Garmin 45

[Guest syclone]

I just started geocaching today. I used my Garmin 45, which I have had for about 7 years. I got to within 10 to 15 feet of both caches when the distance readout registered .00. That's pretty good. (much better than when it was on my boat and SA was working.

 

My questions are:

 

1. Is this the type of accuracy that can be expected from the newer units?

 

2. I did have some problems with losing the satilites in denser trees. Has this problem improved?

[Guest swangner]

The accuracy is similar to what you can expect with a new unit. All GPS units (except DGPS units, which tend to be VERY pricey) are rated accurate to 15 meters (this is a limitation of the GPS system, not the receiver itself). A lot of the time, however, you will experience accuracy greater than the 15 meter rating, but don't count on it.

 

As far as losing the satellite lock in dense cover, that has gotten better with some of the newer units. They're a bit more sensitive than the older units.

 

Mainly, though, the differences between older and newer units are:

 

-Size

-Battery life

-Features

[Guest Cape Cod Cache]

I have the child of the 45, a 48. A good 12 channel, quad antenna unit should be good to go in most any situation. Newer units just have a few more bells & whistles. As for SA, I never noticed a difference, either my waypoint is more accurate, or Nantucket has moved since I made it 3 years ago...

[Guest syclone]

lly only a single channel unit that continuosly polls the available sats. This detracts from its sensitivity. But -Hey- 10 -15 feet is OK.

 

By the way, the accuracy is much better now with SA turned off. When I used it on my boat 4 years ago I was happy if a Buoy waypoint was within 100 ft when the arrival alarm sounded.

[Guest Cape Cod Cache]

I didn't realize the 45 was THAT old that it was a single scanning unit. Position averageing and slow sailing speeds is probably why I never had any problems. Tree cover is pretty thin here as well.

[Guest EraSeek]

I have a 45 XL. Wanted to upgrade so I tried an ETrex and took it back and bought a Garmin 12. The features are closer to the 45XL on the 12, which I like. The 12 acquires a signal much faster and can find and hold a signal under tree canopy much much better than the 45XL, which is what I was really after. The Etrex did better than the 45 but not the 12 in this regard. The Etrex can tell you if you are 1 foot away, but this is deceptive because you might still be 15 meters away. I like to watch the Long and Lat numbers when I get close. The 12 is a workhorse, no nonsense. On the accuracy issue, the 45XL's old manual that came with the unit says that with SA the accuracy is 15meters, same as the newer 12 and Etrex models, but the Garmin website contradicts itself by saying the older units are accurate from 60-100 ft and the newer units 45-60 ft (or something like that), disagreeing with the manual. How come? Anyway accuracy seems to me to be the same IF you can get a good fix! which is why you may want the newer models. As a side note, a book I have says the the type of antenna on the 45 reads horizon better than straight up, the patch antenna reads straight up better than horizon. If you have a good read on the horizon you may get a more accurate position report, but if your in the trees like me you need to look up. And yes, your right, the 45XL is single channel.

[Guest dnantepara]

I have a garmin 45 and then got a garmin48 because i was loosing signal under trees the garmin 48 is more accurate and stable because it is a 12 channel versus a 6 channel for the 45 , when i put them side by side there is about a 15 foot difference in the reading from the 45 and 48 with the 48 being more accurate.

[Guest Cape Cod Cache]

I got my 48 when I worked for a boater's store. Not a well paying job, definately NOT a career move ! Best benefit was the ability to play with all the handheld GPS units. I went for the Garmin brand, better satellite acquision and lock. I got the 48 'cuz I sail and liked the nav-aid feature. Accuracy is the same as a GPS III. The 12 is a workhorse, I tried to steer new owners to it over the like-priced Magellan.