Let's talk GPS

Started by mecnc, December 02, 2010, 00:48:02 AM

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mecnc

My sources tell me I may be getting one for Christmas.  What do you guys like/dislike?

diaz dassie

I consider mine the essential tool to mess about in places that arent frequented by many. If youre die hard bluelining, get yourself a Garmin Oregon 400T. It is the shit, no lie. I have had no problems and had it for close to a year. Its water/shock proof, has a nice big color touch screen and saves all kinds of info (whic I should really strat using so I don't have to waste time tackling a creek from a different entry point. It truly is regal in it's department.
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I got mine off ebay last Xmas for $320.00, don't waste the extra 200 and get the 550T that thing has a camera built into it and a gyroscope (wtf???).

Al

A lot of the new SmartPhones have a GPS built in - Do any of you guys have them and if so, how do they compare to a stand alone GPS??

dnakamoto

Al the problem with the smart phones is that they don't have preloaded maps.  There are apps out there for them but you either have to have an internet connection to access maps or be good at planning ahead to download specific maps.  Too much work for me especially when the phones aren't waterproof or shock resistant. 

Woolly Bugger

Quote from: Transylwader on December 02, 2010, 00:58:46 AM

---  that thing has a camera built into it and a gyroscope (wtf???).

it keeps you going straight after drinkin' all those Cold Mountains...
ex - I'm not going to live with you through one more fishing season!
me -There's a season?

Pastor explains icons to my son: you know like the fish symbol on the back of cars.
My son: My dad has two fish on his car and they're both trout!

Peddler

I've been through a couple Garmins but really like the rig Bamboo10 uses.
He has the Delorme PC software and small handheld unit. He can up and download between both so he gets down to heavy detail on his trips before he even gets on the road. Besides streets and street routing the software had full 3D topo capability to give you a very good idea of the terrain you're going  to encounter.
I have the Delorme software and an old-school GPS reciever that gives me live mapping but only through a laptop. Gary's little handheld Delorme GPS is the bomb.
The early bird may get the worm,
but the second mouse gets the cheese.

phg

My etrex Legend HCx is an antique, but yeah, it's invaluable.  With city Navigator I can find my way around civilization, and then switch to topo when I park the car and start hiking.  It's shockproof and waterproof, and runs 18hours continuously on 2 AA batteries.  That charge will last me a full week, if I use it judiciously, but I always carry a couple of spare batteries.

Always check the batteries and battery life figures.  Proprietary batteries can get very expensive, and short battery life can be a major concern.  After that, though, get the biggest screen you can.  Mine is really too small, but it's what they had back in the dark ages.  Also, check what maps come with the unit and what it's going to cost for additional maps.  For mine, the maps cost nearly as much as the unit did to begin with.

Jack had that mapping software with him at Left Behinds last month.  That is really cool software. 

mecnc

Thanx for the responses. I want the a handheld unit I can take it in the woods and use in the car. It sounds like I'll have to buy added software to make that happen.

Woolly Bugger

ex - I'm not going to live with you through one more fishing season!
me -There's a season?

Pastor explains icons to my son: you know like the fish symbol on the back of cars.
My son: My dad has two fish on his car and they're both trout!

Peddler

Quote
I've just got a 2-year old Garmen Nuvi for the car...

My Jeep came with a neat GPS. The asshats at Navteq who does the software for many OEM GPS units wants present users to subsidize their venture. They do the road software for Garmin yet want $200.00 to upgrade the software in my ride. I can get an entire Garmin unit, download the voice of a hottie getting off as the navigator and have free software upgrades for years for less than the bastiges at Navteq want for a simple software upgrade.
Navteq can eat my dirty shorts.  Guests are not allowed to view images in posts, please Register or Login

Thank goodness for accidents and Ebay!
The early bird may get the worm,
but the second mouse gets the cheese.

Woolly Bugger

Peddler my main complaint with the Nuvi was that I only got one Free Update... I had to pay $$$ for unlimited upgrages.. and they still have the speed limit wrong on I-81....
ex - I'm not going to live with you through one more fishing season!
me -There's a season?

Pastor explains icons to my son: you know like the fish symbol on the back of cars.
My son: My dad has two fish on his car and they're both trout!

dnakamoto

Woolly ... They must have heard that enough from their customer base because they are now offering models with lifetime traffic and maps.

troutphisher

Quote from: Al on December 02, 2010, 06:28:38 AM
A lot of the new SmartPhones have a GPS built in - Do any of you guys have them and if so, how do they compare to a stand alone GPS??


AL,

I have the new blackberry torch, and it has an app for a GPS system from AT&T. It will work in a selected areas, if the signal is strong. The torch has signal rate of 3g, but thats only with full signal reception, which is not that often. Its slower most of the time, and typically takes around 40-50 seconds to download a web page.
There might be better apps out there, but I'm too cheap to buy them, especially when I have Tom Tom in the car already.

In comparison to a Tom Tom, it falls far short. The Tom Tom has its issues to, like not knowing a one way street in Jackson Missi-shiti, but I suspect Jackson is not one of the high priority destinations for most breathing people.

That being said, the Tom Tom does have free update options and you can correct errors on their web site.
One of the features I do like with Tom Tom, is it will self update on your input routes.

Case in point:

I asked Tom Tom to give me the fastest route from home to route 26 SC. It had the usual main roads to get there, but I knew of a shorter route via a frontage road. I drove it  once, and Tom Tom updated its self and now picks this route as the fastest.

For the money, I have no complaints with TT.
The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane.

phg

Cellphone GPS uses triangulation off cell phone towers.  A dedicated GPS uses satellites.  I suspect that i n most remote locations, the satellites are more reliable....

I got mine through MegaGPS, http://www.megagps.com/index.aspx They have some pretty good prices on refurbs and upgrades.  Of course, once you purchase from them, you get daily spam from them....

Peddler

Quote from: phg on December 04, 2010, 13:16:06 PM
Cellphone GPS uses triangulation off cell phone towers.

Which sucks even more if you have a cell phone service with shitty coverage like ATT.  /"\
The early bird may get the worm,
but the second mouse gets the cheese.