Meriplat Or Sportrak Color?

[Daclaren]

Now that we've started caching more and our Magellan 315 has started leading us in circles, we realized it's probably time to upgrade. (Our previous finds were in more open areas, as well as many virts and locationless, so it wasn't as much of a problem as it is now.) Though Garmin's 60cs is tempting, it's out of our price range.

 

We've decided that we'll probably stick with Magellan for now, and we've narrowed our choices down to the Meridian Platinum and the SporTrak Color. Since we rarely use our GPSr for anything other than caching, I wanted to ask for opinions here from people who've used either or both of these units.

 

We like that both of these have the 3-axis compass and are waterproof. The color screen on the ST, while nice, isn't an absolute necessity. (I've also read that it can sometimes be harder to read in bright sunlight.) Same with the SD cards in the MeriPlat, although that option would come in handy if we ever started using it for anything besides caching (which is a possibility).

 

So for anyone who's used either or both of these, what are your likes and dislikes as far as using it for caching? Any other things about either of these units that we should take into consideration when making our decision? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[blocko1000]

I dont have a sportrak color, but I do have a Meri Plat as well as a Gold and a Merri green. The plat is great. The expandable memory comes in handy when driving. You can download maps of the cities you are going to. The three axis compass is great also. But to be honest, the Gold is all I really need. I like the larger screen on the meridians over the screen size on the sportrak. I own the sportrak map also. My pick would be the Plat but look into the Gold. Many people have said they dont think the Plat has that much more over the Gold and have a hard time justifying the extra cost for it. Good luck

Edited May 31, 2004 by blocko1000

[+embra]

The interfaces will be *very* much the same; the SD card capabilities adds a few options that won't show up on the ST, and (of course) the magnetic compass and the barometer stuff. The compass is great for caching, while most people seem to ignore the barometer information.

 

With no ST experience, I can only say the MeriPlat I have has been very satisfying. One aspect I like is that the internal memory, combined with the expandable memory, has allowed me to stick with the same unit for a good while without feeling I've outgrown it.

 

A bonus here is that since we live in the same county (right?) if you email me we can arrange to get together for a little demo. I can show you both the Topo and DirectRoute software.

[+Tahoe Skier5000]

Now that we've started caching more and our Magellan 315 has started leading us in circles, we realized it's probably time to upgrade. (Our previous finds were in more open areas, as well as many virts and locationless, so it wasn't as much of a problem as it is now.) Though Garmin's 60cs is tempting, it's out of our price range.

 

We've decided that we'll probably stick with Magellan for now, and we've narrowed our choices down to the Meridian Platinum and the SporTrak Color. Since we rarely use our GPSr for anything other than caching, I wanted to ask for opinions here from people who've used either or both of these units.

 

We like that both of these have the 3-axis compass and are waterproof. The color screen on the ST, while nice, isn't an absolute necessity. (I've also read that it can sometimes be harder to read in bright sunlight.) Same with the SD cards in the MeriPlat, although that option would come in handy if we ever started using it for anything besides caching (which is a possibility).

 

So for anyone who's used either or both of these, what are your likes and dislikes as far as using it for caching? Any other things about either of these units that we should take into consideration when making our decision? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

I'd probably go with the Meridian Color. I've owned a Garmin Vista with the compass and barometer and never found them entirely useful. Fun to look at once in awhile, but not entirely worth the money (or the battery consumption!). Much to my surprise, the Meridian Color actually gets the same 'battery mileage' as the Meridian Platinum.... roughly 13 or so hours.

 

The color display is really nice though. I've seen one before and it makes distinguishing landmarks much easier. No more "roads for rivers"!

 

And the reason you don't need a compass is that newer gen GPS units are 10 times more responsive then the clunkers they replaced. Even with my basic eTrex, I can get a direction reading just by moving the thing less than 1 foot out! It's that sensitive!

 

The barometer feature is great and all, but totally not necessary. I've clocked several benchmarks with my eTrex and GPS V and both were within 5 feet of the correct altitude! This was without WAAS either. If you're looking for the altitude plotting function, not to worry. As the track log is recorded under normal operation, it also records altitude at each point. Once you download this information to the computer when you return for the day, you can take a look at the elevation profile.

 

Just my 10 cents, I'd opt for the Color.