+K9DVM & K9CVT Posted January 3, 2004 Share Posted January 3, 2004 I am new to geocaching/GPS and I have a question about my Garmin etrex summit. The unit does not come with any cables (power 12V, or computer interface). I learned that Garmin charges about $50 for their cable. I have located after-market cables on eBay for as low as $14. I would appreciate any comments regarding these after-market cables. Do they work and are they a risk to my GPS unit? Thank you in advance for your comments Quote Link to comment
+Eagles61 Posted January 3, 2004 Share Posted January 3, 2004 I bought my daughter an etrex a couple of months ago and purchase one of the aftermarket cables on eBay and have had no problems with it. Go for it. Quote Link to comment
+PDOP's Posted January 3, 2004 Share Posted January 3, 2004 If you're nervous about Ebay try Pfranc Quote Link to comment
+IV_Warrior Posted January 3, 2004 Share Posted January 3, 2004 I'd recommend getting a combination power/data cable....I wish I'd have gone that route initially...currently I have seperate power and data cables, and I'm probably going to be buying the combo cable soon...... Quote Link to comment
+webscouter. Posted January 3, 2004 Share Posted January 3, 2004 I got a combo cable from GPSGeek on E-bay. Been very happy with it. Quote Link to comment
+GeckoGeek Posted January 3, 2004 Share Posted January 3, 2004 I got a combo cable from GPSGeek on E-bay. Been very happy with it. I also got a cable from GPSGeek. The fit seems just a bit tight, but I ain't going to spend $30 more just to get a smooth fit. The price is cheap enough to not bother with a pFranc unless you need something custom. Quote Link to comment
+sbell111 Posted January 4, 2004 Share Posted January 4, 2004 I bought a Pfranc auto power cable for my 3+ on eBay. It was very inexpensive and works great. Quote Link to comment
+Fritz_Monroe Posted January 4, 2004 Share Posted January 4, 2004 I'd recommend getting a combination power/data cable....I wish I'd have gone that route initially...currently I have seperate power and data cables, and I'm probably going to be buying the combo cable soon...... I've got a question on this. I've got a Magellan, so don't know how Garmin does the cable thing. Is the an auto adapter power cord? If not, why do you need a combo power cable/data cable? When I'm sending coordinates to it, my GPSr is on a total of at most 5 minutes. Thanks F_M Quote Link to comment
quimbly Posted January 4, 2004 Share Posted January 4, 2004 I've had no problem at all with the cable I bought from E-bay. They seem to be very simple things, probably a doddle to make if you're that way inclined. I'm not, so I'll happily pay a few pounds to someone who is. Not so happy to pay about 30 pounds to Garmin for one; that's a third of the cost of my Geko. Quote Link to comment
+IV_Warrior Posted January 4, 2004 Share Posted January 4, 2004 I've got a question on this. I've got a Magellan, so don't know how Garmin does the cable thing. Is the an auto adapter power cord? If not, why do you need a combo power cable/data cable? When I'm sending coordinates to it, my GPSr is on a total of at most 5 minutes. Thanks F_M The reason for the combo power/data cable is for those of us who often times have a laptop running in the cache-mobile. The GPS sends data to a mapping program to show your location, and track yourself on the route to the next cache or where ever you're headed. With just a data cable, like I currently have, you can chew up a set of batteries just driving from cache to cache in the course of a day. Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.