Which has the better base map?

[+GrnXnham]

I am getting my 1st GPS and am considering either the Sportrak Pro or the Garmin eTrex Legend. I am interested in Geocaching and maybe some use in the car for trips.

 

Here is what I have come up with so far:

 

1) The Sportrak is slightly bigger and has a bigger screen but has a lower res. screen.

 

2) The Sportrak is less likely to lose a signal in the woods than the Legend? True?

 

3) The Sportrak has 23 MB of xtra memory compared to the Legend's 8.

 

4) Magellan is a French company.

 

5) One review of the Legend said that the tiny but highly detailed screen was hard to read because the words are too small. True?

 

6) The Garmin can more easily fit into a pocket and costs less.

 

7) You are more likely to get your rebate from Garmin than Magellan.

 

8) Garmin is NOT a French company.

 

So which one has the more detailed base map of the United States? I see that the Sportrak Pro has a 9MB base map but I can't seem to find anywhere how large the base map on the Legend is. The only info I can find says that the Legend has 8MB of xtra space but does not say how large the base map is.

 

Thanks for any help. I did do a search here but could not find any info that directly compared the base maps of these two units.

 

Dave

[+Prime Suspect]

1. Not a question.

 

2. I have GPSs with both types of antenna. The difference is marginal at best.

 

3. Not a question.

 

4. Read number 6.

 

5. Never had that problem on my Vista. On the map display, you can set the text display size. If you can't read the navagation display, you should ask your seeing eye dog for assistance.

 

6. Not a question.

 

7. Not a question, but I don't know it to be fact either.

 

8. See #4 above.

 

The memory size has nothing to with the size of the basemap. With the Legend, you have 8 meg of memory to upload additional maps. The basemap doesn't take up any of that memory. The basemap shows highways, and many major city streets. It obviously can't approach the detail you will get with uploaded maps.

 

 

[This message was edited by Prime Suspect on March 18, 2003 at 11:49 PM.]

[+Searching_ut]

I've only compared road data for the area I'm in, so I can't say what it's like everywhere (Northern Utah, Southern Idaho) for this area, the Legend basemap has a few more roads, and tends to be slightly more accurate than the Sportrak Pro, or Meridian Gold. The sportrak map, which is the sportrak more comperable to the Legend has considerably less detail than all of the above.

 

Some other things to consider are that the Magellans basemap can be changed, the Garmins can't. When it comes to the mapping software from the different manufactures, in the USA, Garmins software tends to be more accurate and detailed for both the street products and TOPO products. Just remember though that the road products can vary a great deal based on what area of the country you're in, so the one that's better in one spot might not be in another.

 

Good luck

 

Jeff

[3fros]

quote:

---

Originally posted by Prime Suspect:

4. Read number 6.

---

 

Why would we want to read the un-patriotic BS of number 6 or any of the other numbers? He's not even smart enough to figure out that it's PRESIDENT Bush.

 

So am I to understand that Iraqi citizens, shouldn't be allowed the same freedoms that I enjoy?

 

[This message was edited by 3fros on March 19, 2003 at 12:43 AM.]

[+MacBWizard]

I agree with 3fros and am going to send this Mike Moore guy an e-mail that expresses the majority of the opinion in the United States

 

This is what he writes

quote:

---

There is virtually NO ONE in America (talk radio nutters and Fox News aside) who is gung-ho to go to war. Trust me on this one. Walk out of the White House and on to any street in America and try to find five people who are PASSIONATE about wanting to kill Iraqis. YOU WON'T FIND THEM! Why? 'Cause NO Iraqis have ever come here and killed any of us! No Iraqi has even threatened to do that. You see, this is how we average Americans think: If a certain so-and-so is not perceived as a threat to our lives, then, believe it or not, we don't want to kill him! Funny how that works!

---

Now, lets see, Saddam Hussien has killed many of his own citizens by various ways of torture. He helped fund terrorist organizations responsible for September 11th, and he is on the eve of developing nukes, and we know he has a lot of anthrax and other biological weapons. This guy hasn't seen the support polls for The President. Over 60% support President Bush. He lives in his own liberal wonderland.

[+Prime Suspect]

quote:

---

Originally posted by 3fros:

 

Why would we want to read the un-patriotic BS of number 6 or any of the other numbers?

---

I'm sorry, you're right. All dissenting opinions should be labeled as un-American, un-patriotic, and be immediately crushed.

 

[+GrnXnham]

Thanks for the help everyone. Sorry for mentioning the French company thing. Everyone is free to choose if they want to support a French company or not. I really just wanted to know which unit had the better base map.

 

Thanks

 

Dave

[+Renegade Knight]

The sport track does have a better antanea than the legend.

 

Here is my take having seen both types of antanea at work.

 

The eTrex is better where there is signal bounce like near canyon walls.

 

The Quad Helix is better under tree cover.

 

In Idaho it's about 50/50 as to which problem I'm going to have at a cache.

 

Wherever you go there you are.

[+JohnnyVegas]

I have used the garmin e-trex, e-trex legand, Magelan Sport trak, Sport trak Pro and Meridian Gold (My current GPS). I sell GPSr as part of my job and have been a GPS buyer for the company I work for, so I get to try them out.

 

Maps in general-non of them are perfect.

As far as roads In my area Magelan does a better job than Garmin, As far as topo, I have used Garmin and Magellan, The Magellan Topo software includes street names, the Garmin does not.

THe Magellan has a terain profile feature, the Garmin does not. The Magellan will display cross streets you are approaching, the Garmin Does not. Both the Sport trak and Legend will fit into a shirt pocket. The Magellan does have a better antenna, lets face it these are radios, the antenna is the most important part of a radio.

 

[Team Sidewinder]

Please forgive me as I know this is off topic but sombody did say the f word. I say boycott anything made in france. Viva la USA.

sidewinder

 

LOST AND FOUND DEPT.