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Garmin Foretrex 101 Rating
Average rating:   (4.5 based on 15 ratings).
Lowest rating: 3 | Highest rating: 5
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Recommendation: 100% of our reviewers recommend this item.
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1 RCR
CFB Petawawa
November 18, 2009
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BEST HANDHELD EVER
This GPS is very functional for military personal as it is rite there when you need it. Whether you put it on your wrist or mount it on your rifle, the grid you need to call in a "9 Liner" is no more than a foot from your nose at all times. The goto button is another great feature. Great product at a great price. Sorry to see it discontinued.
Pros: battery operated
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
2 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Mike
Toledo, Ohio
November 11, 2009
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GARMIN FORETREX 101
I just purchased the third Garmin Foretrex 101 in about six years (the first one was lost while sailing and the second one got knocked too hard while sailing). It is the most compact unit with all the features desired for sailing, hiking, skiing, and other boating. It has good battery life and is very accurate - the receiver has been updated and now it has extra features like the countdown timer with an even lower price - under $100 delivered. I have several friends who have purchased one after seeing me use mine and learning what it offers. I have never had a problem with water proofness, batteries (nice feature of this unit is being able to use regular batteries) or any kind of electronic issue. It can be worn like a watch or around the arm outside outer clothes with the extension strap. Very convenient and versatile for active outdoor enthusiasts. It even allows me now to connect to the computer via a USB cable.
Pros: small, accurate and quick working, inexpensive
Cons: could use a stronger band attachment for hard use
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
5 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Don
Roseville,Ohio
November 9, 2009
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BEST GPS FOR HIKING.
This is my second Foretrex 101, brought it for a backup for my first Foretrex 101 in case it goes bad. It works great for hiking and geocaching. I did change the wrist band to a metal flexable band.
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
5 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Bruce
Ketchum, ID
November 4, 2009
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FORETREX 101
I own 10 other GPS units and bought this one because it is the smallest, lightest and simplest of them all. Just the basics if that is all you need. I use it mostly for a speedometer on my Zero Electric Motorcycle, and also to log a Waypoint at the trailhead, turn it off to save batteries, and turn it back on if I need it to navigate back.
Pros: small, light, cheap
Cons: batteries don't last very long
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
5 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Big Al
Baghdad
October 23, 2009
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SEEMS LIKE A GOOD PRODUCT
I can't offer a true review of this product because I'm in Iraq and it's still in the States. I will say that GPS City made the purchase easy and shipped FAST!
I bought this item to be used in Afghan when I go.
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
7 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Todd
Sherwood Park, AB
October 16, 2009
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CONVENIENT GPS ON YOUR WRIST
Good little unit, less all the bells and whistles!
Cons: wrist strap too short to use over bulky jacket
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
9 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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MikeD
CFB Petawawa
September 28, 2009
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GARMIN FORETREX 101
Awesome lil GPS, Aquires SAT fixes extremely fast, Holds signal even in thick bush. I would highly reccomend. One fault is the strap, for such a GUCCI piece of equipment, the strap couldnt save its own life yet alone keep the GPS secured to your wrist. That definitely needs fixing.
Pros: size, runs on aaa not rechargeable,
Cons: wrist strap, very weak
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
19 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Ed
Winnipeg, MB
September 25, 2009
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BEST OUTDOOR GPS
This unit is awesome!! It locks to sat's very fast and stays locked in forest.
Pros: very sensitive.
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
18 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Larry
Ontario Canada
September 25, 2009
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GREAT BASIC GPS FOR THE TRAIL:
The Foretrex 101 has all the basic requirements for trail,hunting,ATVing and other back country uses. Having both hands free is probably one of the nicest features allowing you freedom. The unit is always available with the flick of your wrist. The features are easy to learn and use.
Pros: wrist mounted feature,good unit value.
Cons: no mapping features.
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
17 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Trunk
Sandbox
September 10, 2009
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GOOD PIECE OF KIT
Love this gps. It's compact size and ease of operation makes it a valuable piece of kit when on dismounted patrols. My squaddies and I will be trekin several klicks into unfriendly areas that are not mapped out. With this item I can mark with ease where our RDV points are where I have posted an overwatch and where our QRF as well as good extraction points.
Like the wriststrap, it stays on when killin the Taliban.
Pros: easy to use
Cons: would like a topo map feature but would be more $$
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
23 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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J
Canada
September 7, 2009
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MILITARY PERS. ARMY MOSTLY
I am a serving soldier with the canadian Army. I serve in an Armoured recconsaince Regiment. Our feild of work requires constant navigation and situational awareness at all times. This GPS is a wicked piece of kit. i'll admitt it has taken me a few days to really get to know how to use everything, but i absolutely love it. A firend of mine let me borrow his earlier this year when we were overseas in Afghanistan. It worked great over there and works just as good here at home. Standard Mil Iss. sucks. As all true feild soldiers know. The thing I really like about it is when we go for morning runs and marches. Boss says "we're going for 5 Km this morn". GPS says 5.93 Km. And I say.."actually sir its more like six" Pointing to the GPS... Absolutely love it, and reccommend it to ALL MILITARY pers
Pros: mgrs
Cons: map zoom???
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
23 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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J.
