Hands on with the Garmin GPSMAP 62s
It’s finally here… The Garmin GPSMAP 62s
With the 62 series (and the boater friendly companion 78 series, which shares the same interface), Garmin has married the best features of the 60/76 models, with many of the advantages of the Oregon line.
The problematic high-resolution screens found on the Colorado and Oregon lines did not make it to the 62 series (although I should note that this problem has largely been solved in the latest model, the Oregon 450). Before we get into the details, lets look at some closely…
Related models
- Drop down a notch to the GPSMAP 62 and you’ll lose wireless data sharing, the barometric altimeter, tri-axial electronic compass and the micro-SD slot; still, this one has enough internal memory to satisfy most people’s needs
- Going the other direction, the GPSMAP 62st adds pre-loaded 1:100,000 scale US topo maps to the features found on the 62s, but with all the free maps available, there’s little reason to bump up to this model
- To see how the GPSMAP 62s stands up against other Garmin models, check out my Garmin handheld GPS comparison chart
I’ll discuss the display and feature set first, then look at performance
Portions of the following were adapted from my review of the previously released Garmin GPSMAP 78s and other units with shared features.
Garmin GPSMAP 62s display
With transflective TFT screens, the greater the pixel density, the less light that can be reflected back to the user. In order to maintain the bright screen found on the 60/76 series, Garmin left the resolution (160 x 240 pixels) alone. Screen size remains unchanged too, at 1.6 x 2.2”. The 62 and 78 series do enjoy an increased range of colors that can be displayed (65,000 vs. 256 in the 60/76 series). The result is a bright display, not quite as large or as high resolution as the Oregon series, but with much better visibility in a wide range of conditions. I definitely noticed the lower resolution, but these are the tradeoffs you make. The only time the screen seems cramped to me is when I have a dashboard showing on the map screen (discussed more below).
Shown above is a photo taken in full sun, without backlight, comparing the 60CSX and 62s. It is difficult to capture screen visibility on film, but I find these two displays comparable in a wide range of conditions.
Garmin GPSMAP 62s interface
Garmin hit a home run on the interface. They did an excellent job taking the best aspects of the Oregon series and making it work on a non-touchscreen unit. I think it is actually better than the Oregon except for when it comes to text-entry, where the touchscreen excels. The 62/78 series interface makes it much quicker to navigate main menu items.
A Page Ribbon menu appears when you press the Page or Quit buttons (see image at right). Just like on the 60/76 series, these buttons advance through pages in forward or reverse order, respectively.
The Page Ribbon menu item that appears is the next screen in the sequence. After a second or two, that screen will automatically open. Or you can press Enter to go there right away, or continue pressing Page or Quit to advance to other pages in the sequence; stop on one and it will open. Page Ribbon items and their order can be customized. I prefer this interface to the old style, but you may not. In that case, you can set the unit to a classic style menu and get the old 60/76 series functionality, eliminating the Page Ribbon.
Here’s a quick video I shot, showing a bit of the interface:
Newer features on the Garmin GPSMAP 62s
The 62 series inherited a number of features from the Colorado, Dakota and/or Oregon series. These include the ability to utilize Garmin custom maps and BirdsEye aerial imagery, a tri-axial compass, new customization options, advanced track navigation, wireless data transfer and paperless geocaching. None of these were available on the 60/76 series; I’ll explore each in more detail.
Custom maps and BirdsEye imagery
Garmin custom maps allows you to put just about any map image on the 62s. Found a PDF park trail map online? Add it to your GPS! The image at left below shows a custom map — a USGS topo (raster) image. You can read more about this feature by checking out my posts on Garmin custom maps.
With Garmin’s BirdsEye aerial imagery program, a $29.99 annual subscription allows you to add aerial imagery to the GPSMAP 62s. Since I don’t yet have a BirdsEye subscription for my unit, I’m showing a Jefferson Memorial aerial image using Garmin custom maps, but hey, you get the idea.
Tri-axial compass
Having a tri-axial compass means you don’t have to hold the unit level while navigating. The downside is that the calibration process is more complicated than that for a two-axis electronic compass. It’s the same procedure that is used on the Dakota 20 and Oregon x50 series — here’s a brief video I shot of it. The compass should be recalibrated every time you change the batteries in the unit.
Customizing the Garmin GPSMAP 62s
The 62s offers lots of options for customization. I highly recommend you take the time to set up the following.
Page sequence – You can customize the page sequence by choosing Main Menu > Setup > Page Sequence. This will allow you to select which pages appear in the page sequence and their order. The Page and Quit buttons move forward and backwards (respectively) through pages. I usually put the map screen as my first page and the trip computer last; this way I can toggle between them with the page and quit buttons.
