What would be the best GPS?

I just upgraded my Legend to the Garmin GPSmap 60Cx.

Color screen, expandable memory, more sensitive antenna, USB data transfer, longer battery life.

It is an excellent rig to mount on the ATV or snowmobile, or to have out hiking.
 
Really depends on what you want it for--

I just have a little garmin geko that I take hunting and its really all I need. Just something to mark a spot in the bush and make the return trip to the same spot quick and easy...
 
i have an explorist 200 i just picked up at wally world for 179 seems to work decently enough around the city havent had it in the bush yet though
 
I've got a Garmin etrex vista (non-color) that does everything I need.

On a side note (and hopefully not a hijack) is there much benefit to enabling WAAS in Canada?
 
WAAS helps to get more accuracy out of your unit, I don't think most people will need that in the bush, and some units like my e-trex use more battery when it's enabled.

MG what kind of money are you looking to spend. An e-trex will cost a little over $100 and the high end units are in the $600 range!!
 
Steeleco said:
WAAS helps to get more accuracy out of your unit, I don't think most people will need that in the bush, and some units like my e-trex use more battery when it's enabled.

!
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how do you disable it then ?
 
SignGuy said:
how do you disable it then ?
Click to expand...

I've never used an explorist - but it should be under the "setup" menu.

WAAS = wide area augmentation system.

I've never found my GPS's to be more/less accurate with it enabled/disabled. Do know that it drains the battery quicker.

WAAS Disabled it is then.
 
In my e-trex owners manual, it states that the batteries are good for 20hrs, and with the "power saving" option set to "On" the WAAS is disabled and the batteries last 24hrs.

I too didn't find much accuracy differance either on or off!!!
 
I think the Garmin Rino 120s are good units for hunters, assuming that your partner(s) have one. They have built in 2-way radios and a "peer position" feature where your partner's position will show up on your GPS. Garmin units seem to be very user friendly for first time users.
 
For what it's worth, WAAS is a DGPS "beacon" that essentially broadcasts GPS error correction from several points in the US. It is run by the US government and the signals don't really reach anywhere in Canada so it is a defunct feature up here. If you can recieve WAAS, it can give you you handheld GPS unit sub 5m accuracy and even sub-metre accuracy if you are close enough to a beacon location. So, you might as well disable it and save battery power.
 
Magnum gurly said:
I am looking for one as a gift but haven't got a clue. So which one do the hunters here use and recommend?
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I would say stick with Garmin. Great product, great support. You kind of need to go through the staggeringly long list of available features out there and pick one that has everything you want at a price you're comfortable with. Pretty much all Garmins will have the exact same GPS capabilities & quality. It is the features that diferentiate the models.
 
I chose Magellan Explorist 400. Awesome GPS.

Very few have expansion media - get a unit that takes an SD card.

f7
 
True, the most basic model is all you need to go out and back to the truck or camp etc.

As mentioned above, it depends upon what you want to spend or do with it.

However, the more you can spend (up to a certain point) the easier it is to use, see, and navigate under a wider variety of situations. My blue Etrex Legend (b+w screen) served me very well for years, and did everything I needed. But I was blown away by the larger and brighter color screen of the 60Cx! I can mount it on the handle bars of the ATV and easily see it while riding.

The smaller legend was a breeze to use one-handed the way the controls were laid out, which made it nicer while hiking - but my current unit's buttons are way easier to operate while mounted on the ATV.

With expandable memory, (some don't have that capability) you can load lot of topo maps etc. into it.
For me, this is the ideal unit for my purposes... there's so much out there, it requires a lot of research to find the right one.
 
Ive owned both Garmin and Magellan and would have to say I prefer the Magellan for what I use a GPS for.
I picked up a Magellan Explorist 300 for $120 at Wal-Mart. The unit is small, water proof, gives me 3 meter accuracy (enough to find my tree stand) and best of all it has a real time compass, temperature reading and pressure readings. No way you could get that in a Garmin for that price as far as I know.
The unit is great if your looking to use it for hunting and fishing but would look at the Explorist 600 if you want the "top of the line" color, weather, and detailed city and road maps.

Cheers!!
 
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The best GPS is probably the most expensive one within reason. The more expensive you go, the more features and the better the features. I have a cheap $200 one and it's not even a colour screen or have streetmaps but it works
 
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