Gps systems

[Guest Chrimbow]

I will need GPS for work, anyone have any advice on how well a gps addon works with a c500(or similar) or m2000, or would i be better off with a dedicated system? Can I get speed camera software to work on it?Im a total newb with gps so any advice would be great!

thanks guys!

[Guest awarner [MVP]]

With GPS units it depends what you are looking for.

If you are looking at road navigation you will find it hard to beat TomTom Mobile on the phone but as it comes with it's own GPS unit the price tag is around £200.

There is speed camera data base on www.pocketgpsworld.com that can work with TomTom Mobile otherwise you can also use TomTom's own Plus service which has it's own camera database system.

[Guest Samsonite]

GPS is really a musthave app if you drive around. TomTom is good by all accounts and so is CoPilot.

For you to decide whether or not a phone based setup is better than a dedicated unit, consider how often you change or how long you will keep your current hardware... I know that reading various threads here, there have been upgrade issues with some GPS systems.

A dedicated unit wont go out of date like that but it is another gadget to take care of (difficult to carry around in a suit and obviously still in the car if the toerags see the mount...)

Consider also how much battery life you need. A PPC/smartphone bluetoothed to a GPS unit will have a hard time lasting as long as a all in one system.

Screen size? again, consider how far away you will mount the unit (whatever it is) and as for audible notifications, dont rely on them! You could waste your life trying to get the sounds thru to a BT headset or car audio system...

speed camera software can be found for most systems either via subscription service or databases available. Be warned tho, they are not infallible and cant predict where mobile units will be... i got caught recently (but got let off with a speed awareness course!) even tho my CoPilot setup is bang up to date.. Best advice there is SLOW DOWN!! :cheesy:

overall, the GPS stuff available is top kit!! highly recommended for the reps among us and a pure slice of fried gold as far as i'm concerned!!

[Guest Chrimbow]

Thanks for the advice, im going to have to think a bit more on this one... Ilike the idea of having the gps on a phone like the c500 for general practicality, just the screen size while driving may be an issue. having said that, I borrowed a garmin quest for a few days to try it out and mainly relied on the voice anyway. (im assuming the kit for the c500 wouild have the voice facility?) Anyone reading this used either a pda like a m2000 or a phone for gps offer any advice?

[Guest Confucious]

CoPilot woks fine on the C550 (apart from a slight problem with some of the text) and is brilliant!

[Guest Chrimbow]

ive read elsewhere that copilot is "the worst ever software written" and "cack"!

Is the c550 likely to work with tom tom in the future as ive read that it isnt compatable ATM...? (tom tom seems to be the generally recomended choice)

see link

http://www.pocketgps.co.uk/modules.php?nam...wtopic&p=128426

Edited July 27, 2005 by Chrimbow

[Guest awarner [MVP]]

I have had problems with Co-Pilot crashing but my main objection with the application is how sloppy the installation is. Instead of placing all it's files in it's own folder the are just dumped in the My Documents folder in the phones main storage.

[Guest Chrimbow]

Im starting to think i would be better off with a phone system rather than pda (m2000) and i like the c550. Do you think the tom tom will work in the future on the c550 or i should i go for the c500? any veiws on gps wih the mpx220? Thanks again for the help BTW, this site is excellent!

Edited July 29, 2005 by Chrimbow

[Guest awarner [MVP]]

TomTom will hopefully be updated for the C550 and as soon as I hear official notification I will of course post about it.

All I can say for now is watch this space.

[Guest Confucious]

I have had problems with Co-Pilot crashing but my main objection with the application is how sloppy the installation is. Instead of placing all it's files in it's own folder the are just dumped in the My Documents folder in the phones main storage.

The new update fopr CoPilot improves memory usage and I haven't had it crash since (although I must admit it did occasionally crash before)

As for installation - Mine is installed on my card in two folders, CoPilot and 2577 - there are two small files in the my documents folder on the phone but that's it. Not sure why you had a problem Ash?

CoPilot works fine on my C550 apart from some slight text mis alignment. I've never tried TomTom so can't really compare it but if you want something that runs well on a C550 now then I would recomend CoPilot.