Newbie - Etrex Legend

[srburk]

I need advice on my new Etrex Legend.

 

Best map software with street level detail. I don't care for all the "points of interests" such as restaurants. I just want a detailed street level map with street names only. Reason, I live in Houston... BIG CITY buy I only have 8mb space to load.

 

Power adapter for the car. By any chance does this improve my reception by having a consistantly full charge?

 

Back light? If I got the power adapter for the car, is there any way to have the light stay on?

 

Preference for mounting GPS in car? Velcro? Dash mount? Vent mount?

[+Renegade Knight]

Some say fresh batteries helps receptions. I don't think it matters.

 

The best dash mount is the kind that is attached to your dash.

[Neo_Geo]

You can get pretty much all of the city of Houston area with MetroGuide (version 5), but not much else.

 

Your only other lesser option would be Roads & Recreation. That product is discontinued. The map data is old and inaccurate. When driving up my street, it shows me driving BETWEEN the next street over and the street after that.

 

You can find it pretty cheap on eBay now.

Edited August 26, 2004 by Neo_Geo

[+NightPilot]

To turn on the backlight, just press the power button while it's on. If you're on battery power, it will turn itself off, but if you're connected to external power it will stay on. You can't even see it in the daytime, but at night it's nice. Pfranc has cables and connectors for your Legend. I made my own cable, which connects both my GPS and Palm to DC power through a USB charger that plugs into the cigarette lighter. As long as the batteries provide enough voltage to keep the GPS on, it works the same regardless. Battery voltage only becomes an issue when it's too low to keep the unit on.

 

As for a mount, there are lots of options. I use a piece of PVC 45 degree elbow pipe, with a cap on one end and a piece of heavy rubber about 3/4" thick on the other. I attached a cheap cell phone holder to the cap, and put the whole thing in a cup holder. I use an external reradiating antenna, so I don't worry about having the GPS in the windshield. There are also mounts that stick on the windshield, mounts that attach to the dashboard, vents, and all sorts of others. There are several long, long threads on mounts, antennas, and whatnot on the forum.