NVFRC: GPS advice on units under $200?

Is anyone using a Garmin Etrex or the Magellan eXplorist (now $99 at
amazon) or anything else in the under $200 range?

I'm basically looking to try out GPS. It would be nice to have
something that I could use on two different bikes, and could handle
interstate travel. Access to small state routes would be cool too.

Any experiences/suggestions appreciated.

--
Caz
vifferdred@xxxxxx
http://www.geocities.com/vifferdred/

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Caz wrote:

>Is anyone using a Garmin Etrex or the Magellan eXplorist (now $99 at
>amazon) or anything else in the under $200 range?
>
>I'm basically looking to try out GPS. It would be nice to have
>something that I could use on two different bikes, and could handle
>interstate travel. Access to small state routes would be cool too.
>
>Any experiences/suggestions appreciated.
>
>--
>Caz
>
>
Well, If you want a basic GPS that does an excellent job of telling you
where you are, which way and how far other programmed waypoints are and
is basically bomb/water-proof I'd recommend the old standard, the Garmin
GPS12. It will draw you a "map" showing where all your entered
waypoints are in relation to you, and track your route through that 2D
space, but it won't give you a "road-map" or show any highways, rivers
or things like that unless they are point locations that you put in or
you have been down that road so you know that "track" the GPS mapped is
the road..

I think it is great for my purposes. You can get them on eBay for under
$100 and they outperform all the other "newer" handheld units that I've
compared them to as far as pinpoint accuracy is concerned. I've used
mine for Geocaching for over 6 years and it always gets within FEET, not
yards of the target (providing the target was mapped correctly.)

You can get a computer interface cable (including power cable!) for
under $20 from http://rnrplace.com/rnr_store/ and with that you can make
your handheld computer or laptop into a better GPS than anything you can
buy online (But who has room for that on a bike? -my tank bag isn't that
big for my laptop, although a palm pilot would do well) I use it to
upload/download routes, waypoints and tracks to my DeLorme Street Alas
program so I can see where I've been when I get home. One could make a
route beforehand and download it into the GPS and it would tell you how
far it is to your next turn and which direction to take. It will also
tell you if you got off that route and what turns to get back on.

I like to ride the backcountry roads and get lost. The GPS tells me
which way is home, which way any targets (waypoints) I've loaded into my
GPS12 (200 waypoints) so I have all the nearby cities loaded. This
allows me to know which way and how far gas and other things are.

I'm never lost. I might not know which road to turn down next or how
far it is to the super-slab but that is not how I ride. I like the
back-ways. Without uploading a route, the GPS tells me I've got to
start heading 24-degrees more to the left to get to home, or X location
and it's 78 miles as the crow-flies. That's all the info I need. I
just keep taking roads going the generally correct direction until I'm
there -eventually. Riding Nirvana!

If that is the kind of thing you are looking for then the GPS12 by
Garmin is the deal for you. If you want a GUI-map that tells you what
road to turn onto next then it's going to be hard to find that for under
$200. My Dad has one that will tell you how to get to the next
McDonalds or Burger-King anywhere in the country. You just have to
punch that in and it will spoon-feed you the information. $600 and that
kind of navigation is yours. It's just not my cup of tea.

-Jim
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On Mon, 17 Apr 2006 10:43:47 -0700, Caz wrote
> Is anyone using a Garmin Etrex or the Magellan eXplorist (now $99 at
> amazon) or anything else in the under $200 range?
>
> I'm basically looking to try out GPS. It would be nice to have
> something that I could use on two different bikes, and could handle
> interstate travel. Access to small state routes would be cool too.
>
> Any experiences/suggestions appreciated.
>
> --
> Caz
> vifferdred@xxxxxx
> http://www.geocities.com/vifferdred/
I'd recommend the Garmin GPS V. Greyscale, not colour. Only 19 negs of
internal memory to download maps, slowly, using a serial port. Hence the
cheap price. (Which keeps me happy...)

