GPS question

[cat]

Could someone offer advice on a good, simple gps? A clerk at WalMart recommended Garmin to be best but there are so many models how do you choose?

[zhan]

It might help to say what you want to use it for. Recommendations for vehicle navigation will vary greatly from those for hiking. Geocaching shares a lot in common with hiking, but there are some things that are handy to have in addition, like a compass that points direction when your not moving, while a barometric pressure sensor w/ storm warning may not be relevant but the hiker would like to have.

My first GPS was this one several years ago:
http://www.offroute.com/product/view_product.asp?x_ID=129774&CatID=14347

Though after using it a bit I thought an electronic compass would be great, so I don't have to be moving to know direction. These days, for a few dollars more you can get all that and 3x as much memory:
http://www.offroute.com/product/view_product.asp?x_ID=129775&CatID=14347

Or even all that in color, but your battery life will go down:
http://www.offroute.com/product/view_product.asp?x_ID=149145&CatID=14347

These are all 'entry' models though, and don't accept flash cards. They're also less expensive, but will work fine for hiking and geocaching. If you really get serious into using GPS, you'll likely find you'll want the extra expandability having the flash cards gives. Also, some of the newer models have really cool features, but for a lot more cost:
http://www.offroute.com/product/view_product.asp?x_ID=148702&CatID=14347
http://www.offroute.com/product/view_product.asp?x_ID=149175&CatID=14347

Some of these units also are usable for vehicle navigation, though I've found you want a color screen that's backlit for sure for that. I actually got this for my truck, but it's dedicated for vehicles and won't really work well for hiking:
https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=385&tab=sp550

You have to figure out what you want to do first. After that, you'll need to read a lot of reviews, and I mean a LOT of reviews. Try to filter them all for what you want vs. what you need vs. what you can afford. As for brand, any name brand should do you good. I mentioned mainly Garmin because they're the two i have (legend & c550), and it's what you mentioned. Magellan is the other major player, and they make great units too.

[cryo]

I have a very simple Garmin and love it. Any good GPS will do what you need, so I would recommend the cheapest Garmin they have, if cost is an issue and you don't need anything fancy.

[republic74]

My dad has a garmin and I have a Maglien I doubt you could go wrong w/any of them if you are just looking for a basic one.

[cryo]

The major brands should be okay, but I sometimes see ads for off brands with very low prices, and I always wonder about the quality of those, but the technology is relatively the same for GPS.