Garmin eTrex Vista GPS

The Garmin eTrex Vista GPS is a mid-level Garmin handheld GPS unit with advanced features suitable for hiking, hunting, geocaching, boating, and more. It has the same features as the eTrex Legend such as mapping capability, but adds an electronic compass and barometric altimeter, allowing for very detailed and precise navigation in a variety of environments.

Garmin Vista models include: the Vista GPS and the eTrex Vista HCx. Both models fit easily in the palm and can be operated with one hand via five side buttons and a joystick on the front.

Garmin eTrex Vista Handheld GPS Navigator

The Garmin eTrex Vista GPS is compact at 4.4-inches high, 2-inches wide, and 1.2-inches thick. It has a small grayscale screen that is 1.1-inches wide and 2.1-inches tall with good, sharp resolution of 160 x 288 pixels.

It is quite easy to read and has a backlight for nighttime use. The unit weighs a mere 5.3-ounces with batteries and runs for up to 12 hours on 2 AAAs.

The battery life is reasonable but certainly not the best. Many current handheld gps systems get a much longer run time. Carrying spare batteries is a necessity for longer trips.

The receiver on the Vista is 12-channel with WAAS correction-- very accurate. It works quite well in most environments.

The Vista allows you to mark 1,000 waypoints and 20 routes--plenty for most users.

The included basemap is fairly detailed, showing major roads, railroads, lakes, rivers, airports, coastlines, and federal highway exit information with nearby points of interest such as gas stations, restaurants, hotels and more.

It also includes a database with major cities worldwide and nautical aids for North and South America.

The standout feature of the Vista is its 24 MB of internal memory, which allows you to add a large amount of map detail from computer mapping software, via an included serial cable.

Unfortunately, the serial transfer speed is slow. Also, many newer computers do not even have serial ports, requiring the purchase of a serial-to-USB adapter.

The electronic compass of the Garmin eTrex Vista GPS shows the direction of travel even when standing still, and a barometric altimeter tracks your altitude, showing an elevation profile for your trip. The altimeter can also help you predict weather patterns by indicating rising or falling barometric pressure.

Although the compass and altimeter provide useful information, be aware that they create extra drain on the batteries, shortening the operating time.



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