Magellan V Garmin

[+cjtj]

I have just purchased a Garmin etrex Venture. I now have the chance to get a Magellan 310. Which one should I take? Is ont better than the other. I am very new to this but am also very interested. Any help would be great?

 

Cliff

[Atilla the Pun]

You have started a Holy War!!!

 

Ok, on a more serious note, I'm not as familliar with the Garmin eTrex line as I am with Magellan, but the 310 is older, (I believe) discontinued, and the bottom of the Magellan line.

 

The Garmen eTrex Venture is either 2 or 3 up from the bottom of the line and is reasonably current technology.

 

Based on the above info I'd keep the Venture. If I'm wrong about any of this I hope someone will correct me. And, as always, YMMV.

 

AtP

[Atilla the Pun]

You have started a Holy War!!!

 

Ok, on a more serious note, I'm not as familliar with the Garmin eTrex line as I am with Magellan, but the 310 is older, (I believe) discontinued, and the bottom of the Magellan line.

 

The Garmen eTrex Venture is either 2 or 3 up from the bottom of the line and is reasonably current technology.

 

Based on the above info I'd keep the Venture. If I'm wrong about any of this I hope someone will correct me. And, as always, YMMV.

 

AtP

[+cjtj]

I did not mean to start any major battles. I have the venture and then started reading a little more and found it does not support maps. How important are maps to the hunt?

 

I really appreciate the advice.

 

Cliff

[Bagbug]

Will you use the GPS under tree cover or in a car ?

 

If your answer is yes to one of those questions, go get a Magellan Meridian or wait for the new Sportrack. 330 is goo too but getting old. (So is the Garmin eMap, but the eMap doesnt like the rain).

 

If your answer is no, keep the Venture.

 

Many other very cool and good GPS, but you will have to pay more (Garmin 76map and 76s are very good GPS, but cost a lot more).

 

Bag

[+Ranz]

If it's a choice between the Venture and the 310, take the Venture. I use and prefer Magellans but the 310 is a pretty basic unit. It does not have many of the features the Venture has. 315 or higher would give the Venture some competition but not the 310.

 

[+ClayJar]

If you can afford it, go for a Meridian and enjoy the good life (firmware 3.12, that is). If you can't afford it, go and find a yellow eTrex and buy it, and then start saving for the Meridian.

 

(Given the choice between the two you mentioned, though, go with the Garmin... the Magellan GPS 310 doesn't really count as being a modern Magellan; 315 is the lower limit.)

[+cjtj]

Thanks for your advice. I think I will look for a Magellan Meridian. The Ventrue does not work very well in the woods. Although I did my first cache with it this afternoon.

 

Thanks again

Cliff

[+Lazyboy & Mitey Mite]

I had a 310, couldn't get 3 sattelites ever. So I traded it for another 310, again couldn't get a read. Then I bought the 315 and it has helped me find 100 caches. Now I'm going to upgrade. But what to buy, what to buy.

 

Never Squat With Yer Spurs On

[+Lazyboy & Mitey Mite]

I had a 310, couldn't get 3 sattelites ever. So I traded it for another 310, again couldn't get a read. Then I bought the 315 and it has helped me find 100 caches. Now I'm going to upgrade. But what to buy, what to buy.

 

Never Squat With Yer Spurs On

[vagabond]

I started out with an old Lowrance Global nav 212 that I had bought used about three years ago.

With it I found almost 200 caches, then I decided

that I just had to have a gps with mapping I checked and I read specs for almost 2 months before deciding on the Magellan gold I could have bought a Garmin V but I believe the Magellan has a better antenna system.

Since buying the Gold in the later part of march it has led me to over 60 caches

[vagabond]

I started out with an old Lowrance Global nav 212 that I had bought used about three years ago.

With it I found almost 200 caches, then I decided

that I just had to have a gps with mapping I checked and I read specs for almost 2 months before deciding on the Magellan gold I could have bought a Garmin V but I believe the Magellan has a better antenna system.

Since buying the Gold in the later part of march it has led me to over 60 caches

[Tzan]

310 is old, a difficult to find well hidden chaches with. It only has 100ths precision, so I'm hoping the garmin has 1000ths (which is what's posted in the cache write-ups)

[+Trango]

I used a Magellan 310 for my first caches and found it to be an excellent unit, however if I had to choose between a 310 and a Venture, I, too, would take the Venture. While I had a lot of fun with the 310, it really is a very basic model.

 

However, while the 310 only measures to the 1/100th of a minute, I did not find that a liability when I first started this game. Since any GPSr has about a 30 foot radius of error, the 310 helped me to rely on looking at the area and thinking about you would hide a cache. Since I did not expect the 310 to take me right to the spot, I was not frustrated by having to search for a cache. I sometimes wonder how many times someone new to the sport gets frustrated because the cache wasn't where it was "supposed" to be?