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Joined: May 18, 2004 Posts: 21 Location: Watford, England
Posted: Tue May 18, 2004 4:15 pm Post subject: What BT GPS system should I get for my iPAQ H2210?
I am interested in purchasing a GPS system for my HP 2210 iPAQ that has an additional 256MB SD card (populated in the SD slot) and a 4GB microdrive (populated in the CF slot), so I have plenty of extra storage for maps etc, and I generally keep my iPAQ free of unnecessary software, using it primarily for WMA VBR playback, movies and Avantgo, but I would like to start utilising it’s power (e.g. screen size, colour etc.) for GPS, but after looking at the plethora of GPS systems available I am overwhelmed by the choice and confused by all the technical jargon used when comparing them using the comparison feature of the web site.
I would like some advice from knowledgeable persons, ideally people who have reviewed or owned more than one GPS system.
Ideally what I am after is a unit that uses Bluetooth (or less preferable, by cable) to connect to my iPAQ and will provide the best possible reception of signal (as I have found my eTrek Vista handheld GPS unit less favourable in this respect), has good detailed mapping and doesn’t use took much battery, as I will want to use it on long hauls on my mountain and road bikes as well as the car. Money isn’t really an object, but I would like value for my hard earned cash.
In short I am after:
1. Good on and off road mapping*, i.e. not just road maps, ideally OS style maps
2. Good reception, not just in open spaces, but under trees etc.
3. Good battery life, ideally rechargeable.
4. External antenna that can be permanently mounted to the car, but detachable from the GPS unit, so that the GPS unit can be used out of the car, e.g. handheld or on bike.
* my main complaints about my eTrek Vista is that the mapping accuracy on the unit is worthless, as it uses too few points to draw a road and thus renders the “lock to road” feature next to useless.
Waterproof would be perfect, splash-proof would be ideal, but neither is essential.
I have no idea as to what half these features mean, and whether one is better than another, or even if one is desirable:
Joined: 02/11/2002 22:41:59 Posts: 11878 Location: Massachusetts, USA
Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 2:23 am Post subject:
Can you please use our Comparison Database do do some more preselection? Given your extensive list you may need to do some compromizing, though. _________________ Lutz
Joined: May 18, 2004 Posts: 21 Location: Watford, England
Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 1:01 pm Post subject:
Dear Lutz, thanks for your reply, and I do not mean to be ungrateful, however, your suggestion appears to have missed my point altogether, in that I have already said I find the comparison database overwhelming and bewildering.
I am looking for a more personal opinion, and/or professional guidance on which unit to plum for. Realistically I am probably going to go with what someone else recommends to me, especially considering the overwhelming number of options.
What would be useful, particularilly to a novice like me would be a lab test with categorized “recommended” outcomes, like Best Value, Best Performance and Recommended, along similar lines to PC Pro and other magazine reviews.
Having revisited your web site offerings, I looked into the possibility of a Compact Flash GPS device (instead of a BT unit), as this would then keep the whole thing integrated, but again the list of options available to the consumer is long, and no clear winner is established, leaving me, the reader in a quandary of what I should spend my money on.
Now I have questions on battery life of my iPAQ when using a CF GPS device, and thus would I have to invest in an extended life battery for my iPAQ as a result? Yet again more questions, that someone, somewhere must have some experience of!
So again, I would like to request help and advise from someone who knows more than I do and/or someone who has tested a good number of devices.
Joined: Feb 20, 2004 Posts: 1154 Location: South Lancashire, UK
Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 1:57 pm Post subject:
You really do need to narrow down to a few products based on what exactly you want to do with GPS.
As you stated on and off road, on the bike and possibly on foot then Bluetooth is a good starting point. I will give you a few pointers to some of your questions:
1. Good on and off road mapping*, i.e. not just road maps, ideally OS style maps
For this you will need seperate software.
For road you can consider TomTom Navigator v3, Navman SmartST v2, (There are others but I am shortlisting)
For off road there is Anquet OS mapping and Memory Map OS mapping
2. Good reception, not just in open spaces, but under trees etc.
There are no devices that will give 100% reception in heavy built up areas or in dense woodland However I have used the Navman 4100 BT receiver and it offers reasonable reception under those conditions.
Others to consider are Fortuna Clip On
3. Good battery life, ideally rechargeable.
The Navman 4100 uses std AAA batteries or you can use AAA rechargables but the unit wont charge them. Battery life is estimated at 30 hours but the best I have achieved is 15 hours from new.
Fortuna Clip On uses replacable rechargable
4. External antenna that can be permanently mounted to the car, but detachable from the GPS unit, so that the GPS unit can be used out of the car, e.g. handheld or on bike.
A Bluetooth receiver will give you the best of both worlds... no wires. fully portable. Place the receiver on the dash inside the car then in your pocket when away from the car.
Both the Navman and Fortuna have provision to plug in an external antenna if you desire although this defeats the object of Bluetooth.
Ultimately your descision should be based on what you require from the equipment. I hope I have given you some useful advice. _________________ Ian.
iPAQ 2210 | Navman 4100 BT Receiver
Navman iCN 635
TomTom GO
Anquet OS mapping
Joined: 02/11/2002 22:41:59 Posts: 11878 Location: Massachusetts, USA
Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 2:00 pm Post subject:
Since you are planning to use the bells and whistles of the device I recommend you look for a fully equipped BlueTooth receiver. One that has replaceable batteries, and (optionally) XTrac mode and/or a datalogger.
Joined: May 18, 2004 Posts: 21 Location: Watford, England
Posted: Wed May 19, 2004 6:04 pm Post subject:
Guys – thanks for your responses.
