Re: GPS recommendation

David Gibbs wrote:

Ideally the new GPS would have ... a world wide basemap (as apposed to a NA basemap), good battery life, geocaching support, and cost under $300. Camera, flashlight, and wireless transfer are unimportant to the point of being contra-features.

Don't geocache, so I don't know what that support entails but I love my Garmin eTrex enough that I bought another. Don't care one whit if Garmin is in financial hard times. Either the GPS unit is rugged enough to work in the field or it's not. If it craps out and I need to ship it back for service, I'll probably throw it out and buy a different one.

I use my GPS units for amateur radio. I tie one into the laptop for time and Maidenhead grid locator information and I use the other one to navigate back to very specific spots on the tops of hills in the Northeast US. I need to be able to park the car in the exact same spot (+/-5 feet or so) because I need to aim microwave dishes through gaps in trees.

One unit stays in the car (on the dash) and one goes out in the heat, snow and rain with me as I try to find that 'sweet spot' again. Never had a failure and even though the error ring claims 12 feet, I've been consistently able to get my tires in the same depressions I was in 3 months ago. That's an accuracy of about a foot.

eTrex has no external antenna (wish it did) but the price is right (under $100 US). If I buy another GPS it will be a Garmin.
--buck