buy an integrated device. My PDA with tomtom is cool but is a PITA because you have to get it all plugged in 20 mins b4 you set off so that it can find a signal. Wheras if you had an all-in-one device I imagine you could just leave the thing near a window to get a weak GPS signal or am I talking poo?
PDA vs TOMTOM
- Thread starter ace2109
- Start date
![[TW]Fox](/data/man-of-honor/2009.png){kind=avatar}
eidolon " Can you get a PDA mount that includes speakers AND GPS built in? (or am I being silly?)
I've already got an iPaq 4700 but want a neat solution without loads of wires hanging around or having to worry about if my bluetooth GPS is charged etc."
Yes - many holders have built in receivers - but they are bulkier and might not work with Athermic (coated) windscreens
Personally I'd recommend a sirf star 3 bluetooth receiver and keep a car charger in your glove compartment if you're worried about not it runnin out of juice (alternatively mount it permanently on if you get one with a physical on/off button)
Arkon and Seidio make good units
As for time to first fix for sirfstar3 it's about 15 seconds (I just switched mine on inside the house and it was under a minute in a room without a view of the sky <g>.
If it's taking 20 min to get a fix you might need an arial mattpc or maybe you've got a coated windscreen - in which case try moving the reveiver to the edge of the window.
DinAlt
I've already got an iPaq 4700 but want a neat solution without loads of wires hanging around or having to worry about if my bluetooth GPS is charged etc."
Yes - many holders have built in receivers - but they are bulkier and might not work with Athermic (coated) windscreens
Personally I'd recommend a sirf star 3 bluetooth receiver and keep a car charger in your glove compartment if you're worried about not it runnin out of juice (alternatively mount it permanently on if you get one with a physical on/off button)
Arkon and Seidio make good units
As for time to first fix for sirfstar3 it's about 15 seconds (I just switched mine on inside the house and it was under a minute in a room without a view of the sky <g>.
If it's taking 20 min to get a fix you might need an arial mattpc or maybe you've got a coated windscreen - in which case try moving the reveiver to the edge of the window.
DinAlt
mattpc said:
urmm sorry? that makes no sense mate
I leave my CHEAP bluetooth gps unit (BT77) in the little cubby hole beneath the ashtray (so as low down in the dash as possible), and it picks up signal fine in about 30 seconds. If i turn that on as soon as i get in the car, it's ready by the time ive put my pda (phone) in its mount, put my seatbelt on, started my engine etc, and tomtom loads quicker on my pda than the standalone TomTom ONE that my friend has, which is CONSIDERABLY bulkier and from my experience, no better.Tom.
Hi Guys,
I finally got my PDA and i went with the tomtom Navigator 5. I got everything setup but there is not much detail in northern ireland? And i cant find maps of southern ireland at all?
Are there updates available to download for more map detail and also a new map for southern ireland?
I finally got my PDA and i went with the tomtom Navigator 5. I got everything setup but there is not much detail in northern ireland? And i cant find maps of southern ireland at all?
Are there updates available to download for more map detail and also a new map for southern ireland?
ace2109 said:
The coverage in Ireland is shocking. The only street level detail is in Belfast with the standard map, apart from that it has a handful of 'A' roads and the motorways, nothing else. If you want maps of the free state you have to buy them separately. I bought them when I had Tomtom 3. I used to travel a lot around the south while working but outside Dublin the coverage was crap. It only had the 'N' roads and a few 'R' roads. In the south you're much better off with a paper map IMO. I used to do around 50k a year all over the south and used a paper map as the GPS maps were poor.
I have an HP Ipaq 4150 with Tom Tom 5.21 and its great, very speedy.
I have a Bluetooth GPS receiver for it, and a car cradle to charge with built in speakerphone.
The only downside for the PDA side is having the GPS unit seperate, so if you want to walk about with Tom Tom you have to carry the GPS with you too.
I have been looking at the new IPAQ 6510/6910 with built in GPS, but they are quite pricey!
If you are sticking with it in the car, go with the PDA route
I have a Bluetooth GPS receiver for it, and a car cradle to charge with built in speakerphone.
The only downside for the PDA side is having the GPS unit seperate, so if you want to walk about with Tom Tom you have to carry the GPS with you too.
I have been looking at the new IPAQ 6510/6910 with built in GPS, but they are quite pricey!
If you are sticking with it in the car, go with the PDA route
I bought a mitac Mio 168 clone from somerfield for £120 and put tomtom on it.
Absolutely fantastic - built in GPS so theres no wiring to do, and it runs Windows Mobile so I can do other things with it. And it runs tomtom 5
Better than any standalone I reckon, and a fair bit cheaper
There seems to be a lot of artificial price-bumping going on!
Absolutely fantastic - built in GPS so theres no wiring to do, and it runs Windows Mobile so I can do other things with it. And it runs tomtom 5
Better than any standalone I reckon, and a fair bit cheaper
There seems to be a lot of artificial price-bumping going on!
Not too sure. I've heard that a company in Newry makes maps for most navigation software which have street level detail of most of the country. A mate of mine told me about it, I'm flying back to Ireland on Tuesday so I'll ask him about it then.
Being a bit of a gadgety person, Ive currently got
Garmin i3 Standalone
Garmin Quest Standalone
TOMTOM ONE - Standalone
TOMTOM5 - running on SPV C500 smartphone with BT GPS
TOMTOM5 - running on a DELL X50V with a BT GPS
For convenience, and reliability, the TOMTOM ONE is by far the best option just for SAT-NAV.. it just works brilliantly, it is faster then my Dell X50V (624Mhz), and the SirfIII built in chipset gets a lock very easily behind my heat reflective windscreen..
The PDA/Smartphone is fine, until you start installing 'other' software on the things, and some software conflicts (several Today Screen Plugins)..
Then you have to remember to keep it charged, and the BT GPS, which means two leads in the car, so the idea of a 'wireless' BT isn't quite so 'wireless' at times..
If you want a PDA for PDA things, then you might as well get a PDA with TOMTOM5, and just be careful when installing other applications.. It is less reliable, but then a quick soft-reset usually sorts it out.. and TOMTOM5 is more reliable for me then any previous version..
Now I have the TOMTOM ONE and Garmin i3, I have to admit, I don't use the PDA anymore for SATNAV, they are just that degree more convenient..
Garmin i3 Standalone
Garmin Quest Standalone
TOMTOM ONE - Standalone
TOMTOM5 - running on SPV C500 smartphone with BT GPS
TOMTOM5 - running on a DELL X50V with a BT GPS
For convenience, and reliability, the TOMTOM ONE is by far the best option just for SAT-NAV.. it just works brilliantly, it is faster then my Dell X50V (624Mhz), and the SirfIII built in chipset gets a lock very easily behind my heat reflective windscreen..
The PDA/Smartphone is fine, until you start installing 'other' software on the things, and some software conflicts (several Today Screen Plugins)..
Then you have to remember to keep it charged, and the BT GPS, which means two leads in the car, so the idea of a 'wireless' BT isn't quite so 'wireless' at times..
If you want a PDA for PDA things, then you might as well get a PDA with TOMTOM5, and just be careful when installing other applications.. It is less reliable, but then a quick soft-reset usually sorts it out.. and TOMTOM5 is more reliable for me then any previous version..
Now I have the TOMTOM ONE and Garmin i3, I have to admit, I don't use the PDA anymore for SATNAV, they are just that degree more convenient..