The Best Handheld GPS for Hunting & Fishing

Comparison Table

Best Handheld GPS for Hunting – Garmin OREGON 600 3-Inch Worldwide Handheld GPS

When it comes to GPS tracking technology, there is perhaps no brand that has much immediate name recognition as Garmin. Because they have been in the game for so long, Garmin has managed to build a sterling reputation for crafting some of the most reliable and affordable tracking technology available today.

The OREGON 600 is a considerable step up from its predecessor. The new 600 model features an even more advanced reflective display technology, which means that you are getting one of the brightest and most ‘visible’ touchscreens that we have ever seen on a GPS unit.

One of the hot new innovations that manufacturers are catching onto is the growing demand to be able to use your GPS unit to share waypoints, descriptions, photos, and even geocaches. Garmin is no slouch in this department, as the Oregon 600 allows you to do just that and manages to do it a lot faster than many of its competitors.

Now for the downsides. Garmin’s technology has always involved some complicated installation procedures, and the 600 is no exception. You will have to read the manual cover to cover if you hope to get a really good feel for how to program the buttons and everything.

In addition, all Garmin products seem to suffer from the same flaw as experiencing program crashes more often than some other manufacturers. We can only hope that Garmin is working on a software update to address the issue.

Most Rugged Handheld GPS for Hunting – Garmin GPSMAP 64st High-Sensitivity GPS with GLONASS Receiver

There are a few specific features on the 64ST model GPS that when announced made us very excited to try out. After spending so many years with the 60CSx, we thought that moving to the 64st would be something of an upgraded considering the additional storage space and Bluetooth connectivity.

Right off the bat we noticed how sturdy and rugged this little GPS is. Feels like it could really take a beating if it needed to, which is likely considering how things can get in the great outdoors.

One of the things that the 64st does best is acquire signal. In fact it managed to find a signal after startup noticeably faster than even other Garmin products, leading us to wonder what exactly is going on in this little device that we don’t even know about.

There are a few problems however that make us wonder if Garmin really had everything figured out with the 64st. For instance, the data entry interface is so clunky that you would think it was out of the 90s. There is no touchscreen, nor is there a QWERTY keyboard, so the user is forced to use thick, clumsy buttons to get the job done.

We might also mention the battery life, which certainly left something to be desired compared to other products in this price range. However we did notice that lithium batteries tend to work much better with Garmin products.

Best Handheld GPS for Fishing – Magellan eXplorist 310 Fishing Hot Spots Bundle

Not the kind of folks to be outdone, MAGELLAN has released the newest version of its eXplorist 300 series handheld GPS unit, and from what we can tell, they are out to win it. This is one of the most feature-rich handheld GPS units in the sub $300 price range, making it the perfect all-around GPS unit for a number of activities.

No doubt hunters will appreciate the bright and vibrant screen, which is totally readable even in direct sunlight when glare normally would be an issue. But the unit’s real selling point is in its pre-loaded map collection.

The eXplorist comes loaded with a World Edition Map, which has a complete road map of the United States, Canada, Western Europe, and Australia, with regional maps available for download for other locations.

Of course the fishing bundle offers a few more extra goodies on top of the already impressive list of features. The fishing map that comes included features information on thousands of lakes across the United States, including fish species information and land profiles. Dubbing this unit the best handheld GPS for fishing was a no brainer.

What are our complaints with the eXplorist 310? First off, the screen is a bit small, don’t you think? Considering the fact that they spend so much time boasting about their glare-proof screen, you’d think they would want to make it a little bigger. In addition, the font they chose to go with is thin and can be hard to read, and there’s no option to change the font.

Best Handheld GPS Unit for Waypoint Navigation – Garmin MONTANA 680t

The first thing we wanted to find out when we started researching the 680t is what precisely is the difference between this model and the older and slightly more affordable 610t, the model that came before this one in the MONTANA series of GPS units.

The answer is an 8 megabyte digital camera, which is something that not a whole lot of units can claim as a base-model feature. While 8 MB is hardly a super-impressive resolution considering what is possible these days with even cell phone cameras, it is still a handy thing to have, especially if you are in the habit of marking trail locations or waypoints.

