GPS thoughts? What is good?

quickbiker · Post by **quickbiker** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 6:26 am

OK all you GPS weenie mr gadgets out there. What's the best all around GPS. I think I've made up my mind. I'm thinking of this unit:
http://www.garmin.com/products/gpsmap60cs/

I really don't know much about'em. Do I need to buy the optional maps now if I want to get anywhere???

AZS10Crew · Post by **AZS10Crew** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 6:40 am

That one looks good. I have the Magellan SportTrak Map (monochrome display...about the size of a late-90's cell phone) and like it a lot. Buy whatever optional software you can get for your computer because it will help a lot with entering waypoints and routes. It also adds a lot of details that aren't in the standard GPS maps (minor roads, points of interest like mines, natural springs, etc.)...that's the way mine was anyway. I'm not sure what's standard on the Garmin units.

Post by **HenryJ** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 2:25 pm

That one looks really good. It has everything that I look for in a good GPS (antenna, batteries/bat. life, size)

Cost seems a little high, but that is retail.

I still really like my Magellan SporTrak Pro, and wouldn't go any other way , for a handheld.

Check out this site for reviews before you buy- GPSinformation.net

This Garmin / magellan comparison says lots for Magellan's accuracy

I have seen similar results first hand when caching with friends.

If you really don't need the pin point accuracy Garmin's work fine.

I really do like having the handheld and the laptop GPS units. TheDelorme Earthmate USB GPS receiver is an exceptional value.

What ever you decide to get, make sure that you get a cradle and car adapter. Snapping it in for trips is the only way to go. The batteries will last a much longer time.

quickbiker · Post by **quickbiker** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 7:57 pm

Uuggghhh, thanks for all the input Henry. I got some more research to do. Thanks.

quickbiker · Post by **quickbiker** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 8:23 pm

Well, I see one big difference is the Magellan has the option of the SD card, Garmin has only internal memory. Expandable memory is always a good thing I would think. But the Garmin specs seem to blew the Magellan away. Arrgghh, choices.

Post by **HenryJ** » Sat Aug 27, 2005 5:11 am

It really is a tough choice as there really is no perfect streets/navigation and handheld hiking/caching unit.

It looks to me like Garmin is trying in the one that you posted.

My father and a wheeling buddy have the Magellan Meridian Platinums. They are a little bulky for stuffing in a pocket, but the larger screen and removable memory are very nice.
My Magellan SporTrak Pro fits on a pocket nice and accuracy is unmatched by any others that I have encountered. The 20 mb memory is all that I need and I have never found a need to change maps while on a trip. I do need to I usually have the laptop close to load new maps. The stock base map is really pretty good too.
Don't forget to price the accessories too.

I have had good experiences with Vann's Electronics They are "close" to me though. Two days for most items to Oregon.

Best of luck. There is no perfect GPS yet. Choose what is most important to you and then find one that meets those needs.

AZS10Crew · Post by **AZS10Crew** » Sat Aug 27, 2005 5:14 am

quickbiker wrote:Well, I see one big difference is the Magellan has the option of the SD card, Garmin has only internal memory. Expandable memory is always a good thing I would think. But the Garmin specs seem to blew the Magellan away. Arrgghh, choices.

In my experience with GPS, unless you're going on a multiple country or multiple continent expedition, you don't need much more than standard memory. Mine has 6MB, which was enough to download most of the state of AZ or IN, and most of Southern California (including all of LA) when we would go out there.

Expandable memory is good, but you'll probably rarely need it.

chumley · Post by **chumley** » Sat Aug 27, 2005 11:48 am

Kinda related to the subject... the company I work for is the biggest user of GPS in the eastern U.S. We have it on all of our dozers, several pans(scrapers) even a few excavators. We use Trimble. Very nice- to be able to work an entire jobsite without any stakeout from surveyors is friggin' awesome! To be able to grade a site to within a tenth of a foot from satellites is incredible. If you have some time check out Trimble.com, check out construction applications, like dozers for instance. Also pricey- @$50k per machine.

They figure within 3 yrs it will pay for itself just in jobsite layout alone. Pretty awesome stuff!

Post by **HenryJ** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 4:05 pm

Some of you may already know, but I just downloaded DeLorme Serial Emulation Driver for USB Earthmate® GPS

This allows it to be used with third party software. It seems to work just fine. I tried it in Mapsend topo

Now I should be able to use it for OZI

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 8:36 am

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Opinions?