Profiles – The 62s comes with recreational, geocaching, automotive, marine, fitness and classic profiles. You can switch profiles by going to Main Menu > Profile Change. Or create a new one by going to Main Menu > Setup > Profiles. Select the new profile to give it a name. Any changes you make in menus or other settings will be retained in that profile. So start changing things! Want track up when geocaching and north up when biking? No problem. How about a separate profile that just shows USGS topos or aerial imagery? The possibilities are nearly endless.
Data fields – You can change data fields on just about any screen that has these; simply press Menu > Change Data Fields.
Dashboards – Instead of data fields (and in some cases in addition to), you can select a dashboard for the map, compass and trip computer screens. Choices (depending upon page) may include automotive, stopwatch, small or large data field, recreational, compass, geocaching or elevation plot. I’ve included screenshots showing the last four below. For the trip computer and compass pages, you access this via Menu > Change Dashboard. For the map screen, choose Menu > Setup Map > Data Fields > Dashboard. The one downside here is the small screen on the 62 series; using a dashboard can significantly reduce map real estate.
Track navigation
With the GPSMAP 62s, you can select a track to navigate and a route will be created. Waypoints are automatically generated for major high and low elevation points, and start and finish; these and any user waypoints along the track are added to the route. I’m a heavy user of track navigation. If I head out for a trail I’ve never traveled before, I do a search online for tracks (favorite search terms are .gpx, gps, trail name, and park name) and load the track to the device. One advantage of this new track navigation feature is that, unlike typical backcountry route navigation, you’ll get an estimate of actual trail distance rather than “as the crow flies” mileage. Screenshot at right.
Paperless Geocaching
The 62 series is set up for full paperless geocaching support, meaning you can see the description, logs, and hint, and you can log your attempt (find, DNF, etc.) for later transfer back to geocaching.com. Speaking of which, full access to these features requires a premium membership at geocaching.com. Shown below, clockwise from top left: closest geocaches, geocache description, map with geocaching dashboard, recent logs.
Wireless data transfer
The GPSMAP 62s is capable of wireless data transfer with other compatible Garmin units. You can transfer waypoints, tracks, routes and paperless geocache details.
Other features of note
Most of the following aren’t that new, but they are worth mentioning anyway:
Route, Track and Waypoint management 
The GPSMAP 62 series has excellent route, track and waypoint management tools, including:
- Waypoints – The ability to project a waypoint, average location, set proximity alerts, and to reposition a waypoint at your current location.
- Tracks – You can choose to hide or show multiple tracks on the map, view an elevation plot, and give them a custom color (17 colors are available). The image at the right shows a track in red (a record of a previous trip). The color of the active track may also be changed. There’s a good thread at the GPSMAP wiki that delves more into track archiving and storage. The 2.44 beta firmware update brought additional archiving improvements; hopefully this will make it to a non-beta release soon.
- Routes – You can view a map of the entire route, edit the route, reverse it and view an elevation plot.
Ability to utilize free maps
One of the most awesome things about Garmin mapping units is the huge number of free maps available. My favorite site for these is http://gpsfiledepot.com where you can find 1:24,000 scale vector topo maps for most states. You can see a sample in the bottom two screen shots below. If you want shaded relief though (shown in the first two shots), you’ll need to go with Garmin’s own product, either Topo US 100K or their new 1:24,000 scale series.
Auto use
While I would prefer the Oregon 450 as a dual use unit, due to its touch screen (which is significantly larger too), the 62 series is capable of giving turn-by-turn directions when loaded with City Navigator maps.
Under the flap and inside
Under the protective weather cap is a mini-USB port and MCX external antenna connection. Just so it doesn’t trigger questions, I’ll mention that the item beside the antenna connection is a screw. Inside the battery compartment is a micro-SD slot for additional map and data storage.
One hardware note here. The battery holders can be very tight with rechargeable NiMH batteries. I actually had to pry the batteries out of one unit I tested, though my wife could remove them with her amazingly strong fingernails! The batteries popped out of the other test units with a good slap, and I expect that even tight ones will loosen up over time.
Carabiner and mounting system
A rail mount on the back of the unit allows the included carabiner to slide onto the device (shown below). This is the same system used on the Colorado, Dakota and Oregon lines so the related accessories are interchangeable. I’ve heard some people say they don’t trust the carabiner mount, but after using it on my Oregon for a couple of years, I can say that I’ve never had any problems with it. Personally, I really like it and find it very convenient for clipping onto my pack.
Garmin’s bike mount
Auto mount kits
Garmin GPSMAP 62s performance
UPDATE: The issues discussed below seem to have been resolved, and I am now very happy with my own 62s.
