Oregon 300 on sale at REI for $250
- Thread starter Boyd
- Start date
I think I would go for the Oregon over the Dakota, because it has a larger screen with more pixels and a few additional functions.
The Oregon 300 has 1GB internal memory, a compass and an altimeter. The Oregon 200 has no internal memory, no compass and no altimeter. The altimeter won't be of much use in the pines, and personally I don't use the compass on mine - you need to hold it flat and it also drains your batteries faster. The lack of memory on the Oregon 200 is not an issue since you can add a card (although that costs a few bucks if you don't already have one).
So I guess it comes down to how important $50 is to you and whether you want the added features. The Dakota 10 doesn't have a compass or altimeter either. But if you want the City Navigator maps for driving, then the "bike and hike" bundle is a nice deal.
All of these options will work with the new "custom maps" I've been uploading at GPSFileDepot.
The Oregon 300 has 1GB internal memory, a compass and an altimeter. The Oregon 200 has no internal memory, no compass and no altimeter. The altimeter won't be of much use in the pines, and personally I don't use the compass on mine - you need to hold it flat and it also drains your batteries faster. The lack of memory on the Oregon 200 is not an issue since you can add a card (although that costs a few bucks if you don't already have one).
So I guess it comes down to how important $50 is to you and whether you want the added features. The Dakota 10 doesn't have a compass or altimeter either. But if you want the City Navigator maps for driving, then the "bike and hike" bundle is a nice deal.
All of these options will work with the new "custom maps" I've been uploading at GPSFileDepot.
Boyd,
I have been sitting here deciding if I wanted to buy the 300 and the reviews of the reception are worrisome. I am concerned that I will experience the same problems as I did with my Legend that my 60CSX does not have. Almost half of the reviews do not recommend to buy it because of this very problem. As much as not having aerial photo's on my 60CSX bothers me, poor reception is inexcusable. I may not buy now.
Guy
I have been sitting here deciding if I wanted to buy the 300 and the reviews of the reception are worrisome. I am concerned that I will experience the same problems as I did with my Legend that my 60CSX does not have. Almost half of the reviews do not recommend to buy it because of this very problem. As much as not having aerial photo's on my 60CSX bothers me, poor reception is inexcusable. I may not buy now.
Guy
You will have to be the judge of that of course. If you go to http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showforum=11 you will find lots of conflicting opinions about the Oregon vs 60csx. Many of the complaints are about it being more susceptible to multipath errors, like you would get in a canyon or downtown NYC (obstructed sky view with reflective surfaces bouncing the signals around). This is not going to be an issue in the pines.
I pretty much expect a certain amount of error with any GPS, and see it with my 60csx just like I do with other units. But I don't search for stones or do geocaching. If the gps shows me 10 feet off the trail, it doesn't much matter to me.
I have been meaning to do some 60csx vs Oregon tests of my own, maybe I'll give it a shot. I don't see much difference between them for my own uses. Doesn't REI have a money-back satisfaction guarantee? You would want to read all the fine print before counting on that however.
I pretty much expect a certain amount of error with any GPS, and see it with my 60csx just like I do with other units. But I don't search for stones or do geocaching. If the gps shows me 10 feet off the trail, it doesn't much matter to me.
I have been meaning to do some 60csx vs Oregon tests of my own, maybe I'll give it a shot. I don't see much difference between them for my own uses. Doesn't REI have a money-back satisfaction guarantee? You would want to read all the fine print before counting on that however.
I see quite a bit of this type of reports.
The reason you need it is because the ability to get satellites (particularly WAAS which is almost never seen) on the Oregon is the worst of any receiver they have ever made. And it gets worse when you pass within 20 feet of a large tree. I ditched mine and got a Colorado.
Garmin should be embarassed at their decision to go away from the helix antenna.
Guy
The reason you need it is because the ability to get satellites (particularly WAAS which is almost never seen) on the Oregon is the worst of any receiver they have ever made. And it gets worse when you pass within 20 feet of a large tree. I ditched mine and got a Colorado.
Garmin should be embarassed at their decision to go away from the helix antenna.
Guy
The "custom maps" feature is only supported on the Garmin Colorado, Oregon and Dakota series. You will find info on the members of these families here: https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=145
Shop around before you purchase one because there are still some attractive deals out there. Unfortunately the REI sale is over. BTW, I have made some new pine barrens maps in this format for The Plains, Brendan Byrne and Bass River State Forests, and the Peaslee WMA. I will add them to my collection soon at GPSFileDepot (last night my Verizon DSL went down
).
Shop around before you purchase one because there are still some attractive deals out there. Unfortunately the REI sale is over. BTW, I have made some new pine barrens maps in this format for The Plains, Brendan Byrne and Bass River State Forests, and the Peaslee WMA. I will add them to my collection soon at GPSFileDepot (last night my Verizon DSL went down
).I found myself out in Pittsburgh over the weekend, and stopped into an REI out there on chance that maybe they'd have a 300 left. As luck would have it, they did... one, in addtion to the one on display. Thought about it for a day, then went back and purchased it the next day. Won't be playing around with it till a little closer to Christmas though 
.
FWIW, I saw the 300 was listed as "Sold Out" on the last day of the sale online yesterday, and now today it's back to the regular price of 399. It was a good deal.
.FWIW, I saw the 300 was listed as "Sold Out" on the last day of the sale online yesterday, and now today it's back to the regular price of 399. It was a good deal.
Most of the Black Friday sales are over, but I see that West Marine is still offering the Oregon 400c for $300: http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3834503
This is very nice deal if you want the marine maps, and even if you don't need them, it's only $50 more than the REI sale on the Oregon 300. The 400c hardware is identical to the 300 (1GB memory, compass, altimeter). Here's Garmin's product page: https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=145&pID=14905
Congratulations on catching the Oregon 300 in the store MTS - Kayak Karl was not so lucky....
This is very nice deal if you want the marine maps, and even if you don't need them, it's only $50 more than the REI sale on the Oregon 300. The 400c hardware is identical to the 300 (1GB memory, compass, altimeter). Here's Garmin's product page: https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=145&pID=14905
Congratulations on catching the Oregon 300 in the store MTS - Kayak Karl was not so lucky....
Karl,
I am interested in how well you get a signal in the woods. Maybe on one of you outings is there a possibility you could take it off the top of your pack which is how you had it when we met, and take a short stroll into a dense wooded area and see how well it continues to work and show your tracks?
Guy
I am interested in how well you get a signal in the woods. Maybe on one of you outings is there a possibility you could take it off the top of your pack which is how you had it when we met, and take a short stroll into a dense wooded area and see how well it continues to work and show your tracks?
Guy
I wanted a GPS for the sake of geocaching, and got the Dakota 20 for my birthday. Unfortunately, the power on/off started to act weird after afew days and it finally stopped turning on or off, so it went back (i've heard this is a common glitch w/ this model). Is the Oregon 300 much similar because although I had to return it, I was in love w/ the Dakota 20's set of features.
I'm not aware of any similar problems on the Oregon, but that's the first time I've heard about a problem on the Dakota also. A friend just got one and he is in love with it!
The Oregon has a much higher resolution screen than the Dakota, however it is a bit harder to see under certain conditions.
The Oregon has a much higher resolution screen than the Dakota, however it is a bit harder to see under certain conditions.
test run
going to be tromping the wharton track today testing out my oregon 300 and boyds GREAT map. hiking batsto to lower forge.
if any of you are out there pm me. will have my smartphone on
going to be tromping the wharton track today testing out my oregon 300 and boyds GREAT map
. hiking batsto to lower forge. if any of you are out there pm me. will have my smartphone on