Oregon 450 vs 450t?

[Monteman11]

Debating on which one to buy, while I plan to download maps of the states I will be hunting, I am not sure if it is worth buying the Oregon with the preloaded USA maps. I have always used a very simple GPS to mark waypoints and etc., so I am a little green to this higher end mapping technology. Anyone have any thoughts?

 

[Corax]

I am in more or less the same boat: up to now used paper maps and a simple GPS. I was thinking of one of the Montana to get the big screen or the GPSMAP 62s to keep it simple. I use the Delorme Topo North America series (which I believe is similar to the 100K maps on the Garmin) for general planning, but really notice the difference in resolution between that and the 24K maps. My guess is that the 100K maps would not be that great for actual hunting but might be just the thing for driving to the trailhead.

 

[Monteman11]

I am just not sure if buying the Oregon pre-loaded is actually worth it. I am thinking you may be right about the resolution. Since I plan to buy the huntinggpsmaps, I am thinking I should save the money. The Oregon standard is on sale at Cabelas for 250.00

 

[MNHunter]

I think the Oregon is a Black Friday special this year. Not really sure on the price but I do recall thinking it was good deal.

 

[Monteman11]

It is, but one you can get online right now for 249.99. I just bought one. I figure the $150.00 savings over the 450t I could buy some 24k topos if I want them.

 

[Drake4]

I bought a 450 last spring and love it. Very user friendly. I was skeptical about the touch screen, but I really like that as well.

I heard a lot of comments about battery life, but I bought a pair of lithium batteries before my goat hunt in Sept. and they have lasted me all season, and still show 3/4 life.

 

[konasage]

I think you made a good decision. I have a friend who is a gear freak and he said he looked at both and the only difference was that the 450t took much longer to load because it was trying to load so much definition, said the 450 oregon worked great... good luck!

 

[Big luke1981]

I also went with the 450 over the T and i am very happy with it. Make sure you get good lithium batteries like said above and it will last a long time. I used it a lot this fall and still have battery life left.

 

[CABugle]

I bought the oregon 450 before the hunting season this year and after never using a GPS before i'm not sure how i got by without one. The touch screen is very easy to use and the state mapping cards are very nice for public and private. Like said before get some lithium batteries and you will be good to go for a while.

CABugle

 

[Corax]

I have been looking at the various garmin models and notice that the Oregons have only 850 M of storage, while the other models have more: the GPSMAP 62s has 1.7 G (twice as much as the Oregons) and the Montana 600 has 3 G. In my limited experience with computers, memory is the single most important characteristic, and greatly affects the speed. Does anyone have experience with the Oregon vs the Montana or GPSMAP? There are obvious differences in screen size, interface, etc., but the memory may be important here too. Right now the Oregon is available at a really attractive price, but I am trying to figure out if the extra money for the others is worth it.

Thanks.