Post by **HenryJ** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 9:53 am

I too have been watching that one. For a pocket unit , I think it might be a good one.
I'd love to have one! However my old SporTrak Pro still does a really good job.

If you are looking for a corssover unit (Road navigation and hiking) check out the Magellan CrossoverGPS

Costco link
http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/s ... php?t=8923
http://gpstracklog.typepad.com/gps_trac ... rosso.html
http://review.zdnet.com/gps/magellan-cr ... 99885.html

This is another one I have been watching.

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 1:48 pm

The Garmin looks good but, after reading a little more about the DeLorme unit,I am liking it more and more.

Post by **HenryJ** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 2:05 pm

Which Garmin are you referring to? The one I linked is Magellan. It is the only car mount , with a big screen that includes topo maps, that I know of.
As we age the bigger screen becomes more important. I like the idea of using it for both auto and foot travel.
I will admit that the aerial data sets for the Delorme units are outstanding. I am a visual person and those are great.
Ozexplorer is the next best thing I have seen. It is a little geeky for me though. Too much work to import the maps and configure.

It would be a tough choice for me either way. The price is very close on the two. I will be jealous of you either way.

I need to PM you on this topic.

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 2:39 pm

HenryJ wrote:Which Garmin are you referring to? The one I linked is Magellan. It is the only car mount , with a big screen that includes topo maps, that I know of.................I need to PM you on this topic.

Hmmmm, I got a good deal a little while back on a Garmin V that is supposed to do auto trip navigation. I was short changed discs to make it do that but, the deal was so good, I kept it. I was able to download some things from Garmin and combining it with what I had for a Garmin III Plus software made it very usable. I meant Magellan but, was Garmin oriented when I posted. I am not a big fan of vehicle use only handheld units. The Delorme unit looks good because it is good for both.

We had a Deputy US Marshal get some money from our local task force and he ordered a Street Pilot a couple of years. He was wanting something for both vehicle and when on foot. I had to set it up for him using my personal laptop because theirs are restricted on programming. He asked me how to dismount it to locate coordinates of pot patches. I told him that he had a couple of problems. You cant enter Lat/Longs into it but, if you could, just take your car's 12V battery with you when you hit the mountain.

It cost around $1000 then and was worthless for what he needed. He's only known me for 12-15 yrs and knows my interests. I'm sure he got one of those ultimatums to spend this money now or lose it. I was probably off when it happened.

I have the laptop for street use (thanks to you) but, I like a unit that readily does both.

Post by **HenryJ** » Fri Dec 07, 2007 3:13 pm

The magellan Crossover GPS is for both in and out of the vehicle. It has a battery pack Lithium Ion. It can be used as a handheld and has a touch screen. That is why they added topo mapping to it. For hiking.
I don't have a good idea of the size. Probably not shirt pocket, but maybe coat pocket. It is supposed to be very easy to operate and I would have to say if it is close to the unit my SporTrak is, it is great.

I have seen some good stuff in the Garmin line. It still upsets me that they do not package any maps with their units. The price looks good until you add $100+ for maps

I would say the Delorme unit is a good choice. We already know how the Laptop software and earthmate stack up. Being somewhat familiar is a good point on the side of that unit.

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Sun Dec 09, 2007 9:28 am

I'm gonna pull the trigger on one. I just got hammered on Ebay for a very nice Jeep XJ after some very good email and telephone exchanges with the seller. I am kicking myself in the butt for not just buying it now.

I think that the Delorme unit will be nice. Will update my thoughts about it after a few months of use.

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Fri Dec 14, 2007 2:37 pm

It arrived and I have to say it rocks

It also has road navigation "exactly" like Street Atlas '07. I haven't messed with satellite or aerial imagery yet but topo with roads is awesome. Direct plug and play with http://www.geocaching.com/ is easy. I'll advise anything that I find right or wrong with the unit periodically.

Torskdoc · Post by **Torskdoc** » Sun Dec 16, 2007 4:55 pm

Jeez, a chronometer, compass, sextant, a bunch of sharpened pencils, parallel rulers, and a chart work just fine for me. Or a US ROAD ATLAS works most of the time. Haven't got lost once!

Larry

Post by **HenryJ** » Sun Dec 16, 2007 5:01 pm

Torskdoc wrote:... Haven't got lost once!

Me either. Twice, three times maybe more, BUT NOT ONCE!

