GPS Technology Reviews for news, guides and reviews of GPS hardware, software and services including Handheld GPS, Outdoor GPS, GPS PDA, GPS Phones and Auto GPS Navigators

SiRFtitan is one of SiRF’s Multifunction Platform products, a GPS and multi-functional processor designed to push along GPS navigation’s acceptance as an embeddable technology. The multi-functional SiRFtitan processor is just what mobile device manufacturers require for design flexibility and reduction of hardware and development costs for portable navigation devices which include GPS and other converging features such as infotainment.

It is not a case of GPS receiver capability/sensitivity being compromised by other functionalities as the SiRFtitan is just as signal sensitive as the ubiquitous SiRFStarIII and actually has 10 times the number of effective correlators (2,000,000) for fast TTFF (time to first fix).
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The Garmin GPSMap 60 range including the 60, 60CSx and 60Cx are ideal for the mobile, outdoor GPS user including individuals involved in hiking, climbing and geocaching. It can however, give you automatic, turn-by-turn directions coming with a built-in Americas autroroute basemap, including highways and exits.

Features making the units ideal for outdoor use include:

• light weight of around 7 oz (200g)
• IPX7 waterproof rating for moisture protection (microSD card slot is inside the waterproof battery compartment)
• reasonably large 1.5 x 2.2 inch (3.8 x 5.6 cm) 256 level color TFT display (60Cx + 60CSx) or 4 level gray LCD (60)
• high sensitivity GPS receiver for poor GPS satellite reception situations including ravines and heavy foliage (60Cx and 60CSx only)
• WAAS-ready for WAAS satellite coverage in North America to improve positioning accuracy to within 3 meters (95 percent of the time)
• an external antenna for better reception
• barometric altimeter and electronic compass for determining your heading (link in news on pointing technology)
• automatic logging of path traveled

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Geotate, a geo-software company, has announced a new instant response, low power, Geotagging GPS technology ideal for digital cameras, camera equipped cell phones and other mobile geotagging devices. The key to success for Capture and Process technology is the separation of capturing a short sample of the GPS satellite signal (less than 0.2s) and the later position calculation which uses remote servers through a web-based service to access necessary GPS data. Worldwide trials have revealed good accuracy (< 10m), with a good fix location established in 96% of cases.

The attractive combination of low power consumption, speed of action and separation of fix calculation (lower onboard processor demands) should see geotagging functionality penetrate deeper into the digital camera market and further boost location based services demand. Consumers will appreciate the lack of processing delay while a position fix is calculated. The five-fold increase in GPS enabled consumer devices by 2011 already predicted by IMS research will not doubt be exceeded.

Geotate Capture and Process Technology Demonstration

The new TomTom ONE XL.S has the same specification as the popular 4.3 inch wide screen TomTom ONE XL with the addition of text-to-speech technology allowing street names to be announced as part of turn-by-turn navigation directions. A large screen provides a larger, easier to see navigation interface for drivers. The navigator itself is slim and lightweight for easy transfer between cars. The Lithium-Ion battery will only last a couple of hours but, this shouldn’t be a problem as it is not intended as a portable device.

Both the TomTom ONE XL.S and XL have a built-in Bluetooth connection for optional real-time traffic, weather updates, voice downloads and other services. There is an SD Card Slot for extra maps and storage and a mini-USB connection for linking up to a PC. The TomTom XL models are navigation devices only and do not come with multimedia features like a photo player or mp3 player.
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After sales support should be an important consideration for consumers especially in purchasing electronic devices such as GPS navigators. The problem is assessing what the service might be like before purchase. TomTom obviously understand this and have recently achieved recognition for call center operation customer satisfaction excellence under the J.D. Power and Associates Certified Call Center Program. As the first portable navigation device manufacturer to achieve certification, TomTom is clearly committed to providing their customers with a positive call center experience, according to Jonathan Brookner the call center certification program director at J.D. Power and Associates.
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Garmin’s eTrex series of outdoor handheld GPS units consists of seven models with the eTrex Venture HC, Vista HCx, Summit HCx and Legend HCx being reviewed being the models with a color TFT screen 2,1 (5.4cm) inch diagonal for map display. All the eTrex series are of a compact size, waterproof (submergible, IPX7) and lightweight as would be expected of a GPS device intended to be used outdoors. Each model is powered by twin AA batteries but battery life varies with the eTrex Vista HCx and eTrex Legend HCx lasting up to 25 hours and the Venture HC and Summit HC lasting up to 14 hours.

All three review models have a high sensitivity SiRF Star III GPS receiver. Accuracy is excellent at less than 10 feet (3m) as delivered by a high sensitivity SiRF Star III WAAS enabled GPS receiver. The SiRF delivers some of the best GPS satellite acquisition times available.
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