GPS reviews, news, tips, tricks and deals
UPDATE: Read my hands on review of the Garmin GTU 10.
Garmin has announced their entry into the GPS tracking market with the Garmin GTU 10 GPS locator and web-based Garmin Tracker™. The small (3”x1.3”x.8”), lightweight (1.7 oz.) and waterproof device can be used to track pets, kids, endurance racers, construction equipment – you name it.
UPDATE: Read my hands on review of the Garmin GTU 10.
Well, well, look what showed up on the FCC website this morning. With the GTU 10, Garmin apparently has a GSM/GPRS tracking device up their sleeve. While they’ve offered up commercial fleet tracking solutions in the past, bundled with their navigators, this is the first time they’ve produced a discrete remote GPS tracking device (at least as far as I’m aware).
UPDATE: DeLorme has discontinued the SPOT Satellite Communicator in favor of their own product, the DeLorme inReach, which offers two-way communication and works as a standalone device or can connect with the PN-60w or with the iPhone or Android smartphones.
Call me crazy, but I love all day mountain bike rides where I go so far back that I’m unlikely to see another human; the more isolated and rugged, the better. I prefer to do these with my biking partner (the most wonderful wife in the world), but all too often I’m out there solo. What’s a crash-prone, wilderness-seeking, aging mountain biker to do? Get the Delorme Earthmate PN-60 with SPOT Satellite Communicator
This is bad. The Register reports that car thieves in the UK are now using illegally imported GPS jammers to avoid the GPS tracking systems now found in many autos. Consider the implications — bank robbers and sex offenders with jammers, bleed over from the signals affecting emergency services, etc. Not good.
UPDATE: Garmin has announced an improved collar/transmitter, due for release in the third quarter of 2008.
UPDATE 2: A new model, the Garmin Astro 320, has been released.
UPDATE 3: This model has been discontinued.
The Garmin Astro GPS dog tracking system
UPDATE: Read our Garmin Astro dog tracking system review.
In perhaps the most surprising announcement from Garmin today, they unveiled their new Astro 220 GPS Dog Tracking System, and I just couldn’t resist leading with a picture of George and Astro from the Jetsons. I’ve placed an image of the actual Garmin Astro 220 below, after the jump.
Based on the incredibly popular Garmin GPSMAP 60CSx, the Astro 220 is designed for hunters with hunting dogs, or any kind of sporting dog you would want to track. According to Garmin, the setup actually has two components:
"The dog’s transmitter (called the DC 20) and the user’s handheld receiver (named the Astro 220). The DC 20 is mounted into a lightweight neoprene harness that straps to the dog’s collar, around its chest, and behind its front legs. Users can also thread the unit directly onto a standard one-inch collar (a third-party e-collar is recommended for proper mounting) so that the unit fits on the back of the dog’s neck.
This has got to be one of the most frequently asked questions about GPS. The short, simple answer is no, your GPS cannot be used to track you. That is because most GPS devices are receivers; they transmit nothing. There are rare exceptions, such as the Garmin Rino series, designed to transmit your location to a friend.
Having said that, there is a more complex answer. First of all, if you have the tracklog enabled on your GPS receiver, someone with access to your GPS can physically connect it to a computer, download the track and see where you’ve been and when. Of course, that is all very different than real-time tracking. Just don’t use a GPS to guide you to a bank heist!
Many companies do make real-time GPS tracking devices, which have transmitting capabilities built into them. These can be used to track everything from lost pets to teenagers to commercial vehicle fleets. We’re not talking about your typical GPS receiver here; these are specialized devices.
And then there are cell phones with A-GPS. Many cell phones have options allowing you set it to "location on" or "911 only." You would need to have it set to "location on" to utilize GPS-assisted location based services. The legal issues surrounding access to this information by law enforcement agencies have yet to be fully sorted out.
Then there are other places a GPS may lurk, many times unknown to a person driving a car with GPS. Got Onstar? You’ve got GPS. Ever rent a car? Better check the fine print in the contract.
A couple of other references:
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