Customer Reviews

Garmin eTrex Legend C Waterproof Hiking GPS

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Two months ago my family and I joined about 2.3 million others in leaving the Texas Gulf Coast as Hurricane Rita came our way. The road system could not handle that much traffic and a 3 hour drive turned into a 16 hour nightmare. Roads were clogged beyond capacity and I used a county map to navigate along back roads (gravel, shell, dirt and cowpath) to get ahead of a few thousand cars stopped on highways. That worked fine until the map ran out. Then we were stuck in traffic and melting heat. As we sat there I saw other people using nearby roads with confidence and I assumed they had better maps than I did. I was right, but their maps were on their GPS devices. The decision to buy a GPS was made then and there.

I did a lot of research trying to decide which device I wanted to buy and soon found myself lost in a sea of varying opinions. Right after reading a review that extolled the virtues of one unit I would read another that completely trashed it. Eventually I decided that the reviews here and at other sites were not going to give me the answer I was looking for and I would have to buy a device and try it for myself. Using reviews and some common sense I decided that the Garmin eTrex Legend C was a good bet for a trial and ordered it from Amazon.

After giving it a real workout this last week I have to report that this device is a dream. When I chose the Legend C it was my intention that be our introduction into GPS navigation on road and off as well as to use for Geocaching.

We began using it the day we got it by entering an address and navigating to a friend's house on the other side of town. What amazed me was that it chose the same route I would have used, (from among several that were not as desireable). A few days later we used it on a 300 mile trip and it performed flawlessly. It even found our destination, a place in the middle of nowhere, past the end of the last marked road and in a pasture accessible only by a ranch road with no name (that was on the map I downloaded into the device from Garmin City Select Map CD). We used it in the field for several days and my son played with it almost constantly. Before we left to return home we used it to find our first geocache.

The Pros - Great battery life. I do recommend the 12 volt car power cable option because the backlight times out to conserve battery life. We used it for a week (kids sat there and played with it for hours trying to discover all of the features) and it's still on the first set of batteries.

- Easy to read display. Like most other color displays it washes out a little when direct sun is shining on it, but unlike the color display on my cellular telephone it only takes a small adjustment in angle to see the readout well. The display is sharp and automatically changes at dusk and dawn to make itself easier to view in different light conditions.

- Amazingly accurate. When navigating, the device provides warning of upcoming turns by beeping and changing the display. As you get closer to the turn it displays a countdown to the number of seconds before the turn. We were astounded by how accurately it marked the turns to the second.

- Quality of optional maps from the City Select CD. We were out in rough country where even the marked county roads are unpaved and barely maintained. The number of no-name ranch roads scraped out by graders, or are trails marked only by the track of other vehicles that use it, are how people get around once off the highway. Other than some of the smaller tracks this map found every gravel or shell private road we came across. We even found some roads that we had not known existed before as we saw them on the map display while driving around.

Ability to maintain contact with satellites. If you plan to use this in the car I recommend that you turn it on outside the car first and let it find the satellites. It seems to work faster that way. However, while it may take longer for the Legend to find the satellites from inside a vehicle, no matter how it finds them once it acquires the satellite signals it hangs on to them from inside the car. The only way we ever got it to completely lose the signals was to hold it down well below the line of sight from any window. I purchased the optional vehicle mount that suction cups to the windshield and I always had a great signal. Outside, under medium cover, it held signals without a problem. I did not have major cover to deal with so I can't say what would happen in a forest. I expect that the Legend would have the same problems as any GPS would when used under a heavy canopy of trees.

Cons - The device uses a small pointer button to maneuver through options on many of the menus. When trying to manipulate the pointer and then press it to enter an option, it is easy to make mistakes and make the cursor move when you meant to press "enter". A minor hassle but one you should be aware of.

The display is small for use as in vehicles. I could read it allright, but if I were using the device only for in car navigation I would a larger readout. But, as I said I chose this unit to perform a variety of GPS jobs.

Pro and Con - The maps from the CD were fantastic. I have yet to find an error. The "unlocking" process was not as much a pain as I expected from reading other reviews, but it was not as user friendly as I would like.

Maps are loaded by sections and urban areas really eat up a lot of memory. My next unit will have more memory or an expansion slot to add memory via SD or CF cards.

Final analysis. If you are looking for a GPS device to perform a wide variety of tasks on and off road then I highly recommend the eTrex Legend C. As an entry level unit it is expensive, but the cheaper devices had limitations that I was not prepared to live with. More expensive units offer more memory and other things that are nice to have, and of course you can find devices that are more specifically designed and useful for more narrowly focused applications.

There really isn't much to say about the Legend C - it's an awesome
little GPS that lives up to it's promise of packing a lot of features
into a small package. The color display is great - you don't really
appreciate how much better your brain processes graphic information in
color until you experience it. The display's update and refresh rate
is also a lot faster - the map display really feels like it's working
in real-time while the earlier Legend and Vista did not. The Legend
lacks the Vista's electronic compass and barometric altimeter, but for
me this is actually a plus becuase the GPS-only elevation is more
usable in certain situations (like in a moving car or on an airplane
with a pressurized cabin). So even though the Legend C is less
expensive than the Vista I think it's the better of the two units.

