i-gotU GT-120 and GT-200 GPS Travel Loggers Review

Before one of my sisters left on an extended traveling holiday recently I asked her to keep a travel blog so our family could keep track of her adventures. It would have been great to follow her progress on a map and see her photos online rather than waiting till she arrived home. The i-gotU GT-120 reviewed would have provided the perfect travel log solution for her if it had have arrived before she left.

i-gotU GT-120

The i-gotU GPS loggers come as a fully rounded travel logging solution combining the logger, GPS software and free access to an online trip sharing website. It’s the perfect tool for keeping families or friends together online in common situations such as when the grandparents buy a mobile home and spend extensive amounts of time travelling.

GPS travel logger comes in two models the GT-120 and the GT-200 with the latter coming equipped with Bluetooth as well. Both i-gotU travel loggers are certainly light at 20 or 37g (GT-200) and are easy to pocket being the size of 6 sugar cubes (GT-120 44.5 x 28.5 x 13 mm). Each unit is water-resistant (IPX-6) so they can handle some exposure.

The GPS receiver for both i-gotU units is the accurate and sensitive SiRF StarIII GPS chipset. There is plenty of flash memory for extensive logging and ample battery power for extended use up to 30 hrs for the GT-120 or 80 hrs for the GT-120 which are market leading figures.

The PC software provided is simple to install and makes the job of managing photos, tracklog data and annotations a simple one. Naturally all photos can be geotagged and uploaded automatically for online sharing of outdoor activities with photos and tracks on Flickr, Picasa, Google Maps, Google Earth and the @trip website

As mentioned, there is a Weblog component to the travel logger solution with the inclusion of a 100MB free Travel Blog space for sharing trips via slideshows, 2D maps or even 3D virtual reality views such as shown in the video below. You can click through a slideshow of photo icons or click on photo location icons dotted along the tracklog layered on a hybrid satellite/map background. There are convenient tie-ins for notifying family and friends via social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter or My Space.

The i-gotU travel loggers have a host of other applications being able to serve as an external GPS receiver for a netbook, mobile phone or PDA. Combined with some GPS navigation software you have a GPS navigation system. Sports enthusiasts can use the i-gotU to track their training runs and provide feedback on performance.

With excellent specifications, loads of features and competitive pricing, both the GT-120 and GT-200 are worth investigating if you are looking for this sort of product.

Video – 3D Virtual Reality Travel Blog from @trip

Specification i-gotU GT-120 and GT-200

Dimension: 46 x 41.5 x 14 mm (GT-120: 44.5 x 28.5 x 13 mm)
Weight: 37g (GT-120: 44.5 x 28.5 x 13 mm)
Built-in SiRF StarIII low power chipset
Built in GPS Patch Antenna
Built-in flash memory. 65000 waypoints for 30 days (logging interval 15 seconds for 8 hrs/day)
Built-in 750mAh Lithium-ion battery (GT-120: 230mAh
2 LED for tracking and battery / charger status indication
Average acquisition time for cold start: < 60 seconds, warm start: < 38 seconds
USB 1.1 interface for PC connection
GT-200 Bluetooth V2.0 EDR Class 2 technology for PDA, mobile phone connectivity
Export into multiple file formats (GPX, MHT or KMZ)
Operation temperature: -10 to + 50 degrees centigrade
System requirements: PC with Windows 2000, XP, Vista and USB 1.1 or 2.0