I am considering getting myself a GPS, but before I shell out all the money I'd like to learn what everyone else uses, how you use them, are they really worth the money etc.

I can map read/navigate, but it is a bit of a pain if you are in unfamiliar terrain and have to keep wrestling with an OS, and if there are not many features it can sometimes be difficult to locate your exact location.

I don't think I need a mapping one, but Waypoints would be useful I assume. Also, I didn't really see it as a training aid like the Garmin Edge, and I would like to use it for activities other than cycling. The edge however does look pretty compact compared to some of the others.

To you.

I have a Garmin eTrex Vista which I find superb. I team it with Memory map and usually plan routes on the computer then simply follow the waypoint on the GPS.

I can also head off into the wilderness and in the unlikely event (of not!) of getting lost my car is easy to find.

It does everything I could need and a lot more.

I`am looking into buying one after xmas, probably one of the garmin cx range, just waiting to see how much dosh I can scrape together.

I`ve used maps for years but have been frustrated by having to keep dragging it out to check my way. I`am used to using the 1:25 maps but these seem quite expensive in digital format, from £50 to £100 just for one map or national park.

I`ve seen the whole for the uk on 1:50 scale for £199, can anybody tell me if they find the smaller scale of these maps adequate for mountain biking.

P.S Just found a site selling a complete uk 1:50 map for £100, WWW.mapyx.com (sorry can`t do the clicky thing)has anybody brought from them and what is the quality like. :-0

Have you considered a PDA or smartphone? I like my Mio but it bright sunlight it can be hard to see the screen.

http://www.globalpositioningsystems.co.uk/mio-p350-description.html

No, I've not really considered any hardware yet, I'm still trying to assess if it is actually worth buying one of these at all. I could however see other advantages of having a PDA, so will think about this when the time comes.

How do you use it for your MTB activities? do you for example plot a route into it before you go, or just use it for locating yourself?

Did you have to pay extra for mapping?

Thanks for your responses so far.

I recently bought (about 4 weeks ago)a Garmin GPSmap 60CS (now superceded) for £210 from Cotswold, was approx. £425 with the cheapest net price of £370. They may have some left, OK it is not the latest model but at that price it was a steal! I've found it very good inuse, much more versatile and accurate compared with my 5 year old basic etrex.

John

Any of the Garmin E Trex's would do the job although perhaps avoid the Venture as it doesn't have the capacity for as many way points & track points as the others - still perfectly adequate though. Keep an eye on ebay as they tend pop up quite regular, I picked up what looks like a brand new venture for £57 & have seen a couple of Summits going for around £80 (without PC lead though). The simpler units tend to have more battery life around 22 hours from 2 x AA's, as opposed to 13 ish. As for mapping software Temple games were knocking out three region sets of Memory Map for £96 a couple of months back.

Ah, now that's the sort of info I'm after. Thanks PH.

Cos I live fairly close, I was thinking about getting the bikefax North East Wales routes CD. This has downloadable GPS files according to the website, and I notice now that they are starting to build a library of individual routes which work like this too. I assume these are basically a list of waypoints. Is my assumption correct, are they compatible with Garmin/Magellan units?

Having just re-read all that it sounds like some clever advertising ploy doesn't it. Please let me assure you I have no commercial connection.

Once you have the route file in either Tracklogs or Memory Map format you will be able to download it to the GPS unit from the respective software package. MM vers. 5 will work with both Garmin & Magellan GPS units, can't comment on earlier versions or Tracklogs as I've never used them however I'd be surprised if they didn't support most manufacturers products. The route file may be either a list of way points or track points.

Faceplant, 1:50,000 maps are perfectly usable for creating routes on the PC for download to GPS, not sure what they look like on a mapping unit though.

Thanks, Pedal Head, just waiting to see the size of santa`s sack.
Hopefully i will pick up a GPS in the sales. I would just be interested to see how much detail one of the garmin`s colour screens would show up, I`ll try and find a place that demo`s them before buying maps.

Oh, OK, so we are looking at mapping software as well as a GPS unit. It is starting to sound expensive.

If you want to create your own routes from a map then yes. You will also need to transfer the file to to GPS, if you drop me a PM I'll explain.

I have used a GPS without mapping software simply as a back-up to compass etc. Most GPS will give you an OS grid readout, which means you can locate yourself exactly on the paper map. If you do a lot of Hill/fell/backwoods stuff (rather than 'made' trails) this can be really handy.

It pinpoints your location with an accuracy I've never been able to do with a compass and bearings. You can check that you really at the fork of the trails shown so boldly on the map, but which look like the faintest of sheep tracks when you are out there.

There's other quite groovy things too - such as speed, distance covered, elevation etc, (but you'll soon want the electronic maps to go with it).

PS - don't plan to use it *instead* of a compass - the batteries never run out of a compass