A tale of three units
I requested a GPSMAP 62s from Garmin and immediately put it on my mountain bike and went out for a test run. I was pretty shocked at the tracklog errors I saw. The unit also exhibited some abnormal behaviors just sitting still under open sky, with a lot of cycling between low and high readings. I talked to Garmin support, tried a hard reset – everything I could think of, but still saw these problems. At this point, I assumed I had a defective unit and arranged for them to send me a replacement…
Unit # 2 was better, but I still saw high accuracy readings (80’+) and some tracklog errors when mountain biking. I was seeing no such problems reported in GPS forums, so what was going on? Unlike the first one, the second unit appeared to be a pre-production model, further muddying the waters. I was beginning to feel pretty unlucky. Had I really received two dogs in a row? The sister unit, the GPSMAP 78s, had been so good. What in the world was going on?
Third unit and a theory
So I decided I needed another unit to test and, suspecting that Garmin might take a dim view of sending me a third unit, I went down to REI and plunked down my own money’; I figured I’d end up buying one anyway. When it gave me less than stellar results, a theory started forming in my oh too slow gray matter.
I never tested the 78s on my bike, because it didn’t work with standard mounts. Could it be that these new models had problems under canopy, at speed? While I was seeing wide swings in accuracy readings, the tracklogs looked pretty good except on downhill runs. After a couple of weeks of struggle, I had a theory to test. So lets break down performance by use and environment:
Mountain biking (speed + canopy)
Notes on methodology – Tracks were set up to record points every five seconds, WAAS was enabled. The 62s and my 60CSX were both mounted on opposite sides of my handlebars, in a position closer to horizontal than vertical.
The image below shows a portion of the 62s tracklog from a representative out and back trip. On the downhill run there are numerous places where the track doesn’t match well with what was recorded on the way up. In one place the error approaches 250’.
Compare this to the same section of 60CSx track below, where track separation maxes out at around 65’.
However, the 60CSx exhibited much worse spidering / scattering at rest stops, up to 150’ at one point, shown below (60CSx in blue, 62s in yellow).
Enter the beta
In my final round of tests before posting this review, I installed the 2.44 beta firmware, which also updated the GPS firmware to version 4.52. You can see in the 62s track below that these wild errors appear to be gone. I did see track separations of up to 110’ on the uphill and downhill runs, but nothing as large as the previous errors.
On the same ride, the 60CSx also showed track separation errors of around 110’, and once again exhibited significant spidering/multipath errors when stopped.
It appears that the 2.44 beta has significantly improved performance for mountain bikers and others who use their GPS receivers under canopy at faster than walking speeds. Except where indicated, the remainder of the tests discussed below were made using non-beta software.
Hiking under canopy
Here I used the same methodology I did when testing the 78s:
Recordings were made out and back, on foot, with the 78s in my right hand, and the 60CSx in my left. This meant that one unit may have been closer to a cut slope on the trip up, but the other unit was in this position on the trip down.
Tests were made in multiple locations. Basically, I saw more instances of tracklog separation with the 62s; these were in the 35-50’ range. I saw less of these with the 60CSX, but it threw larger variances, up to about 80’. And again, the 60CSx exhibited much more “spidering” when stopped.
Speed or canopy?
So going fast under canopy was problematic in my early testing, but going slow under canopy wasn’t so bad. How about speed alone? To test this, I stuck both units on my car’s dashboard and recorded tracks while driving. Both performed very well, though the 62s went off by about 70’ at one point. The issue appeared to be more about the combination of speed and leaf canopy, than about either alone, but again, it looks like the recent beta has largely fixed this.
Geocaching performance
I did some geocaching testing, but it is much harder to draw a conclusion here. Generally, the 62s put me a little closer and tended to settle down significantly faster than the 60CSx. One time, when standing 3 feet from a cache, it showed me 2’ away, with the compass pointing almost directly to the cache. Impressive! But alas, I am at the whims of the accuracy of the published coordinates when geocaching.
Battery life
I tested battery life using freshly charged Sanyo Eneloop batteries
Altimeter
In my most recent tests, with the 2.40 and 2.44 firmware, I found total ascent readings to be very accurate, on par with the 60CSx, which has always been my most reliable indicator of elevation gain. I was pleased to see this, since the Oregon series has bounced back and forth between accurate and inaccurate readings, depending upon firmware version.
Creaks and bugs
There have been a lot of reports on message boards about units that creak when pressed on opposite sides of the case. I have seen, um, heard this on each of the three units I tested. On the first, you could hear it when powering the unit of and off. It wasn’t as bad on the other two I tested. Whether this portends other problems over the life of the unit is unknown.
With new handhelds, you can typically expect some bugs in the early firmware. The 62s certainly has these, but many are minor or esoteric. One of the more common and unresolved complaints I’ve heard is that the reported battery level stays on full, and then drops to 3/4 charge shortly before the battery dies. Until this is fixed, when the battery level shows any drop, it’s nearly time to change to a new set!
