Hi, first post here, though I have lurked for a bit.
I must confess that I'm a complete noob at this, I've had an XDA IIi for over 6 months and done absolutely nothing to it, it's as virgin as the day it came out of the box. Also, I've never had a GPS Receiver before, nor SatNav.
Anyway, I've ordered TomTom software and need a GPS Receiver, but I have no idea on what basis to compare the miriad of different GPS Receivers out there, so am humbly asking for your recommendation. If you could also point me at a noobie guide on all terms regarding GPS, or explain what they mean, that would be great.
99% of usage will be in the car with my XDA in a cradle, though I'm guessing I will have to swap over the 2 charger cables, however occassionally I'd like to roam on foot with Sat Nav (usually in London). So I'm guessing I would like a BlueTooth GPS Receiver that comes with a car charger and main charger.
I have no idea what Cold Start, Warm Start, or Hot Start mean, nor what Update time is for or what's good or bad for these values. Why is Baud rate or NMEA output protocol important? What are the pro's / cons of internal or external Antenna's and wtf does an external Antenna look like and how does it work, hang out the window?? How many "channels" should I have, and what difference does it make anyway?
Sorry for all the questions, but none of the purchase sites seem to do a noobie guide aimed at my level, they all assume you know what they're talking about! :roll:
Thanks in advance.
Can no one even point me at a decent online guide that explains what all these things mean?
GuiltyCol said:
Hi, first post here, though I have lurked for a bit.
I must confess that I'm a complete noob at this, I've had an XDA IIi for over 6 months and done absolutely nothing to it, it's as virgin as the day it came out of the box. Also, I've never had a GPS Receiver before, nor SatNav.
Anyway, I've ordered TomTom software and need a GPS Receiver, but I have no idea on what basis to compare the miriad of different GPS Receivers out there, so am humbly asking for your recommendation. If you could also point me at a noobie guide on all terms regarding GPS, or explain what they mean, that would be great.
99% of usage will be in the car with my XDA in a cradle, though I'm guessing I will have to swap over the 2 charger cables, however occassionally I'd like to roam on foot with Sat Nav (usually in London). So I'm guessing I would like a BlueTooth GPS Receiver that comes with a car charger and main charger.
I have no idea what Cold Start, Warm Start, or Hot Start mean, nor what Update time is for or what's good or bad for these values. Why is Baud rate or NMEA output protocol important? What are the pro's / cons of internal or external Antenna's and wtf does an external Antenna look like and how does it work, hang out the window?? How many "channels" should I have, and what difference does it make anyway?
Sorry for all the questions, but none of the purchase sites seem to do a noobie guide aimed at my level, they all assume you know what they're talking about! :roll:
Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK basic reccomendation. Get a Globalsat BT-338. A popular and well liked high performing device at a reasonable cost.
What you need to look for in a receiver is the chipset. You want one with a SIRF III chipset because it will provide the best reception in heavily built up areas. You want to avoid X-TRAC because it's laggy.
With regards to charging, you probably won't need to be continuously charging, (look for battery life on the device specs. You want around 20 hours per charge). However you could get a cradle which charges both, or a Y-Cable which will also charge both the xda and the receiver if need be.
Cold start refers to how long the receiver takes to get a fix from the very first time it is used, or after it has had no battery, it needs to work out where you are on the planet and can take up to 5 mins. After this you will be more likely to just do warm starts, by which the receiver uses your last known location to get a rough guide of where you are, this should take less than a minute. A Hot start means you havent moved from your last know location, theis should take 30 seconds to get a fix. These times are measured as TTF- Time to Fix, ands should also be on the device specs.
The Protocol is the format that the data is passed onto the xda software. Most software expects NMEA data, as this is the most commonly used. The baud rate is just how fast the device can communicate with the xda and dosn't make a lot of difference the BT-338 has a baud rate of 38400, but I've used a device with a baud rate of 9600 and can't say I noticed a difference. A SIRF III device is unlikely to need an external arial, unless you have heat reflective windows all round your car, and even then unlikely. A good SIRF III receiver will work from inside a closed glove box. An older SIRF II chipset may need an external antenna. These are usually little magnetic squares that you stick to the roof of the car, with a cable that connects to the receiver inside. Buy a SIRF III and forget about those.
