Any particular model for under the tree tops

[Mike Bearden]

As much as I like to frequent the woods for relic hunting I was wondering if there is any particular brand, model, that has proved it's worth under tree tops. Especially noticed that some reviews on-line complain about loss of signal even in light overhead canopy situations, so should I be looking for a gps with a certain type of antenna ?
I'm new to this hand held gps stuff and would like to have a decent magnetic compass feature "that works" but always carry a pocket unit anyway
Would like to be able to load maps/lakes etc. with some bells and whistles like "best fish and game times" solar table. Color screen not necessary.
And memory upgradeable would be nice too since I don't plan on buying a gps every time a new one comes out.
Thanks
Mike

 

[Andrew Kalinowski]

Reception under canopy can be iffy at times with any receiver. Saying that, some receivers do perform much better than others.
I've seen many arguments for helical antennas to be better than patch antennas. These arguments are usually supported by a lot of good science and theory. Well, theory is nice to argue but in the woods, I don't care about it. The practice is what counts! In my real life experience; I'm yet to see a handheld receiver using build in antenna that would outperform Lowrance iFinder which has a patch antenna! Simply the best. iFinders can be loaded with maps and depending on the model, they do have a nice set of bells and whistles. Available maps are very decent but not as many various detail maps are available for Lowrance as they are for Garmin. Map display is nice.

Magellan Meridian and SportTrack series are not far behind in reception. The magnetic compass build in some models is the best of the big 3. On the downside; I'm not very impressed with the way Magellans display maps.

Garmin used to be on the bottom of the pack when it came to reception and on top when it came to map display. With the recent changes to Garmin lineup, the things changed a bit. Well, still forget eTrex Geko and other miniature receivers if you want it to perform in the woods. Other older models are still not that good but (a big BUT) their newer full size handheld receivers do finally come very close to iFinder when it comes to reception. Several models are now also feature expandable memory. When it comes to maps, Garmin maps are decent and when it comes to speciality maps, there are some very good maps available from 3rd party developers. For example, I sell ( www.canadianmaps.ca ) Garmin compatible topo maps of Ontario and Quebec that are much more detailed than Garmin topo maps for the same regions.

Another note regarding reception: Most current receivers can support external, active antennas. These antennas may be cumbersome to use on the go but, they greatly improve reception in difficult conditions. Saying that; I'm not using one. In real life, for my applications, good receivers perform adequately and even in the deep woods it's rare that I loose signal. If I do, I get it back by moving to another spot or holding the receiver over my head. Not much of an issue.

HTH

 

[DW]

Hi Mike,
I've been using the Garmin 60C for 3 years. Purchase price $500. Great hunt and fish data along with solar lunar tables. Loaded with extra features I haven't even tried. Although this model has been discontinued, the newest models have been getting great reviews on http://www.groundspeak.com , the geocaching communities forum. No need to sign up, lurking is just fine. Please check them out for your research. If I was to purchase another I would lean toward the Garmin 60csx model. New purchase price $500, hum. Expandable memory cards are my first considerations on an upgrade. I am more than happy with my reception of the 60C as I kayak on the Missouri River along steep canyons and have used this unit geocaching under heavy tree cover, if you consider Eastern South Dakota to actually have dense tree cover! Like the previous post mentioned, walk a few steps and reception will pick back up, even under less than ideal conditions. The 60csx far surpasses mine. I've went head to head with a friend's, thru a Walmart store...his tracked all the way through and showed his tracks thru the sporting goods section, mine shut down 4' in the store. One point on mine though, it's compass feature works great, only when a destination is established and this might be the case with the 60csx, I would inquire about this issue. I've wanted a fully functional compass at all times when the unit is on, not just when my route has been established and I am heading to that destination. My 2 cents Mike, and hope this helps. Chech out the forums on goundspeak to help you decide. The word out on the forums right now is that Magellan is not in the good graces of those geocachers, issues with tech support and software issues. Again Mike, just my 2 cents and hope this helps. DW

 

[Buck]

I just bought the Garmin GPSmap 60cx. I did not need the electronic compass and altimeter, plus from what I read they do not work that well. But I had the GPS3 before and with the new sirf chip in the "X" models they keep the satellites in view much better than the other models. I still also have the old work horse GPS12!!!! I would never get rid of it. It has been to heck and back, and still runs like new for over 10 years!!! Infact I think its Garmins oldest model they still make!!!
BUCK.
I don't geocache much, but find old water wells and springs in the desert around the Salton Sea area of Southern California. Plus what ever else old desert relics I stumple across.

 

[Mike Bearden]

First off let me say Thanks to all that did respond, after some hands on research I finally decided to go with the Lowrance iFinder H2O C plus.

I have a friend that owns a small boat sales and sporting goods store and he handles many different brand name GPS including most the current handheld units like Garmin, Magellan,Lowrance, etc.
This time of the year kind of makes it tough to actually try them under the thick tree canopy for testing.
We ventured out into some tall cedars that made a nice shaded area even in bright sunlight and turned them ON one at a time and walked through the area.
Simply put, most did OK with signal holding but the iFinder was by far the winner here, it locked onto satellites for the most part 3/4 SCALE and would grab then in under 45 seconds from start up.
Yeah, it doesn't have the fish/game "best times" like the hunt version but other than that it's a solid performer.
I actually had it with me for the NS Hunt in Virginia at Fort Powhatan this past weekend and could not ask for better performance and I was in some deep revenes that seemed very dark from the thick overhead canopy and never lost the signal
Walked into Applebee's for dinner and forgot it was still on and took my coat off and it slid out of the pocket and into the seat and it still had 8 satellites locked in.
It also came with a 64 meg card and the card reader, 6.3 Map Create of which I really like because it's very easy to use any part of the map I need. I paid under $300 for it. The maps are very clear and the screen is easy to see as well as the menu being esy to understand for a novice.
The only downside I can see with the H2O color series is the FACT that you can literally watch the battery guage go down with the backlight ON
I mean it flat sucks the batteries dry in no time at all in high res, using good Duracells too.
All in all ... I'm pleased with it.
Mike

 

[DW]

[/quote]The only downside I can see with the H2O color series is the FACT that you can literally watch the battery guage go down with the backlight ON
I mean it flat sucks the batteries dry in no time at all in high res, using good Duracells too.
All in all ... I'm pleased with it.
Mike[/quote]

I can relate to that, I finally decided to purchase 15 minute rechargable NiMH for my digital camera and gps unit. Congrats and have heard lots of positives on your unit, will keep an eye out for them if I decide to upgrade. DW

 

[Andrew Kalinowski]

Yup, backlight is a murder on batteries in virtually any unit.
Another high drain feature is magnetic compass found in some receivers. Some units allow to turn it off. Some don't have this option but, have an option to orient the map screen to the magnetic compass reading. With this feature off, the only time compass is on is when the actual compass screen is displayed.
Other than that; couple of sets of rechargeable, high capacity NiMH batteries will go much further than alkaline batteries will.

 

[John (west central FL)]

I also recently got myself an iFinder H2o C Plus. I really like it! I know exactly what you mean about the battery drain. You definitely will want to get a couple of sets of rechargeable batteries.

Lowrance just posted firmware updates on their website for most of the iFinder units. They don't really say what improvements have been made but I did notice that you can now create a waypoint by directly entering coordinates. There is also a satellite data page when you press the down arrow three times.

John