GPS reviews, news, tips, tricks and deals
German cycling accessory company Lezyne has made its first forays into the world of GPS this year with the announcement of a series of new GPS cycling computers, one of which is said to be the world’s smallest cycling computer. All three models in Lezyne’s GPS line are expected to be available in the United States in May, although the smaller versions may be here as soon as next month. read more
These WWII Loran receivers might soon be getting an upgrade for use as a GPS backup
This week in GPS is a weekly link roundup of (mostly) GPS related odds and ends, from GPS Tracklog and other places around the Web. This week’s featured image is an old Loran-C unit because this week the US Government issued a notice about wanting comment on possibly using the eLoran system as a GPS backup. You can find information how to comment below!
Here are some other things that happened in the world of GPS this week: read more
Just in case you didn’t already have enough reasons to purchase one of Globalstar’s SPOT Satellite GPS devices for your outdoor personal safety, the company recently announced that it has celebrated its 1,000th initiated rescue in Canada this year. Launched in 2007, this company specalizes in helping outdoor enthusiasts stay safe while they do what they do, providing S.O.S. notifications and life-saving technology to everyone.
According to the press release, the company has initiated more than 3,500 rescues around the globe since its launch. Most of the Canadian rescues have been in the British Colombia area, with around 376 reported for that region. Other regions include Alberta with 115, Nunavut at 111 and Ontario and Quebec falling at just below 100 each. Most of the rescues were related to hiking/mountain sports, boating/water sports or motor vehicle incidents. read more
These WWII Loran receivers might soon be getting an upgrade for use as a GPS backup
I came across a very official-sounding notice yesterday that the United States government is looking for public comment about the possible revamping and reuse of the WWII Loran system as a backup for GPS and I wanted to share it with you. You might recall that last year the UK began this process as a failsafe should the worst occur to the satellite navigation technology everything seems to rely upon.
Of course, before you get your hopes up, this doesn’t mean that the government has quite given up on the idea of simply dismantling the Loran system, but rather that it has occurred to someone that only having one navigational aid is probably not the best idea. The eLoran (enhanced Long Range Navigation) system will be used as a complimentary and backup PNT system. read more
If you’ve been geocaching for a little while, you’ve probably heard cachers talk about being premium members of the geocaching.com website. Some people will swear by it whilst others will feel that it adds nothing to their caching experience. As a result it can sometimes be difficult to fully understand what benefits premium membership actually confers. So this month, I thought I would look at some of the main reasons you might want to become a premium member. read more
Well, I have good news and bad news. Last week I saw that the folks over at Groundspeak have revamped a really important part of the popular geocaching.com website: the search tool for finding all of those fun caches. That’s the good part. The bad part is that I’m not 100% sure that the new search feature is worth the trouble. read more
Worldwide GPS
Image found on 11 Points
Most of the things that I write about here on GPS Tracklog are pretty serious and news-related. Satellite launches, navigational tips, new products and other relevant information for the world of GPS. But, sometimes, you just need a little funny in your life.
So today, I have absolutely zero news for you. Instead, I just want to share some of these funny GPS jokes from various places. So sit back, relax and have a great Sunday! read more
photo by Discovery News
If you live in Alaska, Canada or some of the far northern states of the US, then you may have noticed some spectacular lights in the sky on St. Patrick’s Day and maybe even some yesterday night, depending on where you live. Well, as it turns out the Earth was recently hit with a huge coronal mass ejection (CME) from the sun which has resulted in the biggest solar storm in the last 11 years. read more
This week in GPS is a weekly link roundup of (mostly) GPS related odds and ends, from GPS Tracklog and other places around the Web. This week’s featured image is the corrected orbit of the second satellite that was stranded by a malfunction last August. The satellite is now in a better orbit, and recently was found to be fit and functioning properly.
Here are some other things happening this week in the world of GPS: read more
Hiding your first geocache can be a pretty exciting thing, but it isn’t as simple as just stuffing a tupperware container under a log and calling it a day. There are plenty of things you need to consider, and geocaching.com recently released reworked their Hiding a Geocache page with some fantastic information designed to help new geocachers hide caches successfully and responsibly.
Here are some of the main things that you should consider when hiding a geocache: read more