Channels, most SIRF III receivers are 16- 20 channels, this is how many simultaneous satellites the device can track at once. Anything over 16 is pure bonus as you are probably unlikely to get more than 12 satellites in your line of sight anyway.
That seems to cover everything except cost. Expect to pay between £50 and £80.
and check out www.pocketgps.co.uk
Thanks Gajet, that was everything I wanted in an answer. Much obliged.
My Globalsat BT-338 arrived yesterday. Had a few problems working out which serial port it was using but got there in the end. Also the middle LED seems to flash or hold solid with a mind of it's own. But apart from that, works like a treat, and as the review said, works fine in my glovebox too, which is nice.
Thanks again.
The middle LED just tells you if you are getting a good satellite lock. If it stays steady then you are not getting enough satellite signal for a lock. There is a program on the CD that can tell you the satellite signal strength. Most nav programs have that feature as well.
I've been playing with mine for a few days and I am amazed by how fast it can lock onto satellite signal. If you compare with other non-SirfIII chipped GPS the difference is almost night and day.
I did have some BT/COM port issue if I run an alternate nav program. It wouldn't connect BT anymore until I rediscover it. But staying with one program (iGuidance) it works perfectly.
> I did have some BT/COM port issue if I run an alternate nav program.
I had this problem too. If I ran up the GPSInfo program, then TomTom would fail to find the GPS Receiver.
Who brought a 2006 thread back to life...Thread closed, Thank you.
Related
I have just been following all the developments with the Bluetoth Stack Problems etc, after actually I had Ordered the Holux BT GPS Receiver.
I am still awaiting delivery, but after reading the last thread under GPS/Bluetooth got a bot dissappointed as a lot of people seem to have problems with the Reception.
I actually did some research before ordering and the reviews were promising. So in real life, what are the problems with the actual GPS itsself and how is the reception?
Even though I haven't tried Towas BT Fix, but I must congratulate as it seems very impressive the job he has done. I have downloaded all is required in terms of software fixes.
Please share your experiences with the Holux BT GPS and if anyone likes to do a preview perhaps?
I've already posted my comments in another thread but to summarise - it doesn't work ver well at all. I've used a Navman/iPaq combo - worked quite well, a Nokia LAM1/9210 - worked surprisingly well too, then a CF GPS in an Axim - worked extremely well, then this Holux device with an XDA II - the worst so far, by far. I'm assuming that the problem isn't with the XDA II as it uses a 400 mhz xScale 263 cpu which should be more than sufficient. I had read that these things would pick up a decent signal from within a rucksack or pocket, and indoors from a few feet from a window, but not in my case.
I can't wait to see what other peoples experiences are.
Ged.
How did you get the holux to work with xda2, I am having no luck with it.
I just installed towas patch, when I chose the holux it allowed me to assign a serial port "com4 chosen" this then appeared under gps in tomtom, works great and the headset works at same time, it did prevent me synching via bluetooth which was working fine before, but that is no hardship as I am unlikely to be synching by bluetooth while running tomtom.
P.s. I tried changing com ports for the gps but it didnt help so I removed my bluetooth desktop pc bluetooth profile, went to settings/bluetooth, told it to sync by bluetooth, it searched for and found my pc bluetooth dongle, when I click finish Towas patch pops up, I selected activesync and it now all works, the guys a genius with programming.
Got my Holux working too
Even though I was very nervous about the Holux, it has proved for me working very well, but it did take a bit to get things working.
At first, I removed all bluetooth devices, then installed Towas' Patch and then added the BT Devices (Holux + HBH-65). The HBH-65 worked well all the time, but once I loaded the Holux supplied software GPSviewer, it kept crashing and froze or it automatically kept rebooting. Tried all different ports but no success.
