| |
jon
N 44°22.908' W 071°46.013
May 7, 2012
|
VERY GOOD FOR BOTH MILITARY AND CIVILIAN USE.
Pros: replaceable battery's, extreme accuracy, easy use
best gps unit i have owned and/or used. i have used both civilian gps and military grade gps units and none of them can acquire satellites as fast as this unit. its sensitive enough to get a fix even in doors and still be more accurate then military grade gps units with a clear view of the sky.
the accuracy with a clear view of the sky is 1m (3feet), and indoors its within 7m. the military DAGR gps unit is only guaranteed to be accurate up to 300m.
accuracy aside, the fortrex 401 has an insane amount of features for a unit of this size and price range. magnetic compass, barometric sensor, wireless connectivity between other 401's, 42 position coordinate formats's including MGRS and Lat Long (plus 112 map datum's) so you can reference just about any map, can receive WAAS satellite position error corrections within north america, gpx data output that includes elevation, time, speed, cadence & heart rate, and more per data data point, jump master tools that include the ability to set specific elevations in which to alert you to deploy your parachute, and the ability to import routes/way points/destinations in gpx format from many programs including Google earth.
the user interface is clear, informative, and intuitive. anyone familiar with the DAGR will immediately notice that the fortrex interface behaves just like a scaled down version of the DAGR interface. creating a way point or destination is as easy as holding down a button and either naming the way point or setting the coordinates of the new destination.
the battery's life on alkaline battery's is great at around 8 hours, but NiCd rechargeable AAA's will get you about 2 hours more time. you can maximize the battery life by telling the fortrex in its setup menu what battery type you intend to use.
i used this gps as a backup and reference to the DAGR and Blue force tracker on convoy security missions in Iraq. even inside heavily armored all metal combat vehicles this gps was able to get a good fix within a minute or so.
no this gps does not have graphical maps, and its really not supposed to either. the 401 is made for users who need to use maps that you cant find on any fancy gps. the 401 is for people that need a light weight yet powerful gps unit that can handle the toughness of the great outdoors while getting you to your destination with extreme accuracy.
Recommend? YES
11 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Markus Alexander Schorr
AFG
Apr 24, 2012
|
BASIC GPS
Pros: handy
Cons: no map data like topo maps
I use the Foretrex 401 just to re-confirm my own position with map-plot during tactical situations. Some fields could be larger for my tatse but it works, is easy to use and fills the requirements I bought it for. Of course a bit larger touch screen and storage for topo maps like the micro DAGR would be great or a E-Trex with a joystick - touch screen combination.
Mark
Recommend? YES
10 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
paul
Quebec Canada
Jan 17, 2012
|
TOTAL ASCENT
Pros: accuracy,small,light,handy
Cons: nil
I am correcting my previous statement.The total ascent is correct. I had to calibrate both GPS at same elevation at starting point, and the total elevation is the same on my Foretrek 401 and on my Oregon. I find this small GPS marvelous. It gives same route, same elevation, same distance etc as my Oregon.
Recommend? YES
11 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
paul
quebec canada
Jan 16, 2012
|
TOTAL ASCENT
Pros: small, accurate,handy, precision,fast.
Cons: to correct total ascent starting at 0 elevation
I do have an Oregon and there is difference specially in total ascent. I made measurement comparing Foretrek 401 and Oregon. On foretrek you have to subtract the elevation at starting point from the total ascent and then you have the same ascent at the Oregon. Foretrek is very accurate, works well in valley.
Recommend? YES
9 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Wouty
Netherlands
Jan 6, 2012
|
GOOD RESULTS
Pros: easy, long life, light
Cons: resolution of the screen is low
the device safed my life in the mountains. Use it for running, biking and sailing as well. great no nonsense device.
Recommend? YES
18 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Dodo
Quebec
Jan 5, 2012
|
VERY GOOD
very good gps. In Afghanistan, it work very well.
