| Amazon.com Product Description The Magellan eXplorist 210 proves that powerful and reliable GPS navigation can be affordable. With a compact, shockproof and water resistant design, this baby is built to withstand whatever the back country can throw at it. At a mere 6.1 ounces, and with the ability to download and store up to 22 megabytes of maps while providing precise three-meter positioning, this pocket-sized 14-channel WAAS GPS receiver is an outdoors enthusiast's dream. 
Map screen in position mode. View larger. | 
GOTO route screen. View larger. | 
Customize map information. View larger. | 
The Magellan eXplorist 210 delivers GPS navigation in a rugged, handheld device. View larger. | If you have a passion for the outdoors, there's no reason you need to be a GPS expert to be able to take advantage of GPS tracking capabilities. The eXplorist 210 features Magellan's easy-to-use operating system, so you can concentrate on your activities without compromising your safety. When you connect the unit to your PC, the folders on the eXplorist 210 can be accessed just like any drive on your computer, and from there you access the information as you would a folder on your own computer. In other words, if you know how to navigate your PC, you'll feel right at home with the eXplorist 210. The unit offers 32 MB of memory, which includes 10 MB taken up by the basemap of major highways, airports, interstates, parks, rivers and lakes across North America. The remaining 22 MB is reserved for you to download and store Magellan MapSend programs and maps, or specific waypoints, routes and tracks for your next excursion. A USB PC cable is included, which will allow you to perform software updates, as well as download additional maps. This convenient feature allows you to download exactly the maps and data that you need for your excursion. If you're hiking a section of the Grand Tetons, you'll want to have the area's hiking trails, ranger stations, and elevation contours at your disposal. The eXplorist 210 lets you fine tune the data that you'll need for your trip. And don't let its compact size fool you. This handheld -- at a mere 2.2 x 4.75 x 1.3-inches (W x H x D) -- will let you create and store up to 190,000 personal points of interest and waypoints, 150 files with 20 routes each, and 150 track logs with 2,000 points each. The included Magellan MapSend Software DVD will help to optimize and manage your data and keep track of updates to new versions of MapSend maps. In other words, Magellan couldn't have made it much easier than this. The eXplorist runs on two AA batteries that last up to 17 hours. A large, 2.3-inch grayscale, backlit display features an amber glow that makes it easy to read at night. Other features include a vertical profile, a celestial table, and a best-fish and hunt-time calculator. The eXplorist 210 comes with a one-year manufacturer's warranty.
What's in the Box
Magellan eXplorist 210, user's manual, quick start guide, and PC interface cable. |
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 Better Options Available |
| Review Date: December 31, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Joe Blow Consumer, |
| I owned one of these and it failed after < 1 year off of extremely light use. The buttons would no longer respond unless you used a pencil to depress. As with any product there will be lemons. I only mention should this be a trend with this product. My real issue with the product is the 'awful' software. Making it work with Vista was maddening. My second complaint has to do with the menus / OS of the GPS. The interface is not intuitive and makes you not want to use. I am no GPS expert but I can say my Delorme Pn-20 is 10X the GPS of the Magellan and it includes complete topo and street maps with the cost of the device. Additionally, the pn-20 is very intuitive (basically you don't need the manual). The explorist is an older generation GPS. Pass on this device. |
distance accuracy problem
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| Review Date: September 24, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Robert Reed, Central Florida |
I purchased this for bicycle use, running use and small boat use. My only functional desires are to have an odometer, a speedometer, be able to mark points, and to see a map of where I am. This meets these needs, but it does not excel in any of my intended uses. The biggest flaw I've found is the distance accuracy when running. I'm training for a marathon race, and I am running increasingly long distances. I often plan my routes using [...] , and it seemed that my explorist-reported mileage was consistently short, by as much as 10%. So on my last run, I covered a measured and marked 3 mile stretch on a bicycle trail, and sure enough, the explorist assessed the distance as 2.7 miles. Even more curious: I used the device on a bicycle ride, and the unit recorded an accurate distance of 11 miles, but when I used the device while running the same route, it measured only 10.1 miles.
My other pet peeve about this is that although the data screens are quite customizable, it is not possible to configure a screen to display both the distance covered and current speed at the same time. So when I'm biking, I have to hit the tiny buttons and switch screens often.
