GPS
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numbnuts
Legendary Member
- Location
- Gone over the hill and far away
Hi & 
do you want maps ?
do you want maps ?
Auntie Helen
Ich bin Powerfrau!
- Location
- 47906 Kempen, Germany
I'm very happy with my Garmin Edge 205. Doesn't have maps but you can pre-programme a route so you have a little black line to follow which shows you which way to go.
I'd recommend one of two options:
- shop around and get a basic monochrome GPS secondhand on eBay (personally I'd recommend a Garmin eTrex or eTrex Legend). Remember that you will need to get a cable and probably a serial/USB adapter;
- get something like a Garmin eTrex HCx Legend. They cost about £130 from Amazon
I wouldn't recommend getting a new monochrome GPS - mainly because compared with the newer colour models they are pretty poor value. If you find you get on with the GPS, you'll probably find the basic GPSes a bit limiting. If you get a secondhand one you can probably sell it on for most of what you pay for it while if you get a new one you'll take a financial hit.
If you want a GPS for navigation on tour then the HCx is a much better bet - for example it has much more memory for track and routepoints, built in mapping, and a memory card for storing Points of Interest. The Edge 205 is designed as a training aid for people doing day rides. so far as I know it won't even display a grid reference - this seems to me to be something that's absolutely essential. It retails on Amazon for about the same price as the HCx so unless you want the heart rate monitor it's very poor value in comparison.
I also think it's worth paying extra for a GPS with inbuilt mapping - the included mapping doesn't show you all the back lanes and minor roads, but it's pretty useful if it all goes Pete Tong.
- shop around and get a basic monochrome GPS secondhand on eBay (personally I'd recommend a Garmin eTrex or eTrex Legend). Remember that you will need to get a cable and probably a serial/USB adapter;
- get something like a Garmin eTrex HCx Legend. They cost about £130 from Amazon
I wouldn't recommend getting a new monochrome GPS - mainly because compared with the newer colour models they are pretty poor value. If you find you get on with the GPS, you'll probably find the basic GPSes a bit limiting. If you get a secondhand one you can probably sell it on for most of what you pay for it while if you get a new one you'll take a financial hit.
If you want a GPS for navigation on tour then the HCx is a much better bet - for example it has much more memory for track and routepoints, built in mapping, and a memory card for storing Points of Interest. The Edge 205 is designed as a training aid for people doing day rides. so far as I know it won't even display a grid reference - this seems to me to be something that's absolutely essential. It retails on Amazon for about the same price as the HCx so unless you want the heart rate monitor it's very poor value in comparison.
I also think it's worth paying extra for a GPS with inbuilt mapping - the included mapping doesn't show you all the back lanes and minor roads, but it's pretty useful if it all goes Pete Tong.
numbnuts
Legendary Member
- Location
- Gone over the hill and far away
Mapsource GB roads and recreation does
I use a garmin etrex Legend. they are cheap on eBay, have mapping and with the mapsource data loads of useful data, like nearest hotel, camp site or restaurant and more detailed mapping. They use AA batteries which is a plus whilst touring and as with any GPS you can use http://www.everytrail.com/ to look at your route. A colour screen would be better - but need to thing about battery life. But the real problem with it is the need for a serial to usb lead. With that in mind if was to get one now it would be the legend HCX. The new Oregon are just too much money and not enough added features.
samid
Guru
- Location
- Toronto, Canada
FWIF, on my eTrex Vista HCx (colour) a fresh set of AA alkalines lasts for about 3 full touring days, IIRC. (And the nice thing about AAs is that you can get them anywhere, well, almost.)
