Anyone use a GPS and if so which one do you use? What do I need to know before going out ot buy one? Totally new to the GPS arena but very electronic savy.

Thanks for your time all.

 

I bought an IFinder Pro by Lowrance. After I bought it, 2 others I work with bought one as well.

Pro: 240x180 Display (looks good), Expandable memory, cost $199 or $249 with MapCreate software (detailed maps).
Con: Not Water Proof or floatable on it's own but it does come with a waterproof/floatable bag you can put it in.

The other ones I looked at, Garmin and Magellan looked good too, but either the display was not as good (Magellan) or it didnt have expandable memory (Garmin), but they both were waterproof and float on their own. They were a little more expensive though, I think $50 or so.

Lowrance also makes an IFinder H20 witch is basically a waterproof/float version. I havnt seen one in person, so I cant comment on it.. And I think it's $100 more.

I bought my Ifinder without the software, but later upgraded it. The software alone was $80, then I bought a 128meg memory card. If you buy the Ifinder with software, it'll be a bit cheaper but only comes with a 16meg card.

 

Garmin Legend Here.
Try the web site ridingaz.com.
Your will find a good number of people use them.
Good luck.
Terry

 

i have an old magellan 315? from about 1999 ,,,,,and I love it.

once you understand them,,,,,you will never be lost

they dont work well in heavy cover (trees).

the ones they make now a days,,,,you will be happy with any of them

I wouldnt spend more than 200

 

I'm a big fan of Garmin. I used a Garmin GPS to land an airplane during a storm while I had no idea where I was until the wheels hit the ground. Dead center in the middle of the runway.
I have three Garmins. Two in airplanes and a Garmin 76 that I use between ATV, Motorcycle and Truck using different mounting apparatus.
I'm also a big fan of the Garmin Topo map ability and the accuracy of the maps. I swear if it got any more detailed the puddles would be displayed.
The more memory available - the more map I can download into the GPS. The 76 series sports 115meg of ram for maps.

 

I just got a pair of Garmin Rino 120's, GPS with Radio that exchange GPS position info when you talk to each other, showed distance from one side of house to other of 27 feet and side by side read identical read outs down to 1000th of a second. These are replacing my old Magellan GPS that is 7 years old and never got closer than 65 feet from a known long and lat position. The Rino's came in a companion pack with two Rino 120's, with two each earphone with mic, belt clip, lanyard and soft case. Also included were two different software programs with maps to download into the Rino's, a Topographical program with a lot of cities, towns streets and even dirt roads with elevation markers on 3 CD's covering the whole US and a Metro guide with all kinds of info about hotels, motels, resturants, parks, sightsseeing places, etc and several instruction manuals and a VHS instructional tape. Several other map programs are also available. About $830 worth of gear for $600 at my local Sportsmans Warehouse. Took my first trip with them last sunday with a trip over to the Wynoochee River from Canyon River and back. The GPS also said max speed was 46+mph with two up out of my AC250(slight down hill), I'm impressed. Also got a great download into the computer afterwards with over 400 waypoints for the trip. This setup has everything you need plus the radios included.

 

Awesome info guys, thanks alot!!!! I was looking at the Garmin line and think I will head that way. Alaska is just so freakin big I would like to know if I get 40 miles out I can find my way home if its not familiar.

Keep the info coming if you got more...thanks again.

 

ATVAlaska, Welcome to the Forum[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

I have a older version of the Garmin 45. I love it for all the reasons mentioned. Just put in where your truck, camp, home, etc. is. and then head out. Mark your waypoints and follow it back home. Make sure you bring extra batteries, just in case. If I was to purchase one today, I would definately get the Rhino 120's. I like them for all the reasons Bear4570, stated[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] And thanks Bear for that[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] What ever you get though, I would look into models that are computer ready for downloading maps and data from it. Happy Hunting[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

A little more info..

The Ifinder does have base maps included. It shows major highways, cities, lakes and streams. Mapcreate is software for your computer that allows you to select a region to download onto your Ifinder. For example, I selected all of minnesota, now My ifinder shows lakes in greater detail, I now have city streets included, I can search by street address, and has map places. Map places is pretty neat. It will show me the nearest fast food resteraunt, for example, and give me the phone number and other info. Some other catagories include, Hotels, Gas, entertainment and alot more. I believe to download the whole state of minnesota, I used up about 33 megs of memory.
Another neat thing Is that I can map out (trace) where I've riden and upload that route from my GPS to my computer.

 

You can't go wrong with Lowrance or Garmin. I have both and they have advantages and disadvantages, but they are both great companies with superb customer service. I use the Garmin now, but I have a Lowrance mapping unit that is 10 years old and works as well as the newest ones. It has been beaten and bashed and just keeps going. My next one will be a Garmin GPSMap 60cs with color screen, 56mb memory, and internal compass, which is good for telling direction while stopped. It also has a barometric altimeter.

The new Garmin Rhino 130 is another interesting one in that it also has a weather radio, which could come in handy.