Garmin eTrex Vista CX Color Handheld GPS Review
October 4th, 2009
Garmin eTrex Vista CX Color Handheld GPS Review from Mitchell Small. Perfect for Outdoor User of Any Experience, I did my first Geocache at the end of January 2006 as part of a group with a shared GPS. I was hooked. I started looking into units and within two weeks, I had a Garmin Legend. After one outing, I traded it in for the Vista Cx and have not regretted it one bit.
Ignoring the Legend experience, it took about a half hour of going over the manual to take in the details. The manual is well written and properly illustrated. Directions are easy to understand and once you grasp the organization of the menu structure, the unit is easy to master.
While a little on the small side, the display is very crisp and the colors are easy to see in the daylight. If you use this after dark, the screen requires backlighting, something that is built-in to the unit. Using the menus, you can even customize the degree of backlight illumination and the time it stays on.
One downside is the base map, the map burned into the firmware, is pretty sparse. I understand this is fairly standard for hiking GPS units. I strongly urge users to get either the Garmin MapSource Topo map for your country or the Garmin City Navigator appropriate to your area. Now we are getting into what the new “X” series is all about, memory.
The Vista Cx uses MicroSD memory, allowing the users to store large amounts of map info. . . if you get additional memory. The 32 MB that comes standard with the unit will hold a LOT of topo map info, but if you are loading road map info, you will need more memory. I have not had the opportunity to try the new 1 GB MicroSD cards, but the 512 MB is holding all the trip info for my summer vacation plus topo info for most of PA, MD, WV, CT, MA, and NY south of Albany.
One negative is that you can display either the topo info or road map info, but not both at the same time. Personally, I find this not too annoying, but sometimes, I’d like to see both. The two buttons controlling the degree of zoom are well positioned.
I bought this primarily for Geocaching, but I recently had the opportunity to test it as a navigation aid and Geocaching tool. In the car, once navigation satellites had been locked onto, the unit kept me on course. Out in the field, I switched to topo only display and the unit performed flawlessly.
This is only the beginning of all this unit can do. I do not use the barometer / altimeter function too heavily, but I’ve come to appreciate the electronic compass. The rocker switch makes it easy to enter data, but I prefer to use the optional software and my computer for extensive data entry.
This is a GPS primarily for the outdoor person, not a vehicle navigation aid, although it will function nicely as one. Many people would consider this beyond an entry level GPS. I found it easy enough to use and capable enough for future growth that I would recommend it for the entry level user. Buying this unit at the beginning will help put off that upgrade for quite a while. I do strongly suggest getting the largest addition memory you can find and the software to match your navigation needs. It will be money well spent!
To check price or purchase Garmin eTrex Vista CX Color Handheld GPS.
Related posts with Garmin eTrex Vista CX Color Handheld GPS Review
Posted in Garmin | Tags: Additional Memory, Base Map, Etrex Gps, Etrex Review, Etrex Vista Cx, Garmin City Navigator, Garmin Etrex, Garmin Etrex Vista, Garmin Etrex Vista Cx, Garmin Gps, Garmin Legend, Garmin Map, Garmin Mapsource, Garmin Vista, Geocache, Gps Garmin, Gps Units, Menu Structure, Topo Info, Trip Info
Leave a Reply
