Best inexpensive GPS out there!

I have been waiting for several years to purchase a handheld GPS device. I finally purchased one last week. The reason that I waited so long was that I wanted to get one that would be WAAS enabled for better accuracy (Wide Area Augmentation System, a system of stations on the ground at known positions that help correct for clock and position variations in the satellites as well as ionosphere conditions that can distort the signal), waterproof and be able to interface with both my laptop and Palm m505. Oh yeah, and it had to be reasonably priced. I was elated when Garmin came out with the Geko 201. It has all of those features and was only $140. Garmin has also released the Geko 101 with no WAAS, fewer waypoints, no route abilities and no computer interface for around $30 less. I think that the extra money for the 201 is definitely worth it. On its way is the 301 which is identical to the 201 with a built-in compass and altimeter for around $100 more, so keep that in mind when you buy. For me, the 201 was the best balance of features and cost of the three new models

When you get the package, the first thing that is immediately noticeable is how small it is. I had seen several photos on the internet with the typical reference items (a quarter, a guy’s hand, a credit card), but I was still surprised. I immediately ran out to my car and threw the 2 AAA batteries in and turned it on (12 hours of battery life per set). It took a fair amount of time to connect to the satellites initially (I guess that is to be expected the first time you power the unit on), but it finally did after about 3-4 minutes. The initial reading was accurate to 50 feet, but after the WAAS was enabled, it was to 19 feet. In general, the accuracy is usually 20 ft or less with the exception being when you are indoors or in between a lot of tall buildings. Keep in mind that a relatively good view of several satellites is required for a high degree of accuracy as is the case with any GPS.

After getting a reading, I spent some time getting acquainted with the operating system. It is quite simple to use. With only five buttons, one is able to enter waypoints, routes and manage the HUGE array of settings quite easily. For an inexpensive unit, the features are pretty amazing. First of all, the satellite acquisition screen has two modes: simple and not so simple. The simple mode has a cartoon of satellites and a person standing on a globe, while the more complicated view shows the connection information for all of the satellites and a map of where they are in the sky.

One press of the page button gets you to the track page. This page lets you see a map of where you are with your current route and waypoints as well as a “breadcrumb” feature that tracks your movements. Zooming in and out is easy with the two arrow buttons, although it would be nice to have two more arrows and the ability to pan the map. From this screen, you can also use the “pantrack” feature and trace back along your path to add waypoints and see the data for each dot or measure distances.

The next screen is navigation screen. It displays a compass (the compass is based on your movement, this device does not have a compass built in like the 301). In addition, it has an arrow guiding you to the next waypoint if you are navigating a route. Below the compass, there is a display that changes by pressing the arrow buttons (speed, odometer, distance to next waypoint, etc.) When in route navigating mode, this page will let you know of an upcoming turn 15 seconds in advance, which is a nice feature.

The next screen is the data screen. This page has four user-assigned displays. The list of available bits of information is HUGE (31 total, see page 10 in the manual on the Garmin website to see what I mean). It has everything from your elevation (from the GPS data, the device does not have a built-in altimeter like the 301) to what time the sun will set. The most difficult thing was to decide which four to choose.

Following the data screen is the menu page. This page lets you manage all of the settings and the stored information. It allows you to display all of the waypoints, tracks and routes that you have stored (you get 10,000 trackpoints for 10 saved tracks, 500 total waypoints, 20 routes with 125 per route). In the waypoint menu, you can see the sunrise/sunset times, best hunting and fishing times and the moon phase for each waypoint. For settings, you are able to change the backlight timing, the contrast, the units based on what your map coordinates are, the output format to connect to a computer and the WAAS setting. There is quite a lot to configure, but the default settings will be fine for most people.

This unit also comes with several games. You whack a gecko, play memory, navigate a maze or play one of those old fashioned ribbon games. I have played them a little bit and they are fairly fun (a kid would love them). You need a wide open space with a good view of the sky to play effectively since the accuracy has to be pretty good to play.

In addition to the built-in features, Garmin sells a good variety of accessories to mount the device to your car or bike and to plug in to your computer. I purchased a knockoff cord from eBay that works well. I am able to use the device in NMEA with both Rand McNally and Microsoft mapping programs which makes it nearly impossible to ever get lost again! I plan on getting a cord to plug it into my Palm m505, but I am waiting on that. The device supports NMEA (the most common GPS language) as well as the Garmin proprietary format and a few others.

So far, I have used the device on a two day hike and it worked quite well. Occasionally, I lost the signal for a short period of time due to a very heavy tree canopy. One piece of advice though, make sure you bring a coin to get the battery case open to change the batteries. It took me a while to get it open! I have also used it several times to avoid getting lost. If I am going somewhere that I have never been, I look up the latitude and longitude of the address that I am traveling to and then I know the distance and bearing as I am driving. It is a nice safety net when directions break down.

All in all, the device is pretty solidly built (waterproof to 1 meter for 30 minutes) and it has more features than many handhelds that cost twice as much and are much larger. If you need to ability to download maps to the GPS, you will need to buy a more expensive unit, but if not, this device is really worth the money.