I saw a TomTom refurb. unit for $80 online a couple of weeks ago and decided to give it a try. I have already had $80 worth of fun playing with it. I have discovered that I can download POI files for things like red light cameras and set the GPS to warn when I am approaching one. There are a lot of these dang cameras in the metro area now - more than I had realized.

I have also figured out how to load PQ files of geocaches into the TomTom as POI waypoints. This thing stores POI's very efficiently, and it would probably easily hold all the geocaches in the state, and maybe the USA. But the PQ limit of 500 caches makes it difficult to create large files. All the TomTom uses for each point is lat, lon, and a name, so the .gpx file from the PQ is overkill. I use Excel to edit the file into the short TomTom format.

Just for the challenge, I did a geocache with the TomTom and although it is possible, its like threading a needle in boxing gloves.

Any of you techno-freaks out there found other tricks with these gadgets?

We bought a nuvi a couple months ago and discovered a way to make it a more useful geocaching tool. Here's the procedure I use:

• Run a pocket query
  
• Load query results into GSAK
  
• Run a macro (GPS-by_Cache_Type.gsk) to turn the waypoints into TourGuide POIs
  
• Macro launches Garmin's POI loader to push the new POIs into the nuvi
  

I can now tell the nuvi to take me to any cache in the list. Or create a route from cache A to B to C, etc. Or I can just drive and it will show an icon on the map and play an MP3 file of my choice when I get about a half mile from any of them. The caches' name, coords, GC-name, description, difficulty, size, type, hint, last 5 logs, etc. are all in there for me to see.

I found out how to do this by doing some Google and Groundspeak forum searches. I wouldn't be surprised if there are similar tricks that let you load more info for each cache into the TomTom. I agree with the boxing gloves analogy. I just use the nuvi to get me as far as it can by road. Then I get out the handheld GPSr and stick the nuvi in my pocket in case I need to see the hint, previous logs, terrain rating, etc.