dhrusis Posted April 29, 2003 Share Posted April 29, 2003 I'm looking to purchase a new GPSr. I am looking at Magellans mostly, due to the expandable SD memory slot. I like the ability to put a massive amount (unlimited) of street level maps into my GPSr. Questions.. are there major differences between the SportTrack models and the Meridian models? On the Magellan website it says the SportTracks have "Built-in mapping of North America and unlimited expandability".. but mentions nothing about secure digital capabilities. It does mention that, however, with the meridian series. Also.. with the platinum.. how useful is the electronic compass? The compass I have on my Magellan 315 only works if I am moving. I am thinking about augmenting it with a standard hand compass. The 315 compass also doesnt update if I turn around in place. Would the platinum update the compass and my reference to the waypoint I am searching without me moving? Does the platinum update more often to keep track of waypoint you are trying to find? If I wouldn't be using the barometer.. is the platinum worth the money over the gold? With the meridian series.. the internal memory shouldnt matter too much because the SD card can be limitless. Am I correct on this, or does the base memory contain information that is not able to be displayed strictly with information uploaded to the GPS? Thanks Quote Link to comment
+Jamie Z Posted April 29, 2003 Share Posted April 29, 2003 quote:Originally posted by dhrusis:I'm looking to purchase a new GPSr. I am looking at Magellans mostly, due to the expandable SD memory slot. I like the ability to put a massive amount (unlimited) of street level maps into my GPSr. Yes, this was my reason for my Meridian purchase, too. quote:Questions.. are there major differences between the SportTrack models and the Meridian models? On the Magellan website it says the SportTracks have "Built-in mapping of North America and unlimited expandability".. but mentions nothing about secure digital capabilities. It does mention that, however, with the meridian series.I don't know what they mean by "unlimited expandability." They must mean the fact that you can load maps into it, and then erase those maps and upload different maps. The Sportrak series does not support memory cards. quote:Also.. with the platinum.. how useful is the electronic compass? The compass I have on my Magellan 315 only works if I am moving. I am thinking about augmenting it with a standard hand compass. The 315 compass also doesnt update if I turn around in place. Would the platinum update the compass and my reference to the waypoint I am searching without me moving?The compass is an electronic compass, much like your standard compass, except that it uses batteries. It will remain accurate even when stationary. If you use a regular compass, there is very little reason to need an electronic compass as well. I don't have the Platinum, but I've never missed having an electronic compass. quote:Does the platinum update more often to keep track of waypoint you are trying to find? If I wouldn't be using the barometer.. is the platinum worth the money over the gold?The GPS capabilities of the Gold and Platinum are identical (as far as I know). quote:With the meridian series.. the internal memory shouldnt matter too much because the SD card can be limitless. Am I correct on this, or does the base memory contain information that is not able to be displayed strictly with information uploaded to the GPS?The base maps of the Gold and Platinum are the same 16-megs. The base map of the "standard" Meridian is 2-megs. I've never compared the two, so I can't say how much more detailed the 16-meg maps are over the 2-meg maps. What I can tell you is that even the 16-meg base map is pretty useless except for interstates and major highways. If I were me... I wouldn't even spend the extra $$ on a Gold. The larger basemap isn't worth much. Jamie Quote Link to comment
+leatherman Posted April 29, 2003 Share Posted April 29, 2003 The only time the base map is necessary is when you zoom out. At .4 and .8 of a mile the detailed maps you loaded fade out. All that is left is the base map your waypoints POI's tracks and routes. So the smaller the base map the fewer reference points you have as you zoom out. I am the result of genetic manipulation of superior Geocacher DNA. Faster, stronger with superior reasoning and logic. Mokita! Quote Link to comment
dhrusis Posted April 29, 2003 Author Share Posted April 29, 2003 Jamie -- I am thinking about the Meridian (standard). For the price it seems very good. Can you comment on the detail of the 2MB base map? Are we talking just highways and major cities? Also, is it not possible to store the same base data that comes in the Gold/Platinum somewhere on the SD memoty for the regular meridian.. so that it is visible when you zoom out? (I.e. not street level) ~ dhrusis Quote Link to comment
+leatherman Posted April 29, 2003 Share Posted April 29, 2003 quote:Originally posted by dhrusis:Can you comment on the detail of the 2MB base map? Are we talking just highways and major cities? Yes. The 2mb base map will only have major cities and major highways. Lesser state highways may-not appear. Lesser cities and towns may-not appear. quote:Also, is it not possible to store the same base data that comes in the Gold/Platinum somewhere on the SD memoty for the regular meridian.. so that it is visible when you zoom out? (I.e. not street level) No. The base map is loaded to the GPSr main memory. The detailed maps are read from the card and overlay the base map. I am the result of genetic manipulation of superior Geocacher DNA. Faster, stronger with superior reasoning and logic. Mokita! Quote Link to comment
