witch gps is right for me?

[hooked79]

keep in mind i am dumb with this stuff

so excuse me if i ask a few stupid questions

ok i want a gps mostly to use for fishing all season long on the ice and in my boat

i was thinking about a garmin handheld but than i see stuff like a lorwance elite 5 that seems to do it all

dose this have gps like a handheld can i get a lake chip for it

and it looks like i can also use it as a flasher or something like that

i dont care about size or bulky i like a bigger screen

would this be a better option for me than a handheld?

what r some pro's and con's of both?

[merkman]

Smartphone or tablet computer... depending on what size screen you would like.

No need for a handheld GPS anymore.

.

[upnorth]

The issue with smartphone GPS is battery life. Using the GPS really chews up the battery on a smartphone. It is fine if you have a phone charger handy, if not it won't take long to kill the battery.

[Whoaru99]

I'd like to have a go with a Garmin Montana, but...$$$. It's pretty much do it all.

[hooked79]

so will a lawance elite 5 do all the same thangs as a hand held?

[merkman]

The issue with smartphone GPS is battery life. Using the GPS really chews up the battery on a smartphone. It is fine if you have a phone charger handy, if not it won't take long to kill the battery.

Batteries are 4 bucks each on a on line auction site....

Going 24 + hours without a charge is not a problem for me.

I also have 12 volt outlets in the boat, vehicles, and ice house for charging otherwise.

[Go_Twins]

I bought the Garmin Oregon 450 with a Upper Midwest Fishing Guide chip. I got the GPS for 2-3 hundred on sale (I can't remember exactly) at Cabela's, and the chip was $99. I'm very happy with it. Especially happy with the contour detail on popular lakes like Mille Lacs. It's a very easy to use touch screen. I've only had it since last July, but so far I love it, and every time I've used it this year I caught the fish I was after.

[aanderud]

Those who say the smartphone GPS is the only GPS you need have obviously not used a handheld GPS much. In addition to battery life, I'll give 3 more reasons my droid razr maxx is NOT the best solution for a hunter or fisherman

a) The smartphone is generally not waterproof. I don't fish and hunt exclusively on sunny days. If you already have a sonar/gps combo or something to use while fishing, you won't be using the handheld for fishing, but I use my Lowrance Expedition C while fishing as my only navigation/contour map. Try navigating via the smartphone on an all-day fishing trip on ML around various mud flats and other structures while it's drizzling. I guess if you intend to NOT use the phone as a phone all day, and somehow you can waterproof it (ziploc bag?), it's feasible, but I don't know how easy they are to control the screens after waterproofing tactics are employed . Heck, even on a SUNNY day the phone can perform poorly in this situation. If I have my phone sitting on my steering console under the windshield, it gets too hot due to greenhouse effect!

The navionics software on the phone has very limited zoom capability. It's really annoying that it won't zoom as close as a 10 year old Lowrance H20.

c) The GPS on the phones are not as accurate. For geo-caching in particular when you have to be spot-on, you will NOT get as close to the targets with your smartphone. I didn't believe this until I tried it with a friend who had a handheld GPS and I used my smartphone, going for the same caches on the same days (same satellite visibility). I'm not sure why this is, but it's a fact.

A quality handheld waterproof model will serve you better all-around in the outdoors. The smartphone is a nice backup option, though.

[Whoaru99]

so will a lawance elite 5 do all the same thangs as a hand held?

I dunno, you should be able to do a feature comparison. That said, I doubt I'll ever buy anything other than a handheld GPS unless it's going to be purely fixed mount and one purpose like only on the boat only on open water. That big thing isn't portable unless you're going to lug around a 12V fish finder sealed battery in your back pocket, and perhaps a separate external antenna.

[itchmesir]

Smartphone or tablet computer... depending on what size screen you would like.

No need for a handheld GPS anymore.

.

only 1 flaw to your logic... smartphones and tablets aren't waterproof... or nearly as rugged as most handheld gps

I love my garmin.. and I own tons of maps for it.. I have one of the older eTrex.. the new eTrex 20/30 look amazing and wish I owned one

[hooked79]

ok not intersted in a smart phone or a galaxy or what ever

i would like to know if the elite 5 dose the same as a hand held gps

seems like it would be a better choice for me since i dont mind carrying a

big bulky system cause it seems like a better bang for the buck

but maybe i am wrong?

[Wish-I-Were-Fishn]

Another issue with smart phones is the reflective screen issue. Maybe some are better then others, but mine is real hard to view in sunlight.

If you have an iPhone in the hot sun it will shut down due to heat. I hate that. My buddy had to throw his in the cooler for a while to get it cool enough to work again.

