Dejapooh Posted June 21, 2002 Share Posted June 21, 2002 Hi all. I've been thinking of getting a GPS for a while. I stumbled on this page, and my wife and I are jazzed up about finding some Caches. Now the hardest question. With a budget of $250 or so, what GPS should we get? I can use either a mac or Windows '98 machine (I am not sure I have a serial port). I would love to be able to use it to find addresses while driving as well as for geocaching. I travel outside the US, so international maps would be nice (especially if you DL from the internet for free). I would like to be able to use a cigarette lighter for power and to recharge the batteries (do any of them do this)? Does such an animal exist? Can I get everything I want if I break my budget? Can I get everything I want for $40? This is my first stop in the grand search. Quote Link to comment
+majicman Posted June 21, 2002 Share Posted June 21, 2002 OK, That's your queue (both Garmin and Magellan fanatics) - go get him! --majicman (Always trade UP in both quantity and quality and Geocaches will be both self-sustaining and self-improving!) Quote Link to comment
+Number 6 Posted June 21, 2002 Share Posted June 21, 2002 I'm real happy with my standard Yellow eTrex. For more money it would be good to have an external antenna. With $250, I would get the eTrex, car power / serial cable, and appropriate mounts (bike and/or car). Mapping capabilities might be fun, but I don't know what they would add to my geocaching fun. Flames will make me smile and give me a way to get these marshmellows toasted. Be Seeing You! Quote Link to comment
Dejapooh Posted June 21, 2002 Author Share Posted June 21, 2002 Oh yeah, would it be inappropriate for me to copy this into another forum? Quote Link to comment
+Markwell Posted June 21, 2002 Share Posted June 21, 2002 This is actually one of the places it could be posted. You could really get some big responses if you post it in the GPS Units forum. But if you do, indicate that you posted it over there in this thread, so we can let this one die in peace. Markwell Chicago Geocachers Quote Link to comment
+majicman Posted June 21, 2002 Share Posted June 21, 2002 quote:Originally posted by Dejapooh: Oh yeah, would it be inappropriate for me to copy this into another forum? No Dejapooh, I was just trying to be funny. You might try using the "search" feature in the forum (at the top) and type in "GPS and Buy" and I'll bet you will find more previous threads than you can shake a stick at! --majicman (Always trade UP in both quantity and quality and Geocaches will be both self-sustaining and self-improving!) Quote Link to comment
johnnyb5 Posted June 22, 2002 Share Posted June 22, 2002 the big question (magellan vs. garmin) I personally have the magellan meridian gold. you can get it online for about $240 or so. Also got the mapsend software and a 16 mg card. all told about $300 (I did get lucky, ordered a 8mg card and they sent the 16 by mistake. I have been very happy with it. It does everything you described in your post. But get some feedback from garmin owners as well. I dont know much about them. there is also a many websites that compare GPSr's Quote Link to comment
Dejapooh Posted June 22, 2002 Author Share Posted June 22, 2002 Does it recharge batteries from teh car lighter? Finally, does anyone offer maps over the internet for free, or are they all pay for play. Quote Link to comment
+benjamin921 Posted June 22, 2002 Share Posted June 22, 2002 quote:Originally posted by Dejapooh:I've been thinking of getting a GPS for a while. I stumbled on this page, and my wife and I are jazzed up about finding some Caches. Welcome and enjoy quote: Now the hardest question. With a budget of $250 or so, what GPS should we get? Check out the Garmin eTrex Legend quote:I would like to be able to use a cigarette lighter for power and to recharge the batteries (do any of them do this)? Does such an animal exist? Don't think so quote:Can I get everything I want if I break my budget? Yes--Garmin GPS V comes to mind Quote Link to comment
johnnyb5 Posted June 23, 2002 Share Posted June 23, 2002 quote:Originally posted by Dejapooh: Does it recharge batteries from teh car lighter? They do sell an adapter for the car lighter, but as far as recharging batteries. Guess that depends on if your gonna use rechargable or not and if they come with a lighter adapter Quote Link to comment