I appreciate I may be being a little vague in my requirements, but that’s part of the problem, as I do not necessarily know that I “need” topological maps as well as road maps.
So, to refine my questions:
1. What is the best UK topological GPS mapping software for Pocket PC that is closest to Ordinance Survey Land Ranger or other detailed mountaineering type maps, details for example of contours, various paths, outcrops etc.?
2. What is the best UK road GPS mapping software for Pocket PC that is closest to the AA or RAC Road Atlas style maps?
It would sound like a CF unit would not be the best hardware solution (although it would be nice from a compactness point of view).
Taking the point about placing a BT unit my pocket, surely that would restrict line-of-sight and reception in general (as I understand it, GSP is a low-powered radio wave?), so surely it would prove more advisable to mount the unit on the handlebars of the bike or placed in the top of a rucksack perhaps?
Now, I have just discovered that it is possible (with a suitable lead) to connect my iPAQ H2210 with my eTrek Vista… so my questions above are now weighted by whether the relevant software will take its GPS input from a Vista?
Any advice on this (using a eTrek with an iPAQ) would be useful
Joined: Feb 20, 2004 Posts: 1154 Location: South Lancashire, UK
Posted: Thu May 20, 2004 12:09 am Post subject:
MadMaxMel wrote:
1. What is the best UK topological GPS mapping software for Pocket PC that is closest to Ordinance Survey Land Ranger or other detailed mountaineering type maps, details for example of contours, various paths, outcrops etc.?
2. What is the best UK road GPS mapping software for Pocket PC that is closest to the AA or RAC Road Atlas style maps?
Taking the point about placing a BT unit my pocket, surely that would restrict line-of-sight and reception in general (as I understand it, GSP is a low-powered radio wave?), so surely it would prove more advisable to mount the unit on the handlebars of the bike or placed in the top of a rucksack perhaps?
1. Both Anquet and MemoryMap use OS 1:25,000 landranger maps and they are both exactly like the paper equivalents. your choice between these would be based on the amount of functionality you want.
www.anquet.co.ukwww.memory-map.co.uk
2. To my knowledge, you wont get any GPS street routing software that is exactly like the AA or RAC road atlas, but TomTom and Navman are pretty close. Go to their websites and look at screenshots or the demos, you will then see if the map quality is what you are expecting.
Topo OS maps are no good for street routing.
If you can mount the unit on the handlebars of the bike or place it in the top of a rucksack then this would obviously give optimum reception. Both the Navman 4100 and Fortuna Clip-on are sensitive receivers with Royaltek RBT 3000 a close 3rd.
I can only speak of my own experiences, placing it in your pocket will not stop it from receiving the GPS signals. If I can still get a 4-5 sat lock with the receiver tucked inside the centre console arm rest then a bit of clothing won't cause signal loss.
If you dont know whether you need topographical maps it is not a problem as they are seperate software packages to street routing that can be bought at a later stage. _________________ Ian.
iPAQ 2210 | Navman 4100 BT Receiver
Navman iCN 635
TomTom GO
Anquet OS mapping
Joined: Feb 20, 2004 Posts: 1154 Location: South Lancashire, UK
Posted: Thu May 20, 2004 10:37 pm Post subject:
If the software supports NMEA 0183 then it should work fine.
As for GPS Accuracy: The garmin spec suggests:-
Position: <15 meters, 95% typical
WAAS Accuracy:
Position: <3 meters, 95% typical*
I'm not sure of the chipset in the Vista but sirf chipsets in current BT receivers have typical accuracy of <5 meters 95% of the time.
As you already own the Vista and 2210 then trying them together with navigation software would only cost you the price of the connecting lead should it prove to be inadequate.
Incidentally, having looked at the review of CoPilot Live 4 i'd say it is worthy of consideration. _________________ Ian.
iPAQ 2210 | Navman 4100 BT Receiver
Navman iCN 635
TomTom GO
Anquet OS mapping
Joined: May 18, 2004 Posts: 21 Location: Watford, England
Posted: Fri May 21, 2004 12:14 pm Post subject:
Dear All
Thanks for all your contributions.
I am currently waiting for the eCombo-i38 cable (£37.95) from Lynks Cables UK (http://www.lynks.co.uk) which will apparently connect my eTrek Vista to my iPAQ H2210 and thus enable me to use my eTrek as GPS source.
I have downloaded (http://www.memory-map.co.uk) a 10-day trial version of Memory-Map 2004 Ordnance Survey Edition that I will install on my iPAQ when I have my connecting cable.
Fingers crossed everything should work and I will then be able to evaluate the software and establish whether my eTrek is good enough for the job.
In response to accuracy, when using my eTrek as a handheld, I have consistently (90% of the time) had 6 meter accuracy (reported by unit) and once or twice 5 meter accuracy. I have occasionally had 18 meter accuracy but that was in poor conditions (built up areas where line-of-sight wasn’t possible). Strangely enough, on top of most of Scottish mountains I get surprisingly poor accuracy, like 10-12 meters, when there is no problem with line-of-sight, but atmospheric and ionospheric conditions may have affected this.
WAAS Accuracy – that’s currently only relevant to the US right? As last time I read up about that there were only two geo-stationary satellites both over the US, none over Europe* or Britain*, so, since I am predominantly in the UK, I am not currently going to get much more accuracy than the 5-6 meters I have been experiencing.
* Does anyone know what stages the Euro Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service (EGNOS) system is at and whether it will be usable by my Garmin eTreck Vista?
Any more advice, help or recommendations are still welcome.
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