Community Newsletter: Q&A forum: 11/3/06 I'm lost about what GPS unit I should get

I use the serial output (NMEA compliant) to feed into Microsoft's Map Point. Mine came with the RS232 DB9 cable, which could be modded to fit your application.

There are other eTrex model which have serial output as well:

http://www.garmin.com/products/etrexLegend/

I was an officier chopper pilot amd squadron leader of one chopper squadron i been serving with the UNITED NATIONS PEACE KEEPING 11 YEARS in 1989-90 durinc a mision with the United nation peace keeping i ben testing one of the first GPS the brand was MAGELLAN that gps gave to us a very big help in the desert were as you know storm of sand make the tactical fly very dangerius and blid. AND IN iraq STORM WAS FREQUENTLY
I got now my car (toyota land cruiser sahara)with a built in GPS in two years i been using it ones or twice i do not see the need to use a GPS in a city, i live in sydney big citu nut is impossible to lose the way as in any city in the world, her in australia when i drive in the country it is just one long way stright so GPS are not a very big need just to let peoples spend money for something that most of them did not use i use to say DEAR OLD PAPER MAP HOW NICE YOU ARE
Mario

I have a Garmin i3 and I'm quite happy with it. This unit is identical to the i5 except you have to load the maps yourself from the included DVD using a computer. You save about $75 because of that. The unit is very small (about the size of a tennis ball) so it is quite easy to mount using the included windshield suction device. It's very accurate, simple to use, and easy to transport to other vehicles. It can run on either two AA batteries or the included cigarette lighter adapter. Using the batteries lets you use it out of the car. And the key part for me was the price--$250 from an online retailer. No, it doesn't announce the actual street names (just the distance) but that really doesn't seem to be a problem. A quick glance at the screen and comfirms the actual street name. Love it...

First on price - I wanted a simple unit that would give me instructions on how to get from A to B and which would redirect me when I got lost. I didnt want host of extras like MP3 players and wanted something highly portable between different vehicles It seemed to me that the little garmin streetpilot i3 would give me all I want at a sensible price (under 100)

I have to say I have been very pleased with the unit itself and at that sort of price I dont feel the need to hide it away everytime I leave the car. It gets me where I want most of the time which is fine by me.

Two niggles
First tt can occasionally be slow to initially find the sattelites sometimes taking more than 3-4 minutes before it "acquires a better signal" - however I dont know what is normal to expect - this is not a big problem however the second is:

Recently my unit told me that the map was more than a year old and to BUY an update from the garmin website. I object to the concept of "buying" an update inside the first year or ownership but that aside nowhere on the Garmin website could I find a uk update for the i3. Also support requests to Garmin appear to slip into a black hole!

My verdict is that while garmin provide a sturdy low price model their support is woefully lacking. If anyone knows where to download the right map update please respond.

It is a pity that you cant buy maps for many other countries as I regularly visit Thailand and this unit is small and light to carry around - however any kind of map (in english) covering thailand seems impossible to find - surely by now the whole world should be mapped?

I had a similar experience with my GPSMAP 60CSx unit. For some reason when I changed batteries, the unit wouldn't start and there was a burned area near the center of the LCD. I contacted Garmin and had a replacement unit in two days! Being a techie, I was curious about what happened - but never heard.

I use my 60CSx for geocaching, driving maps, and also tracking progress in the air while flying on commercial airlines (it works when you hold it up to the window). It has to be the best all around GPSR that I have seen. They even make kits for mounting it in your car or on a motorcycle.

It also has an extra sensitive antenna system. So if you use it while hiking, it gets better reception under clouds or a canopy of trees. Otherwise, I have noticed that the accuracy typically is as good as 10 feet or better - depending on conditions.

For a little extra money, the Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx is the best solution for a multipurpose need.

Before you really decide what you need, you have to decide where you are going to use it, what bells and whistles you want and how much you want to spend. Buying a GPS is much like going out and buying a computer, you can get a base model with little in the way of bells and whistles for a reasonable price or you can get the Cadillac model (I just ordered that one) for much more.

