Disciples of Radagast Posted January 2, 2006 Share Posted January 2, 2006 Cheers all...this is my first post! Glad to be here. Question - my wife, son (he's 2 but super active and loves the outdoors) and I are really looking forward to Geocaching, and I have about $200 to drop on a GPS unit ($250 if it's a Magellan with a rebate!), though I won't object to spending less. I'm also a camping/backpacking enthusiast and would LOVE to use my unit for some random backcountry jaunts or daytrips into the wild. Primarily though, this unit would be used for caching. I have no need for car nav, and I don't care about color so long as the monocrhomatic display can do what I need it to. I've read a virtual million posts, and it can all be overwhelming (I've been accused of over-researching the ___ out of technology decisions to the point where I can't decide). So, I could use some advice. Any thoughts?! Thanks all! Quote Link to comment
+Sputnik 57 Posted January 2, 2006 Share Posted January 2, 2006 (edited) In that price range, and leaving out car navigation, I think the Garmin Legend would be your best bet. It's a very good entry level mapping unit, and a very popular choice among cachers. Current street prices are about $150 or so. After you've used it, I would recommend getting Garmin's USA Topo maps for it. There's nothing like having topo info in your hand with real time locations plotted onto it when you are in the woods. The Topo maps can be had for less than $100. I seem to recall that some retailers are offering the Legend with Topo maps and an auto mount bundeled as a package. You may want to check Google, Froogle, or Amazon.com for it. If I'm not mistaken, the comparable Magellan unit right now is the 210, but someone will be along to toute the right Magellan unit to compare. Edit: Forgot to add, Welcome to the recreational activity/sport/hobboy/addiction!! Second Edit: Take a look at this thread contrasting the Garmin Vista (one step up from the Legend--electronic compass and more map memory) and the 210. Edited January 2, 2006 by Sputnik 57 Quote Link to comment
Disciples of Radagast Posted January 2, 2006 Author Share Posted January 2, 2006 Thanks for the reply, Sputnik. Helpful! Funny...those were the two I had in mind (the Legend and the 210). I'm not sure I have a need to drop an extra $100 on the Vista just to get an altimeter, compass, and maybe another one or two whistles. I've got an old fashioned magnetic compass that works beautifully! Question - I've heard that the Garmins (Vistas and Legends - not sure about the higher-end ones) are still built on older and less effective technology whereas the Magellans are more "state of the art." Do you, or anyone, have any intel on this? Cheers! Quote Link to comment
2oldfarts (the rockhounders) Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 We have used the Magellan Meridian Platinum for sevearl years now and find that the Meridian Gold would cover everything we need from a GPSr and it has the advantage of using an SD card for storage. The card offers more storage and using a card reader great speed in loading files to the card. We like the Platinum, but would be very happy with the Gold. John Quote Link to comment
+Redwoods Mtn Biker Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 I've tried to capture a lot of different resources in my GPS reviews to help people make decisions. Or lead to analysis paralysis! Rich Owings www.MakeYourOwnMaps.com www.GPStracklog.com “We were desert mystics, my friends and I, poring over our maps as others do their holy books.” – Edward Abbey Quote Link to comment
+JohnnyVegas Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 The Magellan explorist 210 would be a better choice when compared to the Garmin legend. The explorist 210 has 22MB of memory, the Legend has 8MB of mamory. The Explorist 210 has a more current reciever desing. The explorist 210 will also support autorouting with map send direct route. As far as the price, if you shop around the legend can be found for about $144.00 and the Explorist can be found for about $156.00, for such a small differance the Explorist 210 is a much better deal. As far as topo software, both will cost you a little over $200.00. Quote Link to comment
+Renegade Knight Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 Take a look at the Garmin GPS V. It comes with City Select software, just had a price drop and blows away the Legend. You should be able to find it for right around 200 with some careful shopping (I found 219 in about 30 seconds using Froogle.com) My GPS V has fallen off a truck and skidded down the road. It's a little beat up but the screen is good and it refuses to give me an excuse for a newer GPS. Oh, and using eBay Topo software should come in at about 50 bucks. The City Select software it comes with lets you do AutoRouting right out of the box. No need for extra software like with the Legend and Magellan. You said you don't need this, but it's cool and the GPS is worth 200 without the software so..no problem. Quote Link to comment
+Renegade Knight Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 (edited) ...Question - I've heard that the Garmins (Vistas and Legends - not sure about the higher-end ones) are still built on older and less effective technology whereas the Magellans are more "state of the art." Do you, or anyone, have any intel on this? ... The newer generation of GPS's do tend to get a bit better reception than the older generation. They also have faster processors, USB interfaces (faster loading of maps) and tend to have longer battery life. In what you are looking and of what's been suggested (that I read) only the Explorist line is newer. The Legend C would be Newer as would the 60C and 60CS. However those were not GPSs that you showed an interst in. When I say better receptoin, it's not 'better enough' to have given me a compelling reason to upgrade my GPS. Edited January 3, 2006 by Renegade Knight Quote Link to comment
Eddie20 Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 Anyone care to comment on the Lowrance iFinder H20 in relation to the Legend and Explorist 210?? Quote Link to comment
Disciples of Radagast Posted January 3, 2006 Author Share Posted January 3, 2006 Anyone care to comment on the Lowrance iFinder H20 in relation to the Legend and Explorist 210?? Great info here folks...thanks a lot! I'm afraid the Lowrance iFinder was yet another model that was well touted. Ergo, it's yet another contender. What was it that someone said earier...analysis paralysis?! Sounds to me like any of the ~$200 models are good bets (I'm leaning toward the Magellan, but I'm interested in hearing about the Lowrance), and if one's "love of the game" takes of I suppose s/he can always upgrade! Quote Link to comment
