Comparision of bluetooth GPS units

[andrewilley]

I don't really need a GPS :) but I thought it might be kinda interesting to get a cheap'n'cheerful unit and then probably the basic Microsoft streetmaps package for a bit of fun. I don't want to spend a lot, but obviously I would still like it to work! I've narrowed it down to one of two GPS units, and I wonder if anyone here has any comments on them?

BT-77 (£39.99 plus VAT from http://www.inter-activeinformation.com/uk/product_info.php?products_id=31)
8590 (£39.95 inc VAT from http://www.mobilefun.co.uk/product/8590.htm)

* They both have USB and in-car cigarette-lighter style chargers, which will allow me charge my MDA Vario in the car too, so that's useful.

* The 8590 uses the same Li-ion battery as my old Nokia phone, so that could give me an extra charged battery to keep in the car.

* The 8590 also has a USB port, as well as the Bluetooth connection, so I could connect it directly into my laptop if I wanted to - although I do have a bluetooth dongle for the laptop anyway, so that's not really a major factor.

* The BT-77 has 16 channels while the 8590 only has 12 - how much of a factor to consider is that?

* The BT-77 appears to have slightly better battery life, according to the comments I've seen.

* The BT-77 is a bit more expensive and has a two-week delivery wait at the moment (not critical, no real urgency).

So - does anyone have any experience with either of these units and might care to comment on which would be best, or anything else for me to bear in mind?

Regards,

Andre (very new to this whole GPS lark!)

[twojags]

I use a Fuzion Solar GPS which has a solar panel to keep it charged up. It was £59 from next Generation Sales on Ebay. After a little bit of a sweat trying to set it up with TomTom 5 I've been pretty impressed with it.

It apparently works for 30hours but I haven't had cause to check it as it's not used that long and I leave it by the window when not in use. It uses a Nok3650 replaceable battery so you could keep a spare in the unlikely event of it running flat.

For those with similar problems you need to search for the device in Bluetooth and accept the serial port option. In Windows Make sure blutooth is switched on then go to the CABLE settings in TomTom and set the Baud Rate to 38400. Then click done and go to other bluetooth gps device and in my case it was now available on com 6.

[lyallb]

i bought the 8590 from mobilefun last week, it was a good little device but i found it a bit too slow to get a lock, especially in london, sometimes it never got a lock :(

I returned it and have now got a Holux GPSlim236, which was 70 notes, but you certainly get what you pay for. This device gets a lock a lot quicker and is more appears more precise than the 8590. It also has a usb charger, pairs with Tomtom no problems and is slighty smaller than the 8590.

Perhaps i could have lived with the cheaper device, but now i have the holux i dont think i would go back...

[cshields1]

I don't really need a GPS :) but I thought it might be kinda interesting to get a cheap'n'cheerful unit and then probably the basic Microsoft streetmaps package for a bit of fun. I don't want to spend a lot, but obviously I would still like it to work! I've narrowed it down to one of two GPS units, and I wonder if anyone here has any comments on them?

BT-77 (£39.99 plus VAT from http://www.inter-activeinformation.com/uk/product_info.php?products_id=31)
8590 (£39.95 inc VAT from http://www.mobilefun.co.uk/product/8590.htm)

* They both have USB and in-car cigarette-lighter style chargers, which will allow me charge my MDA Vario in the car too, so that's useful.

* The 8590 uses the same Li-ion battery as my old Nokia phone, so that could give me an extra charged battery to keep in the car.

* The 8590 also has a USB port, as well as the Bluetooth connection, so I could connect it directly into my laptop if I wanted to - although I do have a bluetooth dongle for the laptop anyway, so that's not really a major factor.

* The BT-77 has 16 channels while the 8590 only has 12 - how much of a factor to consider is that?

* The BT-77 appears to have slightly better battery life, according to the comments I've seen.

* The BT-77 is a bit more expensive and has a two-week delivery wait at the moment (not critical, no real urgency).

So - does anyone have any experience with either of these units and might care to comment on which would be best, or anything else for me to bear in mind?

