GPS survey

[Keith W]

The new Google Earth GPS feature and the gpsbabel software I've been messing with got me wondering what kind of GPS the rest of you use, so I'm starting an informal survey here. Tell us what kind of GPS you have and what you like and don't like about it.

Pros?
Cons?
Would you recommend it to others?
What king of mapping software do you use?
Any special considerations?

No need to up a full review (as I tend to do). Just your general impressions will be fine!

This could be a good resource for those who haven't yet bought a GPS unit, or who want to upgrade their existing unit, to get an idea of what they should look for when they go to buy one.

[Keith W]

Make and model: Garmin eTrex Legend
Price: about $125 at Best Buy, cheaper online (but you pay for shipping)
Specs: Garmin Website

Pros: I bought this GPS mainly because it was the cheapest waterproof handheld at Best Buy. It is a basic model, no bells or whistles, but it has worked very well for me. It does WAAS. The antenna is internal so it can't break. It has a B/W display and AA alkaline batteries last about 10 hours. Lithium batteries last about 30 hours, or three days of daily use on the trail. It updates about every 15-30 seconds when you're moving and so far has been pretty accurate by my reckoning. I use it mainly for checking speed and distance, not so much for navigation on the water. I'm still old school and prefer my NOAA charts and compass for that.

Cons: Take the 'waterproof' label with a small grain of salt, and try not to get it too wet too often. I'm on my second eTrex. The first one only lasted 4 years because I was pretty hard on it. I dropped it into the water a couple of times where it sat on the bottom for up to a half hour while I tried to fish it back out (it doesn't float), and I used it unprotected in heavy rain on a number of occasions. Some moisture finally worked its way through the seals and condensation started to show up under the display glass. Eventually the little joystick controller that you use to navigate through screen options stopped working. The GPS itself is still functional, I just can't reset the accumulated mileage, change settings, etc. I bought a waterproof floating case (~$12) for the new one so I expect it to last much longer with better care.

Special considerations: The eTrex uses an RS232 serial cable instead of USB to connect to your PC because it would be about impossible to waterproof a USB port. If you don't have a serial com port on your PC you'll need to get an adapter cable if you want to load maps and transfer GPS data to and from your PC. Garmin charges almost $60 for their USB-to-RS232 serial adapter, but I would imagine that any generic adapter cable costing about $20 would work. Most PCs still have a serial port, but many newer laptops don't. The metal serial contacts on the back of the eTrex also need to be cleaned after *every* use, or they will corrode, especially around saltwater. This is job #1 for me on every day of every trip after I get to camp. The drill is to rinse with fresh water, clean off any visible gunk, and dry the contacts and the rubber cover thoroughly.

Software: The eTrex comes with a basic map set already loaded, but this is not suitable for backcountry navigation. I load my eTrex with the US Topo 24K National Parks East map set, currently about $60 at Amazon.com. I am able to load the entire set of BCNP and ENP quads with plenty of memory to spare. Garmin also has a more general USA Topo map set, but these are 100K maps and are not nearly as accurate or detailed as the 24K quads. They also sell their Bluechart nautical chart sets at a premium price, and you might want these for general boating, but I haven't seen any need for these for hiking or paddling.

Recommend: Yes, if you want an inexpensive and dependable GPS that does the basics without a lot of bells or whistles. It's a reasonably rugged unit if you don't abuse it the way I did mine.

[Daniel Fineberg]

I don't have one yet but I'm looking.

[vivian]

I use an old Etrex and use a chart or aerial image /compass as my main navigational tool. The GPS is only used to confirm strategic waypoints along the way.

[Glenn Charles]

I had the Delorme PN-40 and have now gone through 2 of them. They are very unreliable in the 'wet water' environment caused by kayaking or canoeing. Their mapping service and software, Topo USA, while a little difficult to use, is definitely an added bonus and is the main reason I got a second unit after the first died. However, now that I have gone through two of them, I can't recommend them at all.

[Juan Estevez]

I own a Garmin Etrex Venture HC, it is my first GPS so I have nothing to compared with. This unit has mapping which is extremely convenience, you can actually see where you going and where you’re at. I downloaded the free Florida map and I find it very accurate; first I plotted my upcoming trip on the chart (41) and to MapSource afterwards and it seem accurate enough. Also very rarely it loses the signal, not even under heavy trees. The color display is very readable, even under bright sunlight..

Keep in mind that this unit is intended for hikers but works as well for boaters. Some people have reported corrosion from salt water in the battery compartment even though Garmin says it is waterproof. I keep mind in a DryPak at all times and so far after two years still looks and works like new.

What I don’t like?
- The LCD screen is on the small side.
- The polarized glasses that I wear while paddling darken the screen when holding the unit sideways not a Garmin fault I think.
- I find the included MapSource application a bit outdated, it need more features.
- Battery life is only 14 hours, other units offer up to 30hrs.
- The built-in base map has almost no details; you have to buy the maps.