+the hermit crabs Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 In that price range, and leaving out car navigation, I think the Garmin Legend would be your best bet. It's a very good entry level mapping unit, and a very popular choice among cachers. Current street prices are about $150 or so. After you've used it, I would recommend getting Garmin's USA Topo maps for it. There's nothing like having topo info in your hand with real time locations plotted onto it when you are in the woods. The Topo maps can be had for less than $100. I seem to recall that some retailers are offering the Legend with Topo maps and an auto mount bundeled as a package. You may want to check Google, Froogle, or Amazon.com for it. Yes, you can get the Adventure Pack (the Legend with topo maps) for $149.99 at asenashop.com. It doesn't have the auto mount but it does come with the cigarette-lighter adapter cable. Quote Link to comment
Disciples of Radagast Posted January 3, 2006 Author Share Posted January 3, 2006 Eddie - if you're in the market, check this out. It's the Magellan eXplorist 400 for $249.95 before the $50 rebate! That's ~$200 (plus shipping which is only about $8), which is an excellent deal. Think I just made my decision, though I'm not positive. The Magellan Meridian Gold is only $200 and the two units seem comparable. Quote Link to comment
+wilkintj Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 One thing to note on the eXplorist 400 ... it was a model I was looking at briefly, it has a rechargable battery, which could be a plus or a minus. For me, I wanted one that I could take into the bush for week long canoe trips and wanted to have the option of being able to get more juice in the woods by popping in a couple new batteries. That options isn't available for a rechargable unit. Also, I really liked the features of the Sportrak Color, but it seems to be an older / discontinued model and only connected by serial port, and I could only take a usb port. With both of those things said, I settled for the Vista C, which had the USB cable, most of the same functionality of the Sportrak Color, and was around the same price as the Sportrak Color (I believe, I received it as a gift). I think it runs slightly more than $200 depending on what deals you can find, but from what I understand is very similar to the Legend C (minus the compass and altimiter you already mentioned), so if it were me, i'd vote for the Legend. But that's cause I have a Garmin and Garmin's all I've used. Quote Link to comment
+Miragee Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 I would also like to put in my vote for the Vista C, even though it is a bit more money. (Amazon had it for $229.00.) I started out with the monochrome Vista. I liked it, but coveted my friend's Map60CS with its ability to autoroute. That model was out of my price range, and I preferred the smaller size of the Vista C. I also like the fact that it used AA batteries. Last spring, I took a camping trip and thought I was going to have to pack up my tent and get a motel for a night, just so I could charge up my proprietary camera battery and my laptop . . . My Vista C gets a lock more quickly than the monochrome Vista, often finds GZ faster than my friend's Map60CS does, and it is very durable . . . I dropped it from a 200-foot tall boulder on "Lawson 4" and after we negotiated the trail down to where it landed, we found it, still working . . . Quote Link to comment
Disciples of Radagast Posted January 3, 2006 Author Share Posted January 3, 2006 (edited) I would also like to put in my vote for the Vista C Thanks Miragee. How valuable do you all think the elec. compass is on the Vista C compared to the Legend C (which I understand is the same as the Vista C but without compass and altimeter)? I've heard it's flakey and that it's not worth the extra money to get the Vista C over the Legend C if you've no aversion to carrying a good old fashioned magnetic compass (of which I have something like 5). Thanks. Edited to decrease quote size Edited January 3, 2006 by LittleSocrates Quote Link to comment
+Miragee Posted January 3, 2006 Share Posted January 3, 2006 I think the Legend C would be a good choice. However, I like the Altimeter feature of my Vista C and have used the compass feature recently when the cache was located at a specific "magnetic" bearing from a bearing tree. If I had had a compass with me, I could have solved that, but I didn't . . . I don't know what the price difference is . . . but, since you are going to also be purchasing the Mapsource City Select maps -- eventually -- because these units have awesome auto-routing capability, and since you will probably be getting the cigarette lighter adapter and auto mout . . . Well . . . anyway, after spending all that money, what's an extra $50.00 . . . Quote Link to comment
+Alan2 Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 I would also like to put in my vote for the Vista C Thanks Miragee. How valuable do you all think the elec. compass is on the Vista C compared to the Legend C (which I understand is the same as the Vista C but without compass and altimeter)? I've heard it's flakey and that it's not worth the extra money to get the Vista C over the Legend C if you've no aversion to carrying a good old fashioned magnetic compass (of which I have something like 5). Thanks. Edited to decrease quote size Like the last poster said, after you spend money for the GPS, mapping programs, cables, adapters, mounting brackets, etc, another 50 will be well spent for the on=board magnetic compass. Why carry two devices when one integrated unit will work for you?If you think about it, the one device provides position (GPS) and direction (compass). They go together like bacon and eggs. Quote Link to comment
+JohnnyVegas Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 A magnetic compass on a GPS is no big deal when looking for a cache, you would better off putting the extra money toward new hiking boots. Besides unless you hold the GPS level the compass will not be accurate, unless it is a Magellan Meridian Platinum or Explorist 600, those you do nat have to hold level. So there Quote Link to comment
Disciples of Radagast Posted January 4, 2006 Author Share Posted January 4, 2006 I just bit the bullet and got the Magellan Explorist 210 for $150! I figure I can always upgrade down the road if need be, but it should totally suit my needs for now. At that price how can I argue. Thanks, all, for your comments and feedback. See you on the trails! Quote Link to comment
+MagicMan1 Posted January 5, 2006 Share Posted January 5, 2006 You can get the eXplorist 400 here for $229.99 before the $50 rebate. Bob Quote Link to comment
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