Hand Help GPS

[JimmyFlynt]

The girl asked what i wanted for my bday coming up this week and at first i had said a winch and than thought she would be better off to get me a hand held gps for the quad trips. question is what is the best one out there and why? i would like to have the abbilty to download maps and what not - new to the gps and still learning about them so any info or thoughts would be great.

thanks

 

[Snowdin]

I just bought a Garmin Dakota 10 couple days ago. I'm liking it quite a bit. It is touch screen and quite user freindly. Also very compact. Garmin Dakota 10 (GPSCity.ca)

 

[JaySimon]

Garmin seems to be the go-to brand. I personally have an eTrex Legend. I dig it a whole bunch. It allows me to do what I need. the basemap is useless however, so be prepared to buy a topographic map if you go that route. That software is 200$ (more then I paid for the gps).
Mine can track where you have been, set waypoints, and all that fancy stuff. It has helped me out of the bush on a few occassions while hiking.

The only thing I would do different would be a colour screen and a stronger attenae. Perhaps removable memory (I can see loading maps onto a few cards for the areas you frequent.) But other than that stuff, I am super happy with mine.

 

[iamcanadian]

I've got a Garmin CX60 and absolutely love it... color screen, easy to use, but very versatile. I can use it quading, x-country skiiing or hiking. It never loses signal and is a pretty tough little unit. Got it for $300 last fall at Wholesale Sports.

 

[TylerG]

I have a Garmin Etrex Vista HCX

Color screen, easy to use.

I personally love it.

 

[JimmyFlynt]

thanks guys, also checked out that site and found a few units to go back and check out.

 

[T-GUY1978]

i got a garmin etrex legend cx it has removeable memmory card color screen never loses signal and it takes 2 AA batteries that last for about 18-20 hours wich is nice so i can pack a couple extra and i'm good for the weekend. it does everything make your tracks you can make waypoints everything you need and more i paid about 300 couple years ago. but you will want to get different maps because the base map sucks

 

[Snowdin]

Is anyone using the Topo Canada map? Is it any good?

I've got the Metro Canada map. I use it for my Street Pilot. I just put it on my Dakota 10 and not sure if this is the best map to have for the quad GPS unit.

 

[iamcanadian]

I used Topo Canada... really good for quading, sledding etc, but I found Ibycus software which is free is the same as Topo Canada and it includes cutlines as well (very handy for quading). Unfortunately you can't download it anymore because it's about 3GB, but you can download it using BitTorrent, which I am totally unfamiliar with, but if you are, I would recommend the software

 

[Sleeper700]

I would recommend any of the Etrex handheld GPS with the High Sensitivity Receiver in them. The "Legend H" is a basic non-color unit that is cheap and works well, but doesn't have much memory and uses a serial connection to communicate with your computer for waypoint, track, and route downloads/uploads. The "Legend HCx" is a color version of the same GPS, but it has a MicroSD card slot, and USB connectivity. This is probably the best bang for buck GPS out there (other than a refurbished Vista HCx). The "Vista HCx" is the same as the Legend HCx, but it has a built in electronic compass and altimiter. I personally don't need these features because the Legend has a compass that works when you move, and my sled (xp) has a built in altimiter. If you look at the older models, they won't have the "H" in the model name, and the receiver is not as good. It isn't horrible, but if you want to rely on your tracks to get you out of a fog, the more sensitive the better. I also like the accuracy for when I download the tracks to the computer. I use Garmin Mapsource and Google Earth to check them out.

 

[JimmyFlynt]

i just picked up a Garmin eTrex Legend HCx today. seems pretty user friendly but i am new to these. is there anythin else i would need? download some other maps or buy them or something?

 

[Snowdin]

i just picked up a Garmin eTrex Legend HCx today. seems pretty user friendly but i am new to these. is there anythin else i would need? download some other maps or buy them or something?

Download the free Basecamp software on the Garmin site. It's a nice program.

 

[carter.c]

garmin etrex does everything i need it to do, nothing too fancy and not too expensive.

 

[Sofa king]

I bought a garmin 60csx and the discover canada topo map, thanks to the input i got off the helpful peeps on snow and mud. I am very happy with it. It has turned my magellan into a paper weight.