dhrusis Posted April 29, 2003 Author Share Posted April 29, 2003 Leatherman -- I just did some research and found all I needed to know about the Meridian GPS. I appreciate your help. One more question.. and this is for everyone: Does anyone know the best place to buy the Meridian GPS? I saw outpost.com linked a lot, but sadly they no longer sell it (or its not available at this current time.) The lowest I saw it for was 129.99 + shipping. Anyone? Thanks. Quote Link to comment
+Searching_ut Posted April 29, 2003 Share Posted April 29, 2003 If your desire is a Meridian, ShopHarmony.com has the basic Meridian for $129 and the Platinum for $257 and a $50 rebate making the final prie $207 (Free shipping on the Plat as well). Looks like pretty good values to me, but I've never bought anything from the company. The post's I've seen on the various newsgroups have been positive though. Quote Link to comment
+Mopar Posted April 30, 2003 Share Posted April 30, 2003 Not to complicate your choice, but even though the base meridian uses the same GPSr hardware as the gold and plat, because the base has less internal memory, it doesn't seem to be keeping up with the higher models in terms of added features in firmware upgrades. If I was looking to purchase a meridian (and I'm not, already have a Garmin 76 and a SporTrak Pro... the 24megs of maps in the Pro is more then enough for me) I would spend the few extra $$ to upgrade to the Gold, and get the enhanced firmware. Tae-Kwon-Leap is not a path to a door, but a road leading forever towards the horizon. Quote Link to comment
stutzismydog Posted April 30, 2003 Share Posted April 30, 2003 You get what you pay for,.......SPEND the few extra $$ and get the Platinum. Reward yourself with the best,because life is so short, and you deserve it. Quote Link to comment
eatontr Posted April 30, 2003 Share Posted April 30, 2003 The sportrak pro is a good unit but if you have the money buy the platinum or the gold. I get all of my stuff at gps-store.net. Quote Link to comment
dhrusis Posted May 1, 2003 Author Share Posted May 1, 2003 One more question regarding the basemap and detailed maps for the Meridian series... Say I am riding on a road that is fairly large but not documented in the 2mb base map. I zoom the meridian in to .8 of a mile, or where ever the detail map is about to fade out.. Will the detail map show the name of the street I am on? Ive read that magellan maps DO show street names, but I've also read about discrepancies between having detail maps and having base maps.. That even though you are focused in on a detail map, if the base map doesnt know the city you are in.. it wont display it... Thanks ~dhrusis Quote Link to comment
greatwhite6 Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 Get the Meridian w/2mb. I picked one up last month for $99. Even came with the car adapter. Got a 64mb SD memory card for $35 at Amazon.com. I have the entire state of California and most of Arizona and Nevada. If you need more than that get the 128mb. No need paying the extra cost for the 16mb when you are going to upgrade it anyway. I had more $ left over than I had planned so got a neoprene case, car swivel, Topo send software and data cable. I'm set with all I need now for no more than the cost of a Gold. Any belief worth having must survive doubt. Quote Link to comment
+phantom4099 Posted May 1, 2003 Share Posted May 1, 2003 quote:Originally posted by dhrusis:One more question regarding the basemap and detailed maps for the Meridian series... Say I am riding on a road that is fairly large but not documented in the 2mb base map. I zoom the meridian in to .8 of a mile, or where ever the detail map is about to fade out.. Will the detail map show the name of the street I am on? Ive read that magellan maps DO show street names, but I've also read about discrepancies between having detail maps and having base maps.. That even though you are focused in on a detail map, if the base map doesnt know the city you are in.. it wont display it... Thanks ~dhrusis Yes is should give the name of the street, but it may give a more local name. E.G. HWY 37 runs through my home town, on the basemap is is just labled HWY 37, but the detailed may will call is "dakota ave" while it goes through town, and SR 37 or HWY 37 out of town. The biggest reasons to go with a 16mb version is it will list more town names (there is also less streets, water, park, and costal detail). Another reason is the 16mb can also be used for more feature when/if they are added in the future (correct me on this, but I think that is how it worked on my 330). I am not sure if mapsend world basemaps will work with the 2 mb basemap. If you can get by those diffrences, or money is short, or your not sure if your going to stick with the unit then a green is a very good choice. Wyatt W. The probability of someone watching you is directly proportional to the stupidity of your actions. Quote Link to comment
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