---
product_id: 95285034
title: "Magellan eXplorist 500 Water Resistant Hiking GPS"
brand: "magellan"
price: "$5.55"
currency: USD
in_stock: false
reviews_count: 4
url: https://www.desertcart.ec/products/95285034-magellan-explorist-500-water-resistant-hiking-gps
store_origin: EC
region: Ecuador
---

# Waterproof Rechargeable Battery 16 MB Maps Magellan eXplorist 500 Water Resistant Hiking GPS

**Brand:** magellan
**Price:** $5.55
**Availability:** ❌ Out of Stock

## Summary

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## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** Magellan eXplorist 500 Water Resistant Hiking GPS by magellan
- **How much does it cost?** $5.55 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Currently out of stock
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.ec](https://www.desertcart.ec/products/95285034-magellan-explorist-500-water-resistant-hiking-gps)

## Best For

- magellan enthusiasts

## Why This Product

- Trusted magellan brand quality
- Free international shipping included
- Worldwide delivery with tracking
- 15-day hassle-free returns

## Key Features

- • **Compact & Convenient:** Lightweight design (2.2 x 4.7 x 1.3 inches) fits perfectly in your hand or pocket.
- • **Expand Your Adventure:** Unlimited SD card expansion allows you to add maps effortlessly via CD-ROM or the web.
- • **Power Up Your Journey:** Rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack keeps you powered on the go, with a 1-year warranty for peace of mind.
- • **Stay Bright, Stay Safe:** 16-color, high-contrast backlit LCD display ensures visibility in any lighting.
- • **Navigate with Confidence:** Equipped with 8 MB of detailed North American maps, including roads, parks, and waterways.

## Overview

The Magellan eXplorist 500 is a waterproof handheld GPS device designed for outdoor enthusiasts. It features 16 MB of built-in memory with 8 MB of North American maps, unlimited SD card expansion for additional maps, a high-contrast backlit LCD display, and a rechargeable battery, all packed in a compact design.

## Description

Product Description          Navigate in color! The 16-color display of the Magellan eXplorist 500 enables you to see where you are in vivid color. With a high-speed USB data port and unlimited data storage capacity via secure digital (SD) card expandability, you can easily add detailed street maps, topo or lake maps from optional Magellan MapSend software. eXplorist 500 is lightweight and pocket-sized so you can take it with you everywhere. The Magellan Geocache Manager enables you to download caches directly to your eXplorist 500 and the PC-style file system helps you to easily manage all of your data. 8 MB of built-in maps and an intuitive interface make it easy to start navigating right out of the box. Save 5 track log files, 20 routes and 500 points of interest to the 8 MB of additional internal memory, but store as many as you want on optional SD cards. You get all this and more, plus color!             .com          Outfitted with a 16-color display, a high-speed USB data port, 8 MB of built-in maps, and an additional 8 MB of usable memory, the Magellan eXplorist 500 North America includes all the tools you need to navigate throughout the U.S. and Canada whether in the car or on foot. The device is rugged and lightweight, with a waterproof, impact-resistant plastic housing that stands up to almost every adventure, including whitewater rafting and hiking. At the same time, its pocket-sized chassis, which measures a mere 2.2 by 4.7 by 1.3 inches (W x H x D), is loaded with convenient features, such as detailed, built-in maps of North American roads, parks, waterways, and airports; the ability to save five track log files, 20 routes, and 500 points of interest; and an area calculator that determines the distance between saved points of interest--an ideal function when mapping out hiking trails. Other cool and convenient add-ons include a fish/hunt function that mentions the best fishing and hunting times for a specific coordinate and a similar tool that displays the rising and setting times for the sun and moon.  Should the built-in maps and extra memory prove insufficient, users can load additional map data onto Secure Digital (SD) memory cards using Magellan's MapSend software (sold separately), which is available via CD-ROM and, in some cases, online (your computer connects to the GPS through its USB port). There's no limit to the number of cards you can use, giving users access to everything from detailed street maps to topographical layouts to lake charts showing bottom features and boat ramps. Fun seekers will also delight in the Geocache Manager, which invites individuals and families to download geocache coordinates from specific Internet sites and use them on such adventures as treasure hunts and coordinated community projects. The manager employs a PC-style file system to keep geocache navigation easy.  Adding to the simplicity are the intuitive keypad and joystick controls, along with the one-button access for particularly important features. Unlike with many GPS systems, it doesn't take an expert to start navigating right away. The full-color display also helps first-time users, as it's easier to differentiate between different map features and data.  Additional features include multilingual communication (choose from English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Swedish, Finnish, Portuguese, Dutch, or Norwegian); four navigation screens for viewing speed, direction, distance to destination, and more; and a rechargeable lithium ion battery pack that keeps the eXplorist 500 working for up to 17 hours. Conveniently, users needn't remove the battery to charge it; simply plug the charger directly into the receiver and it renews itself. What's in the Box eXplorist 500 GPS, rechargeable lithium ion battery pack, warranty card, user's manual.

