Team MJDJ Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 I own a Garmin eTrex Venture. The manual says to hold it upright when in use. Drum roll..........."Does it really matter WHICH WAY you hold it"? Quote Link to comment
dogsoldier Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 ....on longer geocaches, I carry the thing in my backpack, upside down..sideways,inside-out...whatever, and it still tracks everything just fine. Quote Link to comment
+Team Teuton Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 My Legend only works when it is nearly vertical. I've been going in circles my whole life. May as well make a hobby of it. Quote Link to comment
+Nurse Dave Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 I would think they don't pick-up any signals from the bottom side of the antenna, so if it's pointing up no problem. You point it at the ground, you are only going to get a little or no signal and some variation of those when it's anywhere on it's side. ---Real men cache in shorts. Quote Link to comment
+hoovman Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 The manufacturer's instruction to hold your GPSr in a particular way (my yellow eTrex says hold it with the screen up) tells you the best orientation for the antenna. As long as you're getting sufficient signal, it doesn't matter how you're carrying it. If you find yourself in deep tree cover getting bad reception, try holding it upright. Quote Link to comment
+ScottJ Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 Patch antennas (the flat kind, a la GPS 12, GPS 48, etc.) will not work face down but will get a reasonable signal in any other orientation. Quadrifilar helix antennas (GPS II/III/V, Rino)will perform well in almost any position. -- Scott Johnson (ScottJ) Quote Link to comment
+Kewaneh & Shark Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 The best way to see if it works or not would be to turn the GPSr on and view the screen that shows the satellites and intensity of the signals from each of them. Hold the GPSr vertically until you have a good lock on a number of sats, then lie the GPSr flat or turn it over and watch what happens to the signals. The itensity of the signal will usually degrade. This happens on my Magellan Meridian Gold. Generally, the GPSr will work when held in any direction, but it will work best when it's held vertically and the anteanna has an unobstructed view of the satellites. Keep on Caching! - Kewaneh Quote Link to comment
+Prime Suspect Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Team MJDJ:I own a Garmin eTrex Venture. The manual says to hold it upright when in use. It does? Where? I've looked through both my Vista manual, and the on-line Venture pdf manual, and can't find anything remotely like that. The patch antenna is behind the globe emblem on the face of the unit. While it will certainly work in the upright position, holding it horizontally will give the best reception. Quote Link to comment
+Prime Suspect Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Kewaneh & Shark:Hold the GPSr vertically until you have a good lock on a number of sats, then lie the GPSr flat or turn it over and watch what happens to the signals. The itensity of the signal will usually degrade. This happens on my Magellan Meridian Gold. Apples and Oranges. The Meridian and the eTrex line use completely different types of antennas. Quote Link to comment
+Renegade Knight Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 I've had better luck under tree cover holding my GPS V upright. Yeah, I know it's not the same antanea. Wherever you go there you are. Quote Link to comment
+Jamie Z Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 quote:Originally posted by ScottJ:Quadrifilar helix antennas (GPS II/III/V, Rino)will perform well in almost any position. My experience with my Meridian and its quad helix antenna disputes this. When I owned an eTrex and mounted it horizontally on my bicycle, I got fantastic reception, but when I used the GPS in my car mounted vertically, the reception was noticably worse. My Meridian is just the opposite. When it is on my bicycle in a horizontal position, the reception is terrible. Just taking it out of the cradle and holding it upright gives me a couple extra satellites and a stronger signal from each. Fortunately the vehicle mount for the Meridian holds it upright, so my reception is good in the car. Jamie Quote Link to comment
Team MJDJ Posted February 18, 2003 Author Share Posted February 18, 2003 quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Originally posted by Team MJDJ: I own a Garmin eTrex Venture. The manual says to hold it upright when in use. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It does? Where? I've looked through both my Vista manual, and the on-line Venture pdf manual, and can't find anything remotely like that. The patch antenna is behind the globe emblem on the face of the unit. While it will certainly work in the upright position, holding it horizontally will give the best reception. I have a Garmin eTrex Venture (personal navigator). Page 3 of the Owner's manual and reference guide states: "Hold the unit at a comfortable height with the antenna pointing up...." I was searching for one Geocache over the weekend and I was basically going around in circles - holding the unit out FLAT...this is why I was curious whether it made a difference, I think I just answered my own question! Quote Link to comment
+Prime Suspect Posted February 18, 2003 Share Posted February 18, 2003 quote:Originally posted by Team MJDJ:quote: I have a Garmin eTrex Venture (personal navigator). Page 3 of the Owner's manual and reference guide states: "Hold the unit at a comfortable height with the antenna pointing up...." I was searching for one Geocache over the weekend and I was basically going around in circles - holding the unit out FLAT...this is why I was curious whether it made a difference, I think I just answered my own question! Hmmm... I just searched the latest version of the Venture manual (online at Garmin) and don't see that statement anywhere. Regardless, with a patch antenna, to point it "up", you have to hold the unit horizontally, not vertically. You might want to check out this thread, this thread, this thread, this thread, and this page. [This message was edited by Prime Suspect on February 18, 2003 at 07:26 PM.] Quote Link to comment
Team MJDJ Posted February 18, 2003 Author Share Posted February 18, 2003 ...for expedient and accurate answers! Judging from what I've read, I would say that my little eTrex Venture will work best on a slightly-off-horizontal plane. It would seem as though the "antenna" being "up" (as they refer to it) would mean the largest surface area of the integrated antenna should face UPwards...makes sense! Thank you All! Quote Link to comment
+GOT GPS? Posted February 19, 2003 Share Posted February 19, 2003 I pretend that the Flat face(antenna and LCD) of my etrex Vista is the lens of a flashlight, and aim it toward the clearest view overhead, also you should hold it slightly above the level of your heart, so that your body does not block the weak signals. ------------------------ My home page about GPS units and information Quote Link to comment
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