Recommend? YES
15 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
red panther
San Diego
Jul 31, 2011
|
GOOD FEATURES--BAD PDF MANUAL
Pros: batteries, a true reverse path feature, quick fix
Cons: lack of a good manual revealing all capabilities
Initial use of the 401 was as advertised---quick fixes, many features, batteries--lots of good stuff---however, when you dig deeper into its features that are not covered by the very inadequate pdf manual it would seem the program designers and the tech writers never talked to each other. My main interest was to be able to use this in mtns and make a steep traverse across talus during good wx conditions and be able to retreat if necessary across the same path. after many trials I can say I figured out how to do this, not thanks to the pdf manual and was greatly pleased---I can now recommend the product but the system and tech writers get an F or is this the arrogance of Garmin. I have five other Garmin devices including two for my airplane--one a 396. The 396 manual also barely touches the many features of the unit, just like the 401. As a further example, after walking a test path, I initiated "pan and trackback" and when I selected "Go" it created a waypoint exactly at my present location and logged and stored it as MAP waypoint Subsequently as I retreated along the test path it gave information that related to distance and direct bearing from MAP--not along the test path. I made email inquires to Garmin and a senior tech person said "impossible---it doesn't creat a waypoint called MAP". Thus my further inference that the designers never talked to the other side of Garmin
Recommend? YES
65 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Steve
Petawawa, ON
May 25, 2011
|
BEST GPS ON THE MARKET.
Fantastic for Military applications, great battery life, easy to use.
Recommend? YES
76 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Jacques Woens
Afghanistan
May 17, 2011
|
EXCELLENT PRODUCT
It's a Garmin!! Sturdy, easy to use. Just the right size. Buttons are well laid out and I can even work it with my gloves on.
Screen is easy to read, I will even use the 401 when paragliding.
Recommend? YES
78 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
SGT
Houston, TX
Apr 25, 2011
|
DEPLOYMENT USE - MILITARY
Very easy to use and great battery life.
Recommend? YES
76 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Bob
Tapalpa, Mexico
Apr 12, 2011
|
PARAGLIDING EXCELLENT, VERY GOOD QUALITY
I love the size and the information it shows, I'm very happy with the battery life, is an excellent gps
Recommend? YES
83 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
lefebvre Alexis
quebec canada
Feb 15, 2011
|
VERY GOOD FOR MY JOB
im in the canadian force and im a navigator an d a airborne so it very useful for me
Recommend? YES
94 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Jerry
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Dec 28, 2010
|
FORETREX 401
Pros: great fit, locks on fast.
Cons: none
Great wrist GPS. Love that it takes batteries - you can always carry spares. Great for cycling, cross country skiing, rollor blading. Expansion strap make it easy to wear over bulky winter clothing.
Recommend? YES
102 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Frank
world
Nov 17, 2010
|
GREAT BIT OF KIT
Pros: great for the price
Cons: none so far
Light weight, easy to use. I use this item for work and it meets every expectation so far. I have not tried to down load a route to my computer yet but that is next on my list of things to do.
Recommend? YES
120 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
berni
quebec canada
Nov 4, 2010
|
GREAT PRODUCT
i leave for afganistan in 2 days and i am not leaving without my gps
Recommend? YES
110 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
John
11 Eric Avenue
Sep 5, 2010
|
BEST OUTDOOR GPS
Cool gps watch!!!
Recommend? YES
120 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Richard Cranium
Taghaz, Afghanistan
Jul 15, 2010
|
EXCELLENT GPS UNIT
Pros: easy to use with instant location identification.
Cons: very short wrist band.
This is a very good GPS unit. I use this in Afghanistan and it give immediate location and is very accurate. It is very easy to use and has a simple interface for connecting to your computer. The only drawback that I found was the wrist strap. The wrist strap is made of high quality nylon, but it is very short. It does come with a wrist band extension, but the extension is too long. I will most likely attach it to another wrist band.
