Recommend a GPS unit?

We wanted a GPS for Christmas, only my father is insisting that we tell him exactly what we want.  I have never owned one before and he's on his 6th, so I thought he could help us out a bit.  But he's worried about UK ones being fundamentally different from US and not knowing which to choose. 

Does anyone have any recommendations?  We want it primarily for walking. 

Thanks.
Carrie

Hi.

 They are the same except for the electric plug.  I currently have an old Garmin eTrex Vista.  It does the job but it is a few years old, I got it from my father in law.  For my Christmas list, I put down the Garmin GPSmap 60CSx.  It is rated as the best unit out there right now, and the price reflects it.  It holds on to the signal even in forested areas, which is where most units fail.  The model under it, the GPSmap 60CX is also very well rated and slightly cheaper.  If that is out of the price range, the Magellan eXplorist 210, at £179 or so, is one of the best in its price range.

If what you want is SatNav (for the car, to navigate roads), then I recommend a TomTom.  I have the TomTom Go 910.  It is their most expensive model and comes loaded with European and North American maps.  It also has its own hard drive.  If I had to do it again, I'd buy the cheaper 710 or 510 models.  They don't have a hard drive, they operate  with memory cards but they are just as good and get the job done just as well.  To be honest, I don't know what I would do if I had to get around without the aid of SatNav.  I love my TomTom!

Hope that helps.

June

Hiya

I think it's the Garmin & Magellan brands that do specific handheld/walker type GPS units. the only reason I know is I've seen them listed but always skipped them as I never go walkies into unchartered territory!

the last time I looked, they were also a little more expensive, but I think the flipside is they have features more suited to foot patrol users, rather than the much more popular car based GPS units.

You need to look into if there are indeed any differences between US and UK models, the only thing  Ican think of is the map - make sure the unit you get has a UK map available for it! nip to the garmin and magellan websites for more info and a start of yer research also take a look here

http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/ which is a good forum for GPS stuff

hope this helps!

Cheers DtM! West London & Slough UK!

Just a side note, hand held GPSr don't always come with a map, and you don't NEED a map. However, these days, most of them come with world base maps.  This means they ahve towns, cities, etc but no street maps as you would see on a car based model.  You can buy those maps as well as topographical maps of specific areas.

June

The has to be some sort of map data in the unit, even if it is just the basic world data giving major towns, etc.   The raw data coming from the GPS satellites just gives absolute location in terms of latitude and longitude.

hey there... my mother wants an IN-CAR sat/nav.  she lives in the US... any recomendations?  want to spend $200 - $600 (the whole family is chipping in).  a simple plug and go option as my mother isn't very techobright...

garmin vs magellan vs tomtom vs?

hey there... my mother wants an IN-CAR sat/nav.  she lives in the US... any recomendations?  want to spend $200 - $600 (the whole family is chipping in).  a simple plug and go option as my mother isn't very techobright...

garmin vs magellan vs tomtom vs?

Like I said before, I love my TomTom  

June

Rich had a TomTom.  I bought the software for him as he decided to use his pocket PC for the hardware.  He loved it.  Did a great job.  The only reason we are not using it anymore is because the new car we got had a GPS option built into the car.

As for the US, I just ordered my parents a Garmin.  They are complaining that it is really small though.  I'm trying to explain that that is how they are.  I did some research and the Garmin is good for the techno challenged.

They have TomTom in the US.  Unless she already has a PDA, I recommend you get her a stand-alone unit.  Maybe the TomTom Go 510 with a US map card.  I used my TomTom in the US and the only problems I had were human error

June

i have tomtom with a PDA here in the UK... love it as i use the PDA all the time anyway.  great...

why is garmin good for technically challenged?  i hadn't thought about comparing screen sizes- good idea.

My sister refers to Garmin and Magellan as the 'Coke and Pepsi' of the GPS world!  Everyone has their favourite, and sometimes the reasons they like them are somewhat intangible.

Having said that, she prefers Magellan.  She's owned both, but in her opinion the Magellans are more user friendly.  Something to do with fewer 'pop-up' screens, I think she said...

I would check how many satellites your GPS will talk to...especially if you're looking at using it in heavily wooded areas/canyons/etc.  In general, the more satellites, the more accurate your positioning will be.

Also might be worth posting your question on a gps/geocaching forum.

hiya

some points -

It's not how many satellites whichever handheld unit 'talks to' - The GPS system has around 30 satellites up there which all 'send the same signal'  - the accuracy of the GPS reciever depends upon how many different signals it's picking up in any area - or at least this is my understanding of it from various forums and techie sites.

Car nav units and PDA's (I also use the PDA version as it's one less box to carry) can and do get affected by tall buildings (not that we have particularly tall buildings in the UK!) but generally do quite well. I've confused the hell out of my system just by Trafalgar Square when negotiating to get into the Strand but I knew where I wanted to go, the TomTom software was all over the show!

In a few years, there's a new GPS system being introduced called 'Galleleo' (sp?) which promises better performance and better higher altitude operation, but existing units should still function

Lastly, it is great fun changing the voices on TT - I have around 30 or so, and the swearing ozzy osbourne often causes laughter for anyone who hasn't heard it before!

DtM! West London & Slough UK!

Thanks for the recommendations.  I actually decided that I need time to test drive some of these units, so we're sticking with maps until after Christmas.