Regards,

Andre (very new to this whole GPS lark!)
I use the GlobalSat BT-338 receiver which has 3rd generation SiFr processor, can lock 20 satelites. I use Destinator mapping software on my Wizard. Go to buyGPSnow.com for good prices and support. Good luck.

[andrewilley]

Thanks for the advice everyone, I've just bought a Holux 236 on eBay for £57 (plus import duties when it arrives from far off lands).

So if it doesn't work, I'll be coming after you Lyallb... :-)

Andre

[jwzg]

I second the Holux 236. I'm in Shanghai and consistently get a 10-bird lock within two minutes of turning it on. However, the first unit I bought had a bad bluetooth radio and had to be returned.

[lyallb]

Thanks for the advice everyone, I've just bought a Holux 236 on eBay for £57 (plus import duties when it arrives from far off lands).

So if it doesn't work, I'll be coming after you Lyallb... :-)

Andre

Ive heard the ones you get from overseas are a bit dodgy... :wink:
im confident i wont have to look over my shoulder....

[p800]

I have a BT GPS that is the same make as the BT-77 but branded under another name (Wonde-X BT GPS).

It sometimes takes ages to lock on, and this is with the plug in antenna.
Then on some days it takes 30 seconds, so I really don't know. There are better BT GPS out there, so I would give this one a miss if you have another option.

[andrewilley]

Ive heard the ones you get from overseas are a bit dodgy... :wink:
im confident i wont have to look over my shoulder....

I guess I'm in a bit of a Catch 22 situation then. If the GPS works fine, I won't need to find you... but if I can't get the GPS to work, I won't be able to find you! :)

Andre

[trixter]

I have a polestar BT gps which I aquired from http://www.deluoelectronics.com. I like it a lot, it works well, about the size of a zippo cigarette lighter, and the 3 ni-mh AAA batteries last a long time (although after having it about 18 months I finally had to replace the ones that came with the unit, something about being left in my jeep and freezing in the winter and melting in the summer :P )

This unit is small enough to toss in your pocket, the batteries are placed on the bottom so if it sits on your dash its not top heavy. Even has some rubber feet so it doesnt slide all over. In my jeep (which I take off roads quite often) it has never fallen over which suprises me becuase a few times my jeep almost fell over :)

[ben.franklin]

I just bought Solarius V3 Bluetooth GPS Receiver with Tom Tom software - it is simply great. I'm using it my Cingular 8125 (HTC Wizard). The pairing was a breeze, getting Tom Tom to activate was another matter.

The GPS unit has solar panel for backup power - supposedly lasting for as much as 30 hours between charges. Here's a link to where I got it from:

http://www.semsons.com/soblgpsspofa.html

[andrewilley]

I second the Holux 236. I'm in Shanghai and consistently get a 10-bird lock within two minutes of turning it on.

Well that was pretty painless... The Holux 236 arrived this morning (Monday - and I only paid for it on eBay last Tuesday and it had to come from Taiwan to the UK!) Nothing extra to pay at the door either, which was good news.

First reaction: Gosh, it's tiny isn't it?!! I almost thought they'd forgotten to put the GPS unit in the box! :) For anyone who's not got one, it's far smaller than half the size of the Wizard.

Second reaction: Bluetooth connected perfectly, first time. Couldn't get GPS software to see the unit at first - until I remembered to create an outgoing COM port in the Bluetooth Config screen, after which it all worked straight away. My phone talked me all the way to work half an hour later, how cute is this technology?

Thanks to everyone for all the advice.

Andre

[marshall_teller]

I've got a Holux GPSlim 236 for almost a year now and for me it the best ever. It worked with my Magician and now with my Wizard. When it has a lock it stays locked even when i'm in side my house. You can navigate to the toilet if you want!

It's lays in the back of my car in a closed compartment were it has a 12V connection. When i fire up TomTom it's up and running in 3 seconds.

So you understand by now that i recommend the Holux GPSlim 236.

[andrewilley]

It's lays in the back of my car in a closed compartment were it has a 12V connection. When i fire up TomTom it's up and running in 3 seconds.