I bought my Legend C the moment it was available and replaced my original legend so that I could get the autorouting and 24mb . I found that it also replaced my GPS V with 19MB. The MB is critical since you need to load the detaoled City Select maps in order to get address to address guidance. It is great to arrive at the airport, pick up your car and have turn by turn guidance to your destination, hotel or restaurant address and phone numbers in the palm of your hand!

The City Select software is very expensive - but it is exceptional and probably the best available at any cost. The smallest hotels and auto repair shops are listed and directions take only a few seconds. I used a copy of Europe Metroguide 6 on a trip but it would not autoroute and the PC generated route was frustrating to follow. Perhaps I will get the City Select Europe soon, despite the cost.

I decide to get Legend C over Vista C, because the only difference is the altimeter and the stationary compass. If you are moving Legend C will activate the compass and show you the direction of the north. This unit comes only with basic map with highway, no local street, making it useless without additional map software City Select North America V6, which cost over a hundred dollars. I got the map software from GPSNOW and it's great. With the traffic on the freeway/highway I always wanted to use the side street near downtown LA, but concerned about getting lost and I never took side street. But after I got this GPS with map, I tested the unit near the city by taking the side street I never took. It beeps me before the turn, and if I made a wrong turn it automatically reroute the map and I got to the destination without any problem.
PROS: very compact, nice color even in daytime, battery last long. map reroute quick.
CONS: must get City Select map, small screen might be problem of some people. the rocker button does not click well. for left handed use.

I had regular Legend for a year and I was not 100% happy with it because the screen was very small and not really useful. I had a change to sell it so I bought Legend C.
As usually happens you expect to find good things and bed things.
I was amazed to find out that this unit is absolutely phenomenal.
This is not an update to Legend but a totally new unit:
* New features: 24MB memory vs. 8MB in legend
* New 200MHz processor: Operates about 3 times faster then legend
* Excellent color screen that in fact very readable and bigger then legend
* New software (operating system) with much more choices.
* More logical and flexible unit operation.
* External power connection, USB port.
My biggest test was to try to navigate with this unit in the car. I was pleasantly surprised that it's doable. The unit navigates very good and provides visual and audible directions.
I would not recommend using it for everyday car usage but on weekends trips this will do very good job for the money. It finds POI quickly and navigates to them.
I am extremely happy with it. It's king of take it anywhere unit that does it all. And for a reasonable price.

Cons:

You must use Gamin Mapping S/W which costs about $150. Garmin is not playing a nice game here.
No NEMA interface (Gamin - why?)
No external memory slot.

Conclusion:

If you read my Cons and you can live with them - run and get this unit. You will love it.

Note: Another update to my original review, which says in summation: glad I bought it, love it, expect to use it for years, but recommend you get the Cx instead as the proper map software for this (City Select) is no longer being updated or sold by Garmin for the United States.
---------------------
I'm an outdoor guy, and an international traveler; hiked up Mayan pyramids, chased monkeys away from my tent in Asia; and eaten stuff I had no idea what it was as I was saying "yummy" in any one of many languages. Besides all that, I'm really into maps though never seem to be able to 'find myself' when I've wandered tens of miles into that mythical 'nowhere.' And you know how they say 'you can't step in the same river twice,' well, it turns out you have to at least be able to find the river again before you give it a try--because I would like to try and sleep in the same bed at the end of the day.

So I've been wanting one of these things for years, back when the top of the line handheld GPS was the plain eTrex Vista--and it stood alone. Now of course, you have a multitude of choices, but wouldn't go wrong buying this one.

Not only does it track your movements and plot routes right out of the box--highways and exits--providing valuable guidance to the edge of nowhere, but once you are nowhere, it can tell you how to get back--and then back to nowhere again. Add your own tracks and points of interest.

Is it bad that it can't provide every last detail of an area? Well, for over $100 a map, yes, but this isn't a review of the maps. This little GPS unit is feature filled. The maps need to get cheaper, more creative in their variety, but you couldn't squeeze anymore functionality into the unit. [added 2/'07: City Select for the US, which is really the only appropriate map CD to buy for this unit, is no longer being published, so it's better to get the Legend Cx, which is exactly the same except for the ability to use SD memory cards--like that used in digital cameras and PDAs these days).

Do you really need every last detail of every inch of the state of California loaded when you're going to take the highway a hundred miles without stopping? No, of course not. Do you need to be able to mark a waypoint showing you where that awesome mom-and-pop bar-b-que joint was three years later? Absolutely. And you can load multiple maps into it, switching from one to the other as needed [so long as you can find a copy of US City Select].

There's so much this thing does. In fact, I'm going to go play with it right now--if I can only remember where I left it.

