.

 

I've used GPS devices without paperless capabilities, but after doing a lot of geocaching with my phone apps, I wouldn't want to go back to that. A GPS device with paperless geocaching capabilities doesn't cost that much more than one without, and it's a big improvement in functionality.

 

Now I'm really confused. How do I know if the GPS I'm looking at has the paperless capability? Wouldn't you need something like a data plan like for a phone?

 

I'll see about using my phone.It's a Samsung.What app is best for an older samsung galaxy?

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Paperless geocaching means that the GPS device can display more information about the geocache. Without paperless capability, you'll see only the GC code (or the geocache name) and its coordinates. With paperless capability, you'll also get the description, the hint, the most recent logs, etc.

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I used to use a Legend HCX, but I upgraded pretty quickly to on Oregon 650. Are you buying it used? I didn't think they made the Legend anymore.

 

The main drawback of the Legend, at least for Geocaching, is that it does not support paperless caching....that is, you can download waypoints to it which will give you the name of the cache and the coordinates and that's it. A paperless unit has all the cache info on it....descriptions, hints, recent logs, etc.

 

Do you have a smart phone by any chance? There are several Geocaching apps out there for various platforms. They range in price from free to 10-15 bucks. That would be a much more economical way to get started.

 

This is a new in package model,so never used.

 

I have an older smart phone but no data plan,and wouldn't be feasible to get one now. Though I have been looking at plans.

 

So for what I understand,this gps is just a gps,so I put coordinates in and then it leads me to it.Which is fine,I would plan which ones I would want to find.

 

What made you decide to upgrade from this model? Was it lacking some feature? Is there a feature that this one doesn't have that would be really great to have?

 

Thanks so much for your reply.

 

Paperless caching capability was one of the primary reasons I upgraded to the Oregon. That and I like the touch screen better than the little joystick thingy on the Legend, but that's just personal preference. Also, the Oregon has the 3-axis electronic compass, which means it knows which way it's facing even if you're standing still....units without the E-compass require you to be moving to accurately work out your direction of travel. If you stop moving and turn around they get confused until you start moving again. Not a huge thing but it does make the unit a little easier to use.

 

If you go to Garmin's website, you can look at the features of each unit. I think pretty much all the handheld units in their current lineup do paperless caching. The Legend is an older model (I don't know if they're still making them), but it didn't do paperless caching.

 

Now I'm really confused. How do I know if the GPS I'm looking at has the paperless capability? Wouldn't you need something like a data plan like for a phone?

 

No, that is one negative of using a dedicated GPS unit....they have no data connection. Some of the higher end units I think are coming with WiFi capability, but that's only handy for downloading caches and waypoints to the unit when you're in a WiFi area.....wouldn't do you any good out in the boonies. So you have to load all the cache info to the device before you go out...you won't be able to just look up caches "on the fly", as it were. But the flip side of that "negative" is that you don't need data connectivity to use it....ideal for remote areas with no cell service.

 

This isn't as time consuming as it sounds if you have a Premium membership to Geocaching.com. One of the best (if not THE best) benefit of Premium membership is Pocket Queries. You can download hundreds of caches to your device at once. When I'm planning an outing, it takes me all of about 10 minutes to run a Pocket Query of the area, plug in my GPS and download up to 1,000 caches at a time....and if I run more than one PQ, I can get several thousand caches on the device...very handy if you know that you want to cache in a general area but don't necessarily know exactly what caches you're going to go after when you get there. If the device supports paperless caching, you'll get the full description, hints, recent logs, pretty much all the necessary cache information. Without Premium membership you'll have to load the caches you want to hunt one by one. Then, if your device is NOT paperless, you'll only get the cache name, GC code number, and coordinates. No hints, descriptions, etc.

 

I have an older smart phone but no data plan,and wouldn't be feasible to get one now

 

As niraD pointed out, you could still use the phone for Geocaching. Get one of the apps available for your platform (Android, I'm assuming). Assuming that you can still access WiFi with the phone, you could download all the necessary cache information to the phone and save it in the app, while you're in a WiFi area. Once you've saved the caches you want to hunt, and the map tiles for the area in question, you can still use the phone for caching without a data plan. I'm pretty sure the Samsung Galaxy has an actual GPS chip installed, which means you can still get GPS signal from the satellites and therefore still use the GPS function of the phone, even without data. Some of the very early smart phones used cell tower triangulation and not true GPS to determine location (requiring a data connection to those towers), but all the smart phones in the last 5 years or so have a GPS chip on board and therefore don't require communication with the cell towers to navigate.

