Garmin eTrex Venture HC GPS Receiver

Garmin eTrex Venture HC GPS Receiver

Garmin eTrex Venture HC GPS Receiver








Monday, September 23, 2013

Garmin Oregon 450 Handheld GPS Navigator

Garmin Oregon 450 Handheld GPS Navigator

I think this is wonderful, It was recommended to my friends and fulfills all my expectations, then and I also recommend 


Garmin Oregon 450 Handheld GPS Navigator


I have owned the Oregon 550t for three years. I have used it for hiking and horseback trips. I also purchased European maps and used it on a trip to Italy and the Eastern Mediterranean. I found the unit difficult to use and unintuitive. It is almost impossible to read on horseback and difficult to read in sunlight. 

Garmin Oregon 450 Handheld GPS Navigator


The unit takes about 5 minutes to download its built in map into the Basecamp software on my Mac Powerbook. Many of the maps are innacurate. For example, they don't show the Pacific Crest Trail near Etna mountain in Siskiyou co, Ca, even though the trail is among the largest and most heavily traveled in the world. The unit is extremely frustrating and a big disappointment. 

Garmin Oregon 450 Handheld GPS Navigator

I've been told that Garmin has the best systems out & with this being said, then I must have the best. I have been practicing with my Garmin & find it to be less user friendly then my iPhone. I believe that the technology is advanced enough to make these navigators more usable. The topo maps that come with it are only 100K & they just don't give enough detail for what I need.

Garmin Oregon 450 Handheld GPS Navigator

I will either have to purchase the 24,000K topos or carry maps of the area I am hiking in. I don't believe that anyone else's is better, it's just that I think that Garmin could make their products much easier to use. so by the time someone purchases one they have spent about $300 or so & they still need topo downloads plus accessories. I also have a Bushnell, which is great, however, no maps in it. 

Garmin Oregon 450 Handheld GPS Navigator

I have to connect it to my Mac when I am home & it automatically draws the trek I just did which is easy to see on a Google map. For me there are times when I need detailed topo information as there are no marked trails & the Bushnell doesn't have maps. Well, I will have to upgrade to the detailed maps & download maps to where I may be going before I go to remote wilderness areas. 

Garmin Oregon 450 Handheld GPS Navigator

Superb! The touch screen feature is the ultimate highlight for ease of use. The menus are great & simple The optional Topo SD cards for select Sections of the USA expand the versatility when traveling, hiking, etc. The SD cards easily swap out and no programing needed. Highly pleased with the Oregon 450 over my older Summit model which was top of the line back when. 

Garmin Oregon 450 Handheld GPS Navigator

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