I was thinking of doing that too. Do you just leave it switched on all the time, and is it only supplied with power with the ignition switch? Using a permanent 12v supply seems a good idea, and would keep the internal battery trickle-charged, but I wondered whether it might run down the car battery if left parked for a while as the receiver & bluetooth would always be running? On the other hand, if it's on a switched power supply, the Li-ion battery will continue to drain and go flat overnight while the car is parked, and then start re-charging when you're driving, which as far as I know isn't ideal for Li-ion batteries.

Andre

[lyallb]

When it has a lock it stays locked even when i'm in side my house. You can navigate to the toilet if you want!


Bloody hell, how big is your house.....!!!! :lol:

[werk]

Anyone have experience with the i-Blue Receiver (http://www.buygpsnow.com/i-blue-high-sensitivity-bluetooth-gps-receiver-ps-3200-free-arkon-vent-mount-509.html)? I like the sleep mode...goes into super-low powermode until a paired device tries to access it again. You can get several weeks of usage on a charge this way. Reviews are good and the price isn't bad.

[pewe]

Anyone have experience with the i-Blue Receiver

I have been using one of these for the last 6 months. It's great. Never seems to run out and locks on Sats very quickly too.

[werk]

Anyone have experience with the i-Blue Receiver

I have been using one of these for the last 6 months. It's great. Never seems to run out and locks on Sats very quickly too.
Excellent! I'm having a hard time keeping myself from buying one. Hell, I don't even have a car nor do I travel all that much and I know NYC like the back of my hand. I need an excuse to buy one so the girlfriend doesn't freak out! :) Maybe I'll get into geocaching...hmm..

[rc]

guys i bought a iBlue and am trying to pair it with the wizard... no luck. I can see the device in BlueTooth settings but it will not catch a signal

Pocket Streets
Earthcomber
or GPSView will not show any location????

help any suggestions

[andrewilley]

guys i bought a iBlue and am trying to pair it with the wizard... no luck. I can see the device in BlueTooth settings but it will not catch a signal

help any suggestions

Have you set up a new outgoing COM port in your bluetooth setup screen? (I set mine up for COM7, which was free) Everything worked fine after that.

Andre

[cliffr39]

Ok I'm new to this GPS stuff so what is special about the SiRF III ?
I am looking at 4 different GPS bluetooth units and 2 have SiRF III, the 2 to do no but they all seem to be pretty equal.

Personally just from readin the below it sounds like the StarsNav is better. Help me out.

First is the OnCourse SiRF Star III
http://www.buygpsnow.com/oncourse-sirf-star-iii-bluetooth-gps-receiver-with-waas-enabled-474.html
chipset: SiRF III (firmware v3.1.1F)
channels: 20
Reacquisition 0.1 sec., average
Hot start 8 sec., average
Cold start 42 sec., average
accuracy 5m
appx 17hours use
sensitivity not displayed

Second is the StarsNav BT-16
http://store.yahoo.com/semsons-inc/gpblgpsre32c.html
Chipset: RFMD
channels: 32
Reacquisition: 0.1 sec., averaged
Hot start: 6 sec., averaged
Cold start: 30 sec., averaged
accuracy 5m
appx 10-12 hours
sensitivity -157 dBm

Third is i-Blue PS-3200
http://www.buygpsnow.com/i-blue-high-sensitivity-bluetooth-gps-receiver-ps-3200-free-arkon-vent-mount-509.html
chipset: NEMERIX GPS Module
channels: 16
Reacquisition <3sec
Hot start 5 sec, average
Cold start 46 sec, average
accuracy 1.2 to 3.8m
Sensitivity Better than -152dBm

Finally looks like most of you are familiar with the Holux GPSlim236
chipset: SiRF III
channels: 20
Hot start: 42 sec
Cold Start: 8 sec
sensitivity -159
appx 8 hours of use

[3waygeek]

The Sirf III chip has much greater signal sensitivity than other chips -- you can actually pick up signals indoors. The increased sensitivity also means it can use more satellites to make a fix, resulting in increased accuracy.

