DeLorme Earthmate PN-40 GPS

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LandCruisers4Life

LandCruisers4Life

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These look great and have a lot of nice features. Does anyone have one and how do you like it?

DeLorme Earthmate PN-40 GPS........ Giving Garmin a run for their money.
 
bump for a six-month update. Anyone got one yet? I'm wondering about this one myself...
 
I have one. Great maps, so so unit. Screen is awful small for my old eyes and buttons are not intuitive. I also have a simple- simon garmin nuvi 500 with the the Cal. 24k topo chip. It is much more limited in function vs the Delorme but much easier to use. I find myself taking that one out more often and using the Delorme as a backup.
 
I have the older PN-20 and my gripes with it have all been addressed with the revised PN-40. I like it for its versatility and smaller size so that I can use it on anything. Motorcycle, mountain bike, kayak all have mounts for this GPS. That said, the screen is small for vehicle GPS, considering the other models available if that's ALL you need it for. Software is easy. There is a forum from Delorme that supports the unit. Finally, I find it really easy on the trail using this unit combined with a traditional Gazetteer since they are from the same company.
 
I've been eyeballing the PN-30. I was curious about the screen size on it as well. I have an older Garmin 76C unit - is the Delorme screen roughly that same size?
 
nothing, huh?
 
In a review the screen area was listed as 15sq cm. Don't know how accurate that is. Looks interesting but...

I have a Garnmin GPSmap 60CSx with a 2G microSD card in it. I can load up around 1/4th of the US into before hitting a limit on the number of quads that can be loaded. It has enough memory left over to save tracks for a whole month and then some at 1 second intervals. Another recent thread posted a couple places that have more detailed maps available. https://forum.ih8mud.com/electronic-toys/297510-free-garmin-24k-state-topos-et-al.html

As for performance. The only way I've gotten my 60CSx to loose a fix was to go into a tunnel or into the middle of a big parking ramp. Using the active antenna (only $25) it's even managed to maintain a fix inside some parking ramps. As for 32 channel, how many satellites are overhead at any one time?

As for the $29 subscription service. The 7.5 minute topo maps are only scanned images.:frown: I was hoping for better as that would be real nice. Note the USGS has vector versions of all topo maps, and many other types, available for download free. USGS EarthExplorer: Satellite Images, Aerial Photographs and Maps The trick is I don't know translation SW to load them onto a GPS. I also haven't looked recently.:D :hhmm:I wonder how the guys who did CO, WY and other states did it?
 
Bogo said:
...

Note the USGS has vector versions of all topo maps, and many other types, available for download free. USGS EarthExplorer: Satellite Images, Aerial Photographs and Maps The trick is I don't know translation SW to load them onto a GPS. I also haven't looked recently.:D :hhmm:I wonder how the guys who did CO, WY and other states did it?
Click to expand...

There is software referenced on that site I linked in the other thread that is apparently what they used to convert some topo files into Garmin-compatible .img files; there is also a link to an .exe builder that will make the auto-installer to load them into Mapsource.

GPSFileDepot - Custom Maps, Ximage hosting, tutorials, articles and more for your GPSr
 
bumpus... REI has the PN-40 on sale for $259...
 
I have gone back and forth on what I like and what I don't, but it is hard to beat the versitility of a mini-laptop, running Delorme Topo, fed by a "puck" style gps.

Then it would make sense to also run a hand held unit like the PN 40 which would be able to talk to your software.

If you want a stand alone unit, look at the Garmin Nuvi 500.
 
Cruiserdrew said:
I have gone back and forth on what I like and what I don't, but it is hard to beat the versitility of a mini-laptop, running Delorme Topo, fed by a "puck" style gps.

Then it would make sense to also run a hand held unit like the PN 40 which would be able to talk to your software.

If you want a stand alone unit, look at the Garmin Nuvi 500.
Click to expand...

For the car four wheeling, you're right. I use a laptop with a USB GPS ant. and USAPhotomaps (free!). For in city navi, I use a TomTom. But neither works good for backpacking/hiking as they are too bulky/short battery life/poor maps (TomTom). No one GPS solution does it all, they have to be application specific...
 
picked up a PN-40 for hiking. Will report back soon...
 
Cruiserdrew said:
I have gone back and forth on what I like and what I don't, but it is hard to beat the versitility of a mini-laptop, running Delorme Topo, fed by a "puck" style gps.

Then it would make sense to also run a hand held unit like the PN 40 which would be able to talk to your software.

If you want a stand alone unit, look at the Garmin Nuvi 500.
Click to expand...

I did that for awhile, but now use a Garmin GPSmap 60CSx as the puck. It has the big advantage of being able to continue keeping a track log when the laptop is put away.
 
I had a PN 20 and sold it. Battery life was very poor despite claims. Satellite acquisition was slow, and if you lost your signal in the woods you were often SOL. Screen size was far too small to use in a vehicle.

But, some of this seems to be fixed on the 40, especially acquisition time. I have gone to a simple "puck" style GPS and a laptop now.

The upside is that the software was flawless, the integration between the PN20 and the software was perfect, and the maps were good quality and easy to work with. It was real plug and play stuff.

If you want a hand held that you can drop in the creek and on rocks and stuff it's a tough unit, but carry extra batteries!​
 
Just thought I'd report on the PN-40. I've used it on a couple of hikes so far and love it. I turn it on, drop it in the cargo pocket of my pants, and it tracks me wherever. Trees, canyons, ravines, no problem. So far, no complaints at all. I carry tons of crap anyway, so two extra AA's aren't gonna bother me too much in terms of battery life. I'd much rather have the bright, readable display and the ability to load the USGS quads.
 
That is great, I am still running the 20 waiting for a 60 series to come out. Since I went with the larger battery sold on e-bay I hardly have to switch to aa's anymore. I have dropped mine off of rocks generally whatever I throw at it Hiking or Gecaching it keeps on ticking.
 
Rambrush said:
That is great, I am still running the 20 waiting for a 60 series to come out. Since I went with the larger battery sold on e-bay I hardly have to switch to aa's anymore. I have dropped mine off of rocks generally whatever I throw at it Hiking or Gecaching it keeps on ticking.
Click to expand...

the 40 (and 30) have dual processors, that, plus the really bright, daylight-readable screen chew through the batteries. I wouldn't know as I don't have another handheld unit to compare against, and since I have to carry AA's for my headlamp and camera anyway, it's really not that big of a deal. I hadn't heard any rumors about a 60. 'bout the only thing I'd like to see on it would be a bigger screen. But that would just exacerbate the battery-life issue, no?
 
Do you still like it? I am thinking about getting one, have you tried overlaying maps on to aerial photos or sat photos?
 
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