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Holux SuperMouse GM-210 GPS Receiver Review

13th September 2002

Reviewed by Peter Scoular (TheBoyGroucho) for Pocket GPS

 

Holux Technology Inc. is one of the many GPS equipment manufacturers based in Taiwan.  They are currently represented in the UK by Holux-UK (the GM-210 is referred to as the "SuperMouse" on their website).

 

Holux-UK don't market their products directly but use a small network of resellers. I bought mine from Law Farrel and dealt with Angus Gill who was both helpful and friendly. The unit arrived when expected and well packed, which was a good start.

 

The retail package contains the receiver/antenna, an adapter cable, warranty card and a CD containing the instruction manual along with PC/laptop drivers and a PC/laptop based utility (SiRFdemo) to custom configure the GM-210 if needed.  Adapter cables are available for most any PDA, laptop and PC with the type required specified at time of order.

 

 

The GM-210 is a small mouse type antenna receiver with about two and a half metres of cable ending in a PS/2 type female connector. The Y type adapter cable has a PS/2 male connector at one end and splits into (in most cases) a suitable lead to the PDA and a lead to a cigarette lighter charger plug.

 

With TomTom Navigator already loaded onto my iPAQ 3630 I anticipated a simple "plug and play" installation into my car.  I put the antenna on the dashboard of my car and connected the iPAQ and charger.  Unfortunately, although the antenna was soon outputting a signal (flashing green LED) TomTom's Navigator GPS program showed no signal when set to expect the GM-210s factory default setting of NMEA 0183v2 @ 4800. After some investigation it seems that the unit was set to output @ 38400! After setting Navigator to NMEA 0183v2 @38400 the GPS status page showed 7 to 8 satellites fixed at a good strength. (Holux-UK state that all GM-210s leave the factory default set to output NMEA 0183 @4800 baub, so why mine was set differently remains a bit of a mystery).

 

 

Its worth noting that emails to both sales and support at Holux-UK were replied to promptly and fully, which is always a good sign.

 

Several test drives with the GM-210 and iPAQ set up in my car showed the GPS receiver to be far more accurate than I expected.   Actual position on the road matched up very accurately with the position shown on TomTom's Navigator map with no noticeable drift and distances in yards announced by Navigator to turnings were spot on. 

 

Powered off cold, warm and hot restart times of the GM-210 antenna are as given in its specification and typically in most cases much faster. For example, this morning from a cold start (20 hours powered off) it locked on in well under 30secs. 

 

There isn't much more to say regarding using the antenna, it pretty much does what it says on the box.  With the GM-210 currently retailing at around £140, add £88 for TomTom's Navigator software and you have a fast accurate voice navigation system for around £230.

 

So what didn't I like?

 

Not much really, I suppose the one thing that did worry me a bit was being provided with software (that I really needed initially) to change the settings of the GM-210 that only works on a PC or laptop but then not being supplied with a lead to actually connect the GM-210 to the PC!  But overall I have to say that the GM-210 produces a very impressive performance and when matched up with TomTom's Navigator software its hard to see what could beat it for the price.

 

USB for Laptops. RS-232 for Laptops. Cigarette Adapter Convertor. O2 XDA
CA-USB for Windows and MAC powered Laptops.

CA-RS232 for the Windows and MAC powered Laptops.

For use in your vehicle with the CA-RS232 VersAdapter only. CA-XDA for the XDA PDA.*

 

Compaq iPAQ H3600/H3700

Casio Cassiopeia HP Jornada Palm M500/505 Siemens SX45 Compaq iPAQ H3800
CA-36xx for the H3600 and H3700 series PDA's.* CA-CASIO for the E125 PDA.* CA-JORNADA for the 540 PDA.* CA-M50x for the M500 series PDA.* CA-SIEMENS for the SX45 PDA.* CA-38xx for the H3800 series PDA.*

*comes complete with a cigarette adapter to power both the GM-210PS and your PDA.

 

GM-210 Specification

 

-

Built on SiRF Star II chipset with embedded ARM7TDMI CPU available for customized applications in firmware.
- 12 parallel satellite-tracking channels for fast acquisition and reacquisition.
- High speed signal acquisition using 1920 time/frequency search channels.
- Built-in hardware Tracking Loop Processor WAAS/EGNOS Demodulator and NDGPS/U.S. Coast Guard Beacon support.
- Low power consumption.
- Built-in rechargeable battery for memory and RTC backup and for fast Time to First Fix (TTFF).
- Support NMEA0183 v2.2 data protocol.
- Enhanced algorithms provide superior navigation performance in urban, canyon and foliage environments.

 

Interface: PS/2 style to mate with versadapter
Cable length: 3m, including power socket
Power source: Via the chosen versadapter
Voltage input: 5VDC, 0.75W
Antenna Type: Built in Patch Antenna
Minimum signal tracked: -175dBW

 

Acquisition time:

Interface:
  Warm start: < 38 seconds
Cold start: < 45 seconds
Hot start: < 8seconds
  RS232 (NMEA protocol)
USB (NMEA protocol)
iPAQ® connector (NMEA protocol)

 

Update rate:

 

Antenna:

  1 second continuous   Built-in

 

Accuracy:

 

Power:

  Position: 5 - 25m CEP.
Velocity: 0.1m/s
Time +- 1us
  GM-200-99: 6-30VDC, 0.75W
GM-200, U & PS: 5VDC, 0.75W

 

Altitude:

 

Temperature:

  Velocity: 515m/s
Acceleration: +- 4G
  Operating: 0C ~ 60C
Storage: -40C ~ 85C
   

Conclusion

Manufacturers Website

http://www.holux-UK 

Pocket GPS Reviewer

Peter Scoular (TheBoyGroucho)

Pocket GPS Reviewer Website

n/a

Rating

 

Durability

Windscreen Suction Mount Strength

Not Supplied

Air Vent Mount Strength

Not Supplied

Car Power Cable Quality

Overall Rating 80%

How did we achieve these ratings ?

Review Ratings

 

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