GPS reviews, news, tips, tricks and deals
Do you find yourself needing to access your GPX files from multiple computers? If so, here’s a quick tip. Sign up for and install Dropbox (a cloud storage service offering 5GB of space for free) and put your GPX folder inside your Dropbox folder. To make access even easier, follow up by dragging the GPX folder to Favorites in Windows Explorer (or Finder on Macs). Your files are now readily available from any machine you set this up on. read more
UPDATE: I’ve just been informed by Garmin that the 140T and 150T appeared on their US website by accident and that they “don’t have any plans to launch these units in the U.S.”
Well this is interesting — the Garmin nuvi 140T and 150T
have shown up on the company’s US website. Recently announced for Europe, the 140T and 150T have a built-in TMC traffic receiver and are not dependent upon one integrated into the power cable. read more
When I first saw this story I thought, GPS gets blamed again, when the real culprit is inattention to signs. But I have to ask, does GPS lull us into not looking at road signs? The incident in question occurred when a UK woman drove her husband and their pet across a ford, which was clearly marked as hazardous during flooding. The crossing has since been closed off. read more
I finally got around to posting a Garmin Adventure. It’s a hike I took on the Appalachian Trail last week while testing a couple of units. read more
Apple unveiled the iPad mini today, and the cellular versions come with GPS + GLONASS. But at 7.9″, that is going to be one huge navigator.
As a general rule I don’t like Multi-caches. These are the class of geocaches that have you visiting a number of locations, collecting clues along the way which you then pump into a final formula to give you the location of the actual cache. I must stress that my dislike is entirely personal. Why go for a three mile walk to find one geocache when that same walk could be made as a circular series of 5 – 10 caches? It always seems like a waste of space and time to me. read more
Last week I posted about how 911 can’t even locate your mobile phone in many parts of the US, so most folks shouldn’t expect to be able to text 911 anytime soon, but that will change early next year for some Verizon customers. There isn’t a firm schedule for nationwide implementation of this next generation 911 capability, but imagine the impact it will ultimately have on backcountry search and rescue (SAR). After all, text messages can often be successfully delivered where coverage is too weak to place a voice call. read more
Feel like you got an unjust speeding ticket? Your GPS may or may not get you out of it. But it is fairly easy to recover speed data from a Garmin nuvi. Here’s what you need to do…
Ouch! Consumer Reports has posted an article that is very critical of some of TomTom’s integrated mounts. I’m not sure they are being entirely fair though. With the exception of the START series, they are criticizing mounts from discontinued units. read more
I was researching another post this morning when I came across some interesting information on the ability of 911 services to determine the location of mobile phones. Phase II Enhanced 911 allows location info to be passed along from mobile phones when you dial 911, and while all but eight states have implemented this in 80% or more of their counties, the clickable map above shows it to have still been pretty spotty as of a year ago. Less than half of the states have fully implemented this standard. read more
