Vista Headaches

[+necron]

I have an Etrex Vista i purchased about a year and a half ago that i've used quite a lot for geocaching in the woods. It's has been beaten up a little with some dings on the screen covering and the display occasionally has lines across it . I get past this problem by 'squeezing' or 'twisting' the whole unit. Recently (after traveling across the country from New England to California) i've had accuracy problems . My unit often tells me that i have 18 ft of accuracy, but keeps 'bouncing' all over the place often placing me 75 - 100 feet from the cache. I'm wondering if the journey or the abuse of the unit is causing this problem. I don't think it's the transit out here because i had wonderful reception on the flight. (it's neat doing this, i recommend it!) what do you guys think?

Edited November 12, 2004 by necron

[DiverMan]

Have you contacted Garmin? I would. It sounds like the "abuse" has taken its toll. I have heard (via these forums) that their customer support is stellar. I have not needed to contact them with my legend yet. What would it hurt?

 

Good Luck and God Bless

[+BlueDeuce]

Yeah, I have to regularly 'thump' my Vista.

 

I'll get the bouncing when the batteries are low. After inserting new batteries it'll keep doing it until I calibrate the compass.

[+necron]

i'll shoot them an email right now... the only problem is that i don't want to be without my beloved GPSr!

[+necron]

calibrate the compass?!?!

[+BlueDeuce]

Instructions on how to (page 19)

 

http://www.garmin.com/manuals/eTrexVista_OwnersManual.pdf

 

"The Electronic compass must be calibrated outdoors when you first use the eTrex Vista and after new batteries have been installed."

[+necron]

thanks for the help on that... guess i should start reading those manuals!

[+Prime Suspect]

thanks for the help on that... guess i should start reading those manuals!

You should recalibrate the compass whenever you change batteries. It only takes about 30 seconds. If you're having trouble getting the "hold level" indicator to go out, that usually fixes it.

[peter]

The lines in the display is a known vulnerability of the eTrex series and is caused by bad contacts in the connector for the ribbon cable joining the display to the main board. Garmin has sometimes been willing to fix this problem somewhat after the nominal end of the warranty period.

 

But this would be unrelated to any accuracy issues. I wonder if those might be due to different terrain in your new location. In particular, rapid jumps can be caused by multi-path reflections from cliffs, canyons, buildings, etc.

[+BlueDeuce]

thanks for the help on that... guess i should start reading those manuals!

You should recalibrate the compass whenever you change batteries. It only takes about 30 seconds.

The main problem with calibrating your compass is that you look a little silly doing it.

[+wolfe359]

The main problem with calibrating your compass is that you look a little silly doing it.

.

Try rotating the unit while its sitting on a table

[+ZingerHead]

I'm closing in on year #3 with my Vista, and it has exhibited all of the usual problems: the lines on the screen, the screen going completely black, the mysterious shutdowns, and yes, sometimes I wonder just how accurate the thing really is. But considering the level of abuse it has survived, I am amazed that it still functions at all.

I've been toying with idea of sending it to Garmin to have the rubber rand replaced (it's come completely unglued) and maybe getting it "calibrated" if they do such a thing. But then I find the cache I was looking for anyway and figure the $125 flat repair fee would be better spent on gas to get to the next batch of caches.

[+TotemLake]

thanks for the help on that... guess i should start reading those manuals!

You should recalibrate the compass whenever you change batteries. It only takes about 30 seconds.

The main problem with calibrating your compass is that you look a little silly doing it.

Right up until they realize you have a GPS in your hand, then its; COOL!

[+necron]

I'm closing in on year #3 with my Vista, and it has exhibited all of the usual problems: the lines on the screen, the screen going completely black, the mysterious shutdowns, and yes, sometimes I wonder just how accurate the thing really is. But considering the level of abuse it has survived, I am amazed that it still functions at all.

I've been toying with idea of sending it to Garmin to have the rubber rand replaced (it's come completely unglued) and maybe getting it "calibrated" if they do such a thing. But then I find the cache I was looking for anyway and figure the $125 flat repair fee would be better spent on gas to get to the next batch of caches.

I have the same problem.... too many caches, not enough GPS units. I was thinking of getting one "for my wife" so that i could "borrow" it for a little while.

[+we3dements]

I had the same display problems and it got so bad I had to send it to Garmin and they replaced the unit with a new one (well most likely a referb). It also has a problem with the rubber seal/grip that goes around the outside of the unit coming off.

You should call them instead of emailing them. I emailed Garmin 3 times about it with no help, but called once and was taken care of. The funny thing is, I was calling them to find out how to dispose of the unit incase I had to send it back to Garmin. I was feed up with the Vista and wanted to be mad at Garmin when I called and they had to go ahead and not let me be mad by offering to replace the unit even though it was out of warranty.

 

As a side note, my GPSMAP 60CS had the "bump me and I WILL shutdown" problem and I called Garmin to see if they had a kit I could buy to install or if they had a way I could fix it myself and they said if I sent it in they would fix it for me. It took 4 days from the time I sent it in until I got it back and they went ahead and replaced the screen cover because it was scratched. Now how am I supposed to pissed off about the units having problems when Garmin keeps going out of their way to help me?

 

My point; Garmin is really good about their service.

[+necron]

well, on a day trip to san francisco my vista finally died. i know the unit still works because i can get a fix when hooking it up to the laptop, and the backlight still works... but no dice on the display. going to call on monday and be 'mad' and see what happens. thanks guys for all the help!

[+briansnat]

I'm closing in on year #3 with my Vista, and it has exhibited all of the usual problems: the lines on the screen, the screen going completely black, the mysterious shutdowns, and yes, sometimes I wonder just how accurate the thing really is. But considering the level of abuse it has survived, I am amazed that it still functions at all.

I've been toying with idea of sending it to Garmin to have the rubber rand replaced (it's come completely unglued) and maybe getting it "calibrated" if they do such a thing. But then I find the cache I was looking for anyway and figure the $125 flat repair fee would be better spent on gas to get to the next batch of caches.

You should consider it. You basically get a brand new GPS back. Totally refurbished. $125 is a bit steep, but not as steep as buying a new one. I bet the price will come down a bit soon as the price of the unit is almost $150 less than it was a year ago.