Legend in the Car

[Guest Tom Sawyer]

I've only had my Etrex Legend a week and I'm finding myself taking it everywhere with me in then car. Alas, I fear I may crash soon as I have to keep picking it up off the dash to look at the display.

Does anyone else use their Legend in the car? If so, how do you manage to get a decent signal without the ability to use an external aerial? I see you can buy a dash mount for the Legend but wouldn't this point the aerial into the car and so effect its ability to pick up a deceny signal?

 

Any experiences with this will be gratefully received.

[Guest Prime Suspect]

I use a RAM window mount. Works great, and I've never had a problem with getting signals.

[Guest Gliderguy]

I think RAM has the best mounts going. I have a RAM mount for my III+. There was a thread started by homechicken a few weeks ago on this subject, you might look at it:

http://forums.Groundspeak.com/ubb/Forum13/HTML/000461.html

[Guest peter]

I've had no problems with reception in cars using my eMap with a similar antenna arrangement to the Legend. In my car I just have a piece of velcro holding the unit next to the instrument cluster.

If you do encounter reception problems, you can always use a re-radiating style of external antenna. www.tvnav.com has the Big Brother re-radiating antenna that works well.

[Guest Geoffrey]

www.tvnav.com has the Big Brother re-radiating antenna that works well.

---

 

 

This Re-radiating Antenna is great for a Car, but don't use it in an airplane. This antenna may effect the operation of the plane adversly.

 

[This message has been edited by Geoffrey (edited 10 September 2001).]

[Guest PneumaticDeath]

I use my legend in the car. I bought a cheap $10 suction cup cell phone mount, and it works fine. I usually mount it just below and behind the rear view mirror. The vertical orientation means that you don't get great signal, but it's usually enough to hold lock. Aquiring lock can be a little more difficult, so I leave it sitting flat on the dash until it gets a good position reading.

 

Since the suction cup doesn't always hold on very well.. I loop the eTrex's strap around the rear view mirror. If/when the suction cup fails, it then just dangles from the mirror, rather than falling into the gearshift.

 

I've been thinking about getting on e of the RAM mounts, but haven't decided just yet, and the cheap solution will work for now.

 

The eTrex isn't really ideal for driving anyway. The map display is too small to easily read while driving, and the route navigation feature doesn't give you enough data. (It'll tell you there's a turn coming up, but won't give you the direction.. you have to switch to the map display for that). I'm very happy w/ my legend, but driving isn't its forte.

 

-- Mitch

 

[This message has been edited by PneumaticDeath (edited 10 September 2001).]

[Guest Tom Sawyer]

Thanks everyone for your help. Today I drove round with my legend just jammed vertically between the windscreen and the dash and it worked perfectly. Never lost a signal and accuracy was 18 ft most of the time. I was impressed!

 

I have to agree tho' that the display is too small for driving so maybe I need to buy another one with a bigger display :-)

 

mmm....now how do I get that one past 'er indoors.......

[Guest Prime Suspect]

quote:

---

Originally posted by PneumaticDeath:

The eTrex isn't really ideal for driving anyway. The map display is too small to easily read while driving, and the route navigation feature doesn't give you enough data. (It'll tell you there's a turn coming up, but won't give you the direction.. you have to switch to the map display for that).

---

 

I'm glad you brought this up. I've had an idea for a while that I've been thinking about sending to Garmin. Basically, on the navagation screen, have a second, smaller arrow inside the big arrow that points to the waypoint following the current one. This would allow you to use the Navagation screen to really navagate. As you approach a turn, you would know how far the turn is, and in which direction is should be.

 

Something like

 

Obviously, there are situations where you have to first turn north to eventually go south, for example. But it would be better than nothing. If anyone thinks this is a good idea, email Garmin. Maybe we'll see it in a future OS release.

[RoosterBoy]

im not sure how to even use the map on the legend to get anyware.

 

that's what I don't like about it.

 

it dose not make a route for you or anything can someone help me understand it.

 

and making route's is way to long to do manually.

so im not sure what it's even good for.

 

please show me how I can use it in my car to get from point a to b

 

id like to know how to use it when im in new York city for getting around when im walking

 

thanks

 

Jason

[nemethmik]

quote:

---

Originally posted by PneumaticDeath:

(eTrex Legend) It'll tell you there's a turn coming up, but won't give you the direction.. you have to switch to the map display for that.

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I do not understand this.

AFAIK, the only way to navigate with eTrex while driving is to use the map display.

(Unless you connect it to a notebook or pocket pc with a sophisticated navigator package)

How can the eTrex tell you any other way that a turn is coming?

[peter]

quote:

---

Originally posted by igsonline:

it dose not make a route for you or anything can someone help me understand it.

 

and making route's is way to long to do manually.

so im not sure what it's even good for.

 

please show me how I can use it in my car to get from point a to b

 

id like to know how to use it when im in new York city for getting around when im walking

---

 

I find it's best to plan driving routes ahead of time on your PC and download them to the Legend (or other GPSr). DeLorme's Street Atlas or Garmin's MapSource/MetroGuide both support automatic route calculation and downloading of the route to the GPSr. You can calculate multiple routes if you'll be going to several places and have them all stored on your GPSr - just activate the one you need.

 

For walking I use the map display directly to see where I am and how to get to my destination. But for driving the map is too hard to read and having preplanned routes is very useful.

[RoosterBoy]

Originally posted by igsonline:

im not sure how to even use the map on the legend to get anyware.

 

that's what I don't like about it.

 

it dose not make a route for you or anything can someone help me understand it.

 

and making route's is way to long to do manually.

so im not sure what it's even good for.

 

please show me how I can use it in my car to get from point a to b

 

id like to know how to use it when im in new York city for getting around when im walking

 

thanks

 

Jason

 

PS I got so fed up with the etrex for getting me anyware I bought the street pilot 3.and I love it

 

and I use my legend for geo caching when I get to within a few feet of the cache I use the map page and zoom in to 20feet and walk right to the cache:-) the map is real good for that :-) and marking waypoints.