GPS 300

Pros: Inexpensive yet competent
Cons: Won't display maps or talk to your computer

The Magellan GPS-300 (originally the Pioneer) is a low-end Global Positioning System in price. In functionality it’s (almost) as good as any.

The GPS network consists of 24 satellites circling the world at an altitude of about 11,000 miles....

Pros: Lightweight, inexpensive
Cons: Not the most accurate GPS out there

I am assuming if you are reading this review, you may not know much about GPS. So, let me give you a brief overview on what GPS is and what it can do for you.

GPS is an acronym for 'Global Positioning System'. It was developed by the United...

Pros: Saves landmarks, gets you home (especially in the dark)
Cons: battery life, possible false sense of security

Ok, I bought the Magellan 300 about a month ago off ebay, I got a really good deal at $72. I finally got to use it, and I was very pleased. I've read mixed reviews on the GPS, and honestly I was a little worried about the accuracy and whether or not it...

Pros: Inexpensive, portable
Cons: Short on more advanced features

As a gadget lover, I just had to have a GPS. The Magellan 300 fit the bill perfectly as a lightweight, small, low-priced unit. While I don't get out into the wilderness as often as I would like to, this GPS has proved very valuable on the demented...

Pros: Small, durable and accurate
Cons: few features

I received this GPS as a Christmas gift and it is a cool toy. Yep, it's a toy because really no GPS (that is affordable to us mortals) is going to be able to replace a good map and the knowledge of how to use one.

So don't make you camping,...

Pros: Waterproof, Size
Cons: Reliability, Speed,

I got this a week before my last hunting trip in the mountains of Colorado. I read the instructions and learned to use it before I went. Once we were up in the mountains we decided to test the GPS out. We marked the camp on the GPS and left to go hunt...

Pros: Inexpensive, accuracy acceptable for general use.
Cons: More detail in the Instruction manual such as examples.

My first experience with the 300 unit was pleasurable. I found it easy to use, fast and as accurate as I would expect from an inexpensive unit. I expect that with continued use it will be a valluable addition when travelling in unknown territory. What...

Pros: Works well in civilization.
Cons: Isn't reliable in the woods.

Ok, first the plus.  I can set it on my dashboard, and drive down the road at 55 and this thing does a really decent job.  It locks on, and stays locked on.

Now the minus.  I can take in the woods in the fall and it locks, loses lock, locks again, etc.  I'm on a mountain that's 2000 feet above average terrain.  I can see from horizon to horizon, for the full 360 degrees, and it can't hold a lock because of a forest of EMPTY trees with no leaves?  Not good.

And then, when it does lock, and I do get a fix, I can't tell which way I'm going because the speed and direction is constantly indeterminate to a landmark.  In other words, the computed position wobbles so much, it appears to the unit I am going - nowhere.  The only way to tell if I'm going in the right direction is to compare distances to a landmark once every five minutes.  If it's decreasing, I know I'm getting closer.

There are much better units out there today.  Pass on this one.  Even if it's free, I wouldn't risk my safety on it.