GPS Devices Life

Rugged all-around GPS - Garmin eTrex® Handheld GPS Receiver I bought my eTrex in 2000 and it is still going strong. The built-in features give you good navigation tools with ...

Etrex and suitable software - Garmin eTrex® Handheld GPS Receiver Check out Gartrip from http://www.gartrip.de/ It triples the usability of the Etrex in my humble opinion. With i...

I recently took a 3 week trip to Belize. While I was there I decided that I wanted to do some GeoCaching(http://www.geocaching.com/) and decided to pick up a cheap GPS that would be small but have the features required to get me to my waypoints and log locations while I was in Belize for later overlay onto digital topo maps.

The etrex seemed like a good choice. $89.99 with a tiny form-factor and memory for 300 or so waypoints.

It was the perfect GPS for my needs. I successfully used it to locate 3 GeoCaches in Belize as well as log waypoints from Tikal in Guatemala to isolated spots on San Pedro up in Ambergris Caye.

This unit consistently achieved about 30 feet of accuracy although I had gotten it down to 12 feet in one circumstance and had also seen it settle at 75 feet in the jungle canopy. The 30 feet of accuracy is more then suitable for my needs.

Battery life is exceptional. I used mine on a daily basis for 3 weeks and the batteries are still almost like new. I do not use the backlight though and I imagine that would destroy the batteries fairly quickly.

Would I recommend this GPS unit? Yes, for the amateur GPS user. Will I be upgrading soon? Yes, and this unit will be handed down to my father for use on his boat.

Why am I upgrading?

1) The ‘Tracks’ memory is entirely to small. You have to continually save your track and then reset it on longer trips. I am a nerd and like to have a graphical map of my trip so I can throw it on a topo map and say ‘Gee, look where I went’.

2) The ‘update’ is a bit to slow to refresh. If you are not actually moving it won’t refresh at all! An example of this is : While trying to find a way point you move in a circle to try to get the GPS to orientate you. It doesn’t do anything! You must walk in a straight line to get this unit to update its screen so you can begin navigating. Maybe all GPS’s do this, I do not know but I will check for it before my next purchase. This is VERY ANNOYING, especially in tight spaces.

Paired with the ExpertGPS software that I downloaded (http://www.expertgps.com/) and the PC interface cable I bought ( buy an aftermarket cable on ebay for $5, don’t spend $30 on the OEM cable ) I have what I was looking for on this initial GPS excursion. Waypoints, topo map capabilities, PC upload/download capabilities and the ability to GeoCache. To take it to the next level an upgrade will be required however.

You can view my waypoints, topo maps and read about my other experiences on this trip in regards to this GPS unit at http://www.siberian.org/

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