Garmin GPSMap 62s

This is my go-to handheld GPS.

OK, so this GPS is awesome!

I have loaded it up with SO much topo, like multiple states, and it still rocks.

It's really easy to use as a basic GPS, which I normally use it for. 

You can essentially turn it on and start walking. It gains its 3 satellites in a matter of minutes depending on your location. Not to be used in caves. But I can turn it on in my house and it magically has service. 

The buttons on it are a little excessive. 

• The POWER button on the side is WAY too easy to turn off and on. I have killed my battery by it coming on in my pack at a time when I didn't need it. I wish it was a slide type switch.
• On the front you have the IN button, that zooms in. NECESSARY
• Across from that you have the OUT button that zooms out. NECESSARY
• Then you have a FIND button, that isn't really necessary since you can't find landmarks with it unless you previously marked them, and I doubt anyone buying this type of GPS will be looking for places to eat with it. 
• Below that is the MARK button, this is a must have for marking your current position, as a waypoint. NECESSARY. The only issue is in order to name the waypoint you have to use the little arrows to find letters on an on-screen qwerty keyboard. 
• Then you have a quit button, which I'm not sure what it quits. It brings up a scrolling menu to toggle between screens. Sort of NECESSARY
• The ENTER button, this opens the menu option. Sort of necessary
• Then there is the MENU button, this opens up the settings etc... not the navigation menu. 
• And last but not least, the PAGE button, which as far as I can tell does the same thing as the quit button.

The battery life is all right for day hiking. On longer hikes I tend to turn it on for a while, to get a fix, then leave it off, then turn it on every once in a while after that, especially at key points, in my trek to get another fix.

I do not recommend using this as your SOLE navigation item, due to it being electronic. 

It has never let me down as long as you have the right maps loaded into it.