What is a Good unit to start with?

[+Kactuskid]

I have been looking at the Garmin E trex and I am very undecided on which one to use. I am very new at this so any input will help. I have been looking at the E Trex Vista, is this a good unit? Thanks for your help.

[+nincehelser]

The Vista has lots of bells and whistles, but they aren't necessary for geocaching.

 

The basic eTrex works well for geocaching. The only downside is that it has no mapping capability which can be really nice to have as it helps you get to the cache quicker by picking the right road.

 

Any eTrex will work fine. The issue is how much you want to spend and what features you want.

 

As far as features you *NEED* for geocaching go, the basic eTrex is just fine.

 

George

[OuttaHand]

Personally, I would suggest considering spending just a bit more at the outset. Once you get hooked on this, you're GOING to want a better model GPS. I know I did. Then you're gonna spend the extra money anyway. My suggestion would be to double your budget and get something a bit nicer, perhaps with mapping features. For about $225 yoou can get a Rino 120 that has an excellent GPS w/mapping, and a built-in FRS/GPS radio. Spending a bit more now may save you in the long run.

[Cache Canucks]

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that all eTrex models share the same basic hardware 'engine' ...that is, regardless of which one you choose, you're getting the same receiver/antenna (although the physical LCD displays do vary). So, by extension, all eTrex models should perform equally in as far as providing basic location information is concerned ('Yellow' being identical to 'Vista'). As someone already mentioned, choosing which model to purchase really boils down to bells and whistles (as opposed to which eTrex 'works' better ...since they all basically 'work' the same).

 

I agree with OuttaHand's comment that, unless your budget is really tight, you might want to 'look ahead' a bit and consider something with mapping capabilities. Even though an eTrex Yellow is all you really need to GeoCache, spending a bit more *now* on a more feature-rich model might very well mean the difference between having your GPSr for a year (only to find that you've out-grown it) or being content to live with it for several years.

 

I purchased a Vista last summer and, in my case, I've managed to make good use of most of its 'bells and whistles' (24MB of memory and the digital compass especially). Had I opted for a lesser eTrex (especially one without mapping), I would most certainly be looking to upgrade by now.

[+Renegade Knight]

The Vista is a good GPS. The bells and whistels you will use. If you evenually get maps for the GPS the Vista has memory to store a lot of them.

 

The small size is a bonus. If you are broke anyway and want the yello eTrex go up a notch and get the Venture. It comes with a cable (it should anyway) that you will need to upload and download waypoints into your computer/GPS.

 

MUCH easier than typing them all in.

 

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