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FlySubCompact · February 7, 2013, 06:11 AM

Shredder,

I know a lot about handheld GPS units. Owned Magellanm Bushnell and Delorme.

Rule #1.....Garmin.

The little Etrex 20 is an excellent unit. If and when my trusty 60csx ever dies, that will be it's replacement. The 20 not only gets American GPS sats, it also recieves Glonass sats. It is memory expandable and can connect to your computer.

Don't worry about the electronic compass or altimeter gizmos. Stuff you don't need and those functions just lessen battery life. All handhelds come with "compass rose" screen of some sort. All you have to keep in mind is to walk a bit to get accurate pointer directions when doing a "goto". The electronic compass allows you to get bearings while standing still.....and they need to be calibrated a lot. A week after I bought my 60csx, I disabled that function. Haven't missed it.

Don't buy topo maps. There are a ton of free ones available at GPSfiledepot.com

That site has a forum and tutorials on how to get maps on the Garmin units.

February 7, 2013, 06:11 AM	#21
FlySubCompact Senior Member Join Date: February 16, 2012 Posts: 306	Shredder, I know a lot about handheld GPS units. Owned Magellanm Bushnell and Delorme. Rule #1.....Garmin. The little Etrex 20 is an excellent unit. If and when my trusty 60csx ever dies, that will be it's replacement. The 20 not only gets American GPS sats, it also recieves Glonass sats. It is memory expandable and can connect to your computer. Don't worry about the electronic compass or altimeter gizmos. Stuff you don't need and those functions just lessen battery life. All handhelds come with "compass rose" screen of some sort. All you have to keep in mind is to walk a bit to get accurate pointer directions when doing a "goto". The electronic compass allows you to get bearings while standing still.....and they need to be calibrated a lot. A week after I bought my 60csx, I disabled that function. Haven't missed it. Don't buy topo maps. There are a ton of free ones available at GPSfiledepot.com That site has a forum and tutorials on how to get maps on the Garmin units. Last edited by FlySubCompact; February 7, 2013 at 06:20 AM.