» Magellan Triton 2000 and 1500 Portable Handheld GPS Receivers for Outdoor Enthusiasts Review

Both the Triton 2000 and 1500 are portable handheld GPS receivers designed specifically for navigation by outdoors enthusiasts. They are rugged to withstand accidental impact and waterproof to IPX-7 (1m depth for 30 minutes) for their demanding application. Both the Magellan Triton 1500 and 2000 have features including a 2.7 inch (QVGZ), color touch screen, 2MP camera, speaker, microphone, LED flashlight, media player and SD card slot for loading map updates and memory expansion. The Magellan Triton 2000 also comes with an electronic compass and barometer. In a first, both Tritons are compatible with downloadable National Geographic maps.

In an acknowledgment of Magellan’s fresh design approach with the Triton 2000, it was recently announced as an honoree in Personal Electronics category of the 2008 International CES Best of Innovations Design and Engineering Awards. The awards hare highly sought after as they recognize the most innovative consumer electronics products in the industry. Competing consumer electronics products are judged by a preeminent panel of independent industrial designers, independent engineers and members of the trade press.

Behind the GPS capabilities of the Triton units is the SiRF Star III GPS receiver chipset which offers an accuracy of 3 meters using Wide Area Augmentation. The SiRF chipset is renowned for its high sensitivity which is important for gaining your location in low GPS signal strength areas such as in canyons, ravines or heavily wooded areas.

The Triton handheld navigators have the capability to allow trekkers to capture images and sound bites of their outdoor adventures all geotagged (latitude and longitude recorded) for later reference. Routes can be recorded and plotted using Internet based tools. As well as being ideal for serious trekking, the units are ideal for the rapidly growing pastime of geocaching which involves the hiding and seeking of geocaches (containers). Wikipedia cites figures of 480,000 geocaches being registered in 222 countries on all seven continents.

Magellan obviously have a good handle on the market size with their news release for the Triton 2000 citing that some 120 million in the U.S. alone enjoy outdoor activities and that it’s expected that 6 million outdoor GPS units are expected to be sold worldwide in 2008.
The Triton 2000 and 1500 come with pre-loaded maps for the 48 mainland United States, Canada including major highways, city centers, parks, lakes and more plus worldwide geographic boundaries. Additional maps can be uploaded to the available memory or an SD card including marine cartography, topographic maps and the previously mentioned exceptionally detailed and feature rich National Geographic Maps.

For those who like a little entertainment while roughing it, the Triton has a digital music player. Headphones can be plugged in if necessary.

The Magellan Triton handheld GPS navigators come with a free, new map and content management application, VantagePoint with features for easy upgrades, information sharing, map downloads and uploading of stored treks, waypoints and other stored media.

National Geographic Maps

Magellan Triton is the first handheld GPS navigator with the capability for full, onscreen compatibility, usage and display of National Geographic’s maps. National Geographic has 28 titles of TOPO! outdoor recreation mapping software titles (covering all 50 states) on offer. There are five layers of maps - from National Geographic Atlas maps to the most detailed U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) topographic maps. Another first is the ability to download maps and waypoints from TOPO! and from National Geographic’s new Weekend Explorer 3D, which includes 21 titles for major urban centers and surrounding recreational areas.

Through December 31, 2007 Magellan will be donating a portion of Triton sales proceeds to the National Park Foundation to assist in its efforts to help sustain the conservation, preservation and enjoyment of America’s national treasures. Also, 500 new Triton units will be donated to the National Park Foundation.

Further Reading

Navionics is a provider of outdoor GPS maps worth a look. They have an extensive cartographic database of more than 25,000 charts and port plans.

Magellan Triton 2000 and 1500 Features

• Display Size 6.9cm(2.7″)
• Base Map Yes
• Uploadable Maps Yes
• SD Card Slot Yes
• Compass/Barometer 2000 only
• Touch Screen Yes
• Speaker/Microphone Yes
• Flashlight Yes
• 2MP Camera 2000 only
• USB Cable included Yes
• Vantage Point Software included Yes

For quick feature reference have a look at our Magellan Triton Handheld GPS Navigator Range Comparison Chart.

User Reviews and Price Comparisons

Visit the following online retailers for competitive prices and hands on user reviews.

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