Garmin eTrex GPS

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Title : Garmin eTrex GPS
Author : Garmin
Release Date : 20000131
Binding : Electronics
Regular Price : $139.99
Amazon.com Price : $121.95 (13 %)
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Editorial Reviews :
A few years ago, when personal GPSs first became available, every geek from here to Poughkeepsie was enthralled about the possibility of always knowing exactly where on the planet they were. While the Garmin eTrex isn't the most feature-rich GPS out there, it will definitely come in handy if you don't want your next camping trip to end up like a scene from The Blair Witch Project.
The eTrex is sort of a dumbed-down, rugged version of the company's more advanced eMap. Designed specifically for hiking, biking, and camping, the eTrex is one of the easiest-to-use GPS units available. It offers the ability to track up to 12 satellites so you never lose contact with one. The eTrex won't work inside--however, we don't anticipate that you'll get lost inside a building very often.

Among the eTrex's notable features is its ability to calculate your current and average speed. We used the eTrex to determine the distance from work to home, and calculate how fast we were walking. This helped us gauge the average time it should take to get to work. This feature should really come in handy on extended hiking, camping, or cycling trips where planning your average speed and tracking the distance traveled is critical.

Sticking with its theme of simplicity, the eTrex has only five buttons, making it easy to use with just one hand (It's specifically designed for the left hand.) Weighing only 5.3 ounces with the batteries installed, the eTrex is also ultralight, making it an easy addition to a daypack. The eTrex is also waterproof, so a little water shouldn't damage the unit.

The eTrex can hold up to 500 user-created waypoints. And using Garmin's TracBack feature, it's easy to plot a course with up to 10 waypoints and follow it in both directions. --Julian Strate

Pros:

Easy to use
Light
Waterproof

Cons:

Batteries only last about 20 hours

Buyer Reviews :
As far as Garmin's eTrex line goes, this is the top of the line. The Vista packs an electronic compass, an altimeter, and 24 MB of memory for maps into the same handheld package the basic eTrex comes in. Plus they've gone ahead and improved the screen and added the 'ClikStik' a clickable joystick.

In terms of pure GPS functionality, the Vista adds the ability to get DGPS signals from the newly activated WAAS satelites. But obtaining those signals at present is a challenge.

I personally found the ClikStik a bit hard to use at times, and not as responsive as I wanted, but it adds a lot of ease of use to the unit (imagine trying to move around on the map without it). The screen was a big improvement over the eTrex's screen, and readibility is vastly improved. Plus not having to go the requisite 1-2 MPH before the unit figures out which way you're walking (thanks to the electronic compass) is nice, and makes figuring out where you need to go while standing still a lot easier. Also the altimeter can be setup to automatically be calibrated with GPS data. It's again in the same rugged, waterproof case as the original, so it can take a little bit of abuse. And for those of you who don't want every waypoint to look like a flag, you can differentiate your favorite locations with a lot of different icons. Tracklogs and number of waypoints that can be stored is increased over the basic eTrex as well.

There are downsides: Like the eTrex, satelite locks can be lost pretty easily under heavy cover or packed in a bag. The battery life is greatly shortened (if you turn on the compass and use the WAAS adjustments) compared to its simpler sibling. The Garmin maps (the only ones you can download to the Vista) are next to worthless in terms of accuracy. And then there's the price.

(by totsm23)

Features/Technical Specs :
* Global positioning system (GPS) receiver continuously tracks and uses up to 12 satellites
* Calculates current and average speed, time of sunrise and sunset, trip distance, and more
* Automatic track log--10 saved tracks let you retrace your path in both directions
* Tough waterproof case; runs for 18 hours on 2 AA batteries
* Compatible with optional Garmin MapSource software for downloading trip and waypoint data (not map compatible)

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