A new device!
A couple of weeks ago I bought a new GPSr, Garmin Oregon 300. Here are my first experiences on the device after using Garmin 60 Cx/CSx for over 3,5 years.
First feelings with the device
The display seems to be clear. However, at this time of year, direct sunlight is a very rare phenomenon in Finland and we could not test the device in those conditions. I must say that the display in my 60CSx is already full of scratches (I never used a screen shield), and any other display looks much better when compared to that.
Configuring the device is easier and simpler than in 60, although there were some items that I couldn’t find directly. For example, I could not find the place where to clear the trip and other information fields. No, I didn’t read the manual, I never do… Maybe the reason was that I use the device in Finnish, and I couldn’t match the correct term.
Transferring caches to the device
In my previous life, I used a script in Linux to convert the gpx file into ov2-file for Tomtom, to upload the information with gpsbabel to 60CSx, and to convert the gpx into html with gpx2html. The script also uploaded the html files to my server, so I could use them with my mobile phone while on the field. Sometimes I moved the files directly to my phone, which made the access a bit faster while it didn’t have to establish a connection each time when checking the cache description. But usually I was lazy and didn’t go and get my phone for transferring those files directly to the memory card.
With Oregon, things are much simpler. Just attach the device and copy the whole gpx file directly on it. Works on any OS. That’s all. I still have to convert the gpx file to ov2, but now there is no need for html-files while the Oregon can show the needed cache descriptions directly.
Using the device
I know that there are people who want to have the cache description on a separate device. During the weekend round (34 traditional caches) this single device solution proved to be better than the previous, mobile phone based way.
One annoying thing that we found out was accessing caches via the map. While on the old device you could move the pointer to a cache quite promptly, it was much harder to hit the correct cache on the Oregon touch screen. Caches are shown as very small boxes on the screen, and without a pointer stick, it is close to impossible to hit the correct spot. This is bad.
Previously, we had a notebook (i.e. paper and pen) with us, where we wrote down the caches, TBs, coins, and all other relevant things related to caches. With the field notes, you can easily do that directly on the device. Back at home, transferring the field notes to geocaching.com is simple and saves a lot of time while logging. Nice!
First experiences give a hint that the battery life is shorter than in Garmin 60. But we need more field experience with this.
I installed an invisible shield for protecting the screen. The touch screen lost some sensitivity, but it is still usable. I failed to install the shield properly, on the bottom it is slightly coming up on top of the plastic. Not much, but clearly a mistake 
The previous weekend was not so cold (around 0 degrees celsius), so there was no need to use the device with gloves on. Something to test during the winter.
Bugs?
First, I have to say that I haven’t (yet) checked any updates on the device, so this may be outdated information.
Translation to Finnish has not been fully successful. In some places, there are English terms mixed with Finnish ones. Also it seems that the translator has used a dictionary instead of someone who knows the Finnish language. Or what do you say about translation “Cache size” => “Välimuistin koko”, where “Välimuisti” means the computer cache memory, not any box or treasure…
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