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Leadtek 9531 (SiRF
I) GPS
Receiver
Review |
02nd January
2003 |
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Review
by Dave Burrows
Introduction
The Leadtek 9531 is no dark horse. It's been
around for a while now, and has proven itself both on it's own and to other GPS
software houses. Leadtek is a good name behind GPS Receivers, and one that
both TomTom and PowerLOC have partnered with to bundle the receiver with their
latest products.
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Connecting the Leadtek
The Leadtek 9531 plugs into the bottom Sync Port
of the Pocket PC. This is the same interface that the Pocket PC cradle
uses which is designated as COM1. This does mean that you do have to make
sure that any external keyboard drivers that use this same sync port, or any
third party accessory drivers will have to be disabled to use the Leadtek, but
this is the same with all GPS receivers that use the bottom Sync Port.
The Leadtek 9531 is both small
and light weight and also very portable. This
useful antenna complies with the NMEA-0183 data message standard and SiRF I
binary data protocol and can be configured to work with a variety of Handheld PC,
Notebook, Pocket PC, and Palm devices.
Leadtek 9531 Features
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Based on SiRFStarI Architecture
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12
channel "All-in-View" tracking
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Cold/Warm/Hot start time: 48/38/8 seconds
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Reacquisition time: 0.1 second
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Universal connector for different PPA/pocket PC/Smart phone
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Cable availability
Compaq iPAQ 36xx/37xx, 38xx series
HP Jornada 56x series
Casio Cassiopeia E-125, E-200
Palm Vx, M500 series
Handspring Visor, Edge
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Support SiRF Binary or standard NMEA-0183
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Magnet base for mounting on the car
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Water-resistant plastic housing
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Backup battery supported
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Leadtek GPS plugs into bottom
Sync Port of Pocket PC |
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So what does the Leadtek 9531 look
like ?
The Leadtek looks like a square block.
The cable that comes out of the GPS receiver has a suction cup moulded
around the cable. Although the base of the receiver is both
magnetic and has a rubbery felt to stop the receiver slipping around
the dashboard, the suction cup can help by suctioning the cable to the
windscreen to hold the receiver firmly in place.
Leadtek 9531 GPS Receiver |
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Cable Sets
The end of the GPS receiver cable
terminates in an RJ11 plug, which then plugs into an RJ11 socket.
From this point on is considered a cable set (as seen in the following
photo).
The RJ11 plug, plugs into the RJ11
socket which is on the right of the dual cable box. This then
splits into two cables. One goes straight to the accessory
socket plug which gives you the power to the receiver, and the other
cable then goes straight to the Pocket PC.
The reason why the cable set has been
designed this way is not only does it give you power to the GPS
receiver, but it charges the Pocket PC at the same time giving you the
best of both worlds.
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Leadtek 9531 Cable Set for the Compaq
iPAQ 3800 Series |
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A closer look at the Y-adaptor box shows
the RJ11 socket
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Other
Cable Sets Available
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Interface
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Serial Port: |
Universal connector (RJ11) |
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Baud Rate: |
4800 to 19200 adjustable |
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Input Messages: |
NMEA/SiRF Binary
Set altitude, positioning, date & time, select output message and
rates
Optional DGPS RTCM Inputs |
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Output Message: |
SiRF Binary, NMEA-0183 v2.0 GGA, GSA, GSV,RMC, VTG, GLL plus
proprietary messages |
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Antenna: |
Embedded passive |
Mechanical and Environmental
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Dimensions: |
3.0in(L) x 2.6in(W) x1.0in(H)
76.2mm(L)X66.04mm(W)X2.54mm(H) |
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Cable Length: |
PDA connector to RJ11: 88cm
Junction point to cigar lighter: 35.5cm
Smart Antenna to RJ11 connector: 150cm |
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Mounting: |
Magnet base |
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Housing: |
Water-resistant plastic |
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Operating Temperature: |
-40 °C to +85 °C |
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Safe Storage Temperature: |
-55 °C to +100 °C |
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Relative Humidity: |
5% to 95%, non-condensing |
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Altitude: |
60,000 ft(18 km) |
Performance
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General: |
12 channel "All-in-View" tracking
L1 frequency 1575.42MHz C/A code |
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Acquisition: |
Cold Start: 48 sec typical TTFF (Time-To-First-Fix)
Warm start: 38 sec typical TTFF, with current almanac, positioning
and time
Host start: 8 sec typical TTFF, with current almanac, positioning,
time and ephemeris |
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Reacquisition: |
0.1 sec (Up to 30 sec blockage) |
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Positioning Accuracy: |
30 m, 2D without SA imposed(95%)
100m, 2DRMS,with SA imposed(95%) |
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DGPS Accuracy: |
<5m(5%) |
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Dynamics: |
Velocity: < 1,854 Velocity: < 1,854 km/h(515 m/sec)
Acceleration: < 4g
Altitude: <18,000m |
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Performance
The Leadtek 9531 performs very well under
all conditions. Our acquisition (TTFF) timings we've received when
testing the Leadtek are one of the fastest Pocket PC GPS Receivers.
The only thing that beats it are the more
expensive Garmin handheld receivers.
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Cold Tests |
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Cold Test 1 |
29 seconds |
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Cold Test 2 |
37 seconds |
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Cold Test 3 |
39 seconds |
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Cold Test 4 |
41 seconds |
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Cold Test 5 |
43 seconds |
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Cold Average Test |
37.8 seconds |
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Warm Test |
9 seconds |
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Hot Test |
5 seconds |
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Manufacturer Cold |
48 seconds |
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Manufacturer Warm |
38 seconds |
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Manufacturer Hot |
8 seocnds |
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Price
The Leadtek 9531 comes in at around £160
and can be purchase direct from Tecrep
who are the UK Distributor for Leadtek. Cable sets can also be
purchase for around £20 per Pocket PC cable type, allowing you to use
this on more than one Pocket PC.
Purchase from
Tel: 0121 745 8960
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Pocket GPS Gold Award
The Leadtek 9531 really is a superb GPS
Receiver for using in-car. It's satellite acquisition time is very
fast, it's re-acquisition time is extremely fast and has a proven track
record both with TomTom Navigator and PowerLOC Destinator.
The only thing that is missing is support
for the SiRF II technology (which will be coming soon!).
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