[rc]

guys i bought a iBlue and am trying to pair it with the wizard... no luck. I can see the device in BlueTooth settings but it will not catch a signal

help any suggestions

Have you set up a new outgoing COM port in your bluetooth setup screen? (I set mine up for COM7, which was free) Everything worked fine after that.

Andre

Yep Just did that am i am rocking... Thanks

[andrewilley]

Yep Just did that am i am rocking... Thanks

You're welcome.

Andre

[wilesd]

I'm using the cheapo £40 one from www.mobilefun.co.uk and can't recommend it highly enough.

my battery lasts well over the ten hours suggested on the website and charges fast, Nokia battery compatibility also means spares batteries are mad cheap from Ebay and the like.

Same mini USB connector for charging as the Wizard also means you get a free in-car charger for the Wizard and only ever have to carry one charger round.

Mine always gets a fix in less than 30secs and other than when driving through a tunnel has never EVER lost signal (and always reconnects in a split second after exiting tunnel).

I switch mine on and pop on the dashboard to get first fix then just chuck it in the glovebox for the day and always have at least 5 fixes, or about 8-10 if left on the dashboard.

auto off after 15minutes with no bluetooth pairing is also a nice feature meaning that it doesn't matter if you forget to switch it off when leaving the car, however if you just stop for fuel or something it's long enough for the devices to automatically reconnect when you get back in the car

one of the best value 40 quids I've ever spent!

[middler]

I went the el cheapo route. I already own Streets and Trips with the Pharos usb receiver, so I purchased the bluetooth docking kit for the USB receiver. Works great if you can live with the limitations of Pocket Streets.

[Iomega01]

What software do you guys use with the Holux GPSlim 236? I'll be using the Cingular 8125.

[tinman44]

meh i use the pharos with the iGPS-BT adaptor i likes

[andrewleith1]

The gps box that i use is the same as the BT-77 i use it with tomtom 5.21 with an xdaIIs, works great.
hopefully it will work fine with my mini ive got ordered!

[poopslap]

So it looks like most people prefer the Holux GPSlim236 Bluetooth GPS (SiRF III) with TomTom Navigator 5 right? At buygpsnow.com (link below) they sell a package deal for $189.95US. Is this a good price for the 2 products or can someone point me to a better deal?

http://www.buygpsnow.com/tomtom-navigator-5-usa-with-holux-gpslim236-bluetooth-gps-sirf-iii-v-3-1-1-waas-for-pocket-pc-palm-treo-650-free-arkon-vent-mount-471.html

[malakai1911]

If it 'aint SiRFstarIII, its not worth having.

[eddiept]

Well the Holux 236 is a Sirf III GPS Reciever, you can read more about it at http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/gr236.php

I'm gonna buy me one for myself !!

[wilesd]

If it 'aint SiRFstarIII, its not worth having.

yeah whatever....my NON SirfstarIII receiver gets a steady fix on 5-6 sat's even when thrown in the back of my car glove box!

[timskrastins]

I just picked up a copy of iGuidance and a Solarius solar GPS receiver (sirf III) from Semsons & Co.

First, if it weren't for this forum, I would have had NO idea that I need to create an outgoing COM port. None of the instructions (badly translated by the way) mention this. When everything is working as best as I can get it, it's a full 3 seconds or more behind me as I drive 30mph. iGuidance doesn't have many of the roads built less than 2-3 years ago on it so lots of times it shows me as off road.

The main disappointment howerver, is that I have to re-establish the bluetooth connection every time I get back in the car. Are all receivers like this or is the Wizard or WM5 part of the problem? If it's the receiver, I may see if Semsons will exchange for another...will the BT338 or Holux avoid the issue?

