GPS Recommedations?

[Hemicbx]

Just interested to hear who's using what GPS units and any pros/cons or other thoughts.
Need to get one and although I'm lured by all the cool features and maps, all I really care about in MPH.
Hemicbx

[Heatseeker]

I bought the Garmin Etrex two years ago. Best $100 I ever spent. It doesn't feature any maps but does give you mph, top mph, avg. mph, distance traveled, time traveled, waypoints etc. You can get them on ebay (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=34289&item=3091497668&rd=1) all day long for around $100.
It's one helluva a way to shut down big talkers. That's why we call it the humbler!
Hope this helps.

[MudPumper]

Yep, Garmin Etrex. I think they have 3 models. Venture, Legend and one more. About the size of a cell phone, user friendly, great price. The legend has a cool feature if you travel a lot by car. It tracks what freeway or road you are on and you can see what restaurants or services, gas, hotel, autoshops, etc.... Are coming up and it tells you what off ramp they are located on. I'm always hungry so it works great to let me know where to get off to get some grub.

[matt1]

That's why we call it the humbler!
G.P.S. =Great pride smasher.
And yep garmin etrex,I just got one from work as a saftey award.

[Squirtcha?]

Originally posted by Heatseeker
I bought the Garmin Etrex two years ago. Best $100 I ever spent. It doesn't feature any maps but does give you mph, top mph, avg. mph, distance traveled, time traveled, waypoints etc. You can get them on ebay (http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=34289&item=3091497668&rd=1) all day long for around $100.
It's one helluva a way to shut down big talkers. That's why we call it the humbler!
Hope this helps.
Garmin etrex here too. Works great.
A buddy of mine bought a $400 Magellan and it won't hold top speed in memory. It's great for all the maps n stuff, but not much good for tuning your boat.

[manuel]

Does that one have memory for top MPH ?, I have a Magellan 3000 and it's a pain to use, too many features to go through(85 page owners manual) just to see how fast we're actually going and no memory, I want a simple quick one.......and cheap!

[MudPumper]

The garmin etrex will hold top speed. I think the three models are around 120, 160, and 190. They all have the basic speed and distance features. Can't go wrong with one of these. The Yellow one is the base model, green is the middle, and blue is the top.

[h2ojerm]

Garmin GPS map76 is great. It has maps built in and accepts software for detailed mapping.It is hanheld,so you can use it in your boat or car. And it has a top speed recall. The price on the map76 should be around $300. Garmin also has the regular GPS 76 that does not have a map for about $200. I would recommend the Garmin GPSmap76.

[wet77]

Got the etrex Venture model, works great, found out my tube type speedo is right on till about 56 mph:D
Best $120 I invested:D
Because when your not in the boat it can go with you,unlike the ones that mount in the dash ;)

[mgar_red]

Picked up a Magellan Sport Trak Map on Ebay w/ software for a good price. It keeps top speed, and gives avg numerically and by analog style speedo dial.

[Aluminum Squirt]

I've gone through three of them, each time upgrading because I like them so much. I started with a Garmin GPS12. Pretty low buck, basic features. I bought it when I was a GI for over in Kuwait because the Army ones were so damn user unfriendly. Worked great. I got a Garmin GPSIII+ next and it had all the bells and whistles. Maps, top speed, handheld or wired, remote antena capable etc. Now I've got a Garmin GPS V and its the best yet. It's a little bit bigger/heavier than the etrex but works great. Downloadable maps, vertical or horizontal display, batteries or wired etc etc. I've got a mount for it in both boats, the truck, and the motorcycle. I just grab in off the dask at the boat ramp and throw it into the boat dash mount. It's got maps in it that are so sophisticated, I can enter an address and it will take me there turn by turn, reroute me if I take a wrong turn, take me the shortest distance or the fastest route. It's a little more $ but I highly recommend Garmin in general and the GPS V specifically. Garmin's website is pretty cool, you can put various models side by side and compare all the features-Aluminum Squirt

[cruser]

Looking at the GPS speedometers for the boat. Looks like I can use my handheld to drive it rather than buy another receiver. They say the speedometer can be driven from any gps that complies with to the NMEA standard. has anybody done this interface? My Magellan has the output but I think I have to buy the bare ended cable and make the connection myself to do the interface. Looking to learn from other's experience before I buy it.
cruzer

[Nubbs]

I bought the etrex from amazon.com. They had a promotion where you would get $30 off your first purchase if you signed up for their credit card. So, I got my etrex for $60. I don't know if they still have the promotion or not, but it's worth looking into.