My take is that this unit makes an excellent backup for your charts and compass, this GPS will not show you that numerous shoals, depths and buoys; I don’t know if there is one that does; but I don’t leave home without it.

Juan

[Esther Luft]

I went with the PN-30, similar version but no altimeter or electronic compass.

Pros:
-- Map layering is great. I can switch from charts (I define details of what I want), aerials, topo, sat images, extremely easily.
-- Decent battery life, over 20 hrs on lithium batteries, without layering turned on, less if switching around a lot.
-- Nice display, easy to read and mark waypoints and routes on the fly.
-- Unit will read SDMMC up to 32GB

Cons:
-- I too had issues with saltwater exposure. Two of the screws rusted within a month, the rest were fine.
-- The terminals on the back of the unit corroded quickly (they should be covered). DeLorme did send me an immediate replacement.
-- My biggest gripe, they failed to load tides for the Everglades! How can you sell a device in area you don't support. Apparently they are now working on it.
-- It would not read my 4GB SDHC card. Must use SDMMC (no encryption).
-- Uploading charts is slow.

Their software is a little cumbersome but works well overall.

If they resolve the rust/corrosion issue, upload speed from their site, made it more compatible with third party apps, and loaded the tide tables, I would recommend it. Today, I would not.

[Swamp Hunter]

My first GPS was the $99 yellow Garmin etrex. I like the side buttons in that the etrex handheld units can be used with one hand, (thumb and fingers). It allowed me to mark waypoints but that was about it. Every turn in direction has to be marked as it will only tell you beeline directions and it needs to be used with a compass. But it served its purpose and still works fine.

I moved up to the etrex VISTA HCx and what a difference!! I bought it on sale for $219 at Bass Pro Shops. With the electronic compass it tells me if I wander 10 feet off a winding hiking trail within seconds. Its simply amazing. I strongly urge getting a unit with the electronic compass for hiking. I can retrack my steps whether I mark waypoints or not. The only drawback I can see is the curser seems like a weak point. Im afraid it will eventually break if Im not careful.

After reading Keith's story, Ive decided to use mine in a waterproof container every trip from now on. I use an empty M258A1 personal decontamination kit container from military surplus. It attaches to a belt. It will also protect the curser.

My Garmin Vista HCx came with a USB cable but I havent learned how to use it yet.

[Kim Gass]

I just emerged from the dark ages and bought a Garmin Dakota, As the supplied map sucks, I got a free upload from http://www.gpsfiledepot.com/ and uploaded the Florida map confining my upload to the Everglades. It seems to have the campsites accurate.

The Dakota has an electronic compass. I do use an Aqua Pak for it as well as cameras. Having battery corrosion from a past Glades trip I dont want to risk losing another.

http://www.thewaterproofstore.com/softcases.html

[Swamp Hunter]

Great link Kim. Im coming out of the dark ages myself and I would like to put that map into my GPS before I take my first Everglades canoe trip. Do I need to buy the optional microSD card for my etrex vista to load this?

[vivian]

I have been testing the TOPO from gpsfiledepot on various trips. I just completed the circumnavigation of Whitewater Bay and spent two days up near Cane Patch exploring. The TOPO I downloaded to use on my Garmin 60csx worked very well. I also brought my Bluecharts on a separate microSD card to compare. One of my paddling partners had the Garmin TOPO on his GPS.

Results from using in the Northern section from Chokoloskee to Picnic Key and from Chokoloskee to Chatam River back. Hells Bay trail to all of Whitewater Bay. Was very accurate compared to my downloaded aerial charts from Google and TerraServer. I also went to Fisheating Creek on a paddle trip and the TOPO was handy there as well. Unfortunately the Big Cypress backpacking trip showed no trails or roads that we had been using for many years. So will not recommend for the FL Trail.

Have not had a chance to check the middle rivers section of the E Glades.

Kim, if you are coming down to FL and doing some of our lakes and rivers...download all of the state it will come in handy.

BTW: I used to own the ETrex for training and waypoint confirmation. The mapping GPS is a very good tool especially exploring the Hells Bay areas where map and compass is quite challenging. I am interested in the lakes and ponds away from the main trail to find new fishing areas. With the aerial maps and the mapping GPS using the tracking feature leaves me with less stress to fish and explore. Highly recommend learning all that your unit can do to take advantage of the technology.

I also keep mine in a waterproof case....

[Kim Gass]

I will download the entire state..I really dont know anything about the Vista . The Dakota has 850 mb of internal storage. I think I will put the state on a separate SD card. I have no idea of how to tell how much memory the entire state takes. Any one know?

Put me in the category of no GPS expertise..other than my past experiences of using the Gecko to verify I was sitting in the mangrove I thought I was.

[vivian]

I use a 2 gig card and have the entire state on it. If you use the Mapsource tool to pick which areas you want to use, the information on size of file is displayed as you click on each section.