Usability for hiking/camping?

[cohenc]

I too have e-mailed garmin and received a response to my question, which makes me happy... But I wasn't sure what to read into his response...

My question was - the iQue 3600 is being advertised featuring the navigation ability of the product, but never talks about the hiking/camping features of most handhelds. Will it have the same or better abilities as a non-navigational unit (i.e. waypoints, bread crumb trails, reverse, etc.)?

He responded that it would be just like all other GPS units in that fashion, but that because it's a "palm" it's not designed for serious outdoor use.

So that said, what are your collective thoughts on two questions:

1) If I bought this unit instead of a regular handheld unit, would I be losing anything in the way of feature base? I can't find any garmin-based notes on the hiking features of the iQue. I did search palmgear.com and found numerous free and near-free sw apps that do this stuff, don't know which are 'great' and which are only so-so... Thoughts here?

2) If I went hiking and didn't expose the PDA to rain, mud and muck, do you think it would be fine? I've taken my regular Palm hiking, so I don't see this as a problem save battery life now that I would want it on for significant periods of time.

My Palm IIIxe died and I've been looking at the Street Pilot III or other hand-held GPS that would be better for hiking/biking/camping and do roads when necessary. I'm thinking this would be my best bet and solve all my problems at once. Good enough to find where I am while traveling, but I have always wanted one for hiking too, so it's imparative that this work well in that aspect.

Any/all comments greatly appreciated. Debating on pre-ordering...

Cheers,
Caleb

[TXPhi67]

I would not consider the iQue 'out of the box' a viable option for hiking/camping. Like most PDA's, it doesn't look like its sealed or has anything that would protect it from the elements or a fall. I am seriously considering one myself and plan on it replacing my Sony Clie T665. But, I don't intend to take it on a hike. If it goes camping with me, its to help me drive to either the campsite or trail head. Once there, it would be put away and my Garmin GPSmap 76S would be what I use from that point on.

If you are determined to use it for hiking/camping, I don't believe that there is anything in terms of the GPS functionality that would prevent you from it. You would just be taking a risk with throwing about $500 when it gets wet, dropped, etc. Everything I have read leads me to believe that it is compatible with the standard MapSource mapping software, has an effective antenna, and due to its memory capabilities - will have more than enough room for your routes, waypoints, etc. The only things it doesn't seem to have are the various sensors you can get with the other Garmin GPS.

If you don't have a GPS and are looking at them as well as a Palm replacement.

Replace the palm (iQue if you really want the GPS functionality outside of the 'wilds') and pick up on of the lower end Garmins that are built specifically for the outdoors.

That's my 2 cents.

Hope it helps.

TXPhi67