Satmap Active 10

As someone new to GPS hiking handhelds (typically using OS maps and compass), after reading various reviews I was planning to buy the Garmin Vista HCx (based on strong reviews and good internet prices around £150 from Handtec). However I wanted to try one for real so I rang up my local outdoor retailer (Cotswolds) and managed to get a near price match :-) So off I went and the very helpful staff demonstrated the Garmin. It did what it said on the box but with the Topo GB maps the total price came to around £250. This wasn't far off from the Satmap, so the friendly staff also gave me demo of it. It's more chunky but it has a larger screen - great for viewing location features. I was concerned about the battery life but weighing it against the functionality and after a bit of haggling I got a very nice discount which sold the Satmap to me. I also bought the GB National Parks 1:50k (£40). The Satmap comes inbuilt with road and street level mapping - not as good as say a TomTom but still usable. Also nice packaging and case & neck strap - thoughful design. Brought back home and inserted some high powered alkalines and later that week did short route plot around my area. Getting use to various settings such as whether to use GPS data for compass bearing over the inbuilt electronic compass didn't mean much to me. But after trialing both modes, I prefer the inbuilt electronic compass - just need to hold it steady. The GPS driven compass swung around too much for my liking - probably due to how accurate the GPS data (presumeably affected by the number of satellites locked). There were other adjustments that the user manual didn't explain well - the manual supplied is really only a quick start one but it would help to have one that explained all the GPS related features and settings in more detail. After plotting various routes onto the device both through the PC sync s/w and manually, I did notice the akaline batteries draining. With a week to go before heading up to the Lake District, I decided to splash out for the Lithium Polymer battery pack (it includes a car charger kit). So how did it fair up in the Lakes? Well my first hike took me on part of the Newlands Round (featured in Sept issue of Country Walking). Initial locking in the Lakes did take about 2-3 minutes (I did update the SatMap from v1.16 to v1.2 beforehand so can't say whether it's made any difference). As I was hiking up with some heavy photography gear and was stopping continually to take pictures I only got as far as High Spy by late afternoon. By then the cloud line had fallen across High Spy (653m) but I had no problems with the GPS locking. My power saving settings included turning the unit off after 15 minutes, backlight of around 10% and screen off after 3 minutes. When restarting the unit after it auto powered off, the GPS lock wasn't instant - it took about a minute or two - I found this acceptable. Altogether I spent about 8 hours on the hike (probably a good 50%+ was on taking photos) - the Lithium battery held up with no visible power drain. Found the GB map 1:50k good enough for that walk though I did have a 1:25k paper map as backup but didn't really use. So first day use was good - liked the feature of see my walking trail being tracked on the OS map (which later I could save as a new walking route). Various statistics such as distance to next waypoint - very useful though bearing in mind that it is very much a straight line calculation. Next day I tackled "The Haystacks" again featured on same Sept issue. Initially I didn't change the Satmap power saving settings from the day before. However, about mid-point in the walk I set the Satmap to "always on" mode with same backlight 10% and screen off after 3 mins. I had manually marked the route that same morning on the Satmap using the magazine article as a guide. The article suggested a time of 3hrs but with all the photo stops for me it was more closer to 6 hrs. The Haystacks peaked at 603m according the Satmap (OS map is marked 597m) - I guess the difference is due to level of GPS altitude data threshold accuracy. I did inadvertently miss a track change whilst admiring the view around me but with the electronic OS 1:50k map I could see where my new track would eventually lead which was perfect! So no need to double back! Battery life held up dipping to just 75% - pretty good for 2 days of walking. Overall the OS mapping view, the ability to zoom in and out (detail versus big picture), the ease to which I was able to manually mark in new routes and save them really convinced me that this was a great buy. Additionally converting walked routes is easy enough with altitude data also saved. So once a manually mark route is walked a more accurate version can be saved from actual trail recording. Great design! Definitely would recommend this product - it is pricey but with a bit of haggling it becomes an easy choice. For the maps - the 1:25k are very expensive but at least the 1:50k GB National Parks is good value (though this does not cover N.Ireland).

(Written by: HeartyFood)

I had a problem when I first got it freezing up. I called them and they got it going and a week later a software update came and its been great since. The rechargable battery pack lasts for ages if you have all the pwer save options on so is well worth getting.Overall I find it great and easy to use and wouldn't be without mine.

(Written by: Mendipman)

I used one for a couple of weeks over an area I know very well. The battery life proved very unreliable and short - suspect dodgy connections - but the real problem was that mine was just not accurate when recording distance and speed. Mine was just too dangerous to use in the hills so I took it back and got a refund - it was probably just a rogue one but I remember somebody else wrote to Trail about battery problems as well. Great idea to use real OS maps but I feel a lot safer with a Garmin Vista HCx

(Written by: STATIONMAN)