To tell the truth, I have never used a GPS device before, so this Garmin GPSMAP 60csx is my first experience. This is perfect for me, since I’m a fan of hiking and backpacking, and I’m also fond of geocaching. Well, this great device serves as an additional help together with my other maps and compass. This GPS unit is perfect for marking trails, and pointing out locations during hiking. Besides, it is also great for navigating the roads in forests (Ottawa National and Nicolet forests).
Position Locating or Satellite Acquisition
This is one of the highly praised features of the Garmin GPSMAP 60csx. Thanks to its perfect sensitivity, you’ll be able to enjoy satellite acquisition, and you’ll also be able to have your position fixed while being inside your house. Be sure, you won’t complain of its functioning even in thick forests, and also of its ability to acquire a position rather quickly.
Easy Usage
As far as I’m concerned (I’m addicted to gadgets and technologies), I experienced some difficulties when trying to use my Garmin GPSMAP. In general, I don’t turn to manuals when adjusting this or that technological unit. In this concern, I’ve had some problems with the device, but after using it for several times, I caught everything quite clearly, and now I can state that I don’t find the user interface to be perfectly intuitive – you should devote some time to learning the ways of navigating through the menu.
Of course, you shouldn’t take this as a poor side or a negative feature, since this feature is characteristic of other devices of the same kind, so if you are experienced in these things, you can easily start using it, or solve the problems with it. Quite naturally, if you’re using it for the very first time, you should spend some hours on its customization and management.
Specifications
Purchasing the Garmin GPSMAP 60csx, you’ll be able to enjoy a number of specifications, such as its compass and altimeter options, which I consider to be pretty useful, especially while hiking and backpacking.
It has also a microSD card, which is a perfect solution together with additionally used specific Topo map cards (used in the region of the Great Lakes, and that of the East Coast). Through the usage of the microSD card, you can easily get rid of connecting regularly to your computer and the GPS in order to upload latest maps to your device. I myself find it to be an incredible feature, since I used to have Mac OS X, which wasn’t supported by Garmin (I’ve recently learnt that Garmin is going to introduce its maps for Mac OS X till the end of the year).
The icons of the device are another perfect feature to be enjoyed greatly, for they enable you to distinguish between various categories of waypoints on the map. For example, with the help of the “hiking” icon you’ll be able to mark a trail head, and then with the help of the “camping” map you’ll be able to mark a campsite along the trail. Moreover, you’ll get an opportunity to track the miles you have crossed, your time spent on moving, or stopping, the velocity of the highest and the overall levels, and many other important specifics.
The ability to track all the mentioned data is indeed very useful and helpful. Well, you’ll have a track log created by this feature concerning your trip, and you’ll see the track displayed as an overlay on the map (terrain map), thus being able to view your exact location and your start point right on the map. As for me, I completely rely on this track log especially when being in the forest, for it is really of vital importance for everyone. While spending nights in the forest, you can easily use the Moon and the Sun page, which are foreseen to provide data at the time of starting your day, or on establishing a base camp.
Geocaching
The Garmin GPSMAP 60csx offers a geocaching menu to be used for tracking the caches uploaded into the device. As for me, I used to have a Mac, as I mentioned above, and I wasn’t able to connect my computer to the device and upload the waypoints from the website “geocaching.com”. So, I manually mark the waypoints using the information found on the noted website. I cannot get any information on how to mark these waypoints manually – it isn’t provided there – so, I found out the way of doing it just myself. Besides, the way of marking caches isn’t mentioned in the manual, and the GPS automatically refreshes the cache status, and points them out in the calendar. Thus, after learning all the nuances of managing all these, you get down to enjoying your geocaching opportunities to full extent.
Unit Style
As for the appearance of the device, it is pretty smooth and comfortable, aimed at handling all the problems connected with the outdoor usage. The color design of the device makes it an ideal one, and the design of the buttons contributes to its being quite logical and helpful.
Improvements
Undoubtedly, the microSD card is just great with its additional help, but the poor thing about the device is that the free space on it cannot be used for some extra savings. So, the biggest complaint is connected with the limited use of the waypoints and tracks, routes and other data. Taking into account the fact that the microSD provides storage with almost no limits, it would be perfect to have a unit that would allow to store track logs, in concern with each trail, putting no limits on the amount of savings.
I think this is a rather negative feature about the device, and it should be improved by all means. More particularly, every time I go hiking, I need to rely on a limited memory of my device, being urged to bear lots of important information in my head. So, it’s really annoying, for I go hiking for a number of trails, following old logging roads, or crossing some other trails, or even going off the trail in some cases. Of course, I can point out the important intersections, while hiking, with some extra waypoints, but in this case, again I’ll face the limitations on the number of tracks and waypoints put by the device.
On the whole, I find this GPS unit to be the most perfect device available nowadays, which is so much helpful when going for backpacking or hiking. It can provide you with all the required and necessary information concerning the environment and your location, the territory characteristics and your moving opportunities while heading or getting back to your start point, without any difficulties. As for me, I’m fond of heading for deep forests, where it is so much important and necessary to have a device like this.
On the other hand, those, who wish to buy the device, shouldn’t forget about the above-mentioned limitations, and also the following facts – Garmin GPSMAP 60csx unit should be made better for the calculation of routes (when used as a GPS device in a car). So, for this purpose, you should look for those units, which are manufactured for this very purpose. Moreover, other features that need to be improved include the maps – they should include documented backroads; and memory storage – it should be made larger, so that not to create problems for the users when trying to store various critical data and information.