Edmonton
August 17, 2009
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DOES EVERYTHING YOU NEED
I've used this GPS in mounted and dismounted training and it does everything I need it to do. It doesn't have a pretty colour screen and it doesn't have 25 useless functions that you'll never use. It does exactly what any average user would require: tells you where you are, what direction you're heading, where you came from, where you're going, etc.
On top of that, it's very light on battery usage which means having to carry fewer batteries. I find one set of batteries is often enough for two days of prolonged, constant use.
The primary drawback is the wristband. While comfortable and adjustable, the pins hold it in place are prone to popping out if the unit is twisted even lightly. This can be overcome with liberal use of tape, but is an annoyance. However, given the light weight, small size, and reliable function of the unit, I don't see this problem as a show- stopper.
Pros: small, light, good on batteries, simple to use.
Cons: wristband pins pop out easily.
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
36 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Grandriver
Windsor, ON
July 2, 2009
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SOLID UNIT - FAIR PRICE
My dear wife loves to cycle and have stats for her ride. The typical bike speedo and odo doesn't seem to last very long. This is a solid unit and we've enjoyed using it. We also purchased the bike mount but haven't used it yet as she finds having it on her wrist preferable.
Pros: lots of info.
Cons: navigation not intuitive (but easy to learn)
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
42 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Chris
November 12, 2008
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USEFUL, BUT FAR FROM PERFECT
The Foretrex 101 is useful for marking your track and finding your way back, but the accuracy is often questionable when you overlay the track on a map later on. It often takes 2-3 minutes to get a fix even in good conditions and wide open spaces, though sometimes it has a fix in a few seconds. Altitude readings from multiple flights show sudden vertical drops of several thousand feet in a matter of seconds when descending for landing, so it seems there is quite a delay in adjusting to new altitudes. Battery life is not bad, but there is no warning before the batteries die completely, and the battery meter is divided into 4 quarters only, so once it gets to the last bar you need to keep a regular eye on it or change your batteries pre-emptively. Connecting to a computer is not super easy, as you need to buy the PC cable, and if you're on a laptop you'll probably need a serial to USB or serial to PCMCIA adapter. The USB adapter doesn't work in all computers, and I had to go on a hunt for the PCMCIA card which is guaranteed to work (creates a real COM port instead of a virtual COM port). The device is a bit bulky, so people often stare when they see such a strange "watch" but if you're using it primarily on the trails then there's no one to pay any attention. Having AAA batteries is a huge plus if you're away from electricity for long periods of time, as I am, but be sure to carry lots of batteries! Interestingly, the reception in my pocket seems to be as good as the reception on my wrist, provided I get a satellite fix before I put it in the pocket.
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
73 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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Ross
AZ
December 31, 1969
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The Foretrex is small (about the size of a large pack of gum, only a little longer) and light. The wristband is (surprisingly) comfortable enough that I often forget I’m wearing it while hiking… until I get lost, anyway. The unit is fairly durable and has enough functions to keep me busy for a while (the customizable screens are especially nice). I recommend you take a look at the online manual (at Garmin.com), and look in the appendix for the massive list of info you can display. The battery life has been good (about 12 hours continuous operation) using cheap alkaline batteries (there is a battery saver function that only intermittently activates the receiver, but I haven’t needed to use it). I have read reviews (on other sites) complaining that this unit’s battery life is dismal (one guy got only 4 hours). If you read the instruction manual (but who does that?), it tells you that to get maximum battery life you need to turn off the sound (honestly, do you need to hear a beep every time you hit a button?), and not use the backlight (which only comes on when you press the backlight button, and isn’t necessary unless you’re in complete darkness and without a flashlight). My hiking is primarily in mountainous terrain through pine forest with no horizon visible, and only patches of sky visible through the branches above. The reception in this environment has been surprisingly good (I usually get at least 4 satellites). I have read complaints (again, on other sites) about the reception of this unit in heavy forest. Remember, the GPS signal is essentially line-of-sight (if there’s too much stuff between you and the sky, you aren’t going to get reception with ANY unit). That said, this little unit does surprisingly well through trees. The Foretrex gets noticeably better reception with its display pointing skywards (which makes sense as the antenna is built into the left face of the unit, under the Garmin and Foretrex logos), but does a good job even with your arm down at your side (the antenna, being on the left end of the unit, still points generally upwards when your arm is at your side), but only if it’s on your left arm (read on for explanation, or skip to the last sentence for the short version). Like so many other products, this one favors right-handers (sorry southpaws). I (as a right-hander) wear the unit on my left wrist. As I walk along with my arm by my side, as noted above, the left side of the unit points up (for those with short-term memory problems, that’s the side with the antenna on it). However, if I put the unit on my right wrist and walk, the antenna side of the unit now points down at the ground. This results in dismal reception. The short version: wear the unit on your left arm. The design of the Foretrex was well thought out, and I only have one gripe: The speaker is located on the back of the unit, which is in contact with my sweaty arm all day. The idea of salt water (I don’t care how waterproof it’s supposed to be) repeatedly finding its way into those tiny holes bothers me, so I simply put a small square of electrical tape over them (I don’t use the sound anyway, as noted above). My conclusion: If you want a very lightweight basic GPS for hiking and biking, you’re not going to find a better unit.
Recommend: YES
Tag: garmin foretrex 101 review, foretrex 101 review
86 votes. Was this review helpful to you?
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