Recommend? YES
141 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Cassimir
Iraq
Jul 9, 2010
|
VALUE FOR MONEY
Pros: waterproof, easy to operate
Cons: normal strap about 3 inches too short
This GPS is used by all members of my team. It is easy to manage and small enough not to burden the operator. I would recommend this GPS for anyone who prefers simplicity. Being waterproof is great seeing as it is part of the job description
Recommend? YES
112 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
W@rrior 2-1 (Call Sign)
Afghanistan
May 2, 2010
|
MILITARY USE IN AFGHANISTAN
Pros: size, even a dummy can use it.
Cons: alkaline battries goes fast. nicd battery better.
I purchased the Garmin Foretrex 401 for use on missions in Afghanistan and its been a great item to add to my navigational accessories. Better than my Rhino. The size alone makes it much more better that I don't have to dig through my gear to find it, turn it on and wait for the satellite linkup. To set it for MGRS use, use the USNG setting. Best investment ever.
Recommend? YES
158 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Rick
Kenora, Ontario
Jan 13, 2010
|
GARMIN FORTREX 401
Pros: easy programming & reliable
I use this Garmin on my snowmobile & it works fantastic for my requirements. It is very easy to use & I go long distances by snowmobile thru bush & over big bodies of water & it is very easy to keep track of my position & way back home.Waypoints & saved tracks are very accurate & reliable.
Recommend? YES
198 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
ｍｍ
Ｊａｐａｎ
Jan 6, 2010
|
FORETREX401
FORETREX401 is being shared for for paragliders and bicycle. It can be used for a play by a paraglider, and it's convenient, measurement of the heart rate and a cadence can be measured as a bicycle, so it's being used for management of training.
Recommend? YES
245 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Rob
Khandahar province, Afghanistan
Dec 21, 2009
|
BEST MILITARY PERSONAL GPS
Pros: size
Cons: for intended use none
I use this GPS in Afghanistan to give me the MGRS location for me to locate my position on maps and report. Very tough, and small. Not much bigger than a watch. Fastest acquisition time I have seen yet, compared to old yellow Etrex, New Etrex Vista HCx which I have owned and both military GPS in use today. This allows you to switch it off when not in use and extend battery life. Even with cheap batteries gives me tons of battery life. Best feature is the data page that has a 4 item, 3 item, 2 item, and 1 item menu. You select what you want displayed for each and by scrolling up or down on that page each will be displayed. Hard to explain but outstanding. Instead of being forced to decide the number of fields on the page when you select. You can fill the fields for each option with the selected data and just scroll through when in use. For example, I set my single field to grid. Double field to time and grid. Triple field to Grid, Altitude and time, etc.. Much better than having to change data fields for different tasks. Having the grid location on your wrist is much better for military applications since you can glance at it without stopping. Also you can talk on radio while looking at it and writing down info and reading map. Strap is very sturdy. Display is recessed slightly which is makes it easy to add clear screen protector to it, for those that will be bashing it around. For civilian use I would only buy this if you use paper maps. Otherwise this gps will be of limited value to you since it is not a mapping GPS. However for real backcountry use you should always have a map with you anyways. If you want something for finding your way to Aunt Martha's house then buy a Vista HCx or a car model instead.
Recommend? YES
264 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Mabes
Canada
Dec 14, 2009
|
PERFECT FOR MILITARY GUYS
Pros: acquisiton of satellites, size, display of info
Cons: twitchy compass
Purchasing and receiving the GPS was completely painless. I think the turnaround was 48hrs. Had a bit of a panic attack when a friend told me that it charged an internal battery off USB. Pleasantly surprised to find it takes two AAA batteries. I used the Energizer Lithium style and got about 36hrs continuous use out of them. Picks up satellites in overcast weather in about four minutes, the customizable fields mean that I can put all the data I needed (bearing (mils), location (MGRS), time and trip odometer all on the same page. So handy for communicating with enablers. The one other downside that I can see is that the compass is a bit too sensitive in that your bearing can swing tens of mils at a time when holding steady in a single direction. This effect is worse I think in overcast where the signal to the satellites is worse. I enabled WAAS so that is likely a contributor to the battery chewing. Overall a hardy, handy piece of kit that I would heartily recommend to any soldier or serious outdoor enthusiast.
