Newbie advice???? - MDA, XDA, 1010 General

Hi,
Got my XDA a while ago and I love it!
But never really explored the options of what can be fully done with it!
I am interested in GPS and wondered what you guys recommend, also any other suggestions will be taken on board!

I have used several different types of gps on xda and ipaq, I would suggest using the cheap haicom device, this will come with power/charge lead and integrated antenna, for approx £80, the best software I have found is tomtom which does a great job of navigating, rerouting if you take a wrong turn, normal human voice prompts, instead of the dalek voices others use, free speed camera add on software etc, the overlays for points of interest, cash points, shops, parking, restaurants etc are superb, plus many people have produced their own overlays to cover their own specific interest, such as dialling codes, monuments, fishing, etc. The gps hardware from Haicom is very adept at its task and rarely loses a fix, I got mine from GPS warehouse. I have also used the destinator software and hardware and found the software was very good, the hardware was also very good, its a Leadtek product also with integrated antenna and power/charge leads. I also got hold of a cheap digitraveler gps from the usa and rewired it for xda, it uses standard nmea output and does a great job also. I think that even the cheap devices these days are very good and up to the task.
Here is the page to order that device from gps warehouse.
http://www.gpsw.co.uk/cats/cl3_65.html?Skip=10&

Related

Need a cheap External GPS for TyTN

Can anyone give me some advice.
I am looking for a very cheap external GPS adapter I can use with my TyTN.
But I dont want to end up with the worst crap that wont really work.
Any tips would be appreciated. Never bought a GPS device before and have no idea what to look for.
I got an iBlue 737 for Christmas, and so far I really like it:
http://www.semsons.com/ib737blgps32.html
Have had great luck with a Holux 1000. Ive had it for a while. Picked it up on fleabay for about $24 (I think).
SoulSeekerHS said:
Can anyone give me some advice.
I am looking for a very cheap external GPS adapter I can use with my TyTN.
But I dont want to end up with the worst crap that wont really work.
Any tips would be appreciated. Never bought a GPS device before and have no idea what to look for.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use the Holux GPSlim 236. I have had it for more than a year. Works pretty well. Great battery life. Simple to set up. Available for under 50 buks on ebay. This is just the GPS hardware - no navigation software included.
As far as software is concerned - TomTom i smy favorite. This forum would give you lots of guidance in terms of GPS software options. Just search through the archives.
I've been very happy with my QStarz receiver.
Battery runs for over 10hrs and never had a problem with signal.
http://www.qstarz.com/
Ok cool, thx for all the suggestions.
Will look arround for good deals on those, maybe I find something used on ebay.
The specs of the qstarz Q818 look very promising, but 70€ is a bit more than I can spend at the moment. Will rememeber it for richer times tho hehe
so again, thx all. That has helped me alot
GPS
I have one of these and it work like a charm. Good battery life, and fast fix.
its NMEA instead of SIRF, but I can't figure out the difference. Works with Google maps, Live Search, TomTom, FFF and everything else using GPS i've tried.
http://www.factorydirect.ca/catalog/product_spec.php?pcode=BT0005
well....
i've seen all goods listed above...
it's a difficult thing for these merchants to ship GPS over the Atlantic to China....
Where can i find a cheap GPS that included shipping costs....
thanks~
re: GPS Receiver
Hi
I use the freedom keyring mini gps receiver, It is Sirf III , also used holux gpslim 236 before that, both awesome, why don't you try from the famous auction site considering that a lot of the sellers there sell to the UK from china, with you the postage costs should be reduced
Chudiy
Irony
Its actually kinda funny when you consider 95% of these came from either China or Taiwan in the first place....
ss1271 said:
well....
i've seen all goods listed above...
it's a difficult thing for these merchants to ship GPS over the Atlantic to China....
Where can i find a cheap GPS that included shipping costs....
thanks~
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bought my Holux from this guy about 6 months ago:
http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/digichoice/
He's in HK.
nanastas said:
Its actually kinda funny when you consider 95% of these came from either China or Taiwan in the first place....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
its really kinda depress when I go to another country and buy some goods that marked "Made in China"...
I use Nokia Bluetooth GPS Module LD-3W, very slim and stylish.
Battery lifetime 12 hours.
I use the Freedom Keyring GPS, but previously had the Holux GPSlim 236 (which suddenly died even though it was babied).
So far I have had excellent luck with it. It's very solidly built, has good battery life, and seems to pick-up signal very quickly. I was sceptical at first due to Freedom's no-frills packaging, but I would definately recommend it.
SiRFStar III is considered the standard, though they all pretty much work well nowadays. My Holux 236 works very well, had it for over a year now. Holux do some even smaller ones now.
samcham said:
I got an iBlue 737 for Christmas, and so far I really like it:
http://www.semsons.com/ib737blgps32.html
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes - I have also this GPS - it´s great - very fast!!
i have the Holux Slim 240 .. VERY happy with it. Its the smallest I've found out there, looks good up on my dash (have a tiny dot of Velcro there to hold it in place), the battery life is superb at 10hrs, uses the same charger as my phone, and has the standard SiRFStar 3 for amazing accuracy. Once its locked, I can even put it in the "dime bag" pocket of my jeans facing out and will never lose signal (motorcycle, bicycle, walking). It takes a minute or two to get an initial lock but my understanding is that they all do. Highly recommended, < $60 if you shop around: http://www.amazon.com/Holux-GPSlim-240-Bluetooth-Receiver/dp/B000HDJSNA
If I were still in the market, I would consider that new keychain one .. it would be nice to always have it on your person.
Quality GPS
I'm not sure if it is within your price range, but I love my Garmin GPS 10. It is several years old and still retains a charge for a long time and is incredibly accurate. I use it in my car and I use it for Geocaching.
The "current" version is called the Garmin Mobile™ 10. They have it for PDAs, SmartPhones, Blackberries, laptops, Sprint Mobile, etc.
The best part is that it comes with software that can be loaded on a laptop, phone or PDA ... all you need is a bluetooth connection and you are ready to go! So, I can use my GPS with all my toys!!!
Mine came with a velcro strip, but I don't have to use it. The protective rubber piece that is over the adhesive part acts like non-slip ... so I don't use the velcro ... and the GPS does not slide.
I don't care what anyone says, Garmin has always been and will always be one of the best manufacturers of GPS technologies. They work hard to continue earning and maintaining their reputation.
Yes, it might be a little more $$$ up front, but you won't need to replace it for a very long time! Go for QUALITY!!!!!
Dual mode USB and Bluetooth?
Could be used in PC as well PDA?
Mine can. USB or over bluetooth. Came with drivers on a mini-cd