From the sounds of it you need to be looking at both the in car models and the handheld models. The difference is that one basically will stay in your car and the other you can carry out on the trail, geocaching or on a bike ride with you. My personal preference would be the handheld model because you can get them to do everything an in car model will do and you can easily take it with you on the run. Also it sounds like Mapping would be needed in any model you look to purchase. Here are some suggestions (Warning I'm a Garmin Man):

AS a base mapping model that will give you autorouting (the option that tells you where you need to go), I would suggest a Garmin Legend C. The Legend C (What I have now) will give you the autorouting you need color screen, non-voice prompts (it beeps at you) and comes with 24Mb for map storage (we will talk about the maps in a minute). If the screen size of the Legend C is not big enough (was always fine for me) you can look to the GPSMAP 60C for simular options and a slightly larger screen. The 24Mb of memory on the Legend C has never really been a problem for me and I use the unit everywhere I go.

If you feel you want more memory, you can look to the Legend Cx or the 60Cx (x meaning expandable memory). This will basically give you the same as the Legend C (there were some improvements made in the x models) but able to expand the memory to about 2Gb if you wish by way of a MicroSD card.

The Cadillac version would be the Legend CSx or the 60 CSx. The S denotes Sensors. These units come with all the options that the other models above have, but also have sensors to measure Barametric Pressure and have an electronic Compass. I know you are asking, "but a GPS is a navigation system why would it not have a compass?". Well most GPS units use the signal they recieve to determine where you are, if you are moving and the direction and speed you are going, when you stop you can turn the GPS around and it may not show you have turned, the electronic compass will.

Now there are other units available from other suppliers, and even more from Garmin, but I wanted to give you some options based on what I know and have used.

Now for the Maps. Generally you would have to purchase the maps from the supplier of the GPS. Many come with some maps, but in order to get good detail, you may have to purchase more. Personally I have Metroguide Canada and Topo Canada. If you don't do much in the woods, the Topo will not be needed, however if you do it's well worth it. The MetroGuide (versions also available for the US as well as other mapping programs) will give you the city and street level maps and also give you the turn by turn directions you are looking for. These maps can be used both on your computer and on the GPS and you can load groups of maps into the GPS to suite your needs based on where you will be travelling. Personally I have a standard set of maps that I usually have loaded, but if I'm travelling outside of my usual area, I may load different or additional maps.

Again you will need to consider what you really want, and if you want to see some demonstrations, try to see if there is local Geocaching Association in your area, often Geocachers know the ins and outs of their systems and other systems, and are usually more than willing to bring you out and show you how they work.

Joe

I have a E TREX about the size of a large Nokia cell phone. Not a high end, under $100.00, but has backtraking capabilities. Will get you in and get you out. But remember in the deep forest, like here in say the Olympic mts, you might not get out to the satellite's.

Ewald

The Garmin Streetpilot i2, i3 and i5 are probsbly the cheapest and simplest units out there. They work great. While primarily for vehicle use, they do run on batteries and can be used on foot. Unfortunately, their ball-like shape doesn't make for easy pocket use. Better for that would be something like the Garmin 350 or 360. Those are about the size of deck of cards, but are a lot more expensive...

What I meant to say is Hiker's GPS w/o map displays can be had for under $100. They usually just have coord display and path logs, and route headings, but it won't be any graphical displays.

The next step up would be the "hybrid GPSs" that has all of the hiker GPS features, but includes a small B&W graphical display that includes some maps, although not very detailed. Those would go up to $300.

THEN we go into the auto-GPSs that has the color, the voice prompts, etc.

I kinda lumped the first two together in the primer.

I owned a TomTom Go but returned it. Found that the maps were at least five years out-of-date. Some roads in my home city that were completed six to seven years ago were not included with the device, and there was no way to update them. I suggest that you purchase a device that can receive downloadable map updates. Otherwise, the GPS may tell you that you are in the middle of a field when you are actually on a paved road with houses, apartments, businesses, and churches. Does anyone know of a GPS that has this capability?