+Seay me Posted June 23, 2002 Share Posted June 23, 2002 We bought the entry lever eTres (the yellow one) and are very happy with it so far. We've decided that we're going to upgrade to one with mapping capabilities in the future, it'd come in handy on the way out of town trips. The only problem we've seen so far that with a lot of tree cover we do tend to lose reception with the internal antenna. Over all I'd definately recommend it for a beginner. Chip and Nik Quote Link to comment
+Team Screamapillar Posted June 27, 2002 Share Posted June 27, 2002 I recently purchased a Magellan SportTrak from affordablegps.com for the nice price of $184 (after comparison pricing about 20 sites). I'm very pleased with it. A cigarette lighter adapter is available. Quote Link to comment
+Lazyboy & Mitey Mite Posted June 27, 2002 Share Posted June 27, 2002 Go to a store and play with them. I started out with the Magellan line and love it. I used a 315 for my first 100 finds and really can't fault it at all. It sells at discount stores for about 130 bucks and has a great antenna. Lots of cable and accessories available for it. Now I have the Magellan Meridian Platium and paid less that 300 bucks for it. It has all the bells and whistles. Came with a data cable. Since I started with magellan the garmin line looks weird and complicated to me. But if I had started with garmin I'm sure I'd feel the same way about the magellan. You don't need top of the line stuff. Lots of cachers with huge numbers have entry level equipment. Never Squat With Yer Spurs On Quote Link to comment
+Ukulele Andy Posted June 27, 2002 Share Posted June 27, 2002 I have an etrex (the yellow one) and I love it. For me the greatest features are it's size and ease of use but mainly it's the small size. There are a lot of urban caches near me so the smaller sized GPS unit makes my hunting more inconspicuous. A GPS with a fat external antennae would make it hard to blend in with my urban surroundings. I purchased a belt clip accessory which hides most of the yellow and makes it look like a cell phone. However, everyone has thier own tastes so I would suggest going to your local dealer to find out firsthand which unit will work best for you. Good Luck Ukulele Andy Quote Link to comment
+Ukulele Andy Posted June 27, 2002 Share Posted June 27, 2002 I have an etrex (the yellow one) and I love it. For me the greatest features are it's size and ease of use but mainly it's the small size. There are a lot of urban caches near me so the smaller sized GPS unit makes my hunting more inconspicuous. A GPS with a fat external antennae would make it hard to blend in with my urban surroundings. I purchased a belt clip accessory which hides most of the yellow and makes it look like a cell phone. However, everyone has thier own tastes so I would suggest going to your local dealer to find out firsthand which unit will work best for you. Good Luck Ukulele Andy Quote Link to comment
Dejapooh Posted June 28, 2002 Author Share Posted June 28, 2002 Well, thanks a bunch everyone. It seems my Brother in Law is planning on getting a GPS V for himself. I figure that since it does almost everything I want (except rechrge its own batteries), it would probably be best for me to get the same thing. We can share info, maps, hints and stuff. Seems like a nice one too. A bit beyond my budget... Just have to sell more Olympic pins. See you on the trails... If you have any more comments, please feel free to post them here. I am interested to see what you all think of my decision. Quote Link to comment
+Alan2 Posted June 28, 2002 Share Posted June 28, 2002 I don't have the V but I hear it's a great unit. Have fun wih it and geocaching. alan Quote Link to comment
+Salvelinus Posted June 28, 2002 Share Posted June 28, 2002 For about the same cost as as the yellow etrex you can buy a Lowrance Globalmap 100. IMO it gets better reception and has decent built in mapping. It is also almost twice the size, if that matters to you. I have the Lowrance and a Garmin legend ($265). The Garmin rarly gets used. It just dosen't get good reception under canopy which is where I do 95% of my caching. Welcome and Good Luck! Smoochnme "When your learning to take, the path at your pace... every road is worth your while" Quote Link to comment
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