[Q] GPS issues on the SGS 2?

I owned the previous Galaxy S 16GB but ended up returining it due to the pathetic GPS performance after getting tired of all the pseudo-fixes and rumours flying around. The nasty rfs filesystem lag also didn't help.
Somewhat lost confidence in normal reviews after that. Fortunately I was able to return the device after 1 month but am now curious about the SGS2.
Have anyone tested GPS results in a consistent, detailed way? (not just the usual comments bout fast fixes and how well it works with navigation apps that snap - more like detailed tracks).
Tried searching but to no good result.
Other than the GPS and Lag issues, I had no major complaints about the SGS1 (you can add the lack of flash led and notification light but those are somewhat solved in SGS2).
GPS issues on the SGS 2
The GPS in SGS2 is OK. However, it take 2 to 4 minutes to get satellite fixed from cold start and also often no signal in doors (eg, in your office or inside your house).
You can try to stick a piece of kitchen Aluminum Foils (about 6x9 cm) on the interior side of the battery cover, which may enhance the reception of the GPS in your SGS2. your can also try this in SGS1.
In comparison to Quarx Cyanogen Mod on the Moto Defy, the Galaxy S2´s GPS fix is slow and little unstable. Sometimes I´m about 50meters away from my real position on google maps.
I think it could and should be optimized.
netrider01 said:
In comparison to Quarx Cyanogen Mod on the Moto Defy, the Galaxy S2´s GPS fix is slow and little unstable. Sometimes I´m about 50meters away from my real position on google maps.
I think it could and should be optimized.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try sticking a piece of kitchen Aluminum Foils (about 6x9 cm) on the interior side of the battery cover, which may enhance the reception of the GPS in your SGS2.
Tested hot and cold but for fix and works .
Tested general location works .
Tested My Tracks works .
A slightly better GPS than my SGS1 which worked .
Actual details feet inched sats and metres sorry dont get involved in that argument any more . As those with poor GPS just accuse you of lying if you have no problems .Plus who can keep track of the multiple posts saying exactly the same thing .Post tracks and someone will start yet another post next day .
Their are a couple of detailed tests around including on here .
Clove.co.uk Blog has a detailed test from a member .
jje
jje
If you want detailed tracks, then there are a couple on my post here, but that whole thread will be of interest - other people dump some tracks a few days after me. My traces compare a Desire and the SGS2 sittin side-by-side on the passenger seat of the car, and are equally good.
Overall I'm very pleased with the GPS, it's certainly perfectly good for real world navigation. If you need <5m accuracy for specialist tasks, you might have some problems, but that's not confirmed.
DJGibbon said:
If you want detailed tracks, then there are a couple on my post here, but that whole thread will be of interest - other people dump some tracks a few days after me. My traces compare a Desire and the SGS2 sittin side-by-side on the passenger seat of the car, and are equally good.
Overall I'm very pleased with the GPS, it's certainly perfectly good for real world navigation. If you need <5m accuracy for specialist tasks, you might have some problems, but that's not confirmed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Seen them. By SGS 1 standards they look unbelievable, definitely good enough for my needs, which are basically normal car navigation (including in fairly complex urban areas at slow speeds) and some occasional walking navigation.
I also checked Clove's blog review and a couple more tracks and it got the impression that the SGS2 has a working GPS.
Got burnt really bad by the SGS1 and the way Samsung never got to fix it tho (or even somehow recall units) and I'm a bit sceptic about risking money again as I might not be able to return it this time.
Still, those tracks to look great... and it seems the lag issue is gone too. Tempting...
JJEgan said:
slightly better GPS than my SGS1 which worked .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Would have to be much better than 'slightly better' in my case... my SGS1 was unable to drive me out of the block.
Slightly better as in the tracks posted you mention are much the same as my SGS2 tracks .
SGS1 tracks much the same except not as accurate on bends and they would snap to the side of the road rather than the centre . But 100% usable as GPS .
Just carried out a cold boot GPS test 4mins 8 satellites locked .
As i see it most had no problem SGS1 and likewise SGS2 .
But some did and some have and no real reason why .
jje
i get indoor fix within 20 seconds. I have used CoPilot for a 50 mile journey, and it is more stable than it was on my hero, which used to lose satelite reception until i restarted copilot.
I used MyTracks yesterday for a hike and it was dead on. I got a lock in about 10-15 seconds and had up to 4 meter accuracy. I am used to my Captivate where the closest accuracy I got was 40m and would go up to 1200m accuracy. I am very happy with SGS2's GPS to be honest
blue265 said:
I used MyTracks yesterday for a hike and it was dead on. I got a lock in about 10-15 seconds and had up to 4 meter accuracy. I am used to my Captivate where the closest accuracy I got was 40m and would go up to 1200m accuracy. I am very happy with SGS2's GPS to be honest
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been testing an SGS2 for 4 days now and share your impression. It holds on to locks pretty well and its accuracy appears to at least match my stand-alone little Holux GPS receiver (old SiRF III unit). It's no wonder, but it's good enough for car navigation, perhaps even for walking, but probably not for precise geocaching. Overall, from what I've seen from it so far, I have to say I'm pleased that this time Samsung got it right.
It appears to be a lot better than the disastrous SGS 1 (couldn't hold to locks, terrible accuracy, useless GPS).
I'm a bit lazy to post MyTracks paths right now but can do it later if anyone needs to see some.
I have been struggeling to get GPS to work on ICS for a few days but nothing worked. Not any fix worked. Then i discovered that the slick plastic battery cover i bought in China
contained a metallic paint. As soon as i put the original battery cover on GPSWas faaaaaast and accurate. So for those who have problems getting stable GPS, remove any protective cases or battery covers and try again!

