So my searching is coming up fairly empty handed.  I got one of these for Christmas, pretty happy with it, just wondering what might be out there I can load onto it to make it a little more friendly for an off road vehicle, since it's pretty much just street maps right now.

I've got the US Topo disk, with most of the western US loaded on a 2 gig microSD for my 60CSx.  From the specs, it looks like your Nuvi will use microSD cards.

Garmin US Topo

This is 1:100,000 scale, whereas the USGS maps are 1:24,000.  I used it in November as we cut across the central Oregon desert, and it was more than enough detail -- it had virtually every little wisp of a trail, and the contours were plenty accurate.  We used my DeLorme Oregon Gazetteer for the big picture and the GPS to track our detailed location.  We made one or two wrong turns, but as soon as we started rolling and the GPS could see our true heading we were immediately aware of the mistake (a GPS is a marginal compass, it isn't very accurate when you are not moving).

Garmin has 1:24,000 maps of the national parks, but for Oregon that's only Crater lake, so...

I'm GPS shopping this weekend and looking for opinions.

Budget: $300 for the unit and $100 for additional SW
Desires: Big enough touchscreen to run Overland Navigator, I/O for future APRS and external antenna, Sirf III Chipset

A handheld would be nice (like a Mio 550 palm) but not crucial.  This is for expedition, backcountry trips not for being voice guided to the movie theater.

There are so many choices, what are your faves?

I'm GPS shopping this weekend and looking for opinions.

Budget: $300 for the unit and $100 for additional SW
Desires: Big enough touchscreen to run Overland Navigator, I/O for future APRS and external antenna, Sirf III Chipset

A handheld would be nice (like a Mio 550 palm) but not crucial.  This is for expedition, backcountry trips not for being voice guided to the movie theater.

There are so many choices, what are your faves?

Paul,

What do you want in your truck?

• A dashmount GPS (w/ screen and everything built in)
• a computer/laptop based navigation system
• a UMPC based navigation system
• a handheld (pocketPC / Windows Mobile / Palm OS) based navigation system

I have all of the above,  If you want to get together this weekend and see how some of the different setups might work, let me know.

Craig

I just might take you up on that. What do you want for breakfast?

I just might take you up on that. What do you want for breakfast?

Thanks Craig, for all your advice on GPS, mapping and navigation. I think I might know too much now. That's usually not a problem I have, mind you, but it's like being a wine snob. I just can stand the cheap stuff anymore. Yesterday I was actually standing in line, GPS unit in one hand, wallet in the other and turned around and put it back and left the store. The GPS not my wallet.

I may never get a GPS at this rate.

So what was wrong with the Garmin 60CSx? No route planning off road? The good topo maps couldn't be uploaded?

Actually I think I know just enough to be dangerous. That's all.

Thanks Craig, for all your advice on GPS, mapping and navigation. I think I might know too much now. That's usually not a problem I have, mind you, but it's like being a wine snob. I just can stand the cheap stuff anymore. Yesterday I was actually standing in line, GPS unit in one hand, wallet in the other and turned around and put it back and left the store. The GPS not my wallet.

I may never get a GPS at this rate.

So what was wrong with the Garmin 60CSx? No route planning off road? The good topo maps couldn't be uploaded?

Actually I think I know just enough to be dangerous. That's all.

- When compared to a USGS topo map at either 1:100k or 1:24k the maps on the 60CSx are poor. Many features aren't shown, are shown poorly, and the cartography is poor.

- Handheld GPSs in general don't work well for route planning when offroad. You can't get the "big picture" and often times the trails either aren't shown or are shown with poor accuracy.

- It is easy to follow a pre-planned route (red line on the screen) with the 60CSx, but if a gate is closed and you have to re-route you will be fully dependent upon the map. The GPS at that point is good for determining where you are on a map and see where you have been, but not where you want to go. Similarly, if you are just driving around the country exploring backroads it doesn't work particularly well.

The 60CSx in conjunction with paper maps is an excellent combination, but a larger GPS like the Garmin 276, a UMPC, or tablet/laptop are even easier. Naturally as the screen size gets bigger they get harder to fit in the cockpit.