Finally, I had to Hard-Reset the XDA2 and then first install Towas's BT Patch before pairing any devices or installing any applications. Then I tried some third party software and finally Mapopolis and saw it working perfectly (COM 5, 9600). For some reason, GPSviewer is not compatible with either the XDA2 or Towas's Patch at any setting.
The Positioning is very good and usually have 8 sats locked out of 10 visible. I saw the device to be very accurate, perhaps to about 1-2 metres on Mapopolis. I even get around 3-4 Sats locked when I am indoors (thats either on the top floor or near a window. First time to fix is always around 30secs and hotstart seems immediate to me. The only matter which has got to me was that while driving, the positioning seemed to be lagging behind and Mapopolis came up with streets which just passed. I am also quite pissed off with the male voice of mapopolis as it sounds awful. I have now ordered TomTom V.2 and will keep u guys posted how that goes.
PS: The BT Handset works well at the same time as the GPS, but still missing the Handsfree BT Profile.
Anyone any update about O2 (UK) ROM Update?
I found no lag with Tomtom2, it was on the button and extremely accurate, does anybody know if the battery can be swapped out of this unit in the event of a failure once warrany is out?
I would think so. I took mine apart to see what was inside and it's very similar to one that you'd find in a cordless phone. Nothing special really and there are lots of companies out there that supply custom or specialist batteries.
Analyst said:
I have just been following all the developments with the Bluetoth Stack Problems etc
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i take it ur talking about the prolems "when you change the baud rate on the GR-230, it would lose communication via Bluetooth"?
if so the review on pocketgps.co.uk for the unit is quite good. its available @
http://www.pocketgps.co.uk/holuxgr230.php
but it explains that its a firmware prob with units shipped B4 Dec 03, which can B fixed.
Hope this helps. ive just ordered 1 myself, £95 off ebay, will do nicely if it works, i shall let ya'll know.
Smiley
Hi guys
Does anyone know where I can find antennas to fit my TomTom & Rikaline 6030 BT receivers? I've looked everywhere with no luck, only found the re-radiating type. Both seem to have the same connector, tried Maplins etc. Any ideas? :roll:
Thanks!
http://www.globalpositioningsystems...66&PHPSESSID=6caf78405a8bd59ea55c4e7117127019
try this. Also on the page you will see "online buying advice", they will sort it for you I am sure.
And for the TOMTOM Bluetooth try here but why do you need an external antenna, can't you locate the receiver where it can get reception?
Diolch! (Thanks)
Cruisin' & Griffog,
Thanks guys, marvellous. the reason I need to, at least, try one of these is that I drive a double-decker sleeper bus. I run 2 systems, my XDA II with BT TomTom3 (or TomTom Routeplanner in E.Europe) with receiver in top window, and my laptop running Autoroute 2004 (or Autoroute 2001 in E. Europe) using a Rikaline 6030 BT receiver (also in top window).
But there are frequently times when I lose signal due to tree cover & in urban canyons. as both units appear to have the same connector, I want to get an extension to try it out on both units. The other alternative is a re-radiating antenna. Not sure what would happen if a re-radiating antenna was beaming to two seperate GPS systems simultaneously though. What do you reckon?
Ah, I see your problem now. A re-rad will happily drive two receivers, it does exactly as it suggests and re-radiates the GPS signal so there is no problem in your set-up.
I'd go for one of the high power versions given you'll be using it in a commercial vehicle, e.g. the RRAD-46 as this should provide you with better results and will drive the two systems.
Oh and I hail from Llandudno so LlanfairPG isn't too far away!!
Diolch eto! (thanks again)
Sut mae Griffog
Yep! that seems the perfect solution, unfortunately can't get delivery other than to my address on my card (same with expansys) and I won't be there to receive it. i.e. they won't allow a different shipping address.
Dyna fel y mae e! :? Do you know of another firm?
GloPos (Global Positioning Systems) have the same unit in stock, no idea if they have the same conditions for sale though, see here.