Garmin GPSMAP 62s tips
I imagine there are more, but here’s a few tips:
- Use the zoom buttons to jump a full page in a menu
- When entering a name, the zoom buttons will switch between keypads
- You can create a custom startup message (e.g., if found, please call…) by connecting it to your computer and editing the Garmin/startup.txt file
- The 60 series header showing battery status is gone; you can check the 62 series battery level by briefly pressing the power button, but you may also want to dedicate a data field to it.
Garmin GPSMAP 62 pros
- Excellent menu system; fast access to features
- Bright screen
- Ability to load Garmin custom maps and BirdsEye aerial imagery
- Paperless geocaching
- Tri-axial compass
- Extensive customization options
- Advanced track navigation
- Wireless data transfer with compatible units
- Accurate total ascent readings
- Generally accurate tracklogs, especially with latest beta firmware
Garmin GPSMAP 62s cons
- Small, low resolution screen
- Text entry more difficult than on a touchscreen Oregon
- Relatively heavy (compared to Oregon series)
- Most units seem to sport a creaky case
- Firmware still seems a bit immature
Conclusion and recommendations (updated)
Updated to reflect my testing of production (non-beta) firmware version 2.50.
Recommended. Garmin has nailed the user interface, and the improved performance under the 2.50 firmware has eliminated my previous reluctance about tracklog accuracy. Is it as good as the 60CSx under any and all conditions? Possibly not, but it does show a lot less multipath error when standing still. And it seems to settle down a lot quicker. Those two factors alone could make this a great unit for geocachers.
The 62 series models are some of the best handheld units available today. If you’re sitting on a 60CSx and have been wanting to get a Garmin with new features like BirdsEye aerial imagery, custom maps, advanced track navigation, and paperless caching, it’s probably time to pull the trigger. The performance of the new models is pretty darn close to the 60CSx. You might want to wait for the price to drop a bit, but if you’re holding out for firmware nirvana, I can almost guarantee that when (and if) that day comes, there will be something newer and shinier waiting in the wings, with all the troubles we typically see on new units.
More Garmin GPSMAP 62s reviews
- GPS Information reviews the GPSMAP 62s
- A comparison of the 62s and the older 60CSx
- CacheMania reviews the Garmin 62s
- A New Zealand geocacher has posted a Garmin GPSMAP 62s review
- Free Geography Tools tackles the 62s in a three part review: Parts I, II and III, with conclusions
- A very short 62s review from a marine perspective
- A long distance biker reviews the Garmin 62s
- Using the 62s while sightseeing in Europe
- FellFinder has posted their own Garmin GPSMAP 62s review
- The Wirecutter reviews the GPSMAP 62s
I’ll be posting links to more hands on GPS reviews as they appear, but in the meantime, here are some…
Other Garmin GPSMAP 62s resources
- Trying to decide between the 62 series and the Oregon 450? Maybe this will help.
- The Garmin GPSMAP 62s owners manual
- This chart will show you how the Garmin GPSMAP 62s compares to other Garmin handhelds
- A Garmin GPSMAP 62 and 62 series wiki
- The official Garmin GPSMAP® 62s
web page
Compare prices on the Garmin GPSMAP 62s at these merchants:
- Check the current Garmin GPSMAP 62s
- Find the Garmin GPSMAP 62s at GPS City, one of our favorite low cost vendors
- Get a great deal on the Garmin GPSMAP 62s 2.6-Inch Handheld GPS Navigator – World Wide
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- Check out the deal on the Garmin GPSMAP 62S GPS
at REI.com, where satisfaction is guaranteed and members get 10% back on eligible purchases
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About Rich Owings
Rich,
Would the Garmin 62s (or some other GPSr) be suitable for mounting in a rowing shell? The backward facing rower would hopefully get some indication of which direction to steer and the display has to be visible in very bright sunlight (assume the rower is wearing polarized sunglasses).
LCDs rely on polarization for the display. If you wear polarized sunglasses, depending on the directin of polarization, the display could darken substantially, perhaps even completely. Use tinted sunglasses only.
Leszek is right re: polarized glasses. Accuracy of maps would be important in determining direction to steer, though seeing the track (where you’ve been / seeing any direction changes) could be helpful too. You might want to look at the 78s, which floats, in case it accidentally gets dropped while not snapped into the mount.
I am interested in purchasing my first handheld GPS. I am an avid hunter and would probably use my GPS most in this instance as well as ATV riding. I have been researching a lot and cannot make up my mind between the Garmin 62s and Oregon 450. Being new to the GPS world other than using my Tom Tom in my car I need your expertise in which way I should go? Are the 62s more rugged for what I would use it for? Also, in your opinion for the upgrade in technology am I right in my line of thinking that the 62s/450 the way to go over the 60csx? I hope my questions make sense. I appologize if this has already been answered previously.
Thanks!