So, 3 stars. Did I say tiny buttons? yes. And tiny display. 2 stars for you Mr. Explorist. |
GEOCACHER'S DREAM
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| Review Date: May 8, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Darrell W. Potter, Grants Pass, Or United States |
I've had my Explorist 210 for about 2 1/2 years and I love it. It's easy to use and extremely accurate. In open country you can get an accuracy of about 6 feet. Even in heavily wooded areas you can get within 30 feet or so and you VERY rarely lose signal.
My buddy has a Garmin etrex and a Delorme PN40 and my Magellan is more accurate than both of his units.
You can mark your routes, favorite spots, whatever you want. Geocaching software is fairly good although time consuming to enter all of the info.
The only drawbacks are when you find a geocache you can't delete it or mark it as found until you get home and attach the unit to your computer.
The USB interface is hard to connect to the unit.
And the unit is not in color or topo.
Other than that the Explorist 210 is the geocachers dream. I've found over 500 local caches with this baby. A VERY nice starter unit. TeamTrekkerz |
Tough as nails
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| Review Date: March 1, 2009 |
| Reviewer: Allen Oster, NorCal |
This thing is built like a tank. It has taken some pretty hard knocks and kept on working. Not even skipped a beat. For example, I was mountain biking a good 11 MPH downhill and the thing flew off my bike mount (custom made by me, guess it didn't quite do the job). It hit the rocks hard, but it stayed powered on and it still works. This has happened twice. I no longer use the bike mount. Anyway, it has also been submerged in water while on, so I can confirm that it is waterproof, and dropped several other times.
The reception is also excellent. It takes a little while to get a signal, but once you have one, you REALLY have one. I once forgot to turn it off and put it in my backpack then put my backpack in a car trunk and drove home; it tracked me all the way home. Remember GPS is line-of-sight. Another time I got a signal through an airliner window and tracked my journey to England. The batteries did pretty well. I think I went through about 1.2 sets of batteries on a 17 hour flight. Alkaline. Needless to say, the unit has a lot of miles on it.
As for the screen, I wouldn't know how easily it scratches because whenever I get a device like this I immediately put a 'screensaver' screen protector on it. It's a vinyl film that you can cut to fit the screen. Buy them at a camera store or online.
As for the software, it's okay. I wish the software that handles the .loc files supported mass import because I do some geocaching and I just want to put all the caches in my area in there and wander around in the park until something is in my proximity. It's a little quirky too, save often or you might end up accidentally importing one file instead of adding to the list you already have, and it will wipe out your list.
The accuracy is pretty good, although sometimes it seems to change it's mind. this is mostly under tree cover. It will tell you you are 6 feet away, then 30 feet, etc. But you can't really expect great accuracy under tree cover. You can usually get 9 foot accuracy with no tree cover, at least in my town in CA, USA.
It takes a minute to hook the USB cable up to the unit, but that is because the connection has to be waterproof.
Overall, it's easy to use, it has a nice backlight, you can set your own and POIs quickly and easily. The map is easy to read, you can see the POIs on it and tell it which POIs you want to see, and there are a lot of things you can customize. It has features aplenty, If I could change one thing about it, it would probably be the software. If I could change another thing, a higher resolution screen would be nice. Some of the comparable Garmins have higher rez screens.
Here's some screen protectors to buy, [...] for 12 sheets:
Universal Digital Camera LCD Screen Protectors for All Screen sizes up to 3.50" X 4.25"
I think there must be a problem with the amazon price here, [...] for this thing is outrageous. I got mine for [...] two years ago.
I hope you all find this helpful.
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Don't buy
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| Review Date: November 26, 2008 |
| Reviewer: Todd R. Brangers, Lexington, KY |
| Magellan Customer service is the worst customer service I have ever dealt with. They offer a free 30 day map update since all of their products ship with out of date maps. This would be a good thing except it is in the fine print of their products and their customer support email address that their website list is the wrong address. I had to get through to their customer service by posting a bad review on their website. By the time they responded my unit was beyond the 30 day limit and they refused to give me the update. This is a bad business practice. Garmin has a 60 day guarantee which is posted directly on their website in plain view. |
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