Pob lwc
I have a brand new quality re-radiating system here, its brand new and consists of SM-66 gps antenna, ra-46 re-radiating antenna and cigarette lighter plug power adaptor, I want £40 for it (saves you £15) if anybody interested. Made by San Jose systems. It will feed unlimited systems as the signal is usable by all receivers in vicinity.
I was on a motorway in wales and kept seeing signposts giving miles to this certain place, I was a little puzzled when it changed from 1 mile to destination to 30 miles to destination, this happened more than once, it wasnt until I was told the meaning of the word that I realised that it wasnt a welsh village that kept moving...its name....Gwasenathu (spelling?)
Close, it's 'Gwasanaethau' and to the uninititated that means 'Services'! Much the same as 'Ausfahrt' on German autobahns
Gwasaneuthau
Yup!
Correct on the translation of motorway services in Welsh, but, incorrect on the German Autobahn bit,
Ausfahrt means exit.
Rasthof is services
Autohof is a truckstop (usually just off the Autobahn and with better facilities and cheaper more substantial meals than in the Rasthofs)
Now what's the Welsh & German for GPS antennas?............ 8)
Re: Gwasaneuthau
Chop! said:
Yup!
Correct on the translation of motorway services in Welsh, but, incorrect on the German Autobahn bit,
Ausfahrt means exit.
Rasthof is services
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, didn't explain myself very well there, I didn't mean that Ausfahrt was German for Services, I was referring to the post about there being lost of signs to 'Gwasanaethau' and the old joke about a tourist driving along the German Autobahn and saying 'that Ausfahrt place is big, been signs for it for the last 100 miles!' :wink:
Ah ah alles clar!
Sorry Griffog ychan!
Didn't twig to that train of thought! Duh! :wink: I've sent for the re-rad that you suggested. Did a post in Welsh thanking you but I was either too pissed or it got zapped! Considering that these XDA IIs have been around a while it is unbelievable that you can't even get a std battery for one, just wasted a few days chasing a second hand one on e-bay which went for more than new price! And as usual with O2 they are a light year behind our European friends where accessories are available from virtually day one! :twisted: Oops ranting again, sorry!
Hello,
I have a question. I read that in the diamond and the touch pro htc doesnt use the sirfstar 3 anymore but the qualcomm gps receiver.
The sirf 3 is a very good receiver but i dont have any experince with qualcomm. I read a review on the internet that qualcomm's performance is less effective than the sirf 3.
(http://www.gpspassion.com/fr/articles.asp?id=175&page=6)
Does anyone have any experience with the new qualcomm in htc's diamond or touch pro?
Look in the Diamond section, there's plenty of talk of issues with the GPS. No one has the Touch Pro yet since it hasn't released, so no one here could answer your question.
Black93300ZX said:
Look in the Diamond section, there's plenty of talk of issues with the GPS. No one has the Touch Pro yet since it hasn't released, so no one here could answer your question.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But can't you summarize it??
So, I had Sirf Star 3, now I have Diamond (Qualcomm navigation). For a car use, Qualcomm performs as well as SirfStar 3, for pedestrian use, it is unusable, due to Static navigation can not be swithced. Diamond least for 2 hrs and 20 minutes of navigation, due to small batery, but like I said, for pedestrian it is unuseable, and in car you can recharge it permanently, so, iGO and TomTom works well. COM4 baud 4600.
pokevitek said:
So, I had Sirf Star 3, now I have Diamond (Qualcomm navigation). For a car use, Qualcomm performs as well as SirfStar 3, for pedestrian use, it is unusable, due to Static navigation can not be swithced. Diamond least for 2 hrs and 20 minutes of navigation, due to small batery, but like I said, for pedestrian it is unuseable, and in car you can recharge it permanently, so, iGO and TomTom works well. COM4 baud 4600.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is this a software or hardware limitation?
pokevitek said:
for pedestrian use, it is unusable, due to Static navigation can not be swithced.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have some difficulties to understand that. What is the point with "static navigation"?