I’d say it’s definitely worth it if you can afford it. Have you seen this?…
http://gpstracklog.com/2010/07/garmin-gpsmap-62s-or-oregon-450.html
It may help. The first thing that comes to mind is the 450′s larger screen vs. the 62s being easier to change screens on the go (you’ll quickly learn to change screens with the buttons without looking at the unit; much harder on the 450). That would be a consideration for ATV use.
You’d think the 62s would be more rugged, due to its smaller screen, but the 450′s screen is recessed, which makes a big difference if it takes a tumble.
Rich, Thanks for all the info and quick response. This site really helped me in my decision making process. I opted for the Garmin 450. It seems to fit my needs and the price was a little better. Either would have worked.
thanks again!
Glad to help. If you get a chance after using it awhile, come back and let us know what you think. And be sure to check out the free maps at http://gpsfiledepot.com.
Thanks again Rich! Are the free maps just as good as the 24k topo’s available by Garmin for 100 bucks? I really just need WV and Virginia.
Brandon,
It is all about the money. I’ve had the 60csx for years and love it. I purchased the Oregon 450. It was different in looks, and feel. I bought it shortly after it hit the market. It had too many bugs, and the fixes didn’t much help. I can’t say if it has been fixed, because I no longer have it. I bought the 62st and love it.
If you can, visit a store and compare the two. The way the 62st and the Oregon display the maps are quite different. I prefer the 62st display, but that’s me.
The 60csx, 62st and the Oregon are very rugged, I’ve dropped them all at one time or another and there was no damage to the unit or its performance. I do have the Zagg protective shield on the screen for protection — it is worth it.
So if you’re on a budget the 60csx will work just fine.
thanks, this was very helpful! I appreciate it!
Brandon,
I have Garmin’s 1:24000 maps and the free version from the website. The Garmin lets you “route” a trail if it appears on the map, and you can load only the portions you need — saving on memory. The free website does offer suggestions on how to break the mega map file down, but I’m not a 14 year old with computer skills.
@Brandon – The only things you’re likely to miss with the free topos are (1) shaded relief, which a lot of folks disable on the Oregons for improved visibility and (2) City Navigator street routing (and trail routing too, as Dave points out). The CN streets definitely make it worthwhile, but the http://gpsfiledepot.com maps are a good free alternative.
@Dave – I may be misunderstanding you, but you can select what portions of the map to transfer from MapSource.
I have used Arizona series Seamless USGS Topographic Maps (1:24,000 scale) on CD-ROM for several years. I have gotten the free update to 3.4.3, but this does not allow me to import/export to/from my Garmin Oregon 200. I also am told that the CD-ROM has been out of date quite some time. There is a TOPO 4 upgrade kit for $20, but I have doubts this would work with discontinued CD-Rom stuff. I believe my best option would be to purchase new software. If I get new software I have questions:
1. I have over seven hundred way points, and counting, stored in the tpg format. I do not want to lose or have these way points unusable in any new software. Is this format standard and maintained in any new or future USGS software?
2. Garmin told me about software called “base camp” which is used to download way points from any mass storage, like the Oregon series units. If I have upgraded software, would this “base camp” be necessary?
3. One nagging problem I have been having is hard to explain, but, here goes. I locate mainly Water Holes on Google Earth and on USGS topo maps. Why both? It is because some water holes seem on Google are not seen on USGS topo and vice-versa. Therefore, I download, say way points from one area of USGS topo to my Garmin 120, and then take those way points and upload to same area on Google Earth and then delete duplicates and voila, I have a merged two sets of points. The problem is that when I download way points from Google Earth to my Garmin 120 I must use a converter. I have been using GE2Gpx, a Google Earth KMZ / KML to GPS converter. Using the converter I import Google waypoints (merged together now) back to my Garmin 120 and then when I upload the points back to USGS, the name of every previously converted way point has four vertical bars in front of the waypoint name. For example: ||||WH0210. A message says this name is too long, not in format or such. I have to click between the last bar and the way point name and back space to delete the four bars and then hit OK and then USGS accepts the way point. This is a major crappy time consuming problem. Even though I have clicked and removed every bar going in to USGS, if I import out to my Garmin and then export from Garmin back to USGS, the damned bars come back and have to be re-deleted. BOTTOM LINE: is there any way to get out of this problem? There must be software upgrades now that prevent this from occurring.
Note: A Garmin tech told me there is another converter called/or at GPSIES.com. I have not checked it out yet to see if it has the same problem, as I have to determine what base software I need to get. I must have topo maps with 1:24,000 scale.
4. I collect way points in the field and from Google Earth and AZ Topo Maps CD-ROM and have developed a system to identify each way point (place mark in Google) and file and manage them. Keeping in mind I need the 1:24,000 detail which software would you recommend? I use Windows XP and my computer is very capable.
