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GPS for hiking

 
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Hung
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Joined: 15/07/2003 06:15:20
Posts: 10
Location: United States

PostPosted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 8:04 am    Post subject: GPS for hiking Reply with quote

I want to buy a GPS to go hiking. How do I know which is good to buy? I have done some reading, and I read about the 12 channel. Is this what I really need?what feature should I look into? thank you
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Gia-Hung Phan, D.C
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MikeB
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Joined: 20/08/2002 11:51:57
Posts: 3859
Location: Essex, UK

PostPosted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 8:04 am    Post subject: GPS for hiking Reply with quote

The main question here is: What are you wanting to do with the GPS?



Do you want a hand held?



Do you want to use it with a PDA? Which PDA?



Do you want it for in-car use or outside activities?



Answering these basic questions will help us guide you in the right direction to make your choice.



Basically most modern models of GPS are 12 channel, and some have additional accuracy built in using a system called WAAS or SBAS which can improve your location data to 3 metres.



I assume from your sig that you are an outdoors enthusiast therefore you sould probably be looking at a handheld like Garmin or Magellan, or possibly a PDA connected to either a CF GPS or a Bluetooth GPS. At this point it really depends on your finances.
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Mike Barrett
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Hung
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Joined: 15/07/2003 06:15:20
Posts: 10
Location: United States

PostPosted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 8:04 am    Post subject: GPS for hiking Reply with quote

Mike, I want a GPS for outdoor, mostly for backpacking,wilderness. Thanks....Hung
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Gia-Hung Phan, D.C
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Hung
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Joined: 15/07/2003 06:15:20
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Location: United States

PostPosted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 8:04 am    Post subject: GPS for hiking Reply with quote

By the way, which GPS has good signal and reception when you are in the area of a lot of tree, down a valley, or up a mountain, can the signal be picked up when the weather condition is bad such as: rainning, clowndy,....thank you....Hung
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Gia-Hung Phan, D.C
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MikeB
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 8:04 am    Post subject: GPS for hiking Reply with quote

Hung,



Check out our reviews on this site of OziExplorer and Fugawi these are both good for USGS Topo maps, and they can both communicate with either a GPS enabled PDA or a handheld GPS.



Your best bet might be to go for a handheld GPS like the Garmin Geko 201 which has reasonable battery life, or the Garmin GPSMap76 which has excellent reception. This would give you the GPS you need. All of the modern GPS units should perform well in the outdoors. The best units I have used are the Garmin GPSMap76 and the Emtac BT GPS not a lot to choose between them in sinsitivity. You do need a PDA with bluetooth to operate the Emtac though.



When you are in the woods under the tree canopy the GPS signal can be affected by a number of things. The main factor seems to be the type of tree and density of leaf coverage. I find that light cover reduces the signal by 50%, whereas dense Oak Woodlands can reduce the signal by 75% or more. Clouds, rain and other atmospheric conditions should not affect the signal.
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Hung
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Joined: 15/07/2003 06:15:20
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Location: United States

PostPosted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 8:04 am    Post subject: GPS for hiking Reply with quote

I'm going to buy the Garmin GPSMap76, but is also see a GPSMap 76S, the S is for sensor and it has the compass. Do you think I need this feature. It's more expensive than the GPS Map76. Where can I buy one with a good price? Ebay has 1 for $300. Thank you...Hung
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Gia-Hung Phan, D.C
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Dave
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Joined: Sep 10, 2003
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 8:04 am    Post subject: GPS for hiking Reply with quote

It really depends if you want a real-time compass or not. Personally I find it useful, but then again, you can purchase a $10 compass. The compass will drain battery power by about a third when it's being used.
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Hung
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Joined: 15/07/2003 06:15:20
Posts: 10
Location: United States

PostPosted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 8:04 am    Post subject: GPS for hiking Reply with quote

Hi Dave, I visited Pocket GPS, checked out the website. It seems interesting to me the features of the GPSMap76. Yet, I don't understand what it means, TIFF, Datrum,min/max operating....?It's another language

I guess, after I play around with it sometimes, I'll get familiar with it. The cost is around 329.99, how much is it in dollars?I could not find any information about shipping? Do you have any idea how much would it cost to ship from the UK to CA, U.S? and how long does it take?Thanks....Hung
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Gia-Hung Phan, D.C
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Dave
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PostPosted: Sun Sep 14, 2003 8:04 am    Post subject: GPS for hiking Reply with quote

Hung, you'll find some answers to the jargon in our Frequently Asked Questions Database.



TTFF is the Time To First Fix. This is how long it takes to acquire a 3D fix with the satellites. A 2D fix is just position latitude and longitude, but a 3D fix also takes into consideration altitude. Most TTFF's should take 30 seconds or longer when switched on from cold (4+ hours) as they will have more data to collect, if you find a fix of 2m, it's a tad long, if you find 5-10 mins, something is wrong!



Datum is a way of correctly assign real-world coordinates to points on a map or a chart. Many companies, organisations, countries use their own formats, so there are over 100 datum's available, the most widely used is OSGB in the UK, and internationally (including UK) WGS84.



Minimum/Maximum Operating Temperature, is what the unit will operate in. e.g. will it sustain the cold of the artic, or the heat of the desert ?



Price wise, it depends which country you purchase it from. Companies in the UK will ship to most locations, and charge you in US dollars or your own currency (or the equivalent), but price will vary depending on which part of the world it ships from, postage etc. Try and find somewhere local to you, prices should be lower. We have some american retailers on our Purchase page. If you check out Adventure GPS they are selling the GPSMap76 for $299 USD.
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