Interested in prime transformer

Hi,
this morning someone sent me a link from Tom's Hardware about this tablet. The articles mentions that some people have modded their case to improve GPS signals.
I wonder why Asus don't revise this product to address this issue.
Sent from my HTC Desire using xda premium
You DONT even have to do all that anymore. Asus is offering free GPS dongles to people who purchase a prime. Offer ends in July. Just take a look in my GPS dongle test thread. Then take a look at the link in my signature THST says positive transformer thread.
Prime is a great device. Get one asap
Well first of all, I find it hard to believe that the aluminum case is causing 100% of the problem. Because, if it were then like you said, why not just change the design of the backplate? My guess is that simply adding a plastic strip to the top of the backplate would not improve GPS performance that much. And personally I think the plastic strip look is ugly as hell. What they could have done is kept the all aluminum finish and just relocated the antenna to behind a speaker grill, which is similar to what other devices with metal casings have done. I am sure the GPS still wouldn't be 'professional grade' but it would at least be better than what we currently have.
Either way, the whole GPS problem was something that was obviously not 'caught' until really late in the production process. If it were caught earlier, I am sure something more pro-active would have been done about it. But by the time they found out, they were in too deep to make a hardware change as they were most likely already in mass production. The early regions of where the device was released they had already advertised the thing as having GPS, both on the box and on the official spec sheets. Then when it was released these people found out that GPS was virtually non-functional and ASUS had to quickly back track and pull GPS as a feature from the spec list. My guess is their lawyers told them they need to do something to avoid a class action law suit and any further bad press around this whole situation. So their options were:
1) Recall the device and then modify the hardware in some way to fix the GPS problem (whether that be done via a newly designed back pate or whatever). And then any new ones produced would obviously have this hardware change incorporated as well.
2) Offer a free addon that improves GPS performance.
As we now know, they went with option 2, which I am sure was also the cheaper route. Also, option 1 would imply an admission of guilt in that they messed up. The GPS dongle option allows them to say: "Although the TF201 is not a professional GPS device, as part of our unwavering commitment to our customers we are offering all customers who purchased a TF201 system a free external GPS extension kit, called a dongle, which may help improve signal reception and optimize the user experience".
Honestly I do not care about GPS in a tablet and I will probably only ever use my dongle a select few times in the entire span that I own and use the Prime. I do think it is good that ASUS is doing something about it though. Other companies may very well have just brushed this thing under the rug and moved on with life (which is what I assumed ASUS has been doing until we found out about the GPS dongle).
jordache16 said:
Well first of all, I find it hard to believe that the aluminum case is causing 100% of the problem. Because, if it were then like you said, why not just change the design of the backplate? My guess is that simply adding a plastic strip to the top of the backplate would not improve GPS performance that much. And personally I think the plastic strip look is ugly as hell. What they could have done is kept the all aluminum finish and just relocated the antenna to behind a speaker grill, which is similar to what other devices with metal casings have done. I am sure the GPS still wouldn't be 'professional grade' but it would at least be better than what we currently have.
Either way, the whole GPS problem was something that was obviously not 'caught' until really late in the production process. If it were caught earlier, I am sure something more pro-active would have been done about it. But by the time they found out, they were in too deep to make a hardware change as they were most likely already in mass production. The early regions of where the device was released they had already advertised the thing as having GPS, both on the box and on the official spec sheets. Then when it was released these people found out that GPS was virtually non-functional and ASUS had to quickly back track and pull GPS as a feature from the spec list. My guess is their lawyers told them they need to do something to avoid a class action law suit and any further bad press around this whole situation. So their options were:
1) Recall the device and then modify the hardware in some way to fix the GPS problem (whether that be done via a newly designed back pate or whatever). And then any new ones produced would obviously have this hardware change incorporated as well.