Also, iGuidance seems to work, at best, for about 5 minutes. Then it either crashes or caushes the whole system to run so slowly that it's unusable (i mean press a button and get response 1-5 minutes later!). Granted, I do have a few other apps and today plug-ins installed (not a lot mind you) ... are there any famous conflicts I should watch for?

disappointed,
Tim


T-Mobile MDA
2.21 ROM

[zowwie]

...When everything is working as best as I can get it, it's a full 3 seconds or more behind me as I drive 30mph....

iGuidance sounds like its not particularly wm5 compatible. I bought a GoldLantern G-Lite unit at Fry's electronics for $149.00. (Yes, I overpaid but I wanted GPS right then and there....) The package directed me to download software from Mapopolis.

Just because you bought a GPS unit that came with a particular software it does not mean you have to stick with that software. The communication is standards based and I imagine that my GPS would work fine with TomTom or Streets and Trips or whatever, really.

I had one occasion where the nav software did not keep up with my travels but that's about it. That was in Southern California with Orange, San Diego and LA Counties all loaded in memory.

I have had it tell me some really weird routing information here in Phoenix - perhaps it was accurate but certainly not legal - it told me to take the HOV lane offramp from one freeway to another. Being alone in the car and having a fairly good idea of where I was going anyway I ignored it and it made another suggestion immediately after I passed where it thought I should exit.

Anyway, you can try Mapopolis for free. I still haven't decided what nav software I will ultimately buy but Mapopolis works pretty well for now.

[zoo]

If it 'aint SiRFstarIII, its not worth having.

Not quite! I have an i-blue from Sempsons that has the new Nemerix chipset (V3.7 firmware revision) and it is equal to the SirfStar III chipset (there is a comparison at http://www.gpspassion.com/forumsen/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=43462).
The GPS unit has 30+ hours of batery life (because of the Nemerix chipset) and it wakes up when the ppc tries to connect and goes back to stand-by (for 14 days!) after the connection with the ppc is closed. Tried it and it works fine with both magician and wizard. I have it always connected on the car charger and it works perfectly for about a month now without bothering to even touch it! :D

[timskrastins]

Semsons has agreed to take my Solarius unit back. I guess I'm stuck with iGuidance since I opened the software.

The main problem I still see is that I have to re-establish the Bluetooth pairing every time I want to use the setup. Semsons claims this is because I'm using a WM5 device and no receiver can avoid this and iGuidance tells me it's not their software but yet I read here about people re-connecting at will (i.e. - I leave the GPS receiver in the car and when I get back in, just launch the mapping software and it's supposed to work?)

I can't tell if I need a new receiver (maybe the Holux 236?) or new software (maybe Tom Tom?) or both?


-Tim
T-Mobile MDA WM5
ROM 2.21

[iclick]

Tim, only the newest version of iGuidance will work with WM5, which is v2.1.3. I just received my MDA two weeks ago and intend on setting up the Belkin Bluetooth GPS I had working well with my Ipaq and the Belkin software (same as iGuidance v1.1). I was told this version won't work with WM5 so I didn't even try.

The iNav people offered a "competitive upgrade" (discount) but recommended waiting until late-June or early-July for v3 to be introduced. There is a 30-day free-upgrade window and if you bought your copy recently you may be eligible.

[zowwie]

...Semsons claims this is because I'm using a WM5 device and no receiver can avoid this...

Sounds like B.S. to me. I don't need to re-pair the device ever.

[andrewilley]

The main problem I still see is that I have to re-establish the Bluetooth pairing every time I want to use the setup. Semsons claims this is because I'm using a WM5 device and no receiver can avoid this and iGuidance tells me it's not their software but yet I read here about people re-connecting at will (i.e. - I leave the GPS receiver in the car and when I get back in, just launch the mapping software and it's supposed to work?)

I can't tell if I need a new receiver (maybe the Holux 236?) or new software (maybe Tom Tom?) or both?

I have a Holux 236 and I just Switch it on and then run TomTom, which auto-activates Bluetooth on the Wizard and connects fine. Tom-Tom even turns Bluetooth mode off again when I exit the program. I don't often leave the car mid-route, but as far as I can remember when I did the system reconnected itself when I got back to the car a few mins later.

Andre

[timskrastins]

...Semsons claims this is because I'm using a WM5 device and no receiver can avoid this...

Sounds like B.S. to me. I don't need to re-pair the device ever.


