Hand held gps

[marujosortudo]

Originally Posted by scottyt

i dont know if that was a positive review or a negative one

I'm plenty happy with it, but depending on your needs other GPS units might be better for you. Heck, my needs are changing and now I'm even wishing I got one that floats....hopefully, I won't have cause to regret that anytime soon.... Who says reviews have to be positive or negative?

[Billy654]

If you are looking for a hand held take a look at the Garmin, Colorado 400c.

[osirissail]

Originally Posted by Slayer

My girlfriend is buying me a handheld gps for a belated birthday gift. Any recomendations? I participated in a race from Marblehead to Provincetown this summer, and the skipper had a Garvin, not sure what kind. But I like the feature that gave you corrections in degrees to get back on your set course.

- - Nobody seems to be answering your question as you stated it about getting a unit that will assist you in racing or maintaining a course. What you need is a portable unit that will accept waypoints (lat/long) that you select off a good map and then use to build a route. The unit should allow you to "navigate" the route of waypoints that you entered. Additionally, it should contain a "bearing" data field and a "cross-track error" or "off course" data field that tells you - first what to steer to proceed directly to your next waypoint and also how far in nm or feet/yards you are off the initially selected route.
- - In racing you need the those two items to evaluate how far you can tack "off the course line" before you have to tack back to the course line or waypoint based on the current wind direction.
- - Also for such information to be useful you need to be able to read it off the screen - which means depending upon your eyesight you might need a gps with a larger display screen than normal.
- - Garmin makes many models of the GPS 76 series that all have the capabilities you are asking about but the screen is really small the then label prints size is exceedingly small. There are other models and manufacturers that offer larger screens if you feel that is desirable. Just remember the information is of little value if you cannot read the screen. You can obtain GPS's on Ebay for a fraction of the retail prices. Just be sure to know what the current price is in the stores and do not overbid.

[ahab211]

Hi, I use a Triton 2000 by Magellan. Lots of good features, floatable, waterproof, camera flahligtht, battery saver, speed and log functons. Doing a google search should land you lots of choices. Good luck

[Omatako]

Originally Posted by osirissail

- - Nobody seems to be answering your question as you stated it about getting a unit that will assist you in racing or maintaining a course.

Hmmm?? OP asked for recommendations re a decent hand held GPS. I thought most of the above posts achieved that.

Anyway, from me, another recommendation for Garmin GPS 76 or GPS 72. I have been using these since they came on the market and have done many miles at sea with them. If you want a larger screen then you're looking for a plotter. I reckon the GPS76 will give you all you want and then some.

I just wish I could get mine to work on the combination data/power cable I got from Garmin. It just won't.

[St Anna]

Originally Posted by Omatako

Hmmm?? OP asked for recommendations re a decent hand held GPS. I thought most of the above posts achieved that.

Anyway, from me, another recommendation for Garmin GPS 76 or GPS 72. I have been using these since they came on the market and have done many miles at sea with them. If you want a larger screen then you're looking for a plotter. I reckon the GPS76 will give you all you want and then some.

I just wish I could get mine to work on the combination data/power cable I got from Garmin. It just won't.

Whats the prob with the data cable,Oma? What are you trying to link up - more than power I am guessing.

[Dirtboy]

I've got a Garmin 60CSx, two of 'em actually, and it's one tough unit! I use it on the dirt bike all the time, takes quite a beating, and just keeps on working like clockwork. You can see it on the handlebars:



The standard program doesn't have charts but does have the complete ICW and shows every marker in the country. When we picked up our boat we had to motor all day in very thick fog to get home. Crossing the Tampa shipping channel was real nerve wracking and finding the first marker on the other side would have been impossible without this little unit.

How tough is it? When I got my first one I didn't unterstand how the motorcycle mount worked and didn't have it in properly. After a spirited ride I looked down to find it gone. We had covered a lot of ground and there were pine cones everywhere ...... they looked just like the GPS .... we couldn't find it. Fast forward a year and a half. Yep, friends of mine were riding in the same area and found this in the trail:



Some of the buttons and half the antenna were chewed off but it still works. It's too damaged to use on the bike (I bought another one anyway) but it's very handy at work. We do quite a few water pick-ups and there's lots of shallows in the Tampa Bay area. This little baby also comes standard with tide tables for anywhere in the country.

I'm making a mount for the boat.

DB

[Beersmith]

I just received a flyer in the mail from West Marine saying that the Oregon 400c is on sale this weekend for only $299. I almost bought a Colorado for more than that last week, glad I waited!

[tommays]

I have a 1995 simple magellan pioneer and all we do is race

It forces you to study the charts and currents and work out a game plan and tells you what you need ,range and bearing with cross track error


I also have a fancy dancy 5" color unit with all kinds of stuff and we favor the old unit

[Omatako]

Originally Posted by St Anna

Whats the prob with the data cable,Oma? What are you trying to link up - more than power I am guessing.

I bought a combination power/data cable from Garmin and it comes with no plug on the computer end and four wires sticking out. Included is a "wiring diagram" that identifies the two power wires and the two data wires. Real complicated stuff.

So I checked the relative positions on the data-only cable I have and wired the thing into a serial plug exactly the same. Connected the power wires correctly. Plugged it in. Nothing.

Got a friend who is a computer techie to check my connections - he verified that they are correct, checked continuity in the cable to ensure that the cable is not faulty, plugged it back in - nix.

Plugged in the data only cable - perfect. Combination cable - nothing.

We tried really hard to find something wrong in a laughably simple setup and can't but the damned thing won't work. I've given up on it and just keep a healthy stock of rechargeable NiMh batteries handy.