UK Handheld Advice Please

Robf1010 · Occasional Visitor Joined: Oct 14, 2003 Posts: 4

Hi

I've been looking to get a handheld GPS for a while, and have finally got up to £150 to spend. For that money I'd like to get the best spec that I can.

Mostly it will be used for walking. I'm not too fussed about the detailed mapping stuff, but some of the dearer "basic mapping" ones seem to have a bit of that functionality.

The basic stuff such as location (lat/long and GB national grid), distance walked, altitude, waypoints, etc. are all useful things that I think I want. I quite like the idea of an electronic compass too, nice to have though not essential.

The ones I've been looking at most on the web are Garmin Etrex and Magellans Sportrak ranges.

I'm sure I've missed out / not thought of loads that you need to know to help me, so forgive my ignorance as a complete GPS beginner. Laughing

I'd be grateful for any advice that people can give me.

Cheers

Robf1010

Dave · Posted: Thu Oct 16, 2003 6:55 am Post subject:

It really does depend on how long you intent to keep it for. If you're primary use is for out walking with no map support whatsoever, then the Garmin eTrex and Garmin eTrail software will come in at £158, or if you don't want the eTrail software you can get the eTrex for £95.

If you would like support for the future and be able to load road maps then a GPSMap76 might be better, it's a lot bigger and comes in at around £190 without any map software, but you will have the option of loading map software to it.

If you really only need the most basic of support then you may even want to look at the Geko, these are really small, lightweight, but you may find the screens a little small.

Check out the following reviews
http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/garminetrex.php
http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/garmingpsmap76.php
http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/garmingeko.php

Robf1010 · Occasional Visitor Joined: Oct 14, 2003 Posts: 4

I've been doing some more searching, and the one I like best is the Magellan Sportrak Map. I like the functionality but still a fairly small size to hold. At £178 it's a bit over my budget, though.

Is this a good one to go for, or can I do better?

Cheers

Rob

Dave · Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2003 7:09 am Post subject:

Personally out of the Meridian and SporTrak Map I prefer the Meridian. It is a little larger, but it would give you storage space to insert an SD card if you're thinking of going with maps later. Performance/signal wise, I found the Meridian to bring in slightly more sats than the SporTrak Map.

Robf1010 · Occasional Visitor Joined: Oct 14, 2003 Posts: 4

Well, yesterday I got a Sportrak Map.

I liked the look of the Meridian, but as I was already going over my budget I couldn't really stretch it any further.

I'm very happy with it, which is the main thing. Thanks for your help / advice.

Rob

Robf1010 · Occasional Visitor Joined: Oct 14, 2003 Posts: 4

Just a question that occurs to me now I've got my Sportrak.

With the 6MB additional built-in memory, were I to buy MapSend Streets Europe in the future, how much of the UK would fit into this 6MB space?

Would the 6MB take a country (e.g. Wales), a region (e.g. East Anglia), or a smaller unit like a county (e.g. Herts)? I realise that some areas of the same size may have more mapping info and hence take up more storage space for the same area, so an exact answer will not be possible,

Sorry for showing my ignorance (!) but I can't seem to find an answer anywhere on the web.

Cheers

Rob

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