Amazon.com Review
Any of the contestants on
Survivor II would have welcomed Brunton's Outback Digital Compass. This compass-on-steroids offers more than just a point in the right direction. It lets you save leg locations and then keeps you on course with day and night navigation assistance. It stores bearings for location triangulation. It even offers directions for both true and magnetic north.
After we'd calibrated the compass and set the declination angle (so we could use true north reliably), it proved as accurate as other digital compasses we compared it with, and even as accurate as a good old-fashioned magnetic compass. But unlike your father's compass, the Outback offers a bright backlight on its large display, letting you get a reading in complete darkness.
It also holds info on different legs of a journey--either saved on the fly or programmed--and then keeps track of the direction you should be heading and the amount of time for each leg. You can set the angle of how off-track you can get before the compass displays a warning and shows the direction you need to head to get back on track.
The off-track warnings function at night as well. In the night navigation mode, the Outback displays a green arrow pointing straight ahead if you stay on track, or it shows a red arrow pointing right or left if you wander off track.
If you're carrying a map of the area, the Outback can also be used to store up to 10 bearings that allow you to pinpoint your location. After you've set a bearing, the Outback displays a flashing arrow pointing toward the bearing, along with its normal compass arrow for triangulation.
Promised battery life is 200 hours, which is good because the Outback uses watch batteries, and you'll probably need to make a special trip to replace them. Still, it wouldn't be a bad luxury item for anyone heading out on Survivor III or IV. --J. Curtis
Pros:
- Both magnetic and true north
- Stores up to 10 bearings
- Night mode
Cons:
- Takes some setup prior to use
Amazon.com Product Description
Advanced magnetic technology makes the Brunton Outback digital compass a smart buy for the outdoor explorer. The Outback combines the features of a high-end compass with memory functions, allowing you to store courses, preplanned routes, and bearing points. Your heading is displayed in digits, cardinal points, and on a compass rose.
The compass features azimuth accuracy of plus or minus 2 degrees with tilt compensation to ensure accuracy up to 15 degrees. It is declination adjustable with on- and off-course indicator lights, plus an ambient magnetic-distortion alarm. Other features include a clock, timer, and backlight with automatic shut-off. This compass is splash-resistant and runs on two CR2032 lithium batteries for up to 200 hours. It comes with a one-year warranty.