## Features

- Waterproof, handheld GPS with USB data port and 16 MB of built-in memory
- Includes 8 MB of North American maps with roads, parks, waterways, and more
- Unlimited Secure Digital (SD) card expansion for adding maps via CD-ROM or Web
- 16-color, high-contrast, backlit LCD display; rechargeable lithium ion battery pack
- Measures 2.2 by 4.7 by 1.3 inches (W x H x D); 1-year warranty

## Product Details

- **Brand:** Magellan
- **Vehicle Service Type:** RV, Car, SUV, Truck, Boat
- **Screen Size:** 2.3 Inches
- **Special Feature:** Speed, Elevation, Heading, Time/date, ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival), ETE (Estimated Time Enroute), Distance, Bearing
- **Connectivity Technology:** USB
- **Map Type:** Topographical, Street
- **Sport:** Hiking
- **Included Components:** Dashboard Mount
- **Battery Life:** 17 Hours
- **Mounting Type:** Dashboard Mount, found in image

## Images

![Magellan eXplorist 500 Water Resistant Hiking GPS - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/410EYSB0STL.jpg)

## Available Options

This product comes in different **Product Packaging** options.

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Read before you rip
*by S***N on July 15, 2006*

Finding my first GPS was tough! I have never found such a wide range of +/- reviews on any other gadget. I knew I wanted 5 things. 1. It had to be small enough to pack around. 2. It had to have enough memory that it wasn't obsolete in 5 minutes. 3. It had to be well built. 4. It had to have available software to upgrade the maps. 5. It had to look decent and be easily readable. In my opinion this unit does all this very well.It scared me that so many people were having trouble with the software. This almost ran me off, but I honestly couldn't pass up the $50 rebate on this. Before it arrived I read the manual that was available at magellangps.com. It explained how to fix all the problems that people seemed to be having. The fact of the matter is that GPS units are complicated. These have tons of features and you will have to read how to work them.I was also worried that the display was too small but I was shocked how big it was when I took it out of the box. If you have poor eyesight any smallish LCD screen is going to give you problems. If you can't see very well do not go the cheap rout and get one of these.For people with good vision, and the optional DirectRoute software these work just like the 600 dash models, and it saved my skin last week driving through Seattle this week. The Topo3D software is very good too and the screen has great resolution.I am very happy with the 500. I think it is the best looking portable GPS and has the great features too, just remember to study up before you get it.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Good at everything, Great at nothing
*by S***. on July 3, 2006*

First of all this is my first GPS so everything I say is based on my expectations rather than actual experience. Secondly, there are several excellent reviews here and elsewhere (just google for them), so I won't get into great detail here. I think this is a great overall unit and there aren't many units that can offer the same features, especially at this price, but if you're looking for 1 do-it-all unit expect to make compromises.I wanted one GPS to fit all my needs: car, motorcycle, hiking. I don't need very precise position or compass info, I also don't care for a good geocache tool. I need it to tell me what street I'm on, show me the surroundings, and live on batteries for 8+ hours. I also wanted it to keep track of the trails I've hiked. Surprisingly there aren't many GPS units to fit this bill...most are made for cars (bulky and no battery), others (Garmin) don't offer the same level of expandability for extra maps and are more expensive.Happy with:- small, light, and rugged. fits perfectly in your hand.- good screen. Good size, color, and brightness.- great battery life. Although I haven't tested it myself, others' tests seem pretty accurate -- 4-17 hours depending backlight usage.- Very expandable. I got a 1gb SD card and it can fit more than enough maps on it. 60 mile radius around NYC fit on one map of 120 mb (mapsend has a limit of 128 mb per map). I was also able to fit NYC, Phili, Washington DC, and Richmond, VA and everything in between on one map.Many minor gripes:- slow scrolling and zoom. This is particularly true in urban areas. Scrolling around the NYC area is a chore...it take a good 10-15 seconds for it to redraw the screen. Address entry is also slow.- unintuitive interface. I'm a techie guy and I was puzzled for several days. Don't expect you passengers to be able to easily use it as you drive.- maps are expensive...and you can't just download them (wink, wink) since Thales (magellan) knows how to protect their products.- Map routing with MapSend North America v. 3 is pretty bad. It seems to plot a direct path with little regard for speeds. Apparently it thinks that 10 miles in heavy NYC traffic is better than 20 miles of highway driving. My friends' built-in car GPS's have no trouble with this. Always double-check its directions, there's probably a better way!- annoying beeps alert you of route changes. These are usually not needed. It sometimes beeps to tell you to NOT take an exit.- in-car reception is often weak, especially on local streets surrounded by trees/buildings. I usually get 3-5 satellites which is good enough to put you on the right street. Open highway or hiking usage gives you much better reception.- car charger requires USB cable. They're just too lazy to create a dedicated charger with the correct plug. Oh yeah, and the plug is really funky.- Address entry on Mapsend is bad. It uses townships instead of town names in NJ (maybe other states too). This is a royal pain since I can never find the right place.- data transfer from PC may be slow if you do it through the unit (vs. plugging the SD card in a reader). No big deal though since you won't be transferring large maps often.

### ⭐ The battery it came with was dead on arrival. ...
*by C***N on March 5, 2015*

The battery it came with was dead on arrival. The unit would not operate. The seller refunded my money, thank you seller. I did buy another battery for it and it worked briefly. The problem with this unit was that it overcharged the battery to an extremely overheated condition. I used the unit once with the new battery and that was it, it never worked again. I believe if I would buy a new battery and charge it then it would power up but I would be extremely nervous about charging the battery and forgetting and then having the possibility of a fire. The battery is a one made just for this unit and it would not be practical to replace it every time I wanted to use it.

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*Product available on Desertcart Ecuador*
*Store origin: EC*
*Last updated: 2026-02-10*