Recommend? YES
208 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
John
Toronto
Oct 8, 2009
|
GARMIN FORETREX 401 REVIEW
Pros: heart rate and cadence support, very sensitive gps
Cons: poor software/portal support (for now)
This device is an excellent update to the 101 which I have had forever. Read my complete review at http://johngalea.wordpress.com/2009/10/06/foretrex-401-review/
Recommend? YES
249 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
Ivo
Tallinn, Estonia, Europe
Oct 6, 2009
|
GOOD FOR SAILING
Pros: size, features, handling
Cons: compass sometimes not working
Good size, good features, easy to handle. Not completely flawless. Compass seems to be faulty or in the need of software upgrade, as quite often it just does not work and heading is wrong. After switching the compass off, everything works just fine.
Recommend? YES
290 viewers found this helpful.
|
| |
paleoguyaz
Baja, Arizona
Sep 13, 2009
|
UNDOCUMENTED FUNCTIONS, POOR SUPPORT
Pros: usb interface
Cons: not ready for prime time
One of my Foretrex101s expired a few weeks ago and I decided to replace it with the just released Foretrex401. It arrived mid-week and I had no trouble accessing and opening the Foretrex401 generated gpx file with Easy/ExpertGPS and Topofusion. The 401 appears as a USB drive in Windows. I was hoping to use the 401 along with the Garmin heart rate monitor during my mtbike rides instead of the my Edge205 and separate HRM. The 401 had no trouble picking up the HR reading and displaying the values.
Perhaps not surprisingly, the Garmin website has no substantial information of the 401 as of yet and no discussion of what software will work with the 401. When I emailed Garmin concerning data transfer software and the spanner function under the Setup menu, I received the following rather uninformative reply:
“Thank you for contacting Garmin International. I am happy to answer your questions. At this point, the Foretrex 401 is only compatible with Garmin MapSource ( https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=664&pvID=1951), but this information will unfortunately not include your cadence or heart rate information. On the bright side, Garmin Connect, our online fitness website, will support the Garmin Outdoor product line in the second half of 2009. In the meantime, we recommend that you upload activities from those devices to MotionBased from the following link: http://www.motionbased.com. Unfortunately, there is not much documentation available for Spanner other than the installation instructions found on the download page. You may also want to read through the Wiki page found at the following link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanner_(Garmin_program).”
The above reply is totally lame referring to outdated/non-supported links and a less than helpful Wikipedia reference. Even though it is now well beyond the “second half of 2009” Garmin Connect does not include the Foretrex 401 and the motionbased website has essentially been abandoned by Garmin leaving the Foretrex401 in effect unsupported by Garmin except for the most basic data transfer. The Foretrex401 manual makes no mention of the spanner function or what a gpx file is or how to make use of it.
At this point the Foretex401 appears to be corporate orphan that no Garmin division is able or willing to support. It is unclear if it is intended for jumping out of airplanes (jumpmaster function), hiking (altimeter/compass), cycling/fitness (HR/cadence) or providing a heads-up when ordinance is going to explode (countdown-up/timer). In addition to the above, function wise, the 401 adds a USB interface, faster satellite acquisition and wireless data transfer to the venerable Foretrex101. It is slightly more compact in size than the 101, has a better strap attachments and stores the data is in a gpx file. Operationally the Foretex401 does what is it supposed to do but with no software included, undocumented functions and virtually non-existent technical support, most purchasers will be frustrated in trying to use the Foretrex401 right out of the box. A printed quick start guide is in the box but the manual in a pdf on the CD.
As noted above, with some tinkering and non Garmin software I’ve been able to list and view the Foretex401 tracks, waypoints, routes and other data as well as transfer the data to GoogleEarth. For what Garmin lists as a basic handheld GPS it should be much more straightforward to operate and transfer data. I’ll give it 2 stars until it is better supported.
Recommend? NO
313 viewers found this helpful.
|
|