First, someone thinks it is a software problem, someone thinks its hardware. Anyway, static navigation solves the probem with "jumping" GPS coordinates when staying on one place (in car, coordinates mey be +- 5 meters off), so, navigation will not actualise location in car if speed is under 3 km/s. That is it.
Ah okay, I understand.
But this "static navigation" should be handled by the application not by the GPS driver. So the navigation software can and should decide by itself if there is some advanced map-matching applied to the coordinates.
Is this "static navigation" feature only an issue with TomTom or does this apply to GoogleMaps as well?
As far as I can remember my old TomTom 6 application had a pedestrian mode as well. I would assume this "static navigation" feature would be turned off in this case.
Does TomTom 7 have no pedestrian mode or is this really something that is handled by the GPS driver?
foo said:
...
Is this "static navigation" feature only an issue with TomTom or does this apply to GoogleMaps as well?
...
Does TomTom 7 have no pedestrian mode or is this really something that is handled by the GPS driver?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think you should ask this on the Diamond forum, because almost noone has this phone right now. But if you manage to get an answer, pls let me know, because I'm really interested in this question (I mean the 1st one).
Barkeeper1979 said:
Hello,
I have a question. I read that in the diamond and the touch pro htc doesnt use the sirfstar 3 anymore but the qualcomm gps receiver.
The sirf 3 is a very good receiver but i dont have any experince with qualcomm. I read a review on the internet that qualcomm's performance is less effective than the sirf 3.
(http://www.gpspassion.com/fr/articles.asp?id=175&page=6)
Does anyone have any experience with the new qualcomm in htc's diamond or touch pro?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
mydexterid said:
I think you should ask this on the Diamond forum, because almost noone has this phone right now. But if you manage to get an answer, pls let me know, because I'm really interested in this question (I mean the 1st one).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My experience with the Touch Diamond and iGO8 is that there is a time lag (when you stop the car the GPS continues moving 10 - 15 meters) and a lag consistently showing that my position is some 10 - 30 m behind the actual position. At least I have never seen iGO8 showing my position ahead of the actual. The latter becomes a problem when using smart or auto zoom when zoomed to the highest level. In that case it may look like i should turn at the next intersection and not the one I am in, and that is anoying. However, I believe its possible to set max zoom level also in the auto or smart mode somewhere, and that should improve matters (have not taken the time to do so).
However, the article you refer to does tell me that I'll have to live with some sort of issue, but by-and-large I find it is quite OK, especially if I zoom to a fixed level showing a little more than just 20 m road. I may add that iGO 8 in principle only runs on devices with SD support due to copy protection.
I tested (on the road) both Diamond and Touch PRO.
Diamond:
Worse performance than SirfIII receivers I've had. No GPS lag. Still, the performance is acceptable.
Touch PRO:
Performance comparable to SirfIII. Got GPS lag though.
I'm sure that the put a better GPS antenna to Touch PRO, since it gets stronger signal, faster TTF and more reliable navigation.
I hope that GPS lag is software issue that will get fixed.
Cheers,
robal said:
I tested (on the road) both Diamond and Touch PRO.
Diamond:
Worse performance than SirfIII receivers I've had. No GPS lag. Still, the performance is acceptable.
Touch PRO:
Performance comparable to SirfIII. Got GPS lag though.
I'm sure that the put a better GPS antenna to Touch PRO, since it gets stronger signal, faster TTF and more reliable navigation.
I hope that GPS lag is software issue that will get fixed.
Cheers,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds a bit wierd as TD and TPro is the same processor (and not up to the Sifr chip's performance - but that can be compensated by a well made software). Have you tried it using google map, that could be interesting. Or alternatively put it in pedestrian/off road mode and leave the road.
Lag on Raphael is driving me crazy......
Yeah, I'm seeing some pretty nasty lag myself... Just tested it out going from work to home last night, using iGo8. Seems when I stop my car, it keeps moving for a while, speed decreases quite slowly... Not quite as good as my Holux M-1200, but I'll keep testing and see...
