Date: Mon, 7 Aug 2000 16:03:32 EDT
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: Re: GPS - what's best for 70 CT?
In a message dated 8/7/00 11:13:31 AM Central Daylight Time,
[EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
> you can create waypoint, and routes (up to 50
> waypoints) with the etrex
Thanks for the info on flash updates and manuals for the eTrex. I will pick
these up when I have time.
I am not trying to tell people not to buy the small handhelds or the more
expensive handhelds. I am trying to get them to spend some time finding out
exactly what handhelds will and won't do, and how they do it before they
invest. My personal experience is that 90 percent of people who buy small
handhelds to use ONLY IN THE CAR will be disappointed. Obviously, this might
not apply if the handheld can also output NMEA to easily drive the StAtlas
tracking on a Libretto when you want.
IMHO, the routing features on small handhelds are good for offroad, marine,
etc use or for retracing your steps back to the hotel, so to speak, in the
car. In my experience, most people using GPS in a car want to easily find
something the first time or find a new way to get to somewhere because of a
wreck, detour, etc. There is no easy typed (address/zip code or town) to
(typed address/zip code or town) routing without going back to the laptop
software or buying a much more expensive handheld. To use waypoints on the
street, all addresses have to be converted to lat/lon, UTM or memorized when
at the location. Sounds great in the brochure. Works pretty good most of the
time on the water and in the woods. In these cases, user is almost always
trying to get back to a known location, or get to a location given to him by
someone else also using a handheld GPS. But waypoint navigation over roads
usually is a time consuming pain in the real world if you have not recorded
each waypoint beforehand. Been there, done that several years ago with
several older handhelds before mapping software could be easily tracked by
affordable GPS. Spent a lot of time and money with very poor results. IMHO,
not worth the effort for daily use in the car. OK for occasional use if you
do not have a laptop for traveling. Waypoint to waypoint is line of sight or
as the crow flies so to speak. In order to track a curving road between two
points fairly accurately, many waypoints have to be recorded. Fifty
waypoints may mean only one end destination and one return point. One of my
older handhelds has a water route from the public docks at Port Aransas, TX
to a flats fishing area that is 11 miles away as the crow flies. That route
consists of 37 individual waypoints that were memorized in daylight and
covers 31 miles on the water. Leaving one waypoint out would mean sure
grounding in fog or moonlight.
To get some easily useable road/street routing functionality onboard the
handhelds, you have to spend a lot more money. Then you are back to the
value issue. Do you want a handheld with small screen, small memory, small
package, good battery life, etc. Or do you want a used laptop/GPS rec/mapping
software combination with all the drawbacks and advantages for about the same
money. Definitely a place for everything. Handhelds get better every month.
On the water, my first choice would be a large screen handheld with a marine
database. On foot, my first choice would be a small handheld with the route
downloaded from a laptop or previously memorized. In the car, my first
choice would be a (laptop/mapping virtual CD on the hard drive/small GPS
receiver/12VDC power for everything) combination every time. Your money,
your choice.
As an unintentional sideline business, I have sold, installed, and now
support over forty laptop/Gps rec/mapping software combinations in cars in
the last several years. I do not advertise for this business because it is
not very profitable. All word of mouth "That's neat. I want one of those.
What does it cost?" type transactions. At least a dozen of these people had
handhelds they wanted to trade in or sell. Last system was for a Mercedes ML
with onboard mapping. (used Lib 50 with 12VDC adapter/used Tripmate with
power adapter/second hand SA6 CD extracted to the HD) Car came with map CD
for owner's home state (New Mexico) only. Owner found he could buy a used
laptop system with much better map info on whole US for less than the cost of
five Mercedes map CDs needed for one trip ($790). Texas is 3 CDs at$140
each, OK and AR one CD for $140, KS on one CD for $140. His wife hates the
sight of the Libretto on a kneeboard/tripmate on the dash in the car, but
loves knowing exactly how far it is to the next real bathroom when in west
Texas. He loves telling other Mercedes types he will buy the updated info
for the entire US on one Street Atlas 7 (maybe 8??) CD before they go to
Washington state in the fall for $20 if he can afford it. Also uses the Lib
for several other tasks since he has it anyway.
Thanks again for the eTrex info. Sorry if I ramble on too much. Alex H.
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