Customer Reviews

Magellan Meridian Water Resistant Hiking GPS

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Ill try to make this one short and sweet. I just finished a several month process of evaluating magellan machines. I started with the companion for the handspring visor.....(which for the money is amazing for navigation but i have not found a good way to handle bodies of water...). This unit was stolen and I have been evaluating units on a buy and try basis since then and I think (god i hope so) that i may have found the one i wanted. Main use desired: Road navigation assistance, boating and fishing on rivers streams and the chesapeake.

I have purchased the meridian gold because the size and focus of the base map and the larger screen size. I have also purchased and used the marine, the base meridian unit, the 330x and the most recently the sportrac pro. My plus and minus list:

meridian (entry level unit) great capabilities, but base map is very lacking at 2 meg memory. I thought this would not be an issue with the SD memory cards but the uploaded detail doesnt show until you are at street level mapping in this unit (when zoomed out only main interstates show) you need to get down to around a .8 mile zoom to get state level roads which in the boonies can leave you scratching your head when you are trying to plot a course. If you dont need that capability this is a wonderful unit.

Meridian - nicer unit but the focus of detail is not as well oriented for those mostly landbound. and the marine aids shown werent of much use to a person with a 16 foot boat anyhow.

Map 330x - nice unit. Display is a little to small for navigation via vehicle (of course we know no one would ever do that to begin with...) 8 meg can be too little memory for installation of mapping. On that basis I would look at the sportrac if you like the size of the unit.

Sportrac Pro. - very nice unit especially given the capabilities of memory and the base map. The only downfall I didnt like was the screen size again. This screen is the same size as the 330 series. tough when you are driving a boat or car. (although the meridian screen is only slightly larger it to me is easier to use at a quick glance) There is a difference between display quality of the sportrac and meridian units also that is worth noting. Im just not sure which i like better. different under different conditions (compared them side by side for a while) and at different zoom levels. SportTract seems a bit crisper but the text is oversized when you are zoomed out.

I honed in on the gold unit because of the street oriented base map since driving through VA is mostly what I am using it for and the address search capability is wonderful.

One final beef with these units. the maps are based off of tiger maps. which as a rule have notoriously been inaccurate. Not too big of a deal for the main uses of this but it is notible when the unit is at times showing that you are as much as several 10ths of a mile off of where you are actually located. Again this is an accuracy issue with the maps and not the units from what I know. There have been times that I have been boating down the highway...... final lesson... always trust your eyes and another handy map to help you if in doubt....

In general these are all good units but make sure you take a good look at what is available and what you want out of the machines. Each unit seems to be tailered a little different and its tough to find details on what the differences are as they can only be found through trial and error and use of the machines. Good Luck Hunting........

I bought the Meridian a few months ago and find it to be a handy and fun device. It has quite a few different screens to give you plenty of data on your position, speed, bearing, etc. I use it quite a bit for work since I often need to go out into the field to pinpoint and find specific locations.

I also use a Garmin at work and personally I like the Magellan. The Garmin is smaller which may have benefits to some but, the Garmin screen is smaller and harder to read when you are either walking or driving in a car. I also find the buttons on the Magellan to be easier to use. Both provide more, or less, the same GPS data on their screens for my needs.

Negatives: The maps the Meridian, or Garmin equivalent, come loaded with are not very detailed. No dirt roads or smaller township roads are included. The Magellan and Garmin map CD's you can purchase for these units are better but still not a USGS 1:24,000 quadrangle which would really be nice for hiking, etc. As far as I know, the most detailed maps you can currently get on the Magellan or Garmin CD's are 1:100,000 scale. Ask a company rep how much memory you need to save the CD maps that you will be using in the unit. A color screen would also be nice for use with the topo maps but battery life is already quite short (if you are out all day you had better carry an extra set) so that may not be feasible.

I believe in "worst part first" - the Meridian GPS is a little slow on PC to GPS software downloads; but, that really isn't much of a problem as long as you don't wait until the last minute to prepare the unit. And that's all of the "worst part".

The Meridian GPS comes as close to "being all things to all people" as I have ever seen. It is comfortable hiking, biking, driving, sailing or flying; while being used by anyone from a "pro" to a novice. Some reading and basic navigational ability is required (if you can get lost in a closet, this unit is not for you). Until GPS technology gets to "telepathic operation" you won't find a more user friendly, all purpose unit.

I've had the Meridian Gold for a few weeks now and am extremely pleased with it. The negative comments posted here are really an overstatement of a simple factory mis-configuration. By default the software and the device are configured to communicate at 4800 baud, however your computer and the device are compatible with much higher tranfer rates by simply configuring both devices to communicate at the same rate. This is very simple to perform if you read the manual. The maps uploaded to the unit are MegaBytes and at 4800 baud it takes a very substantial period of time to perform this task. However when configured for a 115k baud rate the same upload takes less than a minute. I have been slightly disappointed with the inability for the device to follow a road, instead it takes an "as the crow flies" approach. This makes travel planning somewhat more arduous.

This GPS receiver is fantastic. Some reviewers haven't done their homework. For example - I promise that San Francisco is in the database. I don't know where he was looking. The Power button is selectable for either Confirm Off required, or Cancel to stay connected. The street level mapping with the add-in MapSend data is selectable for Low, Medium, High or Very High resolution. Hidden costs for the software? Magellan has a ... rebate if you buy a Meridian and a software title. This unit is extremely accurate, and the maps are pretty good. Don't try to use this unit for surveying, but for any other use - it's fantastic. For the price it can't be beat.