 

I know it's all very confusing. There's a bit of a learning curve regarding the techy side of this game, if you're unfamiliar with using a GPS, and how the GPS function of your phone works. Not to mention the learning curve of how to actually find a cache :) But once you get the hang of it, the adventure is really rewarding. Try one of the free Geocaching apps to start out, learn how to save the caches to the app before going out, and play around with that setup for awhile. You may find that it fits your needs and budget for now. Later on, once you've gained some experience, you'll have a better feel for what features you'd want in a GPS and whether Premium membership would be advantageous to you. Good luck!

Edited by Chief301
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A paperless capable gps wouldn't be of much use to a non-Premium Member though?

 

If the OP can only load a gps with loc files, then paperless isn't much use, is it?

 

Help Center → Premium Membership → Benefits → Go Paperless

http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.page&id=347

 

Help Center → Finding a Geocache → Searching for a Geocache

2.10. How do I download geocaches to my GPS device?

http://support.Groundspeak.com/index.php?pg=kb.page&id=532

 

Basic Members

 

Basic Members can download geocache information in the form of LOC files. This file type contains only general information: the geocache listing title, GC Code, and coordinates.

 

LOC files can be downloaded one at a time from geocache listings by clicking the "LOC Waypoint File", located under the geocache coordinates.

 

Up to twenty LOC files can be downloaded from a search results page, after entering in the required CAPTCHA. Check the box to the right of the listings you want, and then check the "Download Waypoints" button at the bottom of the search page.

 

Cache information can also be printed from each listing.

 

See the Resources page on Geocaching.com for software options that can help you manage .loc files.

 

 

Premium Members

 

Premium Members can download geocache information in the form of GPX files. This file type contains much of the listing information: the geocache title, description, public additional waypoints (such as parking coordinates), hints, and the most recent logs.

 

Premium members can download individual GPX files from geocache listings using the "GPX File" button, located under the geocache coordinates, or they can download groups of up to 1000 geocaches via Pocket Query (see related page below). Twenty logs will be included if a GPX file is downloaded from a listing; five logs if downloaded via Pocket Query.

 

Depending upon GPS unit, Premium Members may be able to send GPX files directly to their GPS unit. To do this, click the "Send to My GPS" button on each geocache listing page, or select the check box next to geocache listings on the right side of search pages and click "Send to My GPS" at the bottom of the search page.

 

If a geocache has hidden waypoints, geocache owners who download the GPX directly from the listing will receive these waypoints. No one except the owner receives hidden waypoints, and hidden waypoints will not be returned via pocket query.

 

B.

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Oh, and yes the Garmin GPSMAP 60C has paperless capability. Here are the Garmin devices with paperless capability:

https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/into-sports/handheld/paperless-geocaching/cIntoSports-c10341-atFILTER_FEATURE_PAPERLESSGEOCACHING_01-p1.html

 

 

The 60C does not have paperless capability. The later 60 series units do, 62 and 64, but not the 60C. Not only that the 60C doesn't have the high sensitivity receivers of the modern units.

That means loss of signal under trees. I wouldn't recommend a 60C unless it was free.

 

 

This is a new in package model,so never used.

 

I have an older smart phone but no data plan,and wouldn't be feasible to get one now. Though I have been looking at plans.

 

So for what I understand,this gps is just a gps,so I put coordinates in and then it leads me to it.Which is fine,I would plan which ones I would want to find.

 

What made you decide to upgrade from this model? Was it lacking some feature? Is there a feature that this one doesn't have that would be really great to have?

 

Thanks so much for your reply.

 

The eTrex HCx was a pretty good unit in its day, but its day was about 2008. If you can get it for under about $75 I'd say go for it. Over that you are getting ripped off. Many thousands of people used that and similar units to successfully hunt caches. As others said, it is not paperless. What you can do is use your smart phone the way cachers used to use PDAs. Download the caches to to your GPS via a pocket query, then to the smart phone and you can read the cache descriptions on the smart phone. Or you can use the smart phone to hunt the caches (assuming it's a newer one with a decent GPS. In most older smart phones the GPS was not so good)

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The eTrex HCx was a pretty good unit in its day, but its day was about 2008. If you can get it for under about $75 I'd say go for it. Over that you are getting ripped off.

 

Very good point made! I just looked at what this unit (now discontinued) is going for, and the prices are astronomical. One seller wanted over $400.

I would suggest looking at the newer Etex models, or Oregon units. I started with a Legend Cx, used it with pleasure for a couple of years, then upgraded first to a Dakota 20, then an Oregon 450. I still use the Cx when out biking around, though.

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I will probably try the free intro app on the phone and see what happens.

I can't wait to go out hunting. :)

 

If you *do* find a better deal on a Garmin GPS, you don't necessarily need to purchase maps for it. The openstreetmaps for Garmin site has free routable maps that cover pretty much any place in the world where you might want to go. They don't support *all* Garmin models but most of the newer Garmin devices are supported and the quality of the maps is quite good.

 

 

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