Note: I may also upgrade to a Garmin 62s. I am not sure yet, because Garmin seems to have poor customer service and they charge for map updates. The problem is other units may not be as good as the Garmin units. I still have to do the research there. Any knowledge you have on both sides of the fence, Topo or GPS, would be appreciated.
5. I really need to export waypoints out of my Garmin Oregon 200 so I can sell it. I would hate to have to give up these hard earned way points. What is the bests way to do this.
1. I believe that GPS Babel (http://gpsbabel.org) will convert .tpg to .gpx.
2. I think NG TOPO 4.x would work fine. Its main limitation has to do with tracks, and it sounds like you are more concerned with waypoints.
3. Try to convert with GPS Babel instead. Another option is to open the resulting GPX file in a text editor and do a Find/Replace operation. You should be able to modify all waypoints in one operation that way.
4. There’s no one good answer for software. BaseCamp is free, but can bog down and be slow. I like NG TOPO, but only for printing maps to take into the field. My favorite day in / day out program is TopoFusion. As far as GPS receivers go, the 62s is a great unit. There’s no need to pay for map updates unless you’re buying City Navigator. There are plenty of free 24K topos at http://gpsfiledepot.com.
5. You could connect it to your PC and just save the waypoint files in the Garmin/GPX folder. I would open them in another program to verify that you have them all. Alternatively you can use BaseCamp to transfer them to your PC.
Rich,
I am considering upgrading my 60csx to the 62s. I was wondering if Garmin has made any improvements on the accuracy and the squeak since your review?
I have a newer 62s – no squeaks.
I haven’t done side-by-side tests with later firmware, but they definitely improved accuracy in the first few releases.
I’ve heard plenty of reports from other folks of “no squeakers” too. Just buy from someone with a lot of turnover, like REI or Amazon.
Rich,
Based on your review I am definitely upgrading to a 62S. Do you feel Digital Oasis has enough turnover to avoid a squeaky unit?
Never heard of them and can’t say, but this looks like a better deal…
http://bestgpsdeals.net/garmin-gpsmap-62s-for-349-95/1115/
Just to second Leszek: I also have a newer 62s and have no squeak.
62s first impressions: I just got my 62s in the mail 2 days ago and have had a chance to do a long mountain bike ride and a geo-cache.
Pros:
1. The screen is way more visible in daylight than my Oregon 400. (No more orienting my gps in the shadow and squinting to see where I am….)
2. The compass is working great! My mtb ride circumnavigates a lake (more or less) and the compass was always accurate, even stopped.
3. The track pointer was always accurate, no flipping around like my Oregon.
4. My 62s does not squeak either.
5. It put me exactly on top of the first cache I looked for (a micro in the forest at night). If this is an indication of accuracy, I would say it doesn’t get any better than this.
6. I ponied up for the Birds Eye Imagery and am very happy with it as well.
Cons:
1. Abrupt suspension hits (hucking) while mountain biking dislodges the GPS from the mount and sends it flying. (Luckily I have a screen protector….) IMO, this happens too easily. And it seems to happen more often on the 62s than it did on my Oregon – probably because the 62 is heavier.
Wishes: I kind of wish the screen had a “night vision backlight mode” where the screen colors would just be shades of red so as not to effect your eyesight at night.
So far I am really happy with the 62s, I like it better than my 60cs, and my Oregon 400.
Thanks Matt. Great comments! Are you using the standard Garmin mount or a RAM mount?
Have you played around with the night settings under Setup > Display > Colors?
Rich,
I have been using the standard Garmin mount on my mtb handlebars. I looked up the RAM mount – THAT’s what I need! I am ordering it today – thanks for the info, I didn’t even know the RAM mount existed.
I also have not played with the night settings (I guess I have a lot to learn still…) I will do that tonight.
-Thanks again for the great advice!
Glad to help. BTW, there are some high-profile and low-profile options available for RAM mounts. I prefer the latter as they are much safer in the event of a crash.
Rich,
Now that Garmin 62s has been out for awile, do you see any reason to upgrade from Garmin Vista HCx?
My top reasons would be:
-More intuitive interface
-Advanced track navigation
-Birds Eye aerial imagery (better for those living in more open landscapes)
-Paperless geocaching
-Garmin custom maps
When in the track menu, showing a list of all tracks, can you hit menu, and search for a name?
thanks
No. The only option that comes up is “Delete all saved.”
Thanks for the review, Rich. After reading it, I got a 62s and I’m very pleased. I do have one question. If I’m on the map page and I use the rocker to move the arrow off the edge of screen, the map scrolls slowly. I get a second of white screen while the device draws the new map. Is that normal for the 62 series? My last unit was an old eTrex Vista HCx, and I never had that problem. I’m surprised that a newer unit would scroll more slowly.
It may depend on what map you have loaded, but yes, I’m seeing it on both my 62s and Oregon 450. I think they tend to under-spec these things in terms of processor power.
