Magellan Triton 400 Waterproof Hiking GPS

not to bad. Go w/ up to date merchandise

I bought this item for geocaching and it works great. Inital startup takes some time to do on the computer and a driver from the geocache site has to be downloaded to interface with the unit. However, it is very easy to use and works well for geocaching. You simply connect to the site and download the coordinates. It shows the destination as a flag with direct path. The course you traverse is in another color to show how close you actual are to the destination. I am very happy with this unit and glad I chose this one. Also, the price here is much cheaper than other sources.

In the interest of full disclosure, I must let all readers know that I use my handheld GPSr for geocaching, and my GPSr of choice is a Garmin. There. I said it. In the geocaching world, I'm one half of the team called "Trekkin' and Birdin'." If you're looking for help to choose a unit for other purposes, like hunting or backcountry hiking, this might not be the review for you.That said....I played with the Magellan Triton 400 as it arrived in my mailbox. I don't have any add ons or extra memory or firmware, items which might have improved my experience. Out of the box, I liked the unit's size, just big enough to keep in hand and small enough to stuff in a pocket if I need to grab onto tree branches or rock overhangs. The red color of the housing is a plus, especially if it slips and falls in snow, as happens in the Great Lakes region where we spend most of our caching time. The bright color screen is nice, and the menu screen is easy to understand.The first geocaches I hunted with this unit were deliberately easy and obvious ones, so I could concentrate on the operation of it. In each case, the accuracy of the unit was within 5-10 feet, making it easy to pinpoint the hiding spot. Once I had a level of familiarity with its operation, I took it to find some caches in the type of area we prefer, one with hills, rock walls and heavy tree canopy. Even in those conditions, the unit held on to its fix, better even than my Garmin, which tends to wander a bit in tougher areas.The feature I most missed in this handheld was a combined "distance to end" and compass pointing screen. I was able to switch between two screens, but found that to be awkward and to take away from enjoying my surroundings to their fullest.Pros: Small convenient size Bright colored housing Strong signal lock Color screensCons: Multiple screens for effective navigation Cumbersome loading coordinates by hand Not supported by the [...] websiteMy other unit is still my first choice, but for someone looking for a reasonably priced unit with nice features, one that really holds onto the satellite fix, the Magellan Triton 400 is a nice option.

This expensive GPS was supposed to be new and not refurbished, but the battery compartment was corroded with battery acid and after replacing the supposedly new batteries, we found the spring on the negative side was broken off. The unit only stays on for a few seconds and turns itself off.When we tried to have it exchanged for a working one, we found out that exchanges on this item were not offered and the only recourse was a standard refund, which has taken a long time. And I had to reorder from a different seller and had to pay an additional $41.00. NOT HAPPY WITH THIS DEAL!!!

Incredibly poor quality even for a Chinese manufacturer. Not very intuitive to operate. The small screen is hard to see. The map shown in the ad is an extra $50. Could not correctly set the time. Sent it back. Wasted my time and messed up my hunting trip. I will never buy a Magellan product again.

Very nice piece. Although listed as used, it looked almost new. Very nice to buy from you. Is going to get alot of use.

I bought this GPS for a surveyor friend of mine and he is thrilled with it. He says it does everything he needs it to and with lightning speed.

First off, know what you're getting. Many of the lowest ranking reviews are simply because the reviewer expected a GPS that would help them drive around the city or walk around town. This GPS is absolutely not for this purpose.Second thing you need to know, when you open the box, the thing is next to useless until you load some topographical maps (beyond the extremely basic one included) into it. There are free ones as well as maps you can purchase depending on your desired use. This process is pretty easy, but not at all intuitive nor painless. This would take a pretty techy guy 20-45 minutes to do. My dad and grandpa would never have a hope of figuring it out as it involves their computer and quite a few steps. You'll also want to do a firmware update to solve some of the crashing issues (so I've heard from other reviews; after my firmware upgrade I have not had issues with crashing).After you get it going, it will take you about 30 minutes to an hour to figure out what most of the icons mean and how to navigate the menus. (It will probably take you a day or two of pretty heavy use to become near proficient at it...the Triton was not intuitive according to my experience).But then, you'll have a handheld GPS that you'll probably like to use for things like hiking, hunting, boating, and golfing. If you drop it, it keeps working (Mine fell out of the car onto the asphalt from about 4 feet and suffered no ill effect). Magellan says you can have it in a meter of water for up to 30 minutes. I didn't want to risk trying it. The unit truly is handheld and pretty ergonomic. The screen quality is acceptable. Overall, I am greatly underimpressed by this unit. It is useless for driving and in the city use (which would greatly increase its usefulness). It performs only the basic functions of a GPS (waypoint marking, route marking, geocaching, etc). It doesn't seem to do anything remarkably better than GPS units available 10 years ago (with the exception of support for some of the upgraded maps) that you could pick up used for a fraction of the price.Nevertheless, if you are looking for a topographical-only, rugged, and durable new handheld unit, this may be for you.