help with gps

[tomshaw]

Hey guys for christmas i was thinking of buying myself a new gps. not really knowing much i thought id ask you guys for a little advice. i was wanting to get a handheld one, in colour. i will buy a mount for the 4wd. i have been kicking up between a etrex or magellan 500/600/xl. can anyone give me a few pointers. also is there a map u can get with all the australian 4wd maps, or atleast vic/nsw?

cheers........Tom

[jindydiver]

I have an explorist 600 and it is a great unit. The screen is smaller than the older Meridian units, but if you need a bigger one you can just get the XL.

The DiscoverAus mapping program for Magellan's has a lot of 4wd tracks and is one of the better mapping programs out there (of the ones that can insert maps onto your GPSr). For mapping with the PC there is nothing that can beat Oziexplorer (IMHO).

[XTfreak]

I have a Garmin Etrex Legend and it is great...
Bill

[johnno]

I have the Garmin basic "e-trex" and whilst it does the job, I have been looking at the Garmin Model 520 "Rino" not only a top notch GPS but also includes a two way radio that is adjustable up to 5 watts. One recently sold new on Ebay for $510...a bargain !! I really like the idea of having a fairly powerful 2way and a GPS combined in the one unit..:D

[Evil Taco]

Hey guys for christmas i was thinking of buying myself a new gps.

cheers........Tom

I suppose it is the season for giving, but i dont think thats what they meant...lol

[Rock Steady]

Garmin E-Trex, does everything I need in the bush and is light. Always take spare batteries and a compass.

[ticman]

I have a garmin GPSmap 60csx which is good. but I wish i had gotten a magellan because the maps you can get with them are better. Discover oz has a good range you can pick from.

[jindydiver]

Beware of buying UHF radios on Egay
The US family service radio band (uhf cb) is not the same as the UHF CB band in Australia.

[antsa]

Hi Tom
I have a a Garmin Foretrex. Its not a hand held but similar in size to a wrist watch. I find it brillant in the field. It has all the basic GPS functions and is powered by two AA batteries. If you get a hold of Garmin Mapsource you can download waypoints and then look at them on Google Earth (if you have access to the web). Its limited when it comes to downloading topo maps onto the GPS.

Good luck
Tony

[Paul R]

Tom I've been selling the full range of Magellan and Garmin handheld GPS's for the last 9 months through the camping store I've been working at. While I haven't used many of them out in the bush I do get to play around with them quite a bit and I have been trained on them by the respective suppliers and have gotten to know them quite well.

Both Garmin and Magellan colour hand held units are very good, but Magellan have the better mapping system for Australia at the moment.

As has already been mentioned the Garmin Rino is a great versatile unit with a 5 watt UHF radio and GPS in one. The downside is that you are running the UHF and GPS off of the same battery. This means that your battery life would be shortened considerably and you will also have recharging issues on extended hunts.
The Rino should retail under $599 Au.

Check out the new Magellan Triton series which hopefully will be in stores over the next few weeks, they are the latest and greatest, packed with features including touch screens and will be replacing the explorist series. They should be available in a value pack which should save you a couple of hundred dollars and includes: an sd card-discoverAus streets tracks and toppo mapping, dash mount, usb cable, cig lighter power lead and pc mapping program.
Also look out for some great bargains on the Explorists series which will have some clearance sales over the next few months. Don't be afraid to pressure the sales person for the best deal available as they will want to clear them.

It's always important to do your research and shop around for the best price. Also try and take advantage of some retailers lowest price guarantees which can save you a considerable amount of money.

[ticman]

wow paul wish I new you when I brought mine

[tomshaw]

thanks for all the help guys. just one last quick question. where abouts in bendigo/ballarat is a good place to get my hands on one?

cheers. Tom

[kester]

Any ideas on prices for the triton?

[Paul R]

The 1500 - $878

The 2000 - $1098

Not sure about the value packs.

[dazza]

thanks for all the help guys. just one last quick question. where abouts in bendigo/ballarat is a good place to get my hands on one?

cheers. Tom

by the look of some of the characters up bendigo way, probley the pub.