Well that's good news and seems indicative that either my software or my hardware (probably the hardware?) is the issue. I see a lot of Holux 236 users on here with Tom Tom that don't have to reconnect. Are there any Holux 236 users with iGuidance or something other than Tom Tom that can confirm an automatic reconnect on the Wizard?

Thanks,
Tim

[3waygeek]

The main problem I still see is that I have to re-establish the Bluetooth pairing every time I want to use the setup. Semsons claims this is because I'm using a WM5 device and no receiver can avoid this

Sounds like a load of crap to me. I have a Globalsat 338 (Sirf III) which I use on my 9100 with DeLorme Pocket Street Atlas 2006. The DeLorme software connects to the GPS program port without having to re-pair.

Here's how I did it:

Pair GPS with 9100, creating a COM port (COM6).
Enable GPS Connections applet (some registry stuff -- search for it).
Run GPS Connections applet, setting Hardware port to that created in step 1 above, and setting the program port to COM7.
Install DeLorme software & WM5 update (enables connections to the GPS program port).
Configure DeLorme to use NMEA 0183 GPS on COM7 (the program port created in step 3 above)

Once I did that, I can just launch DeLorme and connect the GPS.

[barky81]

...Semsons claims this is because I'm using a WM5 device and no receiver can avoid this...

Sounds like B.S. to me. I don't need to re-pair the device ever.


...Are there any Holux 236 users with iGuidance or something other than Tom Tom that can confirm an automatic reconnect on the Wizard?

Thanks,
Tim

I just got my Holux Slim236 yesterday...as a bundle with iGuidance....from Semsons...

Once I set it up and paired it...it works great. In and out of iGuidance as well as CacheMate/CacheNav, never a need to re-pair, etc...

[timskrastins]

Cool, I'll hold out hope then.

I used to have the GPS setting but after a restart it's gone. I'm using the registry wizard with the 'show GPS icon' button checked but still no dice. Odd...

[timskrastins]

Good news! The step-by-step from 3waygeek made it work (thanks!!).

I did not have the GPS icon and after playing with registry wizard, still coudln't get it to show up but after installing Virtual Earth Mobile (http://www.viavirtualearth.com/vve/Gallery/VEMobile.ashx) it did show up. I followed the instructions and now my Solarius GPS receiver (sirf III) picks up where I left off each time (so far in 15 min of testing anyway).

GPS works great with Virtual Earth Mobile and Visual GPSce.

iGuidance is still abyssmal for me but I'm thinking that's because I have a Mac and their software doesn't come as nice little CAB files, it needs some PC installer and I can't get it to install over Virtual PC and all the PCs I have access to have user restrictions to prevent running the program. I tried extracting the CAB files and installing that way and the program will run, find me on the map, even start routing but after a minute or two it will completely lock up the PPC (truly it just slows to a rate so bad that clicking on the screen results in a reaction 5 minutes later). iNav support was very quick to respond but in the end was no help either...they don't support Macs and only say it should be installable without ActiveSync but won't clue me into how.

I'll continue my quest for a PC that will let me run the disk and install the app directly....maybe then it will run better.

Thanks again for all the help.


-Tim


[/url]

[leeky]

I am wondering what is the different between Sirf II and III. I am using a Sirf II BT,. I bought it 2 years ago and it is still working perfectly till today. I just update my tom tom nav to ver 5.2.1

Do Sirf III give a much quick respond? I just wondering if it worths to upgrade my GPS to the new one. The problems I have with my Sirf II now is a little slow respond on start-up....30 seconds and sometimes will turn off when I pass under the bridge or tunnel.

[3waygeek]

Sirf III claims faster time to first fix (i.e. gets signal sooner) as well as much greater signal sensitivity, so you'll get more satellites and thus a more accurate position fix.

As an example my Sirf III unit can actually pick up as many as 10 satellites indoors; my previous Sirf II usually couldn't pick up any.

[alfredtv]

hey does any one have their device also conected to a car hands free bluetooth device like the Parrot devices to give audio directions through the speakers in the car?