Owner: Thomas
Used since: 2014
Tested by: Thomas
Review by: Thomas
Primary Use: Bushwalking, Camping, Multi-Day Hiking, Orienteering
Review:
This is the first handheld hiking type GPS I bought and I have used it many times since early 2014 on multi-day hikes and on day bush adventures where little tracks exist in difficult terrain. While I generally like the device and its capabilities, I am not really impressed with its reliability. There is some quirkiness to it as it sometimes would freeze, shut down or restart for no apparent reason or do something weird which wrecks your current route settings. Its pretty random and I have not been able to pinpoint the problem. Although its within the official specifications, I am generally not too happy about its battery consumption. If you are on the trail about 8 hours a day, you will have to replace the batteries every second day. That is not even using it much other than having it in your pocket recording the track and you checking the map every now and then.
Pros:
- Really nice form factor - small, fits nicely into the palm of your hand and is light
- Touchscreen works really well and is bright enough to see even under direct sunlight
- Lots of easy to access features, many of them I have never and will never use
- Waterproof and robust casing
Cons:
- Battery life is not outstanding. While within its specifications - if you are out on say 4-7 days, you need to bring a substantial amount of batteries. 2x pieces for every 2 days of usage.
- Reliability - as mentioned above, I had the unit restart or shut down unexpectedly on several occasions. While it saves the data from the track you were current recording, its extremely frustrating when you are navigating in harsh conditions and difficult terrain and then the device shuts down in front of your eyes.
- Track recording and mapping with 'BaseCamp' app on your computer - this is a big let down because for some reason there are always these weird partial track markers and recordings that don't represent the entire trail you did and the other data seems to be missing or represented in another recording on the system. Since you can't nicely merge these partial records together, often I don't get the entire trail nicely mapped out on my computer. I take great care when putting way points into the system, yet there is always some stuff up at the end of the track resulting in multiple incomplete recordings.
- At times it seems the side push buttons are too sensitive as without touching them in my pocket they sometimes seem to activate rubbing in the pocket.
Comment:
Overall I like the device for its ease of use, form factor and bright display. I would however not buy it again because of its reliability issues and quirks mentioned above.
Manufacturer Website:
https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/on-the-trail/handhelds/oregon-650/prod113520.html