Handheld GPS Units?

O

Olympus

New member
I know these used to be popular back in "the day", but what about now? I'm interested only because my new hunting land has zero cell phone service, so all the online maps and GPS that can be done with your smartphone will not work. And since my phone is constantly searching for a signal, leaving it on very long will drain the battery very quickly.

I'm basically looking for something that I can use to mark the corners of my property along with spots for new stands, rubs, scrapes, etc as I just start getting familiar with the way my property lies. It would also be helpful in case I ever get turned around in the dark and end up getting lost.

Would a handheld GPS unit be something I should look into? Has the technology improved from the older units? The ones I remember using had tiny screens that were difficult to see and the instruction manual was about as thick as a phone book.
 
The Garmin 64 series are about as good as it gets in the field.

Good enough for fast-reaction middle-east combat work when everything else went south.
 
That could also just mean they were the
lowest bidder, not necessarily the best.
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Ahhhhhh.... NO.

They were taken into theater by the troops themselves,
bought w/ their own money, and trusted when things
went to absolute [self censored]

Take care with generalities.;)

.
 
I've got a Garmin that is a few years old. My only complaint is that the tiny screen is too hard on 57 year old eyes. I've got to stop walking and put on my reading glasses to see it.
 
I have one of the cheaper Garmin ETrex models with topo software and its always worked well. Ive been using GPS since they first started showing up, and I always thought Garmin has been the leader in these type units.

Personally, I dont see them as stand alone things (although they can be), but meant to be used in conjunction with a good, reasonable scale topo map (I like the 1:24000 USGS maps) and compass. They work best as a "package deal" (if I could only have one, Id take the map).

As far as they have progressed, dont expect survey grade accuracy from the hand units. They are more than close enough for most uses, but they are not property corner/line, or "repeatable" coordinate precise.

And as with any of them, terrain and canopy can still give you grief, although the canopy issue is a lot better than it used to be. This is where a map and compass come in. The GPS will confirm your position on the map, but you may still need to do basic land nav to get around. Learn to use the UTM/MGRS grids, and youll be a lot better off.
 
A handheld GPS gives out latitude / longitude coordinates. A cell phone with proper app will do the same, even without cell network coverage. The handheld is indeed obsolete.

The cell network coverage provides moving map and augments the GPS. You don't really need that if you have a map and compass. Oh, most smartphone has built-in compass too.

If you really want everything without cell coverage, there are nav apps that store the map in the phone's memory. They are not free, but they really work. I still have the navigon app on my old iPhone. I paid $60 for it. I always bring it for trips, and it has proved its worth more than few times. The iPhone no longer has cell service mind you.

-TL
 
I never go into the swamp without my etrex. And we did use it to plot boundaries on our property. Like everything else you get what you pay for. We use some higher end units at work and they have a better antenna so they seem to locate a little more precise. IMHO

Sent from my Nexus 10 using Tapatalk
 
GPS can go offline without warning. You don't want to depend on it in critical conditions without backup.

Civilian grade GPS units have built-in tolerance, i.e. intrinsically it can do better than that. To take out that man-made uncertainty, a differential GPS receiver can be added to boost the accuracy down to inches.

I haven't used my Garmin handheld unit for about 20 years. It is quit obsolete to me. I have replaced it with my Android phone, perhaps backed up by my old iPhone and/or paper map and compass.

-TL
 
On a small (1000 acres or so) parcel of land, probably not needed for hunting. But in really remote roadless areas I wouldn't go without one.

There is a learning curve, but once mastered a quality GPS is a valuable tool. You still need a compass and either a map or knowledge of the area. I wouldn't waste my money on a cheap one except for use on water or in desert regions. They simply won't receive the signal in mountains or heavy canopy and are useless there. A good one can be used for a lot more than many people realize. I'd recommend either the Garmin 64 series or the Oregon series. The basic versions of either are fine, you can pay a lot for unused features.

You'll also need to download maps, or purchase a mini-SD card of the regions of the country where you plan to use it. Mine came with a free download and I chose the SE including GA, FL, AL MS and SC. I bought the SD card for TN, NC, KY, VA, MA, and W, VA. The standard maps loaded on the devices are not very detailed. It is well worth the expense to add better maps.

I'll buy the one for CO before hunting there again. They come with boundaries between private and public land clearly shown so you don't end up trespassing. Well worth the investment to me

I also use my phone and many times it is easier to use, but far from perfect. Many areas have zero cell service and you'll completely drain the phone battery in 3-4 hours of use, then not have a phone. I can get 12-16 hours on my Garmin 64S and carry spare batteries. With 6-8 batteries I could leave it on non stop for 3-4 days.

Funny how sometimes these threads pop up at the right time. I just got home from a camping trip. We looked for several different geocaches to practice using the device. My GPS led me to within 3' each time. Phone or cheap GPS's aren't nearly that accurate, often off by as much as 400' when I've used them side by side. If you just need to know a general direction to travel they are OK. But if you are down in the woods with a broken leg trying to get help to your location, or return to a spot where you have downed game getting within 400' ain't close enough.

I work with a group that searches for missing, and presumed dead, people to recover remains. Each team carries at least 1 GPS to lay down tracks of the areas we have searched. When we return to the command post the data is downloaded onto a computer where you can see exactly where each team searched. If an area is missed or not covered completely they know exactly where to go back to. If we find bones or clothing the GPS coordinates are marked and the info radioed back to CP where a trained coroner, detective, or forensic tech will come and out to determine if it is relevant to the case. I use and rely on mine a lot.
 
A handheld GPS gives out latitude / longitude coordinates. A cell phone with proper app will do the same, even without cell network coverage. The handheld is indeed obsolete.
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This.

Look for a smartphone app, such as Gaia GPS that can download and store maps on your phone. Your phone's GPS chip can then be used when out of range of cellular service.

When you're out of range, put your phone in airplane mode to conserve battery power (the GPS chip will still be active, but phone, data, wi-fi and bluetooth transmitters will be turned off).
 
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