Advice Sought about Magellan Sportrak GPSr

dak's Emu Mob · Post by **dak's Emu Mob** » 08 April 04 11:45 pm

G'day All,

(I tried to send this to the forum, but it seems to have disappeared into /dev/null. Apologies if it appears twice.)

My sister (Emu-J) is considering buying a Magellan Sportrak specifically for geocaching.

I'm looking for feedback from anyone out there who owns one. Is it a good choice for caching? The specs say that it only has 1MB of memory. My Map 330 has 16MB for loading detailed maps, so 1MB seems a little low, unless the Sportrak uses memory very efficiently.

Speaking of maps, does the Sportrak use the same maps as the Map 330? I have MapSend S&D Australia maps, and would like to share the maps between both units.

All help/advice will be appreciated.

Cheers,

dak

Team Piggy · Post by **Team Piggy** » 09 April 04 12:21 am

I think Team Astro have one ??

leek · Post by **leek** » 09 April 04 9:20 am

Be careful with this... The base Sporttrak model does not have any form of mapping and is probably similar to the base E-trex in functionality... You need to go for the Sporttrak Map or Pro models to get street level mapping.
See http://www.magellangps.com/en/products/sportrak.asp for details of all the various models.
The mapping versions of the Sporttrak do use the same maps and you should be able to upload maps from Mapsend OK...
Hope this helps...

dak's Emu Mob · Post by **dak's Emu Mob** » 09 April 04 9:51 am

leek wrote:See http://www.magellangps.com/en/products/sportrak.asp for details of all the various models.

Why didn't I think of this.

I suppose I assumed that my sister would have done itapparently not.

Thanks Leek. I've checked out the various models now, and it looks like the SporTrak Map is the go.

Cheers,

dak

EcoTeam · Post by **EcoTeam** » 10 April 04 5:17 pm

There is a comparison of the Sportrak and the eTrex in the latest Aust Caching Newletter:
www.geocaching.com.au/newsletter

The eTrex pretty much wins hands down.

Why do you need mapping for Geocaching anyway?
The maps are mostly not accurate enough to be of much use, particualy compared to the street directory.

Why not save the $$$ and get yourself a base model GPS. The eTrex can be had for $150 brand new on eBay. That is more than enough for geocaching.

EcoDave

ideology · Post by **ideology** » 11 April 04 4:11 pm

EcoTeam wrote:The maps are mostly not accurate enough to be of much use

the mapsource maps on our garmins have been incredibly accurate for us. it has been accurate down to the side of the road that we are on.

leek · Post by **leek** » 11 April 04 4:50 pm

ideology wrote:
EcoTeam wrote:The maps are mostly not accurate enough to be of much use
the mapsource maps on our garmins have been incredibly accurate for us. it has been accurate down to the side of the road that we are on.

Same with the Magellan maps... I wouldn't leave home without them... I can plot a cache on my GPS, and in most cases the map on the GPS is sufficient to get me to the general area. If I want to cross-check with the street directory, I can look up the name of the nearest street on the GPS and then look it up in the street directory for any additional detail... It saves all that conversion between different coordinate formats.
The Magellan maps have most 4WD and fire tracks on them as well... Very accurate most of the time...

I would always advise getting a mapping GPS if you can afford it...

riblit · Post by **riblit** » 11 April 04 6:19 pm

ideology wrote:
EcoTeam wrote:The maps are mostly not accurate enough to be of much use
the mapsource maps on our garmins have been incredibly accurate for us. it has been accurate down to the side of the road that we are on.

I have found the same with the mapsource maps. Also I have been surprised by the number of 4WD and fire tracks I have been on that appear on the maps.

dak's Emu Mob · Post by **dak's Emu Mob** » 11 April 04 9:15 pm

EcoTeam wrote:Why do you need mapping for Geocaching anyway?

Actually, I use the maps all the time for urban geocaching. The map gives me a very good idea about the location of the cache, and after that, I use the street directory to navigate to the general area. The maps in the GPSr are accurate in my experience (I have a Magellan Map 330), but the street directory is invaluable for showing parks, creeks, shopping centres, and so on.

Thanks to everyone for the advice. I think my sister has her heart set on the Sportrak. Actually, I was hoping she would buy a Garmin--it would be good to have the 'best of both worlds'.

Cheers,

dak

tolmh · Post by **tolmh** » 13 April 04 12:02 pm

I have a SporTrak Pro and highly recommend it. I use Mapsend S&D Australia for uploading maps, and I find them to be very useful for caching. Happy to answer any specific questions you have about the unit.

EcoTeam · Post by **EcoTeam** » 13 April 04 10:05 pm

Ok, that's news to me. Last I heard the mapping in GPSr's was not much good.
So how much does all this wizzbang technology cost? i.e what does it cost to get the equivalent detail of the Sydway into your GPS?
I would imagine $400-$500+ for a high end mapping GPS + the maps?, or do you get the maps with the mapping GPSr's these days?

EcoDave

riblit · Post by **riblit** » 13 April 04 10:28 pm

EcoTeam wrote:Ok, that's news to me. Last I heard the mapping in GPSr's was not much good.
So how much does all this wizzbang technology cost? i.e what does it cost to get the equivalent detail of the Sydway into your GPS?
I would imagine $400-$500+ for a high end mapping GPS + the maps?, or do you get the maps with the mapping GPSr's these days?

EcoDave

depends what you want Dave, The maps are separate for the Garmin range but you get all all Australia in one hit. Check Johnny Appleseed for the latest prices. There are also a number of programs around the allow you to make your own maps for a garmin GPS