[STV_Keith]

I have a Garmin GPS V and love it. Liked the GPS 3+ I had before, but this has more memory for detail maps, and auto routing.
Check http://www.gpscity.com for comparison shopping. Great prices too.

[Nubbs]

Just checked amazon. They still have the $30 off promotion with the credit card. They also have the etrex for $90. For $60 you can't go wrong. Make sure you buy from amazon though. The deal is only good for a purchase through amazon. By the way, I'm happy with my etrex too.

[cyclone]

i've got a Garmin Gecko 201. it works great for holding top speed, avg speed, actual speed etc. its got the maps and stuff but i haven't had time to figure out the rest of it.

[LakesOnly]

Whatever model you buy, make sure is is a "Garmin" brand GPS.
LO

[THE BOSTON SIDEWINDER]

I HAVE THE GARMIN GSMMAP 176C, FOR MY JET BOAT. COLOR LETS YOU SEE A LOT OF DIFFERENT DETAIL W/ JUST A GLANCE. YA CAN HOLD IT UNDER 1 METER OF WATER FOR UP TO 30 MINUTES, I USE THE MAPS WHILE IN MY CAR, AND IF YOUR BUDDIES BOAT NEEDS SOME HONEST SPEED NUMBERS AND THERE'S NO CIGGY PLUG, NO PROBLEM, IT RUNS FOR A PRETTY LONG TIME ON 4 AA BATTS!
MY BUDDY THAT SOLD ME AN EXTRA ONE THAT HE HAD IS ALSO GOING TO HOOK ME UP WITH A BLUE CHIP (JUST PLUGS INTO A RUBBER SEALED PORT) SO I'LL GET BETTER MAP DETAIL OF BOTH STREETS AND OF MY STOMPING GROUNDS HERE ON BOSTON HARBOR.(DEPTHS, BOUYS, CHANNELS, PARKS, FUEL,...)
IN MY HUMBLE OPINION, GARMIN'S SH*T DOESN'T STINK!!
THE WAY IT FEELS, THE EASE OF USE, AND THE TRICK SEALED BATTERY COMPARTMENT WITH IT'S D RING BATTERY DOOR LOCK... IT'S JUST THE WAY I WOULD OF DONE IT IF I DESIGNED THE STUFF.
PS HE WAY HAVE 1 MORE FOR SALE IF ANY ONE IS INTERESTED,(HE IS IN THE BUSINESS) PROBABLY IN THE $350 RANGE. (PLUS FRT)BLUE CHIP X-TRA...BILL.

[sidewound]

Just bumpin.
I'm in the market for one and some good info here.
Peace Man!:cool:
CESAR

[Squirtcha?]

The nice thing about the etrex is the price. It's a $100 or less. The others with all their functions, maps etc. are great, but if you drop that puppy in the lake there goes $400. My buddy dropped his etrex in the drink last year and lost it. He could do that 3 more times and still be under the cost of some of the other gps's. (although he's attached a floatie to the new one)
You can't get lost on any of the lakes I boat on (except for Powell) and the etrex has the functions and features I need without any extra stuff I'll probably never use, and it's cheap.
Oh yeah, battery life is great too. Two AA batteries last for like 22 hours of runtime. I bought mine recently (xmas time) and have taken it out at least a dozen times and it's still running on the original batteries.

[Aluminum Squirt]

I'm not going to turn this into a big chet/hb arguement, just adding a little info. Almost every Garmin GPS is fine in the water. I wouldn't take it scuba diving or anything but I think its 1 meter deep for 30 minutes is what they say it'll take-Aluminum Squirt

[cruser]

The Sport-trac Magellan's are also "waterproof" and they float! (or so they say.) Apparently no one has tried to use theirs to run a GPS speedometer from? Why buy a second receiver if the one I have will work? Guess I'll have to call Megellen or AutoMeter.
cruzer

[Unchained]

When shopping for a GPS one of the main features to consider is the update speed.
I've got a Nordskog in dash and it's been a real good unit.
They stand behind them well also.
After having this one for a couple years it developed a small problem and they replaced it no problem. They actually told me they would guarantee it for life.

[MAXIMUS]

I am using the magellan meridian gold with the black & white screen. It is a good durable unit & I just recently had the oppertunity to test it agains Jim Wilkes Radar gun & it was within 1/10th of a mph. Has a programable menu to create any screen you want & a cable to down load up dates from a pc. I wouldn't recommend the color screen as my amigo has one that hasn't worked accuratly yet!:frown: