Chris wrote:
Hi there,

does anyone have recommendations
which handheld GPS to get?

Any reason to prefer a specific brand,
features I should be looking for, etc.?

Thanks a lot,

Chris

With out a doubt the Garmin 76CS. It is waterproof and has enough
memory to store a lot of maps.

rick

My boat engine failed. It was diagnosed as maybe a broken crank shaft.
We sailed the boat on the Saint John river with the wind nose on and against
tidal current.
From 21:30 on the fog and darkness rolled in. We had zero visibility with
limited batteries power. With used the Magellan Meridian Gold with mapping
and 256mb SD memory card. Using velcro we fastened the Meridian Gold swivel
mount. Our route was well planned and with the screen on dim we had a good
visual on the course line, the buoys and the contours of the land. This way
we tacked our way and made VMG on the course line avoiding fixed makings and
sailing toward home port in zero visibility. By zero visibility I mean
unable to see the bow of my sailboat with no stars in sight
We got home at about 03:00 (am) the sails were all wet from the heavy fog.
The next day Bruce made a print out ( on his PC) of all 415 tack waypoints
and a color chart showing out tracking . I am very impressed with the
Meridian Gold. The heavy fog did not affect the functioning of the GPS.
The Meridian Gold is waterproof as per MIL STD. The only improvement will be
to have a USB connection in lieu of the 9 pins serial port. A build in
charger with lithium ion battery. I am glad I purchased this model.

"Rick" wrote in message
...
Chris wrote:
Hi there,

does anyone have recommendations
which handheld GPS to get?

Any reason to prefer a specific brand,
features I should be looking for, etc.?

Thanks a lot,

Chris

With out a doubt the Garmin 76CS. It is waterproof and has enough
memory to store a lot of maps.

rick

In article .com,
"Chris" wrote:

Harlan Lachman wrote:
In article .com,
"Chris" wrote:
...
Like everything else, it depends on how you plan to use it.

Will this back up a hard wired system?
No.

Is it a stand alone?
Yes.

Will you use it just in boat or in cars too?
Both.

How many different bodies of water will it be used on?
Mostly Southern Californaia, occasionally elsewhere (worldwide).
I'll take it with me when I travel.

Is connectivity to a computer (for waypoint or route back-up or synching
with another device important)?
Yes.

Thanks,

Chris

Chris, you might want to check out the top rated units noted at:

http://www.thegpsstore.com/GPS-Handheld-Mapping.asp

I have had success with Garmin and Magellan handhelds.

Regardless of what you buy, I think any boater should insist on WAAS and
I would shop for my unit on the internet. Commodity pricing lends itself
to great deals. I use Froogle, PriceGrabber and others even just Google.

I do a lot of chart plotting on my unit, have poor eyesight and had
chips that worked with my fixed mount Garmin 182 C, so I opted for the
being replaced Garmin 176C. I loved the larger color screen.

But I am not sure how this unit works with autos and I already had the
chips.. The 276C is a replacement.

Decide the size of the screen you need versus portability, whether you
need color, and how you want to upload detailed chart information for
the body of water you cruise on.

I know this is all so personal so given your needs, I WOULD check out
the Garmin Quest GPS, , Garmin GPSMAP 76C and Magellan eXplorist 600,
Garmin Etrex Vista Color Handheld. One of these should have the size and
features you need.

If this generic and personal information doesn't help, letting me know
would be helpful.

harlan

--
To respond, obviously drop the "nospan"?