Plug for Garmin

[davidwalton]

I asked the bloke in the Field and trek shop about this one as it was cheaper and seemed to do much the same, he told me that it's signal reception was not as good as the GPS60CSx because it doesnt have the small antenna bit on the top...any thoughts on this comment or was he just pushing a more expensive unit?

I have had no Sat reception problems with my Vista HCx. Outside, reception has always been good. In my house, I still get good reception. Only time I had any reception problems was when on a train, the type with electrical overheads (it took a few minutes to lock on), but was ok after that.

The battery life is better on the Vista though. With 2900 AA batteries, I ran the unit for over 24 hours.

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

they both sound good...i need to go and see them both working in th e shop...(then explain to him that i can get them £200 cheaper on the net)...as I need to see the display working and mess around with them before I decide...it's a LOT of cash afterall

 

[davidwalton]

they both sound good...i need to go and see them both working in th e shop...(then explain to him that i can get them £200 cheaper on the net)...as I need to see the display working and mess around with them before I decide...it's a LOT of cash afterall

You can also ask Garmin questions about any of the Garmin handhelds through 0808 238 0000 (option 2).

 

[davidwalton]

BTW- For AA 2900mAh NiMH Batteries - Pack of 4 at £4.75 go to
http://www.component-shop.co.uk/html/aa.html

They were the cheapest when I bought mine, and a few packs are needed with a Garmin unit when on Holiday.

 

[HJ]

At the risk of incurring the wrath of the traditionalists, yes!

But getting lost is half the fun

 

[tomb1960]

I have to say I find the whole GPS Mallarkey utterly bewildering. That said.....I can completely see how useful they are. There seems to be two distinct breeds of devices. Those designed for the great outdoors such as the Garmin units described in this thread and the TomTom type gizmo's primarily for use in your car. I am much more inclined towards the Garmin type apparatus, but can you use them to get clear driving instructions, can you search by post-code etc? Anyone know?

 

[davidwalton]

I have to say I find the whole GPS Mallarkey utterly bewildering. That said.....I can completely see how useful they are. There seems to be two distinct breeds of devices. Those designed for the great outdoors such as the Garmin units described in this thread and the TomTom type gizmo's primarily for use in your car. I am much more inclined towards the Garmin type apparatus, but can you use them to get clear driving instructions, can you search by post-code etc? Anyone know?

Clear directions are provided, as long as City Navigator maps are loaded.

On the Vista unit, you can search by address, but not by Post Code. You can search by Post Code on your PC with the MapSource software and City Navigator maps though.

Note: It is the Maps that provide the facility to do navigation by road, so only units capable of being loaded with these maps can work as SatNavs on the roads.

 

[redfox]

But getting lost is half the fun

Agreed, it can be, but it can also be incredibly frustrating. I often go 'off piste' if the road less travelled looks more interesting and the GPS often makes the decision to do so easier.

The other occasionally useful thing about a GPS when credit card touring is, if you have had enough at some point in the day, you can ask it to find you the nearest accommodation.

 

[Brock]

Ooooh which will you choose BTFB??

As far as I can tell the antenna difference isn't really much of an issue, so it boils down to screen size (marginal), battery life (where the HCx wins quite significantly), and your preference of form factor / button placement.

The CSx does look more 'army' though

Found another discussion about these two units on this board.

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

that was an interesting conversation..cheers for posting it.

I dunno which one I will get yet...first I need to play with both of them, second I need to raid some savings...third I need to but a hard hat and hide from the Mrs.

 

[Brock]

I wonder which has the best bicycle mount accessory?

 

[davidwalton]

I wonder which has the best bicycle mount accessory?

I believe they both use the same sort of mount. At least, on Garmin site they look very similar.

 

[Bigtallfatbloke]

I think I would prefer the buttons to be on the front of th eunit so i can use them easier whilst riding

 

[davidwalton]

I think I would prefer the buttons to be on the front of th eunit so i can use them easier whilst riding

Yes, I thought that as well. However, just because the buttons are on the side with the Vista makes it no less useable while on the bike. Buttons do also require a little pressure being waterproof operation.

 

[bonj2]

to my mind, from looking on the net, it's a bit confusing which of them enable you to do satnav and which don't. All the garmins have gps, but there seems to be a distinction between being able to tell you where to go and being able to tell you where you have been.
For instance, on the specs pages of the garmin site for the 205 and 305, it says they have no 'basemap' or ability to add maps. So presumably this means they can't be used as a satnav device. However, on amazon it describes the edge 305 as a "Navigation & trip computer for cycles" which would appear to indicate it can do navigation.
Have amazon just got it wrong?

Also, on the one(s) that can do navigation, then do you need to buy any additional maps to be able to navigate by road to any address in the uk?

And another thing - (forgetting about actual navigation for a minute) what software can you upload routes off a garmin edge 205 or 305 to? - i.e. do you have a choice of software, is it proprietary, or do you have to use garmin's own, how much does it cost etc.?


and how do they compare to a nokia n95