First and foremost; I do not have any knowledge of a new Garmin Oregon being under development, nor do I know if a new Oregon model is even scheduled for development. Having said that....
No one can deny that the Oregon series has been Garmin's most popular touchscreen GPSr for well over a decade now. And for good reason. With so many high end features all packed into a compact, comfortable, rugged chassis, this unit has long been one of Garmin's best values.
The original Oregon x00 series was announced in July 2008, and was an immediate hit. The mildly updated Oregon x50 series would come just one year later and continue to build on that success.
And then, in 2013, while other series were getting evolutionary updates, Garmin would stun their fans with a revolutionary update to this series with the Oregon 6x0. The Oregon 6x0 series broke the mold and shattered expectations, much to the pleasure of those who adopted it.
Three years later, in 2016, we would see a mild evolution of the Oregon 6x0 in the newly announced 7x0 series, which was essentially a 6x0 with updated internal hardware and additional wireless connectivity features.
Which brings us to the present.
While the Oregon 7x0 is certainly no slouch, and continues to offer more features for less money as prices continue to drop steadily while the device ages. With the recent release of the Montana 7x0, the Oregon 7x0 series now becomes the oldest offering in the current Garmin Outdoor Recreation model lineup. All things considered, one could reasonably begin to suspect a successor is only a matter of time now.
With the slightly slimmer eTrex Touch series positioned below it, and the mildly larger Montana 6x0 series positioned above it, the Oregon 7x0 filled it's niche nicely. These three series were built around a 2.6" 160x240 pixel display (eTrex Touch), a 3" 242x400 pixel display (Oregon 7x0), and a 4" 272x480 pixel display (Montana 6x0).
But now, with the new Montana 7x0 series featuring a massive 5" 480x800 pixel display, there becomes a disparity in the model sequence. The eTrex Touch and Oregon 7x0 are now far too similar in size while the gap to the Montana is quite large, leaving me to suspect the next Oregon offering may need to grow just slightly in size to restore the previously established model size constants.
So what might Garmin be planning for the next generation Oregon series GPSr?
I had often wondered this myself. And by simply applying visible patterns seen with other Outdoor Recreation models, some simple assumptions could be made among a host of emerging technologies, including a slightly larger display/chassis, and the potential inclusion of inReach technology on the high-end model.
But what might such an offering look like? One could only imagine. So many variables. And how to improve on the ever so successful Oregon 7x0 series without disappointing your potential customers?
I had no idea really, until I recently discovered the new to market Alpha 200i series Dog Tracking GPSr.
Alpha 200 Series
I couldn't help but immediately see a chassis that clearly wanted to be the next generation Rino series GPSr.
So why am I now talking about a next generation Rino prediction?
Because the current Rino 75x is built around the current Oregon 7x0 series, and it would make perfect sense if the next generation for each were based on the same basic chassis and similar hardware again.
And, because the specs for the Alpha 200i would fill the new gap between the Oregon 7x0 and Montana 7x0 so nicely, I can not imagine Garmin needs to build yet another completely new device to fill this void. In fact, the 3.5" 282x470 pixel display has the same resolution of the outgoing Montana 6x0 4.0" display, which should theoretically provide a better visual experience.
And did I mention the removable + rechargeable Lithium-ion battery pack and Quad Helix antenna (both would be a first for an Oregon product)?
This certainly could be an exciting replacement for the finely aging Oregon 7x0 series:
Oregon 800
Or might they add a large dial between the two buttons above the display and resurrect the 'Colorado' nameplate to fill the gap between the Oregon and Montana?
We will have to wait and see.....
Then, of course, Garmin might have to provide a mild update to the eTrex Touch, similar to the eTrex x0x and x2x updates, with a higher resolution display, more memory, and TopoActive Routing. (but don't get me started...)
What do you think?