Hand held GPS

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fishinpreacher
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2012/08/21 15:27:26 (permalink)

Hand held GPS

I posted this on the General Ice Fishing section too, but figured it couldn't hurt to put it up here as well.
 
I am considering the purchase of a hand held GPS for this year's upcoming ice season. I have essentially zero experience with handheld units and I don't want to break the bank. Mostly I just want a unit that will allow me to create waypoints and get me back to them. However if I'm going to get one it seems foolish to buy something that only has extreamly limited use.
So here are my questions for those of you who have them...
What brands/models do you recomend, and why?
What features are "must have" verses "not worth it"?
 
I really thought about a power auger for this year but a couple ice fishing buddies both told me they would get a GPS first.
#1

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    bulldog1
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    Re:Hand held GPS 2012/08/21 15:37:23 (permalink)
    Don't really have much help for you on the GPS, but I'd think the auger would be more useful. Usually ice fishing you can use visual reference points to get close to where you want to be. Just curious as to why they would go GPS first...
     
    That being said, I would maybe consider something like the Lowrance® Elite 5 ICE Machine that would give you both sonar and gps.

    Curiosity killed the cat, but for awhile I was a suspect.
    #2
    FishinGuy
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    Re:Hand held GPS 2012/08/21 15:42:34 (permalink)
    My cel phone has gps, that's what I use, though I haven't used it for ice fishing.
    #3
    fishinpreacher
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    Re:Hand held GPS 2012/08/21 16:10:42 (permalink)
    Thanks for the input  Bulldog. I already have a Marcum VX-1pro so I'm coverd with the sonar.
     
    I believe that the reasoning for a GPS over an Auger is that 8-9 inches of ice isn't too bad to drill through with a hand auger, and we often don't get much more than that, and with a GPS you can find your way back to that hump or brushpile where you killed'em last time. (Or if you friends are nice enough they can share their numbers with you )
     
    #4
    fishinpreacher
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    Re:Hand held GPS 2012/08/21 16:12:15 (permalink)
    But with that being said I'm still not 100% sold on GPS over an Auger. I'm just considering and weighing my options.
    #5
    pghmarty
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    Re:Hand held GPS 2012/08/22 13:11:05 (permalink)
    Cell phone gps has nothing to do with satellites and only works with a good signal from multiple towers.
    This means that it will not work in most rural areas


    #6
    CRAPPIE_SLAYER
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    Re:Hand held GPS 2012/08/22 23:15:54 (permalink)
    Bought the cheapie garmin e-trex a few years back just for this reason.  No fancy lake maps on it, but it serves its purpose and can get me back to locations where I hit fish other days.  Think it set me back a whopping $100. Been using it this year while out on the boat to mark new areas to try this winter (if we get any ice).
    #7
    pghmarty
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    Re:Hand held GPS 2012/08/23 14:59:23 (permalink)
    Why buy another gps?
    Automobile gps works good on the water to get to saved places or back to dock.


    #8
    fishinpreacher
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    Re:Hand held GPS 2012/08/23 22:15:43 (permalink)
    Thanks for all the input and advice guys, I really appreciate it.
    A good friend has offered to let my use his old unit this season so I'm going to hold off buying a new one until I have some hands on experience with them and know what I really want and what I can live with out. Seems smarter to wait and make a more informed purchase.
    Thanks again for your time and input.
    Tight lines & God bless.
    John
    #9
    nw/jigmaster
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    Re:Hand held GPS 2012/09/02 07:00:37 (permalink)
    http://www.walmart.com/ip/GPS-Navigation-for-Dummies-3.5-FD-220-Portable-GPS/16829857    This is what I am gunna try this year, hopefully it will work nice....N/W
    #10
    psu_fish
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    Re:Hand held GPS 2012/09/06 23:39:00 (permalink)
    Garmin eTrex20 
    #11
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