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Mon Dec 31, 2007 3:57 pm

Torskdoc wrote:..............compass, sextant, a bunch of sharpened pencils, parallel rulers, and a chart work just fine for me. Or a US ROAD ATLAS works most of the time............

I must have gotten behind you in places like DC, Nashville and a few other places when traffic was normally 70+ MPH and lane changes were a gamble with your life

Daniel Boone wrote:I have never been lost, but I have been mighty disoriented for several days in a row.

Post by **HenryJ** » Mon Feb 18, 2008 6:11 pm

I decided to spend some eggs not yet in the basket. Tax returns were favorable this year, so we are going to do our part to stimulate the economy. (Probably mostly China's

)
We have been mulling over what GPS to use in the wife's car. I had planned to mount another laptop mount and use the laptop. That was frowned upon by the primary driver, even though it could be removed when not in use.
We have a few long trips to make into strange territory this summer. Routed GPS is essential.

So I went looking at small GPS with routing solutions. We already have a decent handheld. The SporTrak Pro still meets all the hiking needs. It does not have auto routing though.
On recommendations, I sought out the TomTom. I like it, BUT. I am worried about the lack of topographic detail. Much of what we do relies upon secondary roads and trails. I like to see some of that.
I kept coming back to the Magellan Crossover GPS. Removable memory, topo, and auto routing , along with the price sold me.
Reports have been very good and my track record with Magellan products is good. The SporTrak owes me nothing for all the use I have received.

Guess I will let you all know how it works out.

williamcstonejr · Post by **williamcstonejr** » Thu Feb 21, 2008 2:49 am

My wife got me a navigon 5100 for Christmas. $300.00 from Amazon with a $50.00 rebate. I wasn’t sure about it at first but it has turned out to be a very nice unit for what it is. It came with a windshield mount that works well and it also has free traffic updates with the antenna that came with it. The traffic is free lifetime and works off of an AM radio signal, so far the traffic has saved me A LOT of headaches in Los Angeles traffic. It also has a 2 gig SD card. As far as off-road it shows any road you would find on a regular map i.e. fire roads service roads and such but would be useless for topo. Just shows a blank screen when you get away from any roads. I have already written to them about possible off-road or local topos but have not received an answer yet. But you can have Lat and Long displayed if you like or need that function. Battery life only seems to be good for about four hours though. After that you need to plug it in to the vehicle charger. It came pre loaded with maps for the Continental United States, Alaska, Canada, Puerto Rico and Hawaii. I just finished updating my maps last week on their web site. Just pulled out the card stuck it in my computer and downloaded the new 2008 updates directly to the card worked great.

Post by **HenryJ** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 7:19 am

I recently came across a deal on a lightly used Delorme Earthmate PN-20 handheld. $100 shipped to me.
I already use the same Topo maps on the laptop, so it seems like a good match for the truck, as the SporTrak Pro has found its home on the TW200.
Best I could find for a mount was Wallyworld online for the Delorme Ram mount $40

I was pleased to learn that the USB data cable does serve as a power cable for the unit. That makes it easy to power from the vehicle.

The screen is crisp and clear. Color is nice to have. The basic internal memory maps are virtually useless. Loading some topos is a priority. The map file sizes are HUGE. You can fill a 2 GB SD card in a hurry. I have the subscription to download unlimited maps from Delorme. That is a very good value. The USGS maps have very good detail. I like the aerial views for the laptop, but there is just not enough size for them to be usable on the smaller PN-20.
Loading maps is a VERY long and painful experience. There is no good tutorial on how to do this and the time it takes to convert and load is just excruciating. I guess I have been spoiled by the Magellan and simple gray scale topo maps. It takes trial and error to decide how big a map you can save and even then you need to figure out what detail , or levels you want. Not very friendly. Maybe even frustrating to those easily confused. No way could I talk a novice through this.

The user interface is nice. The contextual menus and available options are good to. Easily customized for the information you want displayed.

Overall, so far I like it. I think once the maps are what and where I want them, it will be very nice. I don't think it is something that I would suggest a beginner invest in. The retail price is still up there for a handheld GPS. Granted this does quite a bit more, but most will not need all that. A simpler unit may suffice.

On our last outing had a harsh reminder that I should always take two GPS on every adventure. The laptop had locked up and we went about half a mile off course before I noticed. Normally I have a handheld running to pick up the slack. That was not the case on this trip. Never again. The PN-20 is now onboard the truck. SporTrak Pro on the bike and the Maxx has the Crossover.