-------------

Just to add to my original review (today being 3/30/2006): I still haven't bothered buying any additional map software (I will eventually), and have been adding waypoints myself by either marking them when I'm there or using Google Earth (which is free on the internet) to find the location and coordinates, then input them into the Waypoints Manager software the GPS comes with, and download them into the GPS (or just enter them directly). I can also use a free bit of software called "SportTracks" to save my tracks throughout the year, and superimpose my travels on to sattelite images (Google Earth again). This has been working out just great for me.

Even in an automobile, it will give me major road, highway, and exit guidance, and when I'm off course or choose a different way than recommended, it recalculates the course much faster than other units I've tried (such as in rental cars). Off-road navigation shows me the direction my destination is in versus where I'm heading, and will also tell me exactly how much time it will take me to get there at my present speed (including stops and such) and what my Estimated Arrival Time is (so I tell the wife, "I'll be there at 7:01pm," and I actually am right on the nose!

I'm highly pleased with this purchase, as is, and can only imagine it will serve me 1000 times better once I add more map details.

--------------------------

BOTTOM LINE including all added comments above: As an avid outdoor guy, principly cyclist, this is still a fantastic item if you can get it for well under $200 (I paid $190 when they were still making it). Used with free software such as SportTracks and Google Earth (available for download on the internet) it's a great item for documenting and mapping your trips, favorite spots and trails, and events like bike tours and adventure races.

Even without adding maps, I'd say it has been worth every penny I paid, and I'm glad I have it. On the other hand, I would have waited and bought the Legend Cx if I had known Garmin were going to stop producing the City Select CDs.

Without the CDs, you might as well get a Forerunner.

I bought the eTrex to use on my bicycle. I ride a road bike, usually with members of the local clubs, and thought it would be helpful to mark the waypoints that several of the rides have in common as a way of ensuring that I could plot a route back to my car should I have to leave the group early, or become separated. I also wanted to be able to mark waypoints that I could later string together while looking at a map to create new routes. The problem is you can't readily mark a waypoint while you're moving. The button that is used to mark a waypoint is also the toggle that is used to move the cursor around on the screen and to access other functions. Unless you hit it dead on, which is nearly impossible to do while you're riding, it doesn't work. In fact, you may wind up suddenly changing the orientation of the map, or the scale, etc., instead.
Another problem is the software. The software for your home computer allows you to plot a route using preferences designed for a person on a bicycle instead of in a car, which means, for example, that it keeps you on the local roads, instead of putting you on a highway. That preference isn't carried over to the eTrex itself. If you ask it to plot a route from where you are to a known waypoint you've previously put in the device, it picks the shortest route, which may not be the safest on a bike. However, as you move around such obstacles, it will recalculate a new route to that waypoint.
In its favor, the sceen resolution is great, and the brighter the sun, the easier it is to see. The screen on other units often washes out in direct sunlight, making it impossible to see. Not the eTrex. And the battery life is excellent. I'm still on the same set of batteries after 2 rides of 4 hours each, playing with it at home for 3 or 4 hours, and then accidentally leaving it on overnight.

I used this in my recent trip to SFO. I was expecting it to lose satellite signal while driving through narrow roads between tall buildings (my earlier GPS - Garmin eMap did not hold a signal in same conditions), but it held up extremely well. The turn by turn directions are pretty good.

The internal memory is a bit less (24 MB) for detailed map, but sufficient for most situations. I think I can load up to 1/3 of CA into this. You can always load up new maps easily through the USB interface. The screen is somewhat small, but the navigation text is pretty big, and most of the time that is all I need while driving.

For the price, it is an excellent value for money. I haven't seen another GPS that is color screen, both hiking and vehicle navigation use, turn by turn directions (no voice, though), excellent satellite signal reception and loads of other features. There are some cool games too.

My favorite is the 'highway' page, which shows a 3-D view of the road ahead, and the next turn shows up as a sign post. The 3-D view is not same as the 3-D feature some of the GPS's offer. It is much simpler in eTrex, but very useful.

Very, very satisfied.
[...]

I upgraded from eTrex Legend black & white to a new color unit. Unit has more memory along with extensive menus and longer batty life. Color unit is faster and picks up satellites better. It also has USB transfers of maps & data which is a plus. The only weak point is that it could use a lot more memory.

The new color screen is extremely readable, with good color saturation, and contrast. This is in stark contrast to the old B/W Legend, which I invariably had to squint at when using it at night due to the poor contrast of the passive matrix screen.

The 24MB of memory as opposed to the 8MB in the B/W unit is also useful, particularly because additional information is required to support the autorouting feature. The autorouting is rather neat, since it automatically detects when I deviate from the route, and then recomputes a new route without being prompted.

I have not had the opportunity to try this with the new City Select maps, but it does work with the old Metroguide 4 data. Indeed, in contrast to the newer versions of Metroguide, the MG4 data is compatible with the autorouting feature of the Legend C. This probably doesn't matter to most people, except for those with older Garmin GPS units which might have come with MG4.

Another point worth noting is that instead of purchasing a dedicated 12-volt car adapter, it's possible to use generic 12-volt car adapters which provide a powered USB slot, and then use the included USB to mini-USB cable to connect to the GPS.