Submitted by Ernunnos
Second the recommendation on the H-series Garmins. The new GPS chipsets in them are 100x more sensitive, and can even get a lock on the satellites from inside a building. They also lock on much more quickly after powering up.
I have a non-H Legend, and while it works ok out in the desert, when I took it to the forests of Michigan on a hunting trip, it couldn't get a lock through the trees AT ALL. I actually can't believe they're still selling the non-H models. While it's better than nothing, I would never rely on it again. I consider them dangerous for anything other than recreation on open land or water. For any serious use, I would highly recommend returning it while you can and upgrading to the H model.
ED - I had contemplated getting The Garmin eTrex Vista HCx GPS, which has all the features I described, as well as the antenna sensitivity you described, plus a whole host of additional and really cool features, but for $299 it's almost twice as much as the unit I got. While I've no issue with dropping $300 on a GPS, the question I could not answer to my satisfaction was, is it worth it?
As I saw it, the most significant feature was the increased sensitivity. The color screen is nice but not a requirement in my eyes, as is the removable SD card, but I wasn't looking to navigate across the globe with my GPS, just tell me where I was in it. So, is that increased sensitivity worth an additional $150?
What do you think?
