Batteries for hand held Dakota

I recently bought a Dakota 20, and I am very happy with it so far. My
biggest concern was with reception in heavy wooded areas, and that has not
been a problem at all. I am still sorting out the best battery options. I
am probably more interested in reliability of charge than pure economics,
but I would love to find a rechargeable nimh that I could rely when I need
them. I've read plenty of discussions on a variety of GPS sites, and found
there are strong opinions in several different directions. I've tried a
couple brands of Alkaline, the Everyready Lithiums and an old set of nimh
rechargeables I had from early experiments with digital cameras a couple
years ago. Usually I'll be able to recharge most nights, but a couple times
a year I'll need at least a week's worth of batteries between charge
opportunities. I'd appreciate any recommendations.
Thanks

JMc wrote on Apr 2, 2010:


I have a GPSmap 76 handheld which also takes 2 AA cells. I find by far the
easiest and most reliable battery option is decent quality alkaline.

I used to be very keen on the idea of rechargeable NiMH cells but I soon
found them so much hassle compared to alkalines that I eventually gave them
up. The problem was that I use my GPS mostly when travelling around away from
home. Using rechargables means travelling with a charger and (if abroad) an
appropriate adapter - easily lost or damaged when moving around. Also you
have to remember to recharge your cells regularly which is sometimes awkward,
and if you're like me you inevitably forget sometimes so anyway you have to
carry a few alkalines as a back-up.

Good quality alkaline cells last me 2 or 3 days usually, so all I have to
remember is to carry a couple of spare cells with me at all times. If I were
going away from civilization for several days I'd probably invest in a few
Lithium AAs. They're more expensive but last 3 or 4 times as long and are
also significantly lighter in weight.

--
Mike Lane
UK North Yorkshire
email: mike_lane at mac dot com

On Fri, 2 Apr 2010 10:31:03 +0100, Mike Lane

I have found with my similar unit (76 CSx) it will reaquire and
position accurately within 1 or 2 seconds of re-powering if it has run
for a while and been turned off, as long as it hasn't been off for
more than an hour or off over too many satellite ephemeris update
cycles. Might take a few seconds longer if in areas of poor reception.

So unless I am actually collecting a continuous path, I hike or ride
with it off, then pull it out and turn it on when I want to relocate
myself, or to record a waypoint. Like I would with a paper map.

I sometimes get 3 - 6 MONTHS out of a pair of alkalines doing this
religiously. I find I usually want to stop to label a waypoint (and
admire the view) anyway, so it is little inconvenience.

You must leave it on 24/7 !
With my 76csx, I switched from Lithium to NIMH mainly for ecological
reasons, but have found them quite satisfactory. I went to Central America
last year, tracked the entire 10 hour round trip plane ride and used the
unit there for a week. Still had 2 bars when I got home.
No need for a charger either-- just packed an appropriate amount of other
rechargeable (2 in this instance)


--
Regards,
Richard Harison

LightByrd wrote on Apr 2, 2010:

I like to keep a track-log of all my movements when travelling so that I can
geo-tag any photos I take when I return. This usually means keeping it on
around 8 hours a day (if I turn it on and off, I inevitably forget at some
point and then lose part of the track-log).

The specs state approximately 17 hours use with alkalines. Have you ever
tried to measure the time you get using rechargeables? A week's use sounds
enormous but of course it depends how many hours you use it per day.

--
Mike Lane
UK North Yorkshire
email: mike_lane at mac dot com