Thanks!
My new Garmin GPSmap60csx arrived yesterday and I have just put it through its paces with my 3 freeware programmes for downloading waypoints and tracks.
Garfile is sweet, creates a .mif filefor all waypoints and tracks in the GPS that with the flick of a finger one imports to MI and then opens as a .tab file in Mapinfo.
DNR Garmin is just as sweet and saves the .gpx files as a single .dbf file which requires one to use Table and Create points when opening it in MI.
GPSU will likewise create a single .dbf files amongst many others.
DNR Garmin and GPSU both create .shp files which I think are what are needed for Arcview/ESRI.
The newer model GPSmap62s did none of these things and I had to go a very roundabout route saving each single .gpx waypoint file as an .xml file in separate pages of Excel, cutting and pasting each separate .xml file into one page of Excel, saving the .xml files as .xls and then opening .xls in Mapinfo before opening Table and Create points.
The moral is buy the GPSmap60s series (the csx has all the bells and whistles, and the sx means that it good for rainforest and tight gullies as the aerial is Extra Sensitive) and download the freeware Garfile. Couldn’t be more easy. The GPSmap60csx can be had through ebay,, new, for $298 BuyItNow price plus postage. Other ebay dealers may be around $305-325 using ByItNow.
The proof is definitely in the pudding-If you use GPSes for making maps and GIS work, don’t touch the GPSmap62s even if it is the latest, with slightly nicer page displays and buttons and an equally good aerial.
Cheers,
Bob Findlay
Sounds like more of a conversion / compatibility issue. Have you tried GPS Babel? The GIS advantages of the 62 series would be BirdsEye aerial imagery and custom map capability.
I spent two days trawling the web for answers to the problem. I found very little. Babel is I think supposed to be able to do it, but on working through Babel I felt that the babel software was aptly named. If you have a very simple to use, Mapinfo-compatible piece of freeware as is Garfile, why bother wasting tie on a GPS that doesn’t like it? I have used the 60csx before, in fact for the last 3 years, but it was a client company’s GPS and not mine. So when I saw the 62s I was suckered into thinking it was the same but better. In terms of time spent not messing arond with an unsatisfactroy product it was cheaper for me to buy my own 60csx even though I had just wasted $500 on the 62s. There would be no need of a conversion/compatibility issue if Garmin hadn’t stuffed around trying to be clever with the 62s in the first place.
Yours is a pretty specialized use case. Did you try the GUI interface for GPS Babel? Honestly, Garmin didn’t change a thing about how the 62 series handles .gpx files. You’re blaming them because DNR Garmin, MapInfo and the others haven’t updated their software.
The simple fact is that the 62s won’t do what I want it to do and there are a great many professional users of GPSes who use them for exactly the same purpose as I. I am not interested as to where the dog has buried the bone and wandering around using GPS as an overexpensive map. I want a GPS that does a a job. People are welcome to the 62s, but if you are a Mapinfo/Arcview?/GIS user don’t waste money buying a 62s and then more money buying software that might do the same job you can do perfectly well with a 60csx and freeware that is totally compatible with the 60csx. What’s wrong with saying that? Why should Garfile, DNR Garmin update their software-it does a good job. Just because some nerd in Garmin wants to fiddle around to make the 62s incompatible doesn’t mean it is Garfile etc’s fault!That’s an arrogant Microsoft type of argument. Garmin might have had the decency to indicate to users that it wouldn’t do the same job as the 60csx.
In my area (Southern California), the GPSMAP 62s goes on sale today at REI for $100 off. If you’ve been waiting to buy one, now is the time. I think the sale lasts at least a week, but they don’t do rain checks, so you have to find an REI where they have it in stock. And if you’ve bought one recently at REI at the standard price, then you can go into the store during the sale and get a refund for the price difference.
Yep, more on the deal here…
http://gpstracklog.com/2011/05/garmin-gpsmap-62s-on-sale.html
Rich,
What is these 3rd party software products that are free and what do they do that people get so upset about??? eg.. Excel spreadsheet formatted files, garfile, Babel,etc, etc… What do they do that Mapsource or BaseCamp or any other purchased Garmin mapping software doesn’t?.
Download waypoints and tracklogs into certain professionl map-making and GIS programmes with minimum time-consuming fuss and at no cost. Mapsource certainly doesn’t do it.
Bob
that’s great, so if you’re a professional, spend the money for an appropriate software and don’t try to do it on the cheap! But don’t complain about the free stuff! We are just people who either geo-cache, or land navigate, bike, water sports, hike and backpack.
Besides how do you deal with the plus or minus 3 meter error of a lowly hand held device?
1) The best professional software for the job happens to be Garfile, which is freeware. The fact that someone has had the decency and courtesy to write it and put it on the web for nothing does not mean it is unprofessional software, or that I am doing something wrong in using it.
