clattin

I' m looking at buying a new GPS before my Colorado Elk hunt this fall and am trying to decide between the Garmin Etrex Legend and the Magellan Sportrak Pro. Both have mapping capabilities and lots of RAM. How good are the topo map software programs? I' ve heard they' re not great, but are they worth the additional $100? I wish I could see the software before I buy it. The Magellan is cheaper, but I have an older Magellan GPS (GPS 4000) that is a COMPLETE POS so I' m a little leary about buying another Magellan. What are your thoughts?

Thx,
Clattin

dsheally

I would buy the Garmin.

LeeinVa1

i have the sport pro in color, the map program is not that detailed, leaves out a lot of trails, roads, buildings, etc, but it does give you enough detail to compare it with a regular topo map. if you check the garmin site you can bring up a map there with the program they use, i did not find it to be any better. i still think the best combo is a gps and a paper map. i use a program called maptech to print out my own topo maps.

burtonrida19

i would go with the garmin

Jorgy

I' m a garmin man myslef, just upgraded to a legend a few months back. The topo programs (mapssource etc) are ok, but only really come to light when you plug yoru gps into a computer,that is where they shine. Map programs really haven' t been a whole lot of help to me right on my gps screen

James B

While on this subject, does anyone know what the most basic GPS with the very most simple operating mode is/ Those things baffle me to no end.

LeeinVa1

the garmin gps 12 was the easiest to use that i found, not a whole lot of bells and whistles with it and the screen was easy on the eyes. i am not sure if they even make it anymore, but you might be able to find a few laying around. the next best to me was the garmin etrex summit. every year they come out with new products and add more stuff in them, i don' t think the companies realize that we just need a unit that will tell us where we are and how to get back.