Craig

The Delorme PN-20 starts around $300 until May 31 (after rebate)

BUT:
No NMEA in/out.
Small screen. 
Not Sirf III but the reviews sound good.
Route planning on PC

Maybe OK as starter setup.

The Delorme PN-20 starts around $300 until May 31 (after rebate)

BUT:
No NMEA in/out.
Small screen. 
Not Sirf III but the reviews sound good.
Route planning on PC

Maybe OK as starter setup.

Money no object? Ultimate goal?

7" touchscreen, on the dash, that I could run GPS (Maps, route planning, Overland Navigator, etc.) from. Hooked into my Kenwood radio for APRS both ways. So a carputer/touchscreen UMPC, seperate GPS antenna for APRS, maps and software seems like the way to go. It could be nice to have a real PC on the trail sometimes. Like loading the workshop manuals, or even keeping a written journal while you travel. I can also program the radio from a PC.

I found this http://www.xtremenotebooks.com/index.php?section=catagory&include_type=UMPCasus
It's an Asus UMPC for $975 with GPS and XP tablet loaded. WiFi, Bluetooth, a camera, etc. built in.
If I did venture out of the vehicle for a couple hours of dayhiking/geocaching I could pack a 2 lb UMPC. 
It's more than my $300-$400 range but If I just save my pennies and cancel a planned trip it might just work out.

I think having a handheld would be convenient for foot travel but I'm realizing that is a secondary priority for me. Therefore that can wait. Add to that, those units are increasing capable and less expensive (<$200) all the time. Since I have the Radio already I was trying for a GPS with NMEA in/out so I could reuse it's antenna. I've looked at the various handhelds with their tiny screens and dedicated/proprietary electronics. They always fall short in some way.

Money no object? Ultimate goal?

7" touchscreen, on the dash, that I could run GPS (Maps, route planning, Overland Navigator, etc.) from. Hooked into my Kenwood radio for APRS both ways. So a carputer/touchscreen UMPC, seperate GPS antenna for APRS, maps and software seems like the way to go. It could be nice to have a real PC on the trail sometimes. Like loading the workshop manuals, or even keeping a written journal while you travel. I can also program the radio from a PC.

I found this http://www.xtremenotebooks.com/index.php?section=catagory&include_type=UMPCasus
It's an Asus UMPC for $975 with GPS and XP tablet loaded. WiFi, Bluetooth, a camera, etc. built in.
If I did venture out of the vehicle for a couple hours of dayhiking/geocaching I could pack a 2 lb UMPC. 
It's more than my $300-$400 range but If I just save my pennies and cancel a planned trip it might just work out.

I think having a handheld would be convenient for foot travel but I'm realizing that is a secondary priority for me. Therefore that can wait. Add to that, those units are increasing capable and less expensive (<$200) all the time. Since I have the Radio already I was trying for a GPS with NMEA in/out so I could reuse it's antenna. I've looked at the various handhelds with their tiny screens and dedicated/proprietary electronics. They always fall short in some way.

A guy I wheeled with in Moab a few weeks ago has that same exact computer (Asus) in his JK.  It was nothing short of AWESOME!  He would take it into his hotel room at night and load pictures, surf the web, it was incredible.  He had it fixed to his dash with a RAM mount, one turn of the thumb screw and off it would come. 

Dumb question of the day, I REALLY new at GPS, computers and such.  Does anyone know if you can load Garmin TOPO and City and Streets on the ASUS?  I'm guessing yes, but again, I'm dumb with this technology.

Ryan,

It comes with Streets loaded. What we need for off-road are the National Geographic Topo maps or similar. They show better detail than the Streets and Trips stuff.

That' my $00.02 worth. I'm just learning about this stuff myself.

--
Paul

Ryan,

It comes with Streets loaded. What we need for off-road are the National Geographic Topo maps or similar. They show better detail than the Streets and Trips stuff.

That' my $00.02 worth. I'm just learning about this stuff myself.

--
Paul