Ok, I've been kicking around, but I'm clueless. I want to mark stands, upload topo maps, etc. The walkie talkie feature is nice but not 100% necessary. I'd like to stay under 250.00, but could be talked into more for the right stuff. What ya got?
I'll be very curious to see if others have tried out any of the new models... I've got an old Garmin Legend but really needs to be replaced. Last few years when going out West, I've been borrowing my dads Garmins eTrex Vista HCx and that has worked great. Only two thoughts I have is that in my experience, the high sensitivity receiver makes a huge difference - especially if your in any type of cover. Lastly you want to verify memory - ideally get a unit that can be expanded with an SD card so you can load maps to your hearts content on it... http://www.amazon.com/Garmin-eTrex-...R1LS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1327712597&sr=8-1
I'm hoping Rick James chimes in....if not I'll pm him, but I think he did some leg work on this last year.
I had a Garmin ... etrax maybe ?....the new stuff blows it out of the water. I now have a Garmin 320, use it for tracking my dogs..but it also functions the same as the GPS unit. Its easy to use and very intuitive, like no learning curve at all....It pretty much walks you though anything. The new touch screen ones are very user friendly.
I didn't read the other thread just posted but I did quite a lot of leg work on the Garmin's. I used to own an old style "legend" as so many others did. Good unit for it's time. The key with the Garmin is getting the high intensity antenna. Anything with a "H" in the model # is the high intensity antenna. You want that believe me. You can look up and decide what other features are out there and if you want to pay for them. I'm certain you can get the basic unit with the "h" for around $100 max that will take all your waypoints and save them. Everything else is gravy IMO. The Garmin I purchased has the built in electronic compass which is nice. But that is another $50. I have the "HC" model.
Ben, I've got a Garmin Rino 530 Hcx. Overall I'm very happy with it. It's a color unit and will run topo maps, and all of the Rino's also have the built in walkie talkie functions that are critical where I hunt up north. If the other guys you are hunting with also have Rino's, you can actually see where they are and poll their locations, send yours, etc. I've actually had two of them now (someone stole my last one out of the truck), but they have both been really good. A couple of the guys at camp last year upgraded from the 530 Hcx's to the newer 655t's with touch screen and camera built in. One of them had to return his mid season because the screen broke on it. Both said in hindsight that the newer unit was no better than the 530, but looked cooler. Both of my Garmins I ordered as factory refurbished units. They come with the same warranty, but cost a LOT less. Usually you will pay $450 to $499. Right now PC Nation has the refurbished units for $298. They are backordered a week or so, but I've bought both of mine from them and you can't beat the price. http://www.pcnation.com/web/details.asp?item=6G0730
I have a Magellan and it has worked great for me for the last 7-8 yrs. The buttons are not working correctly anymore so i'm looking for a replacement as well. Magellan offers a buy back program for older units. I called this week to get current buy back pricing and was rather impressed with the discount they offer. If you could find a broken or used unit cheap might be worth trading in.
I know it doesnt have all the bells and whistles, but id look into the bushnell backtrack. Its only 40 dollars. it wont mark stands or do anything like that but it will get you back to point A at the end of the hunt
I have a 7 - 8 yr old Magellan too. However, I would not trust it to get me to the end of a city block down town. Soured me on Magellan and doubt I'll ever own another, buy back or not. I'm looking at a Garmin as a replacement, hope it's better. Have a Garmin in my car that works great and a Lowrance GPS in my boat that works fine too.
