I currently have two GPS "systems":

Garmin Geko 201 - what I carry in the field when I just want UTM coordinates and bearings/distances to/from waypoints.

Delorme Tripmate w/ PC - which I've used in my truck on vacations, but fear trashing the laptop in panic stops and always worry about laptop theft. I don't want to install one of those laptop stands in my truck.

I'd like to get a mapping GPS that will get more use in my truck than hiking, but can still come into the field with me if I'm in an area where a mapping GPS will be useful. It would have to have removable memory cards, display UTM coordinates, and store waypoints (from what I can tell some vehicle mapping GPS units don't display UTM or store waypoints - instead they focus on addresses and street routes).

So, I've been waiting to hear details of a new Magellan "Crossover" that is essentially a vehicle-style GPS (looks like a small TV set) that also be loaded with topo map software and used in the field. It is supposed to come out this month (late January 2007).

Has anyone heard of it? Does anyone know anything about Magellan GPS's that I should know about. Am I crazy for waiting around for this new Crossover model?

I guess a few existing Magellan vehicle GPS's can be "upgraded" to the crossover maps later (when available), but the unit I'm waiting on comes with a more durable case w/ lanyard tie, plus I don't want to pay additonal $'s later for the update.

First off, what are they going to retail for? Me, I was using a Garmin iqueue 3600 for my on-jeep navigation. Until last week, when the backlight died. I needed another one, and looked around.
Garmin actually makes one specifically for jeeps. It can only be orderd through a dealer, and must be installed. Looking at it, its simply a Garmin Quest II in a nifty little case thats installed onto the dash of a wrangler. Well, I started thinking...this is what I am looking for, but dont necessarily need it hardwired into my jeep.
It is waterproof, capable of both road and offroad navigation, has removeable memory, and is capable of loading custom POIs. The downside was the price. Garmin listed the Quest II for 700ish. I went to megaGPS.com, and found the same model for under $500. Again, expensive, but I use mine quite extensively, & am getting a good amount of cach back from taxes. Here is the unit:
Quest II
Again, shop around for better prices. I've used Garmin exclusively, & never had a problem. But, its like coke & pepsi: people are loyal to their brands.

I would rather have a hand-held GPS that can also do vehicle work. I do not know about the new Magellan, but vehicle units generally have large touch screens, which make them somewhat fragile. They also have built-in batteries, which mean that you cannot throw AA batteries in them. Vehicle units are also generally larger in order to accomodate that big screen.

My dream GPS is the Garmin 60csx and a pair of memory cards: one street and one topo. It is a bit pricey, though.

I have had a Magellan Meridan Gold for about a year now, with their topo mapping program loaded into it. In addition to the built in memory, you can use a SD card, with a ton of info on it. When out on foot I can have it show topo lines, mines, wells, you name it, anything that is normally on a USGS topo map. I have a mount with power cord in both of our vehicles, when on the road I can have it delete the topo lines, but show gas stations, campgrounds, national and state parks, harbors, you name it. You can program it to show lat long, or UTM. The screen is large enough for me to see while driving, and the unit, while larger than some other brand GPS's, easily fits into a field jacket pocket, or I have a belt pouch I can carry it it. It is the only GPS I have ever owned, and I am more than happy with it. Be sure to check prices on ebay, I got mine there for about half of the MSRP. Same for the mapping software...

Well, my wife is rolling her eyes right now, but she knows I like toys. To bad that wasn't one of our wedding vows.

Anyway, thanks to a bunch of good points made here I just ordered a Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx with the City Navigator NT microSD card.

I wanted to stay away from rechargable-only units, the 60CSx has a nice screen, optional external antenna, non-patch antenna (which I tend to prefer for field work), the new Sirf chipset, routing for the car, and full field-use maps/waypoints/UTM. To be honest I found it hard to move away from Garmin (I had a GPS III looong ago and really like that).

The on-board compass and altimeter aren't too important to me, but I figured what the heck. The on-board compass might be very useful for geocaching.

Thanks for your help and advice everyone,

Ken K.

Harrkev is jealous...

Please feel free to share your impressions of the unit and any pictures!

That looks like a really nice GPS...

<img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

Here is a pretty good review of the Garmin GPSMAP 60Cx, which is the same unit but without the "sensors" - compass and altimeter. It has lots of nice pics. It helped a lot in my decision.

http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/garmin-60cx-review.php

Of course the reviews at gpsinformation.net are awsome:

http://gpsinformation.us/gps60c/g60review.html

The GPSMAP 60Cx (ie same unit but without sensors) is what I have and what I'd have recommended if I'd got here in time. It's not perfect for in car navigation because it doesn't have traffic updates or speech synthesis, but it's good enough for me. It's versatile and I like having a single unit that does both in-car and on-foot duties.