2) Offer a free addon that improves GPS performance.
As we now know, they went with option 2, which I am sure was also the cheaper route. Also, option 1 would imply an admission of guilt in that they messed up. The GPS dongle option allows them to say: "Although the TF201 is not a professional GPS device, as part of our unwavering commitment to our customers we are offering all customers who purchased a TF201 system a free external GPS extension kit, called a dongle, which may help improve signal reception and optimize the user experience".
Honestly I do not care about GPS in a tablet and I will probably only ever use my dongle a select few times in the entire span that I own and use the Prime. I do think it is good that ASUS is doing something about it though. Other companies may very well have just brushed this thing under the rug and moved on with life (which is what I assumed ASUS has been doing until we found out about the GPS dongle).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1...although the solution of a GPS dongle really kills the idea of a TRANSFORMER prime...cant use it with the keyboard dock, and its not as flush and they said it is..you wont be able to use majority of the leather cases and etc when you are using the dongle
I have owned the prime for months. My wifi strength is fine and I dont use GPS enough to justify the problem.
proxus01 said:
I have owned the prime for months. My wifi strength is fine and I dont use GPS enough to justify the problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk 2
kwazytazz said:
+1...although the solution of a GPS dongle really kills the idea of a TRANSFORMER prime...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not really - now it can TRANSFORM into a 'professional grade' GPS device! ;-)
Regards,
Dave
Sent from my GT-N7000 using Tapatalk 2
jordache16 said:
why not just change the design of the backplate?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They are, for the 300 and 700 series, back to plastic where the radios are going. iPad tried behind the speaker grille and it still has issues. Its better than nothing but def not perfect.
Yes, the black strip doesnt always look as appealing, however you could cover it with a case or carbon fiber sticker or whatever, i'd much rather go for plastic strip over no radio reception.
And also yes, the interference can definately be 10000% caused by the metalic back plate. Both by blocking the signal and RF noise. Everything pretty much is grounded to the metal back and it, in turn, has a lot of RF noise associated with it. If i attach a lead to the gps or wifi contact inside the tablet and have the wire run outside the tab i get excellent reception. Once that wire goes within about an inch of the tablet the signal drops dramatically. Even if the access point is on the proper side of the tablet so its not blocking the signal.
Asus knows how to make killer electronics. they did an amazing job on the prime, however the demand caught them off guard. They tried to do something different with the metalic design and got caught with their pants down. They will get it right eventually and in the mean time we are at least getting SOMETHING (free dongle for gps, why not?)
The prime is a great tablet, awesome for watching movies, playing games, browsing the internet. ya, the wifi is not that great, i look forward to mods for using the dongle for wifi instead of GPS, but in the mean time this is the best we got, and its good enough. When the 700 comes out i may sell my prime for that but i got money in my pocket. if your on a budget, buy the TF101, its still better than any other tablet (aside from the 201 IMO), or wait for the 300 series which will still be a cost efficent tablet.
Asus is doing their best to remedy this situation. They are a big company and big machines move slow. Considering their track record i will still continue buying their products. I have been impressed overall by the prime, and the 101 before it, and look forward to the 700 when it comes out. Continue doing your research and determine what is going to be important for you (and if you do go Prime make damn sure to test it every way you can before accepting it).
proxus01 said:
I have owned the prime for months. My wifi strength is fine and I dont use GPS enough to justify the problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same for me.
proxus01 said:
I have owned the prime for months. My wifi strength is fine and I dont use GPS enough to justify the problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SoTacMatt said:
Same here.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
texstar said:
Same for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
same here..lmao
my wifi been been performing great where ever i go. whether at home, traveling and tethering, or some where else and hooking up to another public or private network.
The worst problem with the prime is the constant freezes it has...
It`s frustrating.
Tried all the browsers people recommend and the problem persists.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA

[Q] Has ASUS put good GPS hardware in later batches of tablets?

It would make sense that they would update the faulty hardware when they found the problem. I'd still like a TP 201 but GPS is a necessity for aviation navigation. If the problem was fixed in later batches, I would buy one.
Well, if GPS is a necessity... don't go for the TP... it's a fantastic device, but not intended to be used as a GPS device... it's a design fault more than a hardware fault... perhaps if the TP Infinity has GPS it would be better...
prime will work fine for navigating now that asus is giving away free external gps dongles..read my gps dongle test thread for more details
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1602789
Is the dongle only for people who bought a TP before the GPS was removed from the specifications?
Would a person who bought a TP today get a dongle?
skypony said:
Is the dongle only for people who bought a TP before the GPS was removed from the specifications?
Would a person who bought a TP today get a dongle?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yes..dependent on where you live though. most places can get them
I bought a Prime 1.5 weeks ago. After rooting and apply the aGPS fix, my GPS works great. I haven't waited longer than 10 seconds for a lock. Maybe they did improve it.....
I would not trust a non dedicated GPS system for aviation. That is just asking for trouble.
I have a later TFP (C1 series) and my GPS is functional but not great.
The Asus TFP aluminum case (product design - good for appearance and sturdiness) imepeeds GPS and Wi-Fi in some cases.
I ordered the GPS dongle and anticipate this will bring GPS reception up to the level of my smartphone.
jlabrat said:
I have a later TFP (C1 series) and my GPS is functional but not great.
The Asus TFP aluminum case (product design - good for appearance and sturdiness) imepeeds GPS and Wi-Fi in some cases.
I ordered the GPS dongle and anticipate this will bring GPS reception up to the level of my smartphone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
recent testings, including mines and other members, show prime gps dongle performing better than smartphone gps
Pilot here. Bought my prime to be an EFB. All the pilots I personally know that use a tablet for an EFB are apple freaks so they were my only point of reference before buying. I was told not to expect a tablet GPS to be that useful in the confines of a small aluminum cockpit. The GPS antenna really needs to be up on the dash which obviously would make the tablet a bit useless. The suggestion was to use a bluetooth GPS and set it up on the dash if I wanted georeference on the charts. However, none of these pilots bothered with that. Of course it did occur to me that these pilots were full of **** and trying to justify why they bought the cheaper ipad without 3g (and no GPS either) but I was not expecting any tablet gps to be great in the cockpit so I wasn't making my purchase decision based on that.
I'm of the mindset of not bothering with it. I have three panel mounted GPS units in the airplane. I really don't need another. It's easy enough to just swipe chart to the right location when I need the chart and I don't need to actually look at a chart very often at that.
So, I was dissapointed when I saw the the GPS in the prime is a no-go, but it wasn't a deal breaker for me. That said, I put in for that new dongle... it's free afterall, may as well give it a try.
Mr Zulu said:
Pilot here. Bought my prime to be an EFB. All the pilots I personally know that use a tablet for an EFB are apple freaks so they were my only point of reference before buying. I was told not to expect a tablet GPS to be that useful in the confines of a small aluminum cockpit. The GPS antenna really needs to be up on the dash which obviously would make the tablet a bit useless. The suggestion was to use a bluetooth GPS and set it up on the dash if I wanted georeference on the charts. However, none of these pilots bothered with that. Of course it did occur to me that these pilots were full of **** and trying to justify why they bought the cheaper ipad without 3g (and no GPS either) but I was not expecting any tablet gps to be great in the cockpit so I wasn't making my purchase decision based on that.
I'm of the mindset of not bothering with it. I have three panel mounted GPS units in the airplane. I really don't need another. It's easy enough to just swipe chart to the right location when I need the chart and I don't need to actually look at a chart very often at that.
So, I was dissapointed when I saw the the GPS in the prime is a no-go, but it wasn't a deal breaker for me. That said, I put in for that new dongle... it's free afterall, may as well give it a try.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
please post back after you receive the dongle and test it on your flights. i bet you will be surprised as to how well and accurate the dongle performs.
Mr Zulu said:
Pilot here. Bought my prime to be an EFB. All the pilots I personally know that use a tablet for an EFB are apple freaks so they were my only point of reference before buying. I was told not to expect a tablet GPS to be that useful in the confines of a small aluminum cockpit. The GPS antenna really needs to be up on the dash which obviously would make the tablet a bit useless. The suggestion was to use a bluetooth GPS and set it up on the dash if I wanted georeference on the charts. However, none of these pilots bothered with that. Of course it did occur to me that these pilots were full of **** and trying to justify why they bought the cheaper ipad without 3g (and no GPS either) but I was not expecting any tablet gps to be great in the cockpit so I wasn't making my purchase decision based on that.
I'm of the mindset of not bothering with it. I have three panel mounted GPS units in the airplane. I really don't need another. It's easy enough to just swipe chart to the right location when I need the chart and I don't need to actually look at a chart very often at that.
So, I was dissapointed when I saw the the GPS in the prime is a no-go, but it wasn't a deal breaker for me. That said, I put in for that new dongle... it's free afterall, may as well give it a try.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes the free GPS Extension Kit; this is what Asus calls in the packaging it does help the GPS. What the Kit does is it disables the built in GPS and uses the dongle GPS. Works good, I tested to see indoors. I have the C3OK serial TP and the GPS kind of works outside, but with the dongle, it finds your location within 30 seconds after the first time. I prefer not to have the dongle, but at least I can use it if I ever wanted to really use the GPS. I have my TP rooted, so I might try the GPS hack that has been really working. Here is a quick view of the dongle.
demandarin said:
please post back after you receive the dongle and test it on your flights. i bet you will be surprised as to how well and accurate the dongle performs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It came in today and while I haven't flight tested it yet I think I have to say color me not impressed.
When I first got the tablet with Honeycomb still on it, I could get and lock onto GPS with it sitting on my dining room table near a window with an accuracy of 90 something feet. Outside was a little better... maybe 40 feet or so but I have no doubt that if I was diving (or flying) that the lock would be lost but I never tested it.
When the tablet updated to ICS, I lost ALL GPS function. Never could see a satellite inside or outside even when left for hours under an open sky.
Well, with the dongle, my GPS now see satellites again... but not as good as I had with the native GPS and Honecome operating system. Sitting here on the same dinning room table near the same window, I mostly do not have lock. Occasionally it will grab a lock but the best I've seen is accruacy o 143'. The last lock I had was to 757'. Currently as I type, no lock. Outside after setting for a long time, I got a lock to 70 or so feet. As I walked around the yard, accuracy fluctuated between that 70' and 125' but was mostly between 90' and 125'.
I'll have a chance to test it in a small aluminum cockpit going 200mph tomorrow and see how it does... not expecting much.
---------- Post added at 03:10 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:47 AM ----------
Woops, sorry. Nevermind. It didn't occur to me that it might perform better after restarting the prime (since it's hardware and the software has been restarted several times since the last update).
In any case, it's actually impressive now. Inside it's a solid 40 or so on the accuracy. Outside walking around the back yard, it holds a solid 12' or so. Best I've seen.
I'm feeling better about it's chances tomorrow. We'll see.
Finally got a chance to post back here. It worked flawlessly in the airplane. 17' to 20' accuracy when the Prime was sitting on the seat next to me. Would go to less than 10' accuracy when I held the Prime in front of me where it would normally be when I'm working on it and that's going at about 200mph. Nice feature added to the charting software.
I still regard it as just a 'nice feature' though. It really is easy enough to just swipe the chart to your location without GPS. Most airplanes have GPS in the panel now (mine has three) so you already know your location and most GPS units built in the last 12 years or so contain most of the information you'd need on a typical flight in the database so we don't even have to look at these charts during the actual flight that often anymore... and some of the more recent ones have the charts actually loaded into them (mine does not and is what I use the Prime for). When we douse a chart in flight, it's not to see where we are (since we already know that), it's to look up some detailed information that's not in our GPS databases, or perhaps the most common reason... to look up the spelling of an assigned intersection (spellings are typically very odd) so that we can access that intersection in the panel GPS.
Now, there are SOME older planes where the owners may not of updated their panels to have a GPS in them. For those, I'd want to buy a tablet with a good working GPS. In that case, a GPS would be a HUGE benefit.

