handheld gps units

Another reviewer here said it best: don't let the misleading negative reviews of this product prevent you from taking a good look at the Garmin eTrex Vista. (Honestly, what are some of these people wanting to do with a GPS device? Fix a waypoint on a specific part of a cow patty in a farmer's field somewhere?)

This is the first GPS handheld I've purchased after carefully reviewing other models from other brands at a local store with true "hands on" comparisons. I thought the Garmin products were by far the most intuitive and user-friendly of the GPS handhelds I played with. Great features and an excellent value for the money. (...)

Looking at the less expensive eTrex Legend and the Vista and wondering which to buy? Well, the Legend is great but it lacks the Vista's electromagnetic
compass or air-pressure altitude indicator if that is important to you. It also has much less memory capacity (8MB) for storing detailed Mapsource maps.

I have loaded my Vista with topo maps from Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont and it took up all 24MB of memory (of course, it really is a lot of detail we're talking about here). I would think that the memory capacity of the Legend could be a significant limitation if you are looking at getting into extra topo or metro guide maps. If you have no use for extra maps or an electromagnetic
compass and altimeter, then the Legend might be the way to go.

Personally, I think the Vista represents a better overall value for the dollar.

Ignore the naysayers and compare the GPS units for yourself. I'm very happy with the Vista and would have made the same purchase if I had to do it all over again.

As an urban explorer, I'm not sure I fit the typical profile for a handheld GPS consumer. Nevertheless, having just returned from three weeks navigating the cities Great Britain on foot, I am completely sold on the utility of this product. I used the eTrex Vista in conjunction with the UK MetroGuide product which allows one to upload detailed maps, with the coordinates of tourist attractions, transportation facilitates, etc. No more burying my head in maps and hunting for street signs, with the GPS it's point, click walk straight to it! This product saved me hours of the wandering and frustration I experienced on my first trip. The only qualification I will make on using the GPS in the city is that tall buildings and narrow streets can cause loss of reception. I found this to be a workable limitation since one could always stand on an open street corner for a moment and take a new reading.

As the most expensive in the eTrex series, this unit has much needed extra RAM, a built in compass, and a barometer / altimeter. The built in compass is handy to help you keep on track when you lose satellite reception. Obviously, parked cars and other metal objects can throw it off, but you can toggle the feature on and off at will. I did not use the barometer / altimeter.

As with any tool, you need to spend a little time learning to work with it effectively. As a frequent traveler without the keenest sense of direction, I found the investment, both in time and dollars, well worthwhile.

I own 3 GPS receivers and I will say Garmin did an excellent job. The receiver is much more sensitive to satellite signals than my other GPSs. Just don't expect too much from this small unit with tiny screen and very slow CPU for screen refresh. It will drive you nuts to use it for street navigation. It is suitable for back trailing in the mountains. For street navigate, I strongly suggest that you hook this unit up with a laptop but make sure that GPS is set to NMEA and the software GPS setting is also correct. Conclusion, don't street navigate with this unit alone and don't buy a no brand GPS under $90 because you will not be happy with the reception.

Eddy