need some advice

[muliefanatic]

I am going to buy a gps and wanted to what you guys think. What brand and model do you recommen.

Muliefanatic

 

[TOPGUN]

LAST EDITED ON May-28-12 AT 06:23PM (MST)[p]If you don't need or want one with all the bells and whistles that you can get on them, then you might want to look at the Garmin Legend HCx. I got one several months ago for $153 to my door on Amazon.com and it included the USB cable to hook to the computer for uploading and downloading stuff. It cost me less than the old Legend I replaced and I also bought a Wyoming SD chip for it that shows the land ownership for the entire state. That came with an insert that allows me to also use it in my truck Nuvi.

 

[ToneafterBone]

i have the garmin oregon 450 issued to me for work and really its the show touch screen top of the line garmin is the best brand. you cant go wrong even with an older model like an etrex.. you can buy cards for all makes of gps models now even land ownership maps.. some people say the oregon is hard to use but the more you play with it, the easier it becomes. Go Garmin... Or Trimble $$$$$$$

 

[elkknuckle]

If you have a smart phone consider the app "National Geographic Trail Maps." It has made my garmin etrex obsolete, and it only cost $2.99

 

[UtahMountainMan]

LAST EDITED ON May-29-12 AT 04:22PM (MST)[p]"If you have a smart phone consider the app "National Geographic Trail Maps." It has made my garmin etrex obsolete, and it only cost $2.99"

Do you have to have cell phone reception for that to work though? Where I hunt there is ZERO cell reception so I dont think the smart phone app would work...

"You sure you know how to skin grizz,
pilgrim?"

 

[mozey]

LAST EDITED ON May-29-12 AT 08:40PM (MST)[p]I also tend to hunt areas where there is no cell service available, so I'm not sure how that would work.

If you frequent areas that are private/public land checker boarded and it's important to know which side of the line you're standing at all times, then I would recommend a GPS unit that can download the "HuntingGPSmaps" (Google it for the link).

I use a Garmin Oregon 450 for this purpose and love it, but to me it's much more about the property lines that I can see per the HuntingGPSmap than it is about the GPS unit itself. Probably one of the best hunting investments I've ever made.

 

[jodog]

I have a Garmin Oregon 450T .....Great gps !! I think Cabelas was having a sale on the 450T. Can't go wrong with it.

 

[muliefanatic]

Thanks for the help guys I think I will go with the Oregon 450.

Muliefanatic

 

[two7D]

Garmin is awesome.

 

[jbone]

I have 2 Garmins - an etrex summit and a 60CSx. The 60 is great!!! As for the smartphone, keep your eyes on them....they are going to change the landscape when it comes to GPSs. I have one that I have used for the mapping capability....awesome....does not need cell service to operate. I put it into airplane mode to conserve battery life and use the GPS signal. I use a program called BackCountry Navigator with an addon which shows all property boundaries ($9 compared to the mapping programs and chips for the GPS at $100) - compared it against a buddy's GPS with a chip....no difference. However, they are not mature enough to use them yet in the field (solely). What I mean about maturity is that the cell phone tends to hang at times (not because of the program), and you need to reboot it occasionally - also not as water resistant/proof as the traditional GPS...just don't have the confidence (as related to durability) yet compared to the 60. I have just started to use it in the field with the 60 as a backup. Once the product is mature enough, I will use it solely. I have already ditched my camera for my phone. I am prepping for it now with a solar panel and a 3 AA battery pack. The nice thing is that once they are there (durability/maturity wise), I will be able to reduce my backpack weight by using my phone (no camera, GPS, and I have stuff to read in the field via my phone and games to pass the time when I hunt). My battery pack also does double duty since I have standardized on AA batteries (headlamp) - thus, I am not carrying extra batteries anymore either.....weight conservation is a must when backpacking into areas for days on end..... Just my 2 cents.



JBone

 

[NMPaul]

>I have 2 Garmins - an
>etrex summit and a 60CSx.
> The 60 is great!!!
> As for the smartphone,
>keep your eyes on them....they
>are going to change the
>landscape when it comes to
>GPSs. I have one
>that I have used for
>the mapping capability....awesome....does not need
>cell service to operate.
>I put it into airplane
>mode to conserve battery life
>and use the GPS signal.
> I use a program
>called BackCountry Navigator with an
>addon which shows all property
>boundaries ($9 compared to the
>mapping programs and chips for
>the GPS at $100) -
>compared it against a buddy's
>GPS with a chip....no difference.
> However, they are not
>mature enough to use them
>yet in the field (solely).
> What I mean about
>maturity is that the cell
>phone tends to hang at
>times (not because of the
>program), and you need to
>reboot it occasionally - also
>not as water resistant/proof as
>the traditional GPS...just don't have
>the confidence (as related to
>durability) yet compared to the
>60. I have just
>started to use it in
>the field with the 60
>as a backup. Once
>the product is mature enough,
>I will use it solely.
> I have already ditched
>my camera for my phone.
> I am prepping for
>it now with a solar
>panel and a 3 AA
>battery pack. The nice
>thing is that once they
>are there (durability/maturity wise), I
>will be able to reduce
>my backpack weight by using
>my phone (no camera, GPS,
>and I have stuff to
>read in the field via
>my phone and games to
>pass the time when I
>hunt). My battery pack
>also does double duty since
>I have standardized on AA
>batteries (headlamp) - thus, I
>am not carrying extra batteries
>anymore either.....weight conservation is a
>must when backpacking into areas
>for days on end.....
>Just my 2 cents.
>
>
>
>JBone


Interesting. Change comes hard for me. I have Three 76Cx Garmins. I bought them used for around $135.

I am not recomending them, because I know there is smaller, lighter, better garmins out there, but, they are built like tanks (ran over one with truck, lost one for a week, and slammed one in a truck hatch and they keep on working), and I know where all the buttons are and what they do in the dark.

jbone, that is a good post and I think your right at some point we can do it all with one unit.

Oh, and stop playing video games while your hunting or you will get your phone confiscated.

 

[jbone]

Ya gotta do something while you are sitting water, trails, wallows, etc....

 

[nmtaxi]

I have the Garmin Oregon 550t. Since buying it and adding land owner status maps to it, I don't know how I ever lived without it. It sure takes out a lot of guess work when you're in checkerboard country.

 

[luckless]

Buy a pair of Garmin Rinos. They allow you to "beam" your location to other Rino users. Works AWESOME with a hunting party. I have three and will buy more.

 

[Gator]

Garmin Rhino 530 HCX with the radio and GPS so you can see where you partner is by linking them together. Pretty sweet deal.

"I have found if you go the extra mile it's Never crowded".
>[Font][Font color = "green"]Life member of
>the MM green signature club.[font/]

 

[elkknuckle]

I was very surprised to find that this app works great even with no bars. It actually updates more frequently than my gps

 

[bassinhunter]

I'm selling a Garmin GPS v its an few years old but it was never used I have all the accessories and a video showing how to use it pm me if you or anyone is interested

 

[deadon]

I have a Delorme PN-60. The GPS unit is great. The only drawback is that it takes a while to figure out the software. I am pretty computer literate and it was a struggle for me. Once I figured it out, though, it is a dream. Delorme is having a 2-day sale on them, normally $299, on sale for $225. I would only recommend it for someone who has time to sit at the computer and figure it out.