2) If someone cannot raise a problem about a Garmin GPS without being abused for “complaining” and not paying for softwware as freeware is availble, then this discussion site is read by some rather sorry people. But then, some people just enjoy being rude behind the anonymity of such sites.
If you have a 62s GPS and you don’t need it for anything but wandering around, fime, it will do a good job despite the creaky case. If you have a 60csx, you don’t really need a 62s. If you are looking fro a GPS to use with such programmes as Mapinfo and ARCView/ESRI, then unless you know something I don’t, stick with the excellent 650csx. That’s the message. No more, no less.
Lets keep it civil folks.
The three of you trading shots at each other cracks me up. While it was an entertaining read, the only useful info I got out of the last 10 posts was that it was on sale at REI. I am upgrading from a Colorado and have been monitoring the comments on this site for nine months regarding the 62s, waiting to see if this unit will be a good upgrade. Hopefully the creak issue has been resolved in the unit I purchase.
According to you Rich, the latest firmware has resolved most of the issues listed earlier in your review. Is this correct?
And to Bob, lighten up dude, the way technology is rolling, in 2 years, all of your issues will either be upgraded, outdated or obsolete, but thanks for keeping me entertained.
Yes, the firmware updates definitely helped the tracklog issues. The 62s is now my “go to” unit (pardon the pun!).
DITTO
Ditto. I have tried to advise people about my problems with 62s. As far as I am concerned it is a fine GPS for recreational pursuits and it is just unfortuneate that it does not do efficiently the kind of job I and many others want it for. For this, the Garmin GSmap60csx is excellent as it is fully compatible with Garfile and DNR Garmin. It is also just unfortuneate that I was led to believe that 672s would have the same capabilty and spent dollars accordingly. The vendor, a friend of mine, was most surprised as were others who thought that the 62s was a better version of the 60csx with the same overall capabilities. In fact, I like the ergonomics of the 62s more than those of the 60csx; the buttons are better, the rocker is more comfortable and the karabiner attachment is streets ahead of that belt clip for the 60csx which always breaks and drops the GPS on the floor.The 62s rubber cover for the USB cable is also more robust. Even though the case creaks when you switch it on.The 62s page layout is cleaner ect etc etc. But………geologists, foresters, agriculturalists, biologists and evnvironmental workers all of whom are involved in GPS mapping for GIS will hit the same problem I did. It’s a pity.
Thanks a lot Bob. We are about to start our GIS preparation and your review helps a lot.
Mike,
I’ve had a 60cs since ’04n then upgraded to a 60csx. A really great unit. I then stepped up to the 62st. There were some early concerns with the unit but Garmin has overcome them. The Squeak is gone. I had to return my original and the replaced unit is squeak free. I am an intensive user of the unit for land navigation in the back country, and the 62st works as well as the 60csx.
The 62st has shaded relief maps (topos) which is really helpful. And the 62st saves tracks differently, it does not compress tracks down to 500 points as the 60csx does. Although the 60csx does save a gpx file on the sd card besides the compressed saved track.
You can’t go wrong with either unit.
Thanks for all the info, Dave and Rich, with 100.00 off at REI it’s pretty much a no-brainer.
Hello Advice please I know where I can purchase a garmin 60csx new for 179.99 or a Garmin 62s from REI for 279.95. I backpack Some geocaching I hike in areas I am unfamiliar with. I own a garmin etrax Older model With weak satellite reception so I’m not very familiar with the capabilities of a better model I want to upgrade to one with strong satellite reception and good mapping
Thank you
Thomas, the 60csx and the 62s are both excellent in heavy bush and gullies; they have excellent aerials. The 62s is a mite easier to deal with in finding your way through the fle system and has nicer maps. But $100 difference-I’d get the 60csx.
Bob
@Thomas…
This might help…
http://gpstracklog.com/2011/04/five-reasons-to-upgrade-your-garmin-handheld.html
Since you geocache, I would definitely go with the paperless model (the 62s). I don’t think you’ll see a lot of difference in satellite reception between the two. The 62s has much more memory for maps, though you can always put a larger micro-SD card in the 60CSx.
@Thomas,
I feel that the 62S portrays the topos much better then the 60csx. The 62s shows shaded relief on the topos which the 60csx can’t. Also if you do a side by side comparison of the 60csx & 62s at the same scale, the 62s will show you more map. I have both units and prefer the 62s, but that’s just me.
Dave
Thank you Rich and Dave and Bob for Advice Greatly appreciated.
I purchased my garmin 62s Today at REI,
Now just to get past the learning curve.
I believe this website We’ll Help me greatly
Have been reading a lot on GPS Tracklog.com
Thanks once again
Excellent! Quite a step up from the eTrex, huh? Chime in if you have questions. We’re here to help.