Off-road GPS

gerrowadat

I have the Tomtom Go 930 in-car ATM, which is perfect for in-car stuff. I'm wondering how useful the maps etc. are offroad? I'm assuming nt very, but just wondering how they are for hiking, rambling etc.

If the answer to the question is as I suspect it is, can anyone recommend a decent satnav/compass with maps that'd cover Ireland and europe? I'd basically need wicklow for the next while, although planning on doing carrauntoohil and surrounds next year, and parts of northern sweden next year as well.

101sean

Your tomtom will be zero use off road. You need either a dedicated handheld GPS from the likes of Garmin, a PDA with built in GPS (I use a Mio) or an Iphone. You then need to download maps for wherever you are going via a PC. I use Ozi explorer on my Toughbook and PDA in Ireland as I already have the maps. The simplest way to get a specific area here is to go to http://www.geolives.com/# and scroll down to Ireland, a lot of Europe is on there as well.

OSI own page with upcoming alternatives http://www.osi.ie/en/alist/osi-trailmaster.aspx

For the UK I have Memory Map and have the whole country on Toughbook. http://www.memory-map.co.uk/ They also carry some european mapping.

Be aware that a GPS is fairly power hungry so take that in to account when buying a device if you are wandering far from your car. You can always print a paper back up before you leave.

mrmac

You can use your TomTom off-road, but you need to change your routing from Automotive to Pedestrian. When in automotive mode, the GPS will always try to put your position on the nearest road. However, in pedestrian mode, it sometimes tries to route you through buildings!

As already mentioned, a car sat nav will only last on battery power, for at most, 5 hours. Not really suitable if you plan a long hike. It'll be fine if you switch it on and off, just to find your bearings.

There are a few apps available for use with a Garmin car sat nav, but I'm not aware of any for a TomTom, so I'd advise going for a hand held gps unit.

I've gone done the PDA road myslf, but I'm too lazy to be bothered! Don't get me wrong, it is an excellent method of tracking, it's just not for me. I've also heard great things about using an iPhone, or a Blackberry, but again, that wasn't for me.

I eventually setteled on a Garmin Oregin 400t. Expensive, but fantastic! I love using it for Geo-Caching, as it can be specifically set up for this.
Preloaded with full European Maps, including basic topography. It can do everything I want it to do, even hooks up to a wireless Garmin heart monitor to tell you when you're about to pass out! lol.

Depending on your budget, I'd have a look at the following:

Garmin eTrek H (must have "H" which stands for High Sensitivity) = €80
Basic GPS hand held, with electronic compass, no maps.

Garmin Legend Hcx - v.good
Garmin Vista Hcx - great, only extra from a Legend is digital compass & barometer (I think)

Garmin Oregin Series - freakin' fantastic!!!!
I can still use the 400t as a car sat nav. I bought a car holder thingy for €12, and use a motorola car charger (mini usb) to power the unit. It will only use battery power when disconnected. No voice output though, just beeps.
The latest model is the 550, just out a few weeks. Includes a 3.2 mega pixel camera for geo-logging your pictures.

There are loads of different Garmin hand held models. Have a google. There's bound to be one that will suit you.

The single, best improvement, over the car sat nav = AA batteries!
Bring a few spare sets of batteries, and you can be lost for days!!