I have a NUVI 350, and it does have a few map mistakes. I notice it all the time because it is on my last turn to my house!. The map shows it correctly, but the voice tells me to turn in the opposite direction where ther is no street. Also, I have some other wrong directions/map mistakes, minor but can be frustrating in a new city.

Where exactly did you find the updates to the Maps on Garmin site? And Free?

We go to:
http://www.garmin.com/support/collection.jsp?product=010-00357-03

I hope this helps.
We have noticed a few glitches on ours too, some new roads that were not there when we went to Florida the first year were there the next year and it kept telling us to turn where there was NO road!!!
Most times it is a life saver though, like going through Atlanta and Cincinatti.

Hi. I know your post is over a year old, and I remember somewhere that I got the free update for my maps on the STREET PILOT 2720 (discontinued now), but since the GARMIN site is geared toward buying stuff, it's difficult to locate the 'free' maps updates. Would you remember where they are? I know that Garmin didn't want me to buy this (then) $720 machine so I can buy an additional map every year for over $130.
Thank you,
Rick

So many people have been replying to this thread by giving you a 'techno' view of GPS. In the grand scheme of things, you're a newbie, right? If you want to know about C Lorain you can learn about that later...

So, keep it simple...Some things to note:

1. Every GPS System is only as good as the maps it has avaialable to load. A quiet little secret is that several companies use Navteq maps, so what you're paying for in a device is how a certain company chooses to develop a user interface and the bells and whistles they throw in (ie, do you need a device that can be paired as a Bluetooth interface to your cell phone so your phone conversations can be heard through your GPS device??? Come on now...)

2. Speaking of user interfaces, you can go fancy (large touch screens) or simple (smallish, click-wheel driven). BUT MAKE SURE YOU GET ONE THAT GIVES YOU VERBAL INSTRUCTIONS AND VISUAL CUES ON THE SCREEN! That is quite a nice treat.

3. Decide what kinds of bells and whistles are important to you. Do you need to have the capability of creating routes on your computer that can be uploaded to your GPS? Do you need the capability of creating multiple on-the-fly waypoints for things like errands or stopping at tourist attractions on longer trips as you go along to your final destination?

Once you've decided what you want out of your device, then you can go really, really simple. For example, the Garmin Street Pilot i2 is a device about the size of a baseball, has a monochrome (not color) screenthat measures about 1.8 x 1.8 inches (but is surprisingly readable), and uses a click-wheel for entering destination information. It gives you vocal instructions and point-to-point navigation with no problems. I bought mine for $219 as a gift to my directionally and technologically challenged wife. It took her 10 minutes to get comfy with it, and she uses it all the time. If you like color, the Street Pilot i3 and i5 (the i5 having the entire mapset of North America preloaded onto the device) go for about $245 and $290 respectively.

If you want to go high-tech, there are several devices with plenty of large, touch screens that will make planning trips more fun and more interesting, but they come at a premium of costs (that's where you start to get into the $350 and up price range).

Having said that, keep in mind that most of the maps are updated every 2 years or so, so many new developments may not appear on your device. You will probably want to purchase new maps when they're available for your system, and they'll probably run anywhere from $80 to several hundred dollard based on device and company. As far as trustworthiness goes, from what I hear, you can't really go wrong with Garmin or Magellin. I happened to purchase a Garmin device, but, again, I believe they both use the Navteq maps, so it came to price for me.

Good luck! Once you start using one, you'll wonder why you waited so long

I've personally used Microsoft Streets & Trips on an expidition to find gems.

The street tracking was off by a few feet in some areas of central Ontario - but it was generally good.

The reception was flawless, however. The little GPS unit included was a perfect device for the job.

MS usually picks quality hardware to go with it's software - possibly to make up for shortcomings in that software but that's another issue.

All in all Microsoft Streets & Trips was a great deal for my friend and I'll be picking it up for myself sometime soon I'm sure.