Does anyone know/think that a software/radio/rom upgrade might fix this? Or is it just a hardware limitation?
I'm not getting hardly any lag using TomTom Navigator 6, seems perfect to me. I did set the baud rate to maximum, maybe that's why or maybe it's a software issue with IGo?
ukdj78 said:
I'm not getting hardly any lag using TomTom Navigator 6, seems perfect to me. I did set the baud rate to maximum, maybe that's why or maybe it's a software issue with IGo?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, I'll try that tomorrow if I get a chance, although I have my doubts it'll make any difference. I was using the same setup on my Elfin, and although there was some very slight lag, nothing like what I see with the Raph....
But I'll try setting the baud rate to max and retry... I'll let y'all know...
ukdj78 said:
I'm not getting hardly any lag using TomTom Navigator 6, seems perfect to me. I did set the baud rate to maximum, maybe that's why or maybe it's a software issue with IGo?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most people report lag time regardless the navigationsoft. Maybe the iGO is a bit worse. I surely observe a speed dependend lag sometimes, but even while waiting in an intersection I sometimes observe that iGO informs up to 20 m to the intersection. Sometimes the turn indicator reads 0 m while the main screen surely shows that I am not yet at the intersection. Never I observerd that iGO showed a position ahead of the true position.
It is known that the TD processor is not as accurate as the Sifr chipset so I wonder if it's because the navi soft is averaging the position locking you to the road. Try to let it track your position in a mode not locking to the road (or use google map) and you'll see that the curser is moving even up to 20 m even the phone is left steady on the table.
i notice allot of gps lag with garmin mobile xt and little with tomtom 7 but it's there. Also i notice that the gps bars on tomtom or garmin do not maintain fixed, not the signal, that would be normal, but the satellite number. This is very strange when i have a few satellites with a very good signal and suddenly the gps software stops using it, why ??? If i was moving around i would accept that, but since i'm not moving why doesn't it maintain the same satellites ??
Always jumping around satellites instead of maintaining them and this is probably caused by the driver that decodes the gps/satellite information.
I really think that the problem comes from the driver that windows uses for the gps + the radio version.
I'm really confident that future ""HTC"" updates will solve the problem, not cooked roms having has base the actual htc rom(s)
Only time will tell , we will have to wait for the next htc update.
adolfotregosa said:
i notice allot of gps lag with garmin mobile xt and little with tomtom 7 but it's there. Also i notice that the gps bars on tomtom or garmin do not maintain fixed, not the signal, that would be normal, but the satellite number. This is very strange when i have a few satellites with a very good signal and suddenly the gps software stops using it, why ??? If i was moving around i would accept that, but since i'm not moving why doesn't it maintain the same satellites ??
Always jumping around satellites instead of maintaining them and this is probably caused by the driver that decodes the gps/satellite information.
I really think that the problem comes from the driver that windows uses for the gps + the radio version.
I'm really confident that future ""HTC"" updates will solve the problem, not cooked roms having has base the actual htc rom(s)
Only time will tell , we will have to wait for the next htc update.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Satellites are moving and the atmospharical conditions changing all the time affecting the signal you receive.
The chipset used by HTC is also not performing as well as the the Sirf III having a lower accuraccy, but that doesn't change the signal strength received of course.
guitarguy said:
Yeah, I'm seeing some pretty nasty lag myself... Just tested it out going from work to home last night, using iGo8. Seems when I stop my car, it keeps moving for a while, speed decreases quite slowly... Not quite as good as my Holux M-1200, but I'll keep testing and see...
Does anyone know/think that a software/radio/rom upgrade might fix this? Or is it just a hardware limitation?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
its an IGO8 issue. i believe its programmed in so that if you lose sattelite it makes assumptions about where you are going (since you gave it the end point anyway, its fair to assume that you are continuing in that direction). What i wish they would do is put you 3 secs ahead of where it currently shows you, more often than not it would be an accurate assumption. I love igo8 but in a complicated intersection i often miss the correct turn.
