Dakota 20 or Etrex 30 HELP!

[gord13]

Hi all,

I need a little help in deciding which suits me best.

I am new to handheld GPS although have been using the car sat nav for years

I am going to use the unit primarily for walking and geocaching but the kids may use it for car based navigation (and speed cameras !!).

They are both similarly priced, the main differences seem to be the screen size, the Dakota being larger which is good for my eyesight, touchshreen on the Dakota, and memory size.

Do they both use the same maps ? Garmin website don't list the discoverer maps with the Dacota.
On that subject, what is the difference between topo and discoverer maps ?

Any experience or help much appreciated.

Regards Gordon

[sussamb]

No contest in my mind, the Etrex (I have the Etrex 20). Yes, the Dakota screen is slightly larger but the new Etrex screens are far easier to see under various lighting conditions. Also for walking and geocaching, which is what I use mine for, I prefer buttons over a touchscreen.

The Dakota is a fairly old GPS now, the newer Etrexs can pick up the GLONASS as well as the GPS system which in my opinion makes my Etrex more accurate than the 'GPS only' system it replaced.

As for maps, have a look at the free ones from www.talkytoaster.info before you shell out any cash, I find them perfectly adequate

We see you’re using an ad-blocker. We’re fine with that and won’t stop you visiting the site.
Have you considered making a donation towards website running costs?.
Or you could disable your ad-blocker for this site. We think you’ll find our adverts are not overbearing!