Great Unit - Great Price!!! More features than Garmin
Written: Oct 24 '03 (Updated Oct 24 '03)
Product Rating:
Pros: EXPANDABLE memory (MMC cards OK); upgradable; solid unit comfortable in the hands; battery life; features!
Cons: Might be too big/heavy for some people; No built-in place for wrist strap/lanyard;
The Bottom Line: If you're a beginner, buy this unit, not a Garmin! Has more features that you'd likely use in the future, especially the SD/MMC memory expandibility!
wogncia's Full Review: Magellan Meridian Color Handheld GPS Receiver
I darn near bought a Garmin Legend, and decided to dig a little deeper - I wanted to be SURE it was the unit that suited me best. I stumbled across the Magellan Meridian GPS (base unit) for about the same price (actually the Meridian was a little cheaper in the eBay auctions I was watching), read a few reviews, and found that people were pretty satisfied with the Meridian (as they were with the Garmin Legend).
The thing that sold me on the Meridian was the fact that you can use SD cards for memory, whereas the Legend limits you to the built-in 8 MB. I haven't been disappointed! I bought mine brand new on eBay, along with a few of the accessories (2 16 MB cards and the MapSend Topo CD). What a NICE package! I took a risk on some generic MMC cards, as opposed to the more-expensive SD cards, and they work perfectly! Takes awhile to upload the map data via serial port, but well worth the wait. I may invest in a USB card reader to move this along...
Signal has been good - even in areas where people have reported bad signal, I've been able to lock onto 3-4 satellites. I've heard complaints about weak connection on the Garmin eTrek series, but few on the Meridian series. I can vouch for good signal, even in rainy, cloud-covered skies in the woods of Washington State. Indoors is not usually an option, though, but little else works indoors either (cell phone, for example). Works great in the car which is a must!
My only complaint is that there's not a built-in hole or spot to connect a lanyard/wrist strap. Minor complaint for such a nice unit! Highly recommend this GPS - especially for beginners. The 2-meg basemap is pretty basic (only major highways), so if you really want to know where you are - buy the Topo CD! Not only does it give you the not-so-major streets, but also topographical info as well!
You can always upload waypoints from many different web sites (select " also download nearest placenames " at GeoCaching.com to load additional waypoints). Works perfectly with http://www.easygps.com/ - a freeware program that allows you to send and receive waypoints and routes to your GPS. This is crucial for backing up and restoring your precious info. I updated the software on my Meridian, and was able to backup/restore my waypoints before I updated the software.
Meridan Color handheld GPS unit MapSend DirectRoute CD-ROM 64 MB SD memory card Vehicle mounting bracket Turn-by-turn audio prompts; includes serial i...More at Amazon Marketplace
Full-color 120 x 160 pixel display; backlit for easy night-time use Uses WAAS technology for accuracy to within 3 meters or better 16 MB of built-in m...More at Amazon Marketplace
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.