G.p.s

Aussie

I was wondering how many people out there have/use a GPS,

Global Positioning System in their cars or work vans.

How many people use it daily?

Is it the only thing to have if you are making deliveries all day?

Or is it just a new gismo that "works great when it happens to work properly".

fuzyfelt

Hi,

I've been wondering whether to get a GPS too. I use a Palm PDA - tungsten t2 - all the time, and thought it would be neat to get a bluetooth GPS that works with it. The palm PDA is about £200 and the GPS i'm looking at is the navman 4470, about £170. This seems a better deal than a stand alone system, which looks to be about £500 (and I've already got the Palm PDA), and you can use the Palm PDA for other stuff.

Anyone using this, or a stand alone? How is it?

Sorry aussie, no answer - just another question...

Andy

buglawton

Bought a TomTom Go about 6 months ago, about £415 from Amazon.
Completely portable, very loud voice, free downloadable Speed Camera warning system. Road blocked avoidance via alternative route scheme. If you drive professionally this type of gadget ought to be a no-brainer.

albalad

Hi there

I bought an ipaq 2210 with tom tom 3 software in July last year , and consider it invaluable. Though having only used it 5 or 6 times in the Uk not entirely convinced as to how accurate it is .
Have used it three times abroad (major roads only)and was very impressed .

As fuzyfelt said it is good to have the use of a standalone PDA when i need one.

eye_wink

I have used the Navman software for sometime and found it extremely useful.

The clarity of the 3D maps is superb. You can clearly see the route that the software is proposing and you get the added benefits of a ladies/mans voice as well.

The IPAQ talks via bluetooth to the GPS receiver.

Beware if you have heated front windscreens as you have to position the receiver so it has a clear line of sight of the sky, ie no wires in the glass.

The accuracy is very good ( 5 to 10 m ).

I was lucky and managed to get my software cheap ( as a friend of mine was emigrating and didnt need it anymore ). If you live in a major conurbation, then GPS software is a real must!

My only gripe is that once you turn the IPAQ off, you need to reboot it ( I think there is a memory issue ). However, that is only a minor gripe and I would definetely recommend it to people who are on the road alot.

ReductionQueen

One of our drivers uses ans ipak with a GPS package he bought off ebay, and swears by it. He already had the ipak, and the GPS package was brand new (unopened) for £90, so it's worth considering, especially if you already have the PDA. This is a much cheaper way of getting GPS, and very useful if you change vehicles as it's temperary/portable

FJSRiDER

Aussie wrote:

Is it the only thing to have if you are making deliveries all day?

Or is it just a new gismo that "works great when it happens to work properly".

I've got a Garmin StreetPilot III.

I think it is superb whether looking for addresses - when we were looking to move house or routing across Europe - it could hold enough maps to get cross-country to Frankfurt from the UK. It is excellent if you have to divert from your route as it will soon create an alternative.

However - you will still need to make your own decisions. Sometimes the mapping details are not totally accurate and sometimes the 'shortest' route takes you down some tiny and unsuitable tracks! (But this is pretty unusual)

Shawz

I use Tomtom Navigator on my ipaq 3660 (its old but it works). Its great for navigating to points of interest. I have found this site to be very useful

http://www.pocketgpsworld.co.uk/