I can't find anywhere else to ask this...but how big off a difference is the GPS actions on the older ones vs new ones?

are you talking about spotloc holding distance..?

The i-Pilot anchor feature "spot lock" is night and day from one to the other. The 1st i-Pilot system seems to wander in a 15' radius as for where the new "current" i-Pilot system will hold your spot on with only a 1' to 2' radius.

Is the new Terrova quieter (turning gear) than the first gen?

I went from the old Terrova to the new Ulterra. Night and day between the noise. I actually never hear anything but the beeps from my remote. The head is really quiet. I am assuming since I heard complaints about noise on the old ulterra also, that the Terrova will be just as quiet. If you could sell your old terrova, then the difference that you'd pay for the new one would be well worth it.

Besides the noise and accuracy being solved, the new head seems to turn faster and the new foot pedal seems to be more user friendly. I actually use my foot pedal along with my remote now. It doesn't seem to over steer when trying to make minor adjustments with the toe buttons. If the Terrova is the same as the Ulterra on these improvements then I'd have to say I'd give it a 10 out of 10 now. The earlier Terrovas, I would have rated about 7 out of 10.

Also don't under estimate the usefulness of the jog feature. I thought it was just some fluff that they added to it. Since the spotlock is so accurate now the jog feature really makes the unit shine when you are trying to pick apart a brush pile or dock. I spent an hour on one large brush pile one night with the Grandkids. Fish it until it stopped producing, jog over 5 feet fish then forward 5 feet repeat. I've never been able to fish like that before.