 Good value handset, but lacking a few features 13 of 15 people found this review helpful.
Having only used the device for measuring how fast (and, more importantly how far... or should that be how lazy) my running is, I've found the Garmin eTrex Venture to be of considerable use.
The screen is easily laid out and accessible, with large, clear print on the measurements pages, and a crisp, bright backlight for low-light use that doesn't require squinting to decipher the text on screen. The included route features and waypoint mapping are relatively straightforward (although entering names for custom points of interest is a little time-consuming), and the 4-way joypad in the top left of the screen is responsive and accurate. The device operates best in clear weather conditions and can reach an impressive accuracy of up to approx 3m (10ft). Battery life is also relatively good too, with my device sustaining up to around a day's usage on rechargable Li-Ion AA batteries (Garmin state 20hrs continuous usage, on batter-saving mode), so their estimates aren't too far off. Furthermore, cities and towns (to populations approx 30,000 in size) are pre-installed on the device's limited 8mb memory.
However, for an entry-level device, I was surprised at a lack of a few basic features. There is no dashboard clip included for attaching the unit to the inside of a vehicle. More importantly, the device will not operate within the confines of any vehicle that I have travelled in - signal will drop to zero once the device is moved within 4 walls and a ceiling. The interface for entering waypoints is a little confusing, and difficult to find under the various settings menus. A USB data cable is not included, for downloading additional waypoints from CDs that the manufacturer sells at an additional charge. And sometimes the operating system is sluggish to respond to commands to move around the mapping pages (this may just be a graphics drawing delay, yet still noticeable).
Overall, a good entry-level, value-for-money device for people who enjoy the outdoors on a Sunday afternoon, whether it's on foot or water, but I wouldn't rely on it to trek through sub-tropical Amazonian rainforest, hiking across the Himalayas or, for that matter, finding my way to my best friend's house when he's just moved 20 miles away and I've never driven the route before.
Review ID: 10000000000858264  Thank you for voting. If your vote meets our guidelines, it will be posted within 24 hours. You cannot vote on the helpfulness of a review you wrote. Your request cannot be processed at this time. Please try again later.   Good product 6 of 6 people found this review helpful.
I purchased this unit to track my routes on a recent motorcycle trip. With the ability to load the data into programs such as google earth, i was able to visually see all the area i had travelled. the memory was quite large for recording my individual tracks,on average about 200 miles before the memory was nearly full. then i would save the track and start over again. i had not even used all of the memory available for the 10 track logs that could be saved. the interface took a little to get used to, but after playing with the unit i only read the book to see if there was anything i missed, that easy to use. i have yet to try any of the mapsource software and i am looking forward to it. i would like the ability to program coordinates into it before a trip and i am hoping the mapsource software will do that. the only real drawback is the data cable that comes with the unit. it is a serial cable,and you would need to purchase an additional adapter cable to convert to usb if your computer is of the newer variaty that does not have a serial port. double check the website before purchasing the adapter cable tho. some cable manufactures do not have compatable software for serial to usb adapter.
one of the things i found as an unexpected plus was the way the memory saves your data. when the batteries do go dead, you do not lose any of your saved data. although i will be purchasing the power adapter for automobiles tho worth the cost in the long run. if you can find one here on ebay for a decent price it is worth it. i shopped around for about a month, found a product, researched them on the manufactures website, read reviews, and shopped more. this unit did exactly what i needed it to do, and i had gotten a great deal on it.
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