Android for the Bike? What to get!

Hi Guys,
Hope you can come up with some suggestions.
I'm needing a computer for my bike (bicycle not motor bike). I've been looking at some normal stuff from Wahoo and Garmin and I think going with an android phone with mount, might be cheaper and better. I'm looking for some recommendations for the following criteria:
Good visibility with direct sunlight
Considerable battery life for always on screen with GPS (battery case might work)
Some water resistance (case might work)
Cheap, second hand, ebay, couple of years old will be fine
Assumptions:
Bluetooth 4.0 (smart) for sensors
Mount will be used that sticks on the back, 'quad lock' is my consideration
Not very interested in a separate battery pack that connects via cable, I want simple no hassle so I'll use it all the time.
My current phone (Oneplus 2), I'm not considering replacing and also cannot find a battery cases for it. It doesn't last long on my rides but if anyone can think of "out of the box" suggestions feel free.
Thanks for your thoughts,
Most sensors use ANT+ for what it's worth. Now all of that being said I looked into this about a month ago myself and figured out the cheapest and most effective was using an iPhone 3gs or 4 with a Wahoo kit that cost $40. By the time I figured out all of the math involved (buying used phone), you are around $125 (if you can find a used iPhone for $80 unless you have one sitting around). That doesn't include the additional for the HRM and Cadence either.
Anyways what I ended up with is a Bryton Rider 310 with Cadence and HRM sensors for $137 on Amazon. Not to crush the idea.
Following this to see what develops.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00A using XDA-Developers Legacy app
No crushing, its whatever is best at the end of the day. So thanks for your input.
Most sensors are ANT+, however my sensors are both ANT+ and BLU. They are also Wahoo, so I'm not restricted.
I'm not really interested in going the Apple route because I have less options for customisation and tweaks like keeping the screen on, tasker, etc. I will check out the Bryton Rider equipment, but from what I've seen Wahoo ELEMNT is £180 and the alternatives from Garmin are much more. Therefore, what I'm looking for is £180 (mines mounts, battery packets, etc.) or cheaper.
Thanks,
Edit: S**t dude these Bryton Rider's look awesome and there not overly expensive. I'm still checking them out but I still want to explore the android route... features 'n' all!
What about a BLU Energy X2? It has a 4000 mAh battery and you could put a battery in a bento bag if needed for longer trips. Screen on time ranks around 7.5 hours.
Sent from my ASUS_Z00A using XDA-Developers Legacy app

Categories

Resources