I've used many other GPS units. I decided I wanted one of my own and set out to get the best. I believe I have succeeded. The Magellan Meridian Marine rocks. I wouldn't have written a review except that I had seen some people comment that they liked everything except for the download speeds when sending map info to the unit. I own the SimpleTech FlashLink reader/writer (STI-UMSD100). I know there are a bunch of others out there from Sandisk, Panasonic, Microtech Zio, Hagiwara and others. Anyway...instead of creeping along at serial interface speeds, these drives can increase your transfers by 30x to 50x. Also note the speed ratings of your media...some are much faster than others. Now the MapSend Topo maps get there quick! See the MagellanGPS site for the tweak to use a SD card in a reader.

This is an awesome GPS. This Meridian GPS is a beautifully sculpted lightweight unit.
It is very accurate with WAAS capability (common 1 yard accuracy). It easily records a track of points of your path. This track may be reversed into a route to find your way back.
It comes with 2MB of memory, although with an inexpensive memory card up to 64MB, you may add topo maps to the unit. I added the maximum 64MB and purchased the MapSend Topo software. I added ALL the topographic (altitude lines, special map features and more) of the entire state of California AND also about 95% of Nevada. This is a huge amount of area! This means that ALL of the Sierras-Yosemite etc.., California Coast and almost all of Nevada is always ready to go in the unit. PLUS, this added card enables you to save tracks which go to about 2000 points. I've saved about 20 tracks before. You may also save Waypoints to the card. The card saves the data if you turn off the unit-take out batteries etc.. until you erase it-it's saved.
I also own National Geographic TOPO! which incedently is wonderful software. It is fully in harmony with it too.
The unit comes with a huge amount of features. It has a two level backlight. The text on the unit is easy to use in "MSCOMIC" font. Included is moon/sun rise/set and hunting/fishing best time indicators for position. It has over half a dozen screens which show what you want-from set up. You may show a huge amount of data: MPH, AVG Speed, Position, Bearing, Turn right/left, velocity to waypoint, and many more!
One of the best features on the unit, is a mapping function. On the map screen which shows the topo lines, there is a way to use the cursor to go to a position on the map which scrolls if off the screen. By putting the cursor at a position, you may create a waypoint at this destination. This enables you to create a "GOTO" to that position. Thus, you may create a route or GOTO in the field from the map. You don't need Topographic software or the accessory memory card to do this map screen waypont trick in the field-the default GPS will do this.

Pros:
* Waterproof
* Huge, detailed mapping ability
* Lightweight
* Looks good
* VERY accurate with WAAS
* About 15 hours of battery life from rechargeable NIMH 2 AA batteries
* Affordable-I got mine NEW from Ebay for about $120

Cons:
If the unit's batteries run out while data is in its memory (not the card which saves all data regardless and won't lose it if power is lost)-it loses it. Best remedy: save your work to the card-just like a PC

Conclusion:
Buy it if you want an upgrade to WAAS and mapping ability-the price is hard to beat. It holds its value well-so if you sell it, you'll get a good price at Ebay.com or GEOCaching.com. Sure, there may be other brands, although this one is VERY FINE and will do the job whether hiking or GEOCaching.

...I am disappointed with the Meridian GPS. (This being the standard unit and not the Gold or Platinum versions which may be better.) As a GPS it is adequate, however compared to Garmin units the interface is confusing and it is not obvious how to create such simple items such as user defined waypoints. If you are successful in creating a waypoint, creating a route is fairly easy but I had to refer back to the CD manual to figure out how to activate the route. The printed manual contains very limited information, and the manual contained on the CD is cumbersome to navigate and not available for quick reference.

My main complaint with this GPS are the hidden costs associated with using the mapping features. As it comes out of the box, the Meridian GPS contains a 2MB base map that is only marginally useful (showing only major land masses, lakes, and some interstate highways). In order to recreate the image shown on the front of the manual, Magellan neglects to tell you that you will need to buy the MapSend software...and an additional memory card ([cost] depending on capacity) which almost doubles the cost of the GPS. In fact, none of Magellan's documentation including the box, manual, website, or MapSend documentation ever mentions this limitation. Perhaps the Gold or Platinum versions of the Meridian GPS have memory available for downloading maps, but the standard Meridian GPS does not.

The unit itself is seemingly rugged, but it quite heavy compared to units with similar features from other manufacturers. While this may not be a factor in some applications, if you are hiking you may prefer to look for a lighter GPS.

I would suggest you look hard at the Garmin line of GPS before you settle on this model.

I had complained about map conversion time. I now know it was a software conflict. After major problems, the times are now very speedy. However, my major complaint with this unit is the buttons. They aren't recessed. I have inadvertently turned off the unit and not noticed. It makes it hard to backtrack! I have had the screen settings change because of buttons being hit. You can't just put this unit in your pocket or fanny pack and go hiking. I have had problems with the compass on occasion. If you get a hard sided case it will help.

This is the first GPS receiver I have purchased and I am completely satisfied with my purchase. The receiver is easy to use. I already upgraded my memory and have uploaded several maps from the topo software, it was easy!! Navigation is also easy and very accurate. The topo features are also good.