Hello,
I've purchased 2 GPS antennas for my HTC Touch Cruise and for my friend who has the same phone from a reputed ebay seller who hasn't had any issues before with his products.
I've tried both antennas on my phone and none has shown an improvement, I also tried plugging in the phone to my car charger at the same time while I was in the car in case it had to be powered...but that also didn't work!
I also tried putting the antenna outside and my phone inside and still no signal.
Now it seems unlikely that both antennas aren't working on either Touch Cruise so I wanted to know is there a specific way of doing this? Did I miss a step?
Appreciate all your help!
Alan
Might sound stupid , But whats wrong with the gps chip built into the phone, If you are trying to use it as a navigator or whatever then the one built in is absolutly fine i use mine every day.
Hi Lucas,
Nothing's wrong with the built-in one, it works great... but having an external antenna should greatly improve satellite detection and locking time as well as less cut outs in urban areas.
Best regards,
Alan
I don't really think external antennas really helps in general use, esp with large enviromental factors.
I was always under the impression they are used if you need the device in a compromised location, ie some sort of pseudo-faraday cage, ie like some heated-windscreens.
BUMP!
Someone please help!
This post got lost in a locked thread, figured I would repost it.
It's a real big band-aid, but it works fine for the car and is easier than rolling the dice and getting a new phone.
I spent 20 bucks and got a tom tom bluetooth GPS receiver, combined with a free up on the market called "Bluetooth GPS Provider" and I get 1M accuracy in Maps/Nav. Since I primarily only use the GPS in the car, it's not that big of a deal to leave an accessory in there.
If you need good in car nav, and are tired of waiting for a fix, something like this is the way to go. Tested for over 400 miles of driving, never lost a fix or lost track.
http://www.amazon.com/TomTom-Blueto...I2YY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1292625649&sr=8-1
Edit: Link fixed, thanks.
Whole link did not copy ...
http://www.amazon.com/TomTom-Blueto...I2YY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1292625649&sr=8-1
Thats what Samsung should do to resolve the issue, they need to release the Galaxy S GPS Repair Kit. It comes with one of these GPS Receivers and a piece of double-sided sticky tape...EPIC!
Yeah, it's kludgy, but it works great for the car. Only thing that really sucks is that the tomtom doesn't charge from USB, means having to carry another charger too. Oh well, battery last a good long time at least.
Holy markdown batman! $149.99 marked down to $18.99? How could that thing ever be worth $150?!
That's actually kinda tempting.
polarbee said:
Holy markdown batman! $149.99 marked down to $18.99? How could that thing ever be worth $150?!
That's actually kinda tempting.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That receiver is old school. It's from the pre-smartphone days when everybody rocked iPAQs. The $150 MSRP was normal back then.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
It's still a sirf-star and better than what's working on the captivate right now!
I decided to go the same route as you. Although, I wish I did earlier because that TomTom receiver is longer available for $20 on Amazon. I ended up getting a Globalsat BT-359 for $40.95 instead.
I have to say, while not the ideal solution, it's by far the best one yet. GPS now works perfectly. Fast locks, pinpoint accuracy, no lag, and never loses its lock. It basically works how you expect a GPS to work. While it does suck that I had to spend extra money on the receiver, and that I now have the extra steps of connecting/disconnecting the receiver whenever I need to use it, it's a small price to pay to eliminate the frustration induced when using the poor excuse of a built-in GPS.
I don't know about you guys, but I always had a bit of anxiety when using the built-in GPS. Cuz at every point, I was worrying about something. At the beginning, I'd worry about how long it'd take to obtain a lock. Then once I get the lock, I worry about how accurate it will be, how long I'll keep that lock, and whether or not the GPS will lag behind. It felt like a huge weight was lifted from my shoulders when I was able to drive without having to worry about how the GPS was going to behave.
Although, this still doesn't change my attitude towards Samsung Mobile (I specify Mobile because I've had no issues with their TVs). As soon as AT&T releases a high-end Android phone that doesn't have a deal breaking issue, I'm buying it outright and selling my Captivate on craigslist.