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 9:22 am

Brule, Are you loading the maps thru the PN 20 or a card reader? It should have come with a USB card reader. Much faster than through the unit itself.

Post by **HenryJ** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 11:25 am

Card reader. Actually I just pop the SD card into the laptop. I can not imagine the frustration using the GPS unit itself for transfers.

The map files are huge. Aerial and Sat data are close to useless. The Topo files are not detailed enough around here. They are off quite a bit too. USGS maps are nice though.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 1:16 pm

I didn't read all the replys here, but heres my experiance.

Had a magellan SporTrak Map. Damn fine GPS. I somehow managed to crack the plastic screen on it, (just the case not the actual display) while on my jet ski one day. Still worked great.

I decided to upgrade to, at the time, top of the line Super Fancy Garmin 60C with geocaching features.

It has a nice display and all, but this sucker sucks. about 65% of the time, it takes forever to get a signal in the middle of a parking lot. If your in the woods with leafs on, forget about it. my old Magellan would keep singal every where. For it to loose its signal I had to be in some THICK THICK woods. Heck, a bird flying over head seems to mess with my Garmin's signal.

My 60C has basic maps, I wanted to get more detailed topo, and driving maps for it, but after seing its performance, i never did. I did use it to drive to the beach once with the built in maps. It told me to take one exit, i knew was wrong so i didnt, but the gps put your right back on the interstate like 2 miles later too. The other time it had me take the WEST exit, when I needed the EAST exit. I didn't pay attention, plus my wingman (girlfriend) wasnt much help...

I am really interested in the newest Garmin line of GPS. But after my experiance im leary of spending $400+ on another garmin product.... Im not sure what magellan is doing these days, but I rarely see any of their products any more?

Oh, and by the way, if you loose your GPS in the woods, the company cant locate it for you, it only recieves info. lol. Ill just say, I spent many hours, grid searching till I found it, lmao! BUY A LANYARD OF SOME TYPE FOR IT! lol.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 1:20 pm

HenryJ wrote:That one looks really good. It has everything that I look for in a good GPS (antenna, batteries/bat. life, size)

Cost seems a little high, but that is retail.

I still really like my Magellan SporTrak Pro, and wouldn't go any other way , for a handheld.

Check out this site for reviews before you buy- GPSinformation.net

This Garmin / magellan comparison says lots for Magellan's accuracy I have seen similar results first hand when caching with friends.

If you really don't need the pin point accuracy Garmin's work fine.

I really do like having the handheld and the laptop GPS units. TheDelorme Earthmate USB GPS receiver is an exceptional value.

What ever you decide to get, make sure that you get a cradle and car adapter. Snapping it in for trips is the only way to go. The batteries will last a much longer time.

After posting, I saw your reply Brule, pretty much my experiance, and I owned both brands, like I said above. I kinda wish I hadn't sold my old sportrak map.

border man · Post by **border man** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 2:22 pm

I use the Garmin 60Csx and I have to disagree with Vitles. I'm a professional people hunter, and I can attest to Garmin's accuracy and ruggedness. We patrol a vast desert area (look it up on Google, Sasabe, AZ to Lukeville, AZ side to side and clear up past Interstate 10) I've used both the 60 and the Etrex Vista and have not been lost. I've also used the sport trak and have nothing bad to say. Topo maps are a must out here. Like Brule, I also carry a backup(etrex) in my camelback at all times.

fallvitals · Post by **fallvitals** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 3:20 pm

Wanna trade?

Maybe i got the "runt" of the "litter" but I have never been satisfied with mine.

I especially love it, when i got hiking and I check the odometer and other things after a few miles to see my max speed was 90+ mph and I have traveled 10X as far as i have so far

My old sportrak never did crazyness like that.

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 7:57 pm

HenryJ wrote:.............The map files are huge...............

You are gonna have to learn about "cutting" map files from their forum.

Once you get that down pat, you can teach me.

jedthrocornpone · Post by **jedthrocornpone** » Fri Jul 03, 2009 10:54 pm

My vote is for Garmin 60Csx only unit I've been able to pick up and use everything I needed without touching the manual (ROUTING/WAYPOINTS/TRIP COMPUTER/GEOCACHING)

Ive never had issues with accuracy with my 60Csx and I've got well over 60,000 miles on it.

The old etrex I had before it had just over 50k on it when I moved up, the accuarcy on the etrex was a little ruff in the woods if the tree cover was thick but i've had no problems with the 60CSX