[hooked79]

ok i am thankfull for the help

but please read my question

i have a pre paid straight talk cell phone

there for i am not intersted in a smartphone and all the other cell phones

i am leaning towrds a elite 5 but befor i spend the cash

i wanna learn more about them

[aanderud]

ok i am thankfull for the help

but please read my question

i have a pre paid straight talk cell phone

there for i am not intersted in a smartphone and all the other cell phones

i am leaning towrds a elite 5 but befor i spend the cash

i wanna learn more about them

Someone already responded to your question about the elite 5 -- but here I'll tell you again. It's big and it's not portable. It's a fixed-mount GPS made for a boat, meant to be hardwired 12 volt unit. It will work perfectly on a boat, but it's not going to be useful for ice fishing, geocaching, hunting, or anything else you might use a GPS for. For that you'd want a handheld unit that runs on portable batteries, (lithium ion built-in, AA, etc), and preferably one that takes map chips (lakemaster, navionics, etc.).

[CAMAN]

You really should get an Android. JK!!

The Elite 5 is a GPS and will do everything (and more) a handheld will do, AND it is also a fishfinder. The great thing about having combo units like that is the ease of marking fish/structure on the GPS. Say you're traveling and find something that looks fishy, instead of having to either immediately hit the waypoint button, or travel back around and attempt to find the spot, you can just go to the fishfinder screen, scroll the marker line back to the spot you want to mark and hit the waypoint button. The waypoint will magically pop up on the GPS screen. Very hard to do with a handheld or standalone GPS that isn't networked with a fishfinder.

The downside of having combo units is the screen size, unless you get one of the massive units the screen is usually too small to have both GPS and fishfinder screens on at the same time if you need to sit more than a couple feet away.

[aanderud]

You really should get an Android. JK!!

The Elite 5 is a GPS and will do everything (and more) a handheld will do, AND it is also a fishfinder. The great thing about having combo units like that is the ease of marking fish/structure on the GPS. Say you're traveling and find something that looks fishy, instead of having to either immediately hit the waypoint button, or travel back around and attempt to find the spot, you can just go to the fishfinder screen, scroll the marker line back to the spot you want to mark and hit the waypoint button. The waypoint will magically pop up on the GPS screen. Very hard to do with a handheld or standalone GPS that isn't networked with a fishfinder.

The downside of having combo units is the screen size, unless you get one of the massive units the screen is usually too small to have both GPS and fishfinder screens on at the same time if you need to sit more than a couple feet away.

This is all true, and I guess in theory you can get an ice kit for it to make it work better for your ice fishing needs. Most folks already have a sonar preference for ice fishing (usually a flasher), so i hadn't really considered using the elite 5 for ice fishing. but, it can be done.

[Whoaru99]

only 1 flaw to your logic... smartphones and tablets aren't waterproof... or nearly as rugged as most handheld gps

I love my garmin.. and I own tons of maps for it.. I have one of the older eTrex.. the new eTrex 20/30 look amazing and wish I owned one

Yeah, I doubt my tablet is as rugged as my old Magellan Meridian GPS unit, and I'm darn sure the tablet doesn't float. That said, a 25-cent zip lock bag does a darn good job of waterproofing it (or at least making it very water resistant).

[hooked79]

ok my question is answered thanxs

or should i say thanxs again cause i guess it was answered once already

true it wont fit in my pocket but i can find were i wanna fish and see if there is fish there all in one and with the ice fishing kit that is portable enof for me looks like i will have around 700$ into this

i didnt wanna spend that much but i was gonna get a hand held with a showdown so looks like i got both with the elite 5

and i got a good unit for my boat

i didnt wanna turn this into a [PoorWordUsage] match i relize some of you wanna use your cell phones and i would too if i had one that was able to do all this stuff but like i said i am not intersted in a cell phone but thanxs for the help and advice i might pick one up tomorro and will update as i use it

[delcecchi]

You could mount the Elite 5 on a device with a 12 volt battery and have GPS and depth finder for ice fishing and then put it on a boat in the summer. That would work fine. Use like the Lowrance Ice Kit, or put something together yourself. You could even put a ram on the side of a 5 gallon bucket and put a battery inside.

That would work just fine. Not as easy to use while driving around on the ice in some sort of vehicle but it would be workable.

[hooked79]

i got the elite 5 dsi today

i played with it a little bit i just hooked it up to my

ice 35 batt i have a lot to learn about it but i am gonna mounbt it on my boat this week and try it out next weekend sometime

i didnt get a chip for it or the ice kit yet gotta save up some cash for that stuff i spent more than i wanted to but i have a device thaty i can use all yr round plus have gps i know it ist as handy as a hand held one

but i will make due what sold it for me was the abilty to have the split screen flasher on one side and sonar on the other it's like haveing a gps sonar and flasher all in one i just i can still use my ice 35 while useing this in the same house i was told it will mess with vexliars not shure about marcums or humminbirds

[hooked79]

has any1 used the elite 5 dsi for ice fishing

i know ppl have used the elite 5 but i cant seem to find out much on the dsi

[Antero]

My etrex works just fine for my needs, hiking in the mountains in the dark while hunting, geo chache needs and it works as well as my other units while on the road. I have dropped it in my livewell and in a beaver pond and it keeps on ticking (after a good dry out).

Cheap, good battery life and easy. What's not to like?