The TUMI Global Locator – A New Wireless Tracking Device. Any Bag. Anywhere.™ (Photo: Business Wire
One of the worst parts of flying anywhere is, aside from the insane airport security, the risk of losing luggage. Whenever I travel, I always try and pack at least a few clothes in my carry-on just in case something happens and the airline misplaces my bags. It happens, and there are a few companies that have stepped forward to try and solve the issue with GPS luggage tags or even expensive GPS-equipped suitcases.
Recently, popular suitcase and travel accessory company Tumi has announced that it has partnered with GPS tracking company LugTrack and wireless company AT&T to offer customers a way to keep tabs on their luggage from airport to airport. read more
Geocachers are a pretty fun and crazy bunch. I’ve not been geocaching for very long, but the more people I meet and the more caches I find, the more I love the hobby. It’s not only rewarding, but the community behind it is pretty much awesome. I also get to pretend to be a pirate, so there’s that. There’s a lot that goes into searching for a cache, but all of the joy, sorrow, bruises and scrapes is worth it when you finally find the cache.
It really is amazing to see what cachers will do to write their name on a piece of paper, isn’t it? So, for all of you geocachers out there who have struggled with a DNF for the thousandth time or climbed up a tree for a piece of tupperware, I have a short list a list of things just for you: 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 new TomTom Spark, which will be the first GPS watch with the ability to store music. TomTom announced the watch this last week. read more
The GPS tracking technology market is on the verge of being saturated with more products than you can shake a stick at. However, that doesn’t seem to prevent the launches of additional products with slightly upgraded features. This week Finnish technology company Yepzon announced that its GPS locator is now available in the United States. read more
It doesn’t take a genius to know that technology, water and dust are not good bedfellows. But a lot of times, handheld GPS devices are designed to be ‘rugged’ so that you can take it with you on a hike or trail and not worry about it. Many cycling GPS units are also waterproof or water resistant so that a surprise rainfall doesn’t turn your navigational device into an expensive paperweight.
Chances are, some of your handhelds are rated for rugged conditions which involve dust and rain. This rating is known as an IP or IPX rating and you’ve probably seen it listed in the specs on some devices, but unless you look into it, it probably didn’t mean much. As it turns out, IP ratings are basically a universal classification system that allows users and manufacturers know exactly how much water or dust the unit can take without worry. read more
There is some hefty competition going on in the watch world between smart watches and GPS running watches. Both can do similar things with varying degrees of efficiency, but for many having two watches simply wasn’t worth the money. However, in the wake of GPS tracking and heart rate monitoring being added to various smart watches, TomTom has responded by adding music and activity tracking to its own watch.
This week the Dutch company introduced several models of the TomTom Spark GPS Fitness Watch, some of which will include the ability to store, stream and play music directly from the watch without the need to tether to a smartphone. The watch comes with Bluetooth and can be paired with most Bluetooth headphones for wireless music while on runs or other exercising routines. read more
There are a lot of things that you can do with GPS, but as you have probably guessed, I find the more unusual and creative uses of GPS extremely fun and interesting. Not only does it test the limits of this pervasive technology but also forces people to look at things a little differently.
So, while it’s not really all that important news-wise since today is Labor Day I decided to take some time and share some of the coolest doodles from the self-proclaimed GPS Doodler, Stephen Lund. read more
Blaine Horner of CompassData probing the snow pack at the highest point in North America along with setting up Global Position System equipment for precise summit elevation data. (Photo: Blaine Horner, CompassData)
It’s easy to forget that GPS technology is still fairly new, all things considered. Before this technology became as accurate and simple as it is now, surveyors had various other methods for measuring things like distances and heights. While it’s tempting to tout our newfangled tech and say that it’s the best, it turns out that the 1950s era technology that originally measured the highest mountain peak in North America was actually only off by 10 feet.
Mount Denali (formerly known as Mount. McKinley) was measured by surveyors late last month and the results are officially in. The official height is measured at 20,310 feet which is still pretty big and definitively the highest point in all of North America. read more
GPS drone (UAS) with GoPro camera; Creative Commons image courtesy Don McCullough
The use of drones both commercially and privately has been a pretty hot topic in the last year or so, with plenty of corporations and government entities standing on either side of the line. While the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has been granting permission for a few companies to use drones in a commercial manner, this week marks the first time that the FAA has granted a mass exemption which allows a fleet of drones to operate commercially. 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 new 2015 Garmin Montana devices, which feature GLONASS support and a handful of upgrades. Read all about it below! read more
"We were desert mystics, my few friends and I, the kind
who read maps as others read their holy books."
– Edward Abbey from Slickrock —
The Canyon Country of Southeast Utah