What we loved: the MONTANA series has always has wonderful GPS signal. It finds a signal fast and holds it for longer, which is an improvement even over other units from the same manufacturer. In our experience, Garmin products also feature some of the most accurate GPS readings, making it that much more unlikely that you will find yourself far off the trail.

The Cons: the price on this unit can be too much for entry level hunters and geocachers who would rather spend their hard earned dollars elsewhere. There are certainly a few features that we could point to that would justify the price, but in the end it isn’t going to change the fact that it’s one of the most expensive units on our list.

Best Handheld GPS for Backcountry Hunting – DeLorme inReach SE Satellite Tracker

We have to be frank that we didn’t know a whole lot about the GPS technology company DeLorme before we went into this, so we had to do a bit of research, and what we found out was quite impressive.

For one thing, this is the one GPS unit on our lists that offers worldwide text messaging capabilities. You heard that right. That means that even in areas that were traditionally poor-quality GPS reception, you can now get a text message out to anywhere in the world. If you can’t imagine the implications of that then you aren’t thinking big enough.

What is really impressive is that DeLorme has developed an app that makes this process even easier. Anyone who has ever operated a GPS unit can tell you how awful it can be to work with those clunky, hard to press buttons. With the Earthmate app, you can use your smartphone to compost the messages before sending them out via the satellite tracker. Pretty cool, right?

If course this kind of technology isn’t free. The global texting service charges an additional monthly fee on top of the price of the unit, but the value of what you are getting in return is incredible, especially for the hardcore outdoor enthusiasts who are the ones who actually find themselves in such situations. One thing we noticed about DeLorme however was that the customer service department was somewhat lacking. Making any changes to your subscription service after it is setup can be kind of a chore, and their representatives don’t seem too concerned about making it any easier.

Best All-Around Handheld GPS for Hunting – Garmin eTrex 30x Handheld Navigator

There is a subtle difference between Garmin’s popular eTrex 30 and the eTrex 30x, and that is the quality of screen that comes included. The display on the 30x is both larger and more high resolution than its predecessor and is highly readable even in high sunlight situations. Sure, the 2.2 inch screen isn’t huge or anything, but in this case, it isn’t the size that counts.

One of the greatest things about Garmin’s most recent product releases is their shared ability to utilize even bigger SD cards, which means that it is completely possible to transfer downloaded maps from one unit to another, if you are the kind of person (like we are) who as a different hand-held GPS for basically every activity.

One of the things a good GPS should be is waterproof, and the 30x is certainly that. It is rated for a full 30 minute immersion before any damage occurs. If you are underwater for thirty minutes, however, it stands to reason that you have some bigger problems to deal with than compromised circuitry.

There is one feature here that we fell in love with that we didn’t even realize that we wanted, and that is the simple and yet exceedingly well-designed alarm clock. You’d think that this was just a throwaway side feature, but we ended up using it quite often and it allowed us to keep the cell phones stowed away, as it would have been the only other thing we were using them for. Our only problem was that they joystick was somewhat unresponsive on several occasions. It’s the kind of problem that only causes a minor inconvenience, but if we could fix it with a wish, we certainly would.

Best Budget Pick Handheld GPS for Hunting – Garmin FORETREX 401 Waterproof Hiking GPS

You can take one look at the FORETREX 401 Hiking GPS and know exactly what it is that sets this unit apart from its competitors. As the only wrist-mounted GPS unit on our list it manages to secure a spot at the top of the list of best handheld GPS units, for no other reason than offering something that the other units simply cannot.

There is a heated, interesting, and ongoing debate surrounding wrist-mounted GPS units vs. the more traditional handheld units that have dominated the market for the last few years. For one thing, wrist mounted GPS units tend to be somewhat bulky, which can be uncomfortable for a long hike.

On the other hand, the fact that you are able to keep a close eye on your position & bearing while having access to both hands is an incredibly valuable thing to some outdoorsman. Take the mountain biker, for instance, who is spending the day on wheels and doesn’t want to be going in and out of his gear bag every twenty minutes.

Or the avid hunter, who has enough to carry as it is. But a GPS unit is more than just its most obvious feature. We wanted to get a feel for what was really making this unit tick, so to speak. Overall it is a wonderfully easy to use product that is just a bit bulky, but it’s not heavy enough to become much of a bother.