I have a question about this thing: I use BT stereo to play music in the car. Can I use both devices at once?
Me too
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
ScottyNuttz said:
I have a question about this thing: I use BT stereo to play music in the car. Can I use both devices at once?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm able to use my bluetooth headset at the same time, so probably.
Donatron said:
I decided to go the same route as you. Although, I wish I did earlier because that TomTom receiver is longer available for $20 on Amazon. I ended up getting a Globalsat BT-359 for $40.95 instead.
I have to say, while not the ideal solution, it's by far the best one yet. GPS now works perfectly. Fast locks, pinpoint accuracy, no lag, and never loses its lock. It basically works how you expect a GPS to work. While it does suck that I had to spend extra money on the receiver, and that I now have the extra steps of connecting/disconnecting the receiver whenever I need to use it, it's a small price to pay to eliminate the frustration induced when using the poor excuse of a built-in GPS.
I don't know about you guys, but I always had a bit of anxiety when using the built-in GPS. Cuz at every point, I was worrying about something. At the beginning, I'd worry about how long it'd take to obtain a lock. Then once I get the lock, I worry about how accurate it will be, how long I'll keep that lock, and whether or not the GPS will lag behind. It felt like a huge weight was lifted from my shoulders when I was able to drive without having to worry about how the GPS was going to behave.
Although, this still doesn't change my attitude towards Samsung Mobile (I specify Mobile because I've had no issues with their TVs). As soon as AT&T releases a high-end Android phone that doesn't have a deal breaking issue, I'm buying it outright and selling my Captivate on craigslist.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you running Eclair or Froyo on your Captivate?
Found it here...
hxxp://dealsproshop.auctivacommerce.com/TomTom-Bluetooth-GPS-Receiver-for-USA-and-Canada-P1259994.aspx#
This is a great idea. Also, if anybody has an older android phone with working gps that they no longer use, the same outcome can be achieved with a couple simple apps. I'm using my lg eve to send the gps signal to my captivate via bluetooth and it works flawlessly.
GPS on Captivate is already fixed, it works great on latest versions of Axura/Phoenix, but for 20 bucks it's good purchase anyway
Too bad that shipping to Europe costs more than reciever itself.
joedoe said:
Are you running Eclair or Froyo on your Captivate?
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Click to collapse
Froyo. I'm currently running Cog 2.3b8.
TheNaturat said:
GPS on Captivate is already fixed, it works great on latest versions of Axura/Phoenix, but for 20 bucks it's good purchase anyway
Too bad that shipping to Europe costs more than reciever itself.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't tried Phoenix yet, just Axura before it died. When you say "fixed", do you mean significantly improved, or legitimately fixed. Like if you were to do a head-to-head comparison with a Captivate paired with a bluetooth GPS receiver, would you be able to tell the difference? Cuz with the receiver, it's pretty much perfect performance.
Donatron said:
Froyo. I'm currently running Cog 2.3b8.
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Click to collapse
I tried to attach a MTK v2 based i-Blue 737A+ Bluetooth GPS Receiver to Eclair, but it says
paired but not connected. However it works great with Galaxy Pad with less then 1 meter accuracy
There seem to be some limitations on the bluetooth. Im able to use any 2 of the gps, my bt headset or my bt obdii scanner, but all three at once and one of em wont work.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
Donatron said:
I haven't tried Phoenix yet, just Axura before it died. When you say "fixed", do you mean significantly improved, or legitimately fixed. Like if you were to do a head-to-head comparison with a Captivate paired with a bluetooth GPS receiver, would you be able to tell the difference? Cuz with the receiver, it's pretty much perfect performance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's fully working, reliable GPS device. I don't have Bluetooth reciever, but in comparision to my dedicated Garmin navigation based on legendary SiRFstar III chipset there is no real diffrence, maybe it takes few seconds more to lock, but it's diffrence between like 5 and 10 seconds, so rather negligible in real use.