Nowadays I run it on rechargeable batteries. Although I have a car-kit that will run it from the cigarette lighter, that means wires trailing everywhere. I have a recharger which runs off a lighter socket in the boot, which is a better solution for me when driving. On some trips I use it a lot; when I went skiing I needed 3 pairs of batteries to cover a week, so it's worth having rechargeables.

I also carry some lithium primary AAs for emergencies. I found I had to slightly discharge them before the 60Cx would accept them because their voltage was too high (a warning/tip I got from this forum).

OK, I've had the Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx for four days now. I spent a few days learning about it and then a few out and about with it. Wow, this thing is really really nice! I made the right purchase with this one.

Before I say more, let me say that the specs on the Magellan Crossover finally came out ... and it does NOT have UTM coordinates. Bad move on their part.

The GPSMAP 60CSx setup for road-use runs about the same price overall as the auto GPSs. It only costs about $370 for the GPS, but add $170 for the detailed maps, $25 for the RAM mount, and $10 for a case (I like the simple $10 nylon case better than the $15 see-thru case), and $18 for the 12V auto power cord, and you've spent almost $600. The Magellan Crossover comes with all that stuff and costs about $550.

For use on a trail, the GPSMAP 60CSx is easily on par with the best of mapping GPS's. The Sirf chipset does lock on fast and I've actually gotten a full 3D lock well inside my house with shutters on the windows closed. Amazing!

Garmin sells 100K maps for the entire U.S. and 24K maps for many of the national parks. I bought the pre-loaded City Navigator North America MicroSD card - it provides detailed maps and full routing capabilities.

I'll admit that I was a bit nervous that I'd purchased a great trail GPS but a mediocre road GPS. I'm glad to say it is a GREAT road GPS.

I bought a 12V power cord to power the GPS in my truck and a RAM mount to hold it. When plugged in the backlight stays on and the unit's bright clean screen is very easy to see even with my older eyes. On the way home I accidentally hit the GPS pretty hard with my hand, and it didn't budge a bit. Very secure.

The screen on the GPSMAP 60CSx is almost half the width of the Magellan Crossover (2.2"x1.5" vs. 2.1"x2.8"), but when routing it doesn't really matter as the smaller screen displays everything needed just fine. Ironically the larger screen can't show as much since it is a touchscreen, which means the buttons need to be quite large for fat fingers.

The GPSMAP 60CSx treats all points of interest (POIs) as waypoints. Hit the Find button and you get a menu of icons providing a whole bunch of different "Find" tools to help search for waypoints/POIs. You can search for Waypoints (that I've saved), Geocache waypoints, Cities, Exits, Recent Finds, Addresses, Intersections (ID city, then name two streets), Food, Fuel Service, Lodging, Shopping, Bank & ATM, Entertainment, Recreation, Attractions, Community, Hospitals, Transportation, Auto Service, and Others. The first day I searched for my home and office by entering the addresses using a fairly decent on-screen alphabet pad - it quickly found them - and I searched in Recreation for the county park where my son was supposed to have his Scout Klondike Derby (it got cancelled due to -10 windchill). I saved them as a Waypoints.

This morning I plugged in the GPS in my truck, placed it in the RAM mount - a very solid mount! After turning on the GPS, and getting a very fast lock, I hit the Find button, then the scrolled and pressed the Enter button for the Waypoints icon, and then scrolled and pressed the Enter button for the waypoint named "Office". I pressed Enter to select the Go To option. I pressed Enter to select the "Follow Road" option (this does the road-routing - the other option is "Off Road" for trail use). The GPS took maybe 7 seconds to calculate the 14 mile route.

It shows the route on the map and has a special route turns page that shows each planned turn and the total route distance/time. At the top of the map page it shows the first instrucitons "East to Jones Rd". When about 500 ft from the intersection it displays a zoomed in display of the turn with a large arrow over the roadway indicating the direction of the turn and at the top "Turn right on Jones Rd". It also counts down the distance and time to the turn. Later I found out that it displays a pre-warning and beeps once about 1/2 mile from the turn and then displays another the turn screen with text on a red background and a double-beep about 500 feet from the turn.

I should mention that the route it gave is indeed the shortest, nicest route to my office, but I know that there is too much traffic on the way, so at one point I turned north when it told me to turn south. After a few hundred feet it recognized I was off-route, took a few (5?) seconds to recalculate the route, and then gave me instructions for the new route.

In between turns it shows the route in "fullscreen", to let you know where you are on that leg. It is easy enough to zoom in or out as desired.

At one point the map didn't know about a recently reconfigured intersection. While traveling through that intersection the GPS thought I had overrun it, gave me a new route, then hesitated a bit, but soon recalculated my route again and I was on my way. Very nice.

The Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx is a great GPS and well worth the price.

The short of it is that you can spend $550 on a Magellan Crossover and get a good road GPS that has some features of a mediocre trail GPS, or you can spend $600 on a Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx and get a great trail GPS and a great road GPS.