Features:

  • Rugged handheld navigator with preloaded worldwide basemap and 2.2-inch monochrome display
  • WAAS-enabled GPS receiver with HotFix and GLONASS support for fast positioning and a reliable signal
  • Waterproof to IPX7 standards for protection against splashes, rain, etc.
  • Support for paperless geocaching and Garmin spine-mounting accessories. Power with two AA batteries for up to 20 hours of use (best with Polaroid AA batteries)
  • See high and low elevation points or store waypoints along a track (start, finish and high/low altitude) to estimate time and distance between points
Very useful for geotagging photographs

I was looking for a way that I could geotag my photographs while traveling, but dedicated GPS modules for cameras tend to be expensive (and typically have a ton of complaints), and GPS logging apps are a great way to kill a phone's battery. I decided to give the eTrex 10 a try, as it was cheap, advertised a long battery life, and can log to a GPX format which can then be matched to photos in Lightroom. The user interface on the eTrex 10 is not exactly intuitive and has a bit of a learning curve, but overall it worked extremely well as a GPX logger. The batteries lasted several days seeing about 6-8 hours of use per day, and it typically recorded thousands of points per day, which allowed for very accurate geotagging.

Amazing as a windsurf tracker

Amazing little device. Years ago I had an early version of this so the new features and joystick are great additions to me. I mainly use this to track my windsurfing. I hang it around my neck and off I go. I'm mainly curious about my speed and overall distance during an afternoon of windsurfing which this easily keeps track of an more... top speed so far is 31.4 mph and distance one afternoon was 26 miles - enough to sail over to Catalina Island, something I think would be fun to do with the right wind. Once connected to my computer I can bring the gpx file from the eTrex into Google Earth and there are my tracks, detailed speed info, detailed elevation info, distance traveled, waypoints and more. You can see exactly how fast you were going throughout the entire track so in my case I'm trying to come out of my gybes as fast as possible and I can see all of it. There are other apps available that can do this but I haven't tried them. The one drawback - no lanyard. It was easy to add one so no big deal.

Nice for the price point

You can know where you are. That's the point. Could be better in features, size, etc. but could also be more expensive to get this features, so there you are. Fits pretty well in a pocket when hiking, but that tends to move the little joystick around, so it probably won't be on the right screen or view when you pull it back out. I get several days of working in the woods out of 2 AA batteries.

durable product and I would recommend this to a beginner Geocacher (like myself)

I have been using this GPS for Geocaching for a few month now and have been very impressed with it. Can log finds and view logs on it, durable product and I would recommend this to a beginner Geocacher (like myself). This works a lot better than the app on my iPhone. I have coverage in the strangest of places....

Love the eTrex10

Much much better than the eTrex. I bought the eTrex about 8 months ago, and although it gave me the bread crumbs I was looking for, the distance measurement was low about 10%. That is not bad in short distance, but in a 10 mile hike, you are off by 1 mile. I bought the eTrex 10 recently and have taken it out a couple of times, 1 10 mile hike and one 7.5 mile hike, and the distance was right on for both hikes. I took both my eTrex and eTrex 10 - side by side, and it proved my suspicions of the low readings of the eTrex . The eTrex 10 also comes with far more information at your finger tips, than the earlier version eTrex, and the eTrex costs about 1/2 of what the eTrex cost. I feel I won all the way around.

A perfect hiking handheld GPS, long battery life

I feel the etrex size is too small to really take advantage of terrain maps both in detail and scroll speed, so for hiking, simple open water navigation or backwoods purposes, an eTrex 10 is all that I need to complement a compass and paper map; I use it like old style radar, follow the blip to a target using whatever route you visually survey is best. A key use is marking way-points and toughness under field conditions [ cold, rain, mud, heat, drops], to later port that data to a larger map on paper, tablet or PC, once at a rest stop or base station. For safety, its 'trackback' provides a simple way to return to base in poor visibility. Pros built tough and water resistant for hiking purpose, so no case needed. I dropped it 10' many times to rug and dirt, in a bathtub of water, without issue Easy, fast single click marking of waypoints separate from tracks Tracking is automatic and uses little memory joystick & button navigation is easy to operate with gloves on B&W screen great in sunlight Power consumption is >=30% _less_ than color eTrex [ 10 draws 60mA; the 30 or 20 is 90 mA, no maps installed, lights off, GPS+GLONASS+WAAS ON and active satellites tracked] If GPS alone is used, eTrex 10 draws only 45mA easy to learn without a manual improved accuracy via WAAS and GLONASS support, as close as 6' with waypoint averaging Fast re-acquisition of satellites once initial acquisition is obtained Upgraded to latest firmware via Garmin Express easily Lots of support from Garmin website or 3rd party websites or blogs Easy exporting data to Google Maps and Earth via BaseCamp >50 continuous hours on 2x Lithium AA [ test batteries were not yet exhausted] 33 continuous hours with 2000mAH NiMH, 41 continuous hours if GPS only, GLONASS and WAAS OFF Cons No maps No beeper or buzzer for alarms B&W screen less sharp vs color but works in all lighting conditions not enough documentation in the shipped manual No clip or lanyard included Note, most ads for the eTrex 10 state is has 'no memory'. What they mean is no memory to store maps, it has 7.5 MB/10MB free [ the rest is use by the system] to store tracks, waypoints, caches etc., onboard. You can store several 1000s of these as the data size is very small and by then, it gets unwieldy to search and manipulate. Nothing more to buy beyond a belt clip Garmin Carabiner clip.

Phenomenal unit for the price

This is an ideal hiking GPS paired with a smart phone map or topographic map. I was recently able to test this out in the woods and bogs of Vancouver Island and it performed flawlessly. Yes, it does not have a great map included but the track back capability and waypoints are perfectly suited to help you get "unlost". The battery life is amazing. While you may need to charge your phone multiple times on a hike, I used this unit on the same set of batteries for over 16 hours and it still has life! You could easily do a week on 2 or 3 sets of AAs. Recommended for anyone comfortable using a smart phone as some of the menus are convoluted.

Performed Great in Sub-Freezing Temps

This little guy performed like a champ. I had this in a pouch attached to my pack's shoulder strap for a 10 hour subfreezing hike last weekend. It very nicely kept track all day. And then when I forgot to turn it off when we were done, all night and in to the next morning when I remembered to turn it off. It had only used up 1/4 of it's battery life. I was really impressed. This is after I used it for a 4 hour test hike the previous weekend without changing the batteries. In the cold, the screen was a little slower than normal but otherwise performed great. I bought a small camera case to attach it to my pack and a retractable keychain to keep it from slamming in to the floor if I should drop it or whatever. Works great!

Simple unit for those of us who only need the basics

I'm a simple guy, with simple desires. One is to not get lost while out in the thick of it. Been there, done that, don't recommend it. I'm also not looking to spend a lot on helping to prevent that situation again, so I did a quick search and came up with this unit. It doesn't do a lot and I don't need it to. Mark the camp, go for a hike, peace of mind that camp is "over there". See something cool, mark that too, find that cool thing again in the future. It does other things, mimics my trail, but I haven't fully played around with everything. I only care about that one thing and it does that one thing well.

The battery life is also very nice. I've used it extensively in the last month

I use this GPSr for tracking my hikes and geocaches. It has an intuitive interface and is very accurate! The battery life is also very nice. I've used it extensively in the last month. If I had to guess, I've put close to 20 hours on it and the battery still shows full. I am very satisfied with this purchase, with one exception. I wish I had gotten at least the eTrex 20 for the maps and extra features.

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