JF
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May I suggest you pop for a few more dollars and get a Garmin Quest (or Quest 2). I saw them recently for $315.00 on pricegrabber.com. The advantage of the Quest 2 is more memory so that it holds the entire US road system, the Quest only holds about 4-7 states at a time. In either case you can plan your trips on the computer map program and upload to the PPS in a few seconds. Or you can just plug it all in the GPS, which is a bit more tedious.

This is a portable unit that is about the size of an I-Pod, but thicker. While the screen may appear a bit small, it is certainly sufficient for car and bike use. It is also totally portable and can be used up to 20 hours on it’s own rechargeable battery. I specifically bought this unit because it was so small and portable.

It does two things that I find very useful on a motorcycle: The first is that it talks to you (assuming you have it plugged into your ear). You can now be a complete idiot in the worst of conditions in a strange environment and still get safely where you want to go. It is much safer than trying to read a map while riding. It lights up at night. It also knows where everything is including hotels, gas stations, restaurants, zoos, etc.

A second big advantage is that you can see at a glance how far you are away from your next turn. While in a strange place, it is very comforting to know that your next right turn is in 3.2 miles (it will also talk to you a number of times in advance if plugged into your ear of helmet). You don’t need to plug in “waypoints” in order to find your way back. I am truly amazed at how sophisticated this small thing can be.

I take the Quest on vacation instead of renting the Hertz Never-lost. I have even used it on a cruise in Alaska (ship runs at 22 mph most of the time). You can also purchase a disk for $200 that will get you through Europe if you wish. I also use it on local lakes to locate my hot fishing spots. The sell a nice motorcycle adaptor and RAM makes a mount that bolts right on to the two front gas tank bolts (Y2K for sure – others ?). I have read lots of stuff about mounting it up high, but to be honest, I usually just listen to it through an Audiocom in my helmet. I like it down lower and below the instruments on the VFR. Don’t know how I could ever live without it.

Jim
Y2K VFR
97 ‘Holeshot” Bandit

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> May I suggest you pop for a few more dollars and get a
> Garmin Quest (or Quest 2). I saw them recently for $315.00

The Quest is more than a bit outside the price range mentioned in the
subject line. But perhaps the buyer can do better on eBay. The Quest 2
would be completely out of reach either way.

> I have read lots of stuff about mounting it up high,

Perhaps from me..? Here's a link to a 94-97 VFR windscreen mount I
designed. The article also links to a review of the Quest itself.

http://bytebrothers.org/Reviews/eMachineShop

If there turns out to be considerable interest in the windscreen mounts
(at least ten folks) I might entertain a short production run. Cost
would end up somewhere around $100 apiece probably. Mentioned this last
year but got no response at all.

-Brad

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Thanks for the informative review, but the extra bucks aren't in the
budget just now. Maybe in '07!

Caz

On 4/17/06, Jim wrote:
>
> May I suggest you pop for a few more dollars and get a Garmin Quest (or
> Quest 2). I saw them recently for $315.00 on pricegrabber.com. The
> advantage of the Quest 2 is more memory so that it holds the entire US road
> system, the Quest only holds about 4-7 states at a time. In either case you
> can plan your trips on the computer map program and upload to the PPS in a
> few seconds. Or you can just plug it all in the GPS, which is a bit more
> tedious.

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Nice mounting solution! Looks great on the 94-97. I think it would
block the top of the tach on my '01, but I've got some time to think
about Quest placement. (Like a year of so.)

-C.

On 4/17/06, Brad Berson wrote:
> > May I suggest you pop for a few more dollars and get a
> > Garmin Quest (or Quest 2). I saw them recently for $315.00
>
> The Quest is more than a bit outside the price range mentioned in the
> subject line. But perhaps the buyer can do better on eBay. The Quest 2
> would be completely out of reach either way.
>
> > I have read lots of stuff about mounting it up high,
>
> Perhaps from me..? Here's a link to a 94-97 VFR windscreen mount I
> designed. The article also links to a review of the Quest itself.
>
> http://bytebrothers.org/Reviews/eMachineShop
>
> If there turns out to be considerable interest in the windscreen mounts
> (at least ten folks) I might entertain a short production run. Cost
> would end up somewhere around $100 apiece probably. Mentioned this last
> year but got no response at all.
>
> -Brad

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