Garmin eTrex H Handheld GPS Navigator

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Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 1.2 x 2 x 4.4 inches ; 0.3 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000PDV0CE
• Item model number: eTrex H
• Batteries: 2 Lithium Metal batteries required.
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #226 in Electronics (See Bestsellers in Electronics)

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  Electronics > GPS & Navigation > Handheld GPS & Navigation

• Date first available at Amazon.com: January 12, 2004

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Perfect for outdoor enthusiasts on a budget, the Garmin eTrex H GPS navigator helps you navigate your way through the toughest terrain. The unit is equipped with a high-sensitivity, WAAS-enabled GPS receiver, which locates your position quickly and precisely and maintains its GPS location even in heavy cover and deep canyons. The advantage is clear: whether you're traipsing through thick woods or strolling near tall buildings and trees, you can count on the eTrex H to help you find your way when you need it the most. And just like the original eTrex, this little yellow wonder is intuitive and rugged, with a lightweight housing that fits comfortably in the palm of your hand.

The eTrex H is a breeze to use, with five buttons on either side of the navigator facilitating one-handed operation. The four-level gray LCD display, meanwhile, is easy to read in a shade or daylight. And you needn't fret should the weather turn, as the eTrex H is IPX7 waterproof, so it can withstand an accidental splash or dunk in the water and still continue to perform.

Functionally, the navigator stores up to 500 waypoints in its memory for easy retrieval, with names and graphic symbols to highlight the selections. Users will also appreciate Garmin's exclusive TrackBack feature, which lets you reverse your track (up to 20 reversible routes) and navigate back to your starting point. And the automatic track log offers 10 saved tracks (with 10,000 points), along with the ability to retrace your path in both directions. Other details include a hunting and fishing calculator, sun and moon information, and a serial PC interface.

The eTrex H, which runs for up to 17 hours on a pair of AA batteries (not included), measures 2.0 by 4.4 by 1.2 inches (W x H x D) and is backed by a one-year warranty.

What's in the Box
eTrex H navigator, wrist strap, quick start guide, user's manual.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

139 of 140 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best technology in a starter unit, January 16, 2008

By	David Michmerhuizen (Fremont, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This is my primary Geocaching GPS. The high sensitivity chip has the same strong processing power, and thus signal sensitivity and position resolution, as any of the more expensive units. It gives me excellent accuracy in areas where my older GPS units just give up, even dense forest cover. The software that drives the unit is the same as the older Yellow model (see below) and has stood the test of time.

If you're only interested in point to point navigation (geocaching, trail tracks or just finding your way back to the car or the ski chalet), then this unit will do a great job for a no-regrets price. If you're looking for road network navigation, then this isn't for you.

Be aware that this is the 'H', for 'High Sensitivity' unit, introduced in 2007. It's appearance is almost identical to older Yellow Etrex units, the difference being "High Sensitivity" in red letters just above the screen. Although the older units do work and may still be found, their worth is significantly lessened by the availability of this unit. That's something to keep in mind when looking at used or "new old stock" units at other venues.

One thing that other reviews mention is true - straight out of the box it takes a long time (hours) to acquire it's almanac (a digital description of where satellites are in the sky which is transmitted periodically) and then it's satellite signals. Mine took at least 3 hours and had me thinking it was defective until it finally locked in. Don't despair, this is a one-time thing - once accomplished, start-up time is about 5 seconds.

52 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Garmin E-Trex 100 H, December 9, 2007

By	John A. Pritchard "Tatanka49" (New York City) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As an avid Geocacher and teacher, I had to find out what all the buzz was about the H models. (I own a dozen regular ones that I use for instructional purposes) Everything is the same with features except that it is supposed to be able to get signals in heavy tree cover or in places with steep walls (like buildings) or in valleys, etc. When I used it for the first time, it took forever to catch the first satellite even though I reset the time zone right away. It comes with a central Asia time zone so be sure to change that. It lost power and shut off while trying to boot. It was becoming very frustrating. Took about 15 minutes. However, once it was able to find the local sats, it worked fine. Haven't tried in dense woods or valleys yest, but kept a good signal in woods regular park woods and gave me accuracies to less that 20 feet. The price is the same as a standard E-trex 100 but you get better reception. The down side is that you lose 5 hours of battery life (17 vs 22). I don't see this as a problem at all. And there is no cool globe logo on the front. I will buy more eventually.

Edited 8/6/09 -- Okay. This has become my standard GPSr but I no longer recommend it for the new cacher. I have gotten accuracies within 5 feet in the worst conditions. Although I still like it, the biggest drawback is that the downloads require a serial port. Most computers don't have these any longer which means you need a conversion cable ..another $35 .. if you can find one. For basic GCing, I now suggest the Garmin Venture. Same basic operation but uses a standard USB connection.

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Basic GPS, August 7, 2008

By	William R. Drake (Nevada City, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

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I wanted a basic, easy to use, GPS that would allow me to hike in the wilderness and easily find my way to and from various places without fear of getting lost; and to always find my way back to my campsite or car. I also wanted to be able to save locations I visited as well as locations on the topo map I had not visited yet but wanted to be directed to by the GPS. In addition, I wanted to take a reading "in the field" and be able to find that location on a topo map. This unit does all of this perfectly. Unlike the experience of another reviewer of the eTrex H on this site, when I first turned this GPS on it initialized to satellites and my position in only a few minutes. The description of this unit should mention directly that you can use it to save locations you are not present at. It implies this by referring to Geocaching, but some people, like me, don't know what that is. And the description of how to do this in the owner's manual could be a little better. I am not very experienced in using a GPS with a topo map and I overlooked the need to program the GPS to the "datum" used for the map I was working with, which resulted in my readings being several hundred meters off. My biggest complaint about the owner's manual is that, while it tells you how to program the GPS for various map datums, it does not tell the "beginner" that if you live in the lower 48 US states, for a map that says "NAD 27" for the datum you select "NAD 27 CONUS" (for "Continental US"). I had to buy a couple of books on GPSs to find this out. Otherwise the owner's manual, while it is a little concise, is pretty thorough and easy to use. If your needs are simple, like mine, and you do not need to have topo maps loaded into the GPs, this is an excellent choice at a great price. (Even with a GPS it is always advised to go into unknown areas of the wilderness with a map and compass as well. If you work with a map, you will probably use the UTM system so you will need to learn how to work with that and get a plastic scale for reading meters in "grids". A good book on the GPS can be helpful in these regards - the owner's manual does not go into these details.)