Develop Bugs

xdaIIs/GPS

I am thinking of purchasing a TOM-TOM3 GPS system has anyone got any experience using the BT ?. Is it as Temperamental as the headset. Would it be better to use a wired GPS.
Thanks

I have wired and bluetooth GPS and would say that most of the time I use the wired GPS because I use it mainly in the car and it charges my MDAIII at the same time.

tomtom 3 and BT is fine on my MDAIII
No problems here with the bluetooth connection to tomtom's own GPS.
Never lost the connection.
Left the MDA's BT on one night and woke up to an empty battery and no data though!

I am using BT TomTom no problems at all with staying connected.. you can get them for under £100 on ebay now, best gadget i've got, except the IIs of course.
Richard

Anonymous said:
I am thinking of purchasing a TOM-TOM3 GPS system has anyone got any experience using the BT ?. Is it as Temperamental as the headset. Would it be better to use a wired GPS.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been using a TOMTOM BT GPS for a few weeks now and had no problems at all infact as with another post its my best purchase so far.

I have just got my XDA IIs, I have Tomtom 2 (Wired version), is there a cable kit that will allow me to use my existing Tomtom with the XDA IIs?
If so can someone tell me what the part number is and who stocks it?

I've got a powered holder in my car, powers the XDAIIs and the GPS antenna (Holux 210 I think!). The holder also feeds Tx & Rx to the XDA on serial port 1.
I've also used the holder to just power the XDA and BT antenna and it also works fine.
Got it from www.nemesisgb.com - they are the importers
The actual product can be found here
www.brodit.com and type in 970612 into the quicksearch box on the right hand side
...Spence

I have used ToTom 3 with their branded BT GPS for ages now and it works a treat, best accessory I had for my XDA II and it works just as well with my XDA IIs

s93ncer said:
I've got a powered holder in my car, powers the XDAIIs and the GPS antenna (Holux 210 I think!). The holder also feeds Tx & Rx to the XDA on serial port 1.
I've also used the holder to just power the XDA and BT antenna and it also works fine.
Got it from www.nemesisgb.com - they are the importers
The actual product can be found here
www.brodit.com and type in 970612 into the quicksearch box on the right hand side
...Spence
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply, sorry been a long time before I got a chance to read it, busy christmas. That sounds like just what I need, I have a couple of further questions though.
1. The connections it talks about is a PS2-cable with RX, TX, 5V is this the connection that looks like an RJ11 modem cable or is this the same as a PS2 connection for a PC keyboard/mouse? My cable looks like a modem style RJ11 connector.
2. Does is come with a windscreen suction mount, I couldn't see it in the description and there were no specific pictures?

1. The connections it talks about is a PS2-cable with RX, TX, 5V is this the connection that looks like an RJ11 modem cable or is this the same as a PS2 connection for a PC keyboard/mouse? My cable looks like a modem style RJ11 connector.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The connection I've got is a PS2 like a Mouse/keyboard.
The antenna you have sounds like a Leadtek which is branded as TomTom - looks like a flat silver square?
As it happens I now work for Nemesis and we are working on a connector to connect your antenna to the holder we supply.
2. Does is come with a windscreen suction mount, I couldn't see it in the description and there were no specific pictures?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can get a bracket that fits your vehicle and then you screw the holder to the bracket.
There is another option though.
If you have a lead that plugs into the cigar lighter, powers the antenna and the XDA (I found one at www.handnav.co.uk ) then you can do something different.
Get a bracket for your car
Get holder number 849612 from Brodit
Use the lead to power the holder and the antenna
I have attached pictures of the above config for a XDAII as I had to use the IIs to take the pictures!!!
Hope this helps
..Spence

Thanks again, how soon do you think Nemesis will have a compatible cradle or adapter ready to market?
It might be worth waiting depending on time scales involved?
Or maybe the Tomtom cable, the 1 at the bottom of the pics laid out like a W is already ok, I have one like this to fit my HP Jornada 545 (an old relic from Aug 2000). This cable looks a lot like the cable shown in your pic except for the PDA end, which splits into 2, 1 is for data the other for power. The power part looks similar to a Sony Ericsson telephone charger cable, so again I'm not sure if this will suffice.
I wish there was a shop I could just go into with these things, as it all seems harder to explain when I don't know what all the bits are called. I can't really expect ppl to find a peg for a hole if I can't tell them what shape the hole is, and with hole on my PDA and my GPS receiver it gets doubly confusing!!!!

I'm using Navman 4100 BT GPS, the singal is great and never drop BT connection. It comes with a Y cable that can charge both the IIs and Navman.
But check out the all-in-one solution from Brando... Cheapest alternative I've ever seen.... http://shop.brando.com.hk/universalgpscarholder.php

CL55 said:
I'm using Navman 4100 BT GPS, the singal is great and never drop BT connection. It comes with a Y cable that can charge both the IIs and Navman.
But check out the all-in-one solution from Brando... Cheapest alternative I've ever seen.... http://shop.brando.com.hk/universalgpscarholder.php
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Anyone know where I can get one of these in the UK?

Wired TOMTOM GPS receiver.

I am contemplating on getting a wired TOMTOM GPS receiver.
I read a few posts ago that a wired one would be better than bluetooth if you want to use a bleutooth headseat and a bluetooth receiver at the same time. The call disconnects?
Anyways, I just wanted to verify this before I buy the wired TOMTOM receiver from ebay.
Also, I need to know how it will connect to the XDA IIs. The websites say its SERIAL port. How do you connect a serial port to the XDA?
Also need advice on GPS as well. I have the TOMTOM 5 software and all the maps installed on the SD card. All I need is a device now.
SHould I go for bluetooth?
Should I go for wired GPS?
Which is the best brand of GPS receivers?
Would I face any problems if I operate bleutooth headseat and gps receiver at the same time?
Thank.s

No replies? Guys come on.. you must know something. TOMTOM gurus all over.

Wired GPS
Alitech
I have a wired receiver, not a TOMTOM one but one I got from Expansys. It works fine and I imagine the setup is the same as when I setup TOMTOM I had to select TOMTOM Wired receiver.
My collegue has a bluetooth receiver and I tested it outo n my phone. It worked fine but took a while to boot up (the receiver, not the phone)
The benefit that I find from the wired receiver is that it charges the phone as well. I use a bluetooth headset occasionally but due to the issues with the in-call volume going I tend to use a wired handsfree (but I'm about to upgrade the ROM to the imate one if I can find it)
Connecting to the serial port on the XDA - use the power supply port and ensure that you turn off your infrared port. this then allows you to use the COM1 port on the phone (having the IR active means that it uses the COM1 instead).
I found the receiver from Expansys fine to use and quite cheap. It has a quick warmup time and, like I said, charges the phone at the same time. My collegue with the bluetooth one can't charge the phone and the gps at the same time.
Hope this helps. My phone is the SPV M2000 btw.

So which is the best wired GPS for the XDA IIs ?

problems with wired
I have just got a wired gps for tomtom5 and i can't connect it to my spv m2000.
I have switched off ir beam done hard resets and so on but still it doesn't work. So be a little careful...other people seem to have had no trouble but something is causing trouble

Tom Tom GPS's
I bought the wired GPS with with the software from TomTom, and it works perfectly.
I also got bored and managed to wire up my XDAIIs to my Road Angel via the same RJ port as the TT wired GPS uses.
Plus, when I'm in other peoples cars, I have a generic BT GPS.
They all work as good as one another.

Ok once again, a lot of confusions.
Which is the best GPS receiver? Which one should we go for. Something that will work with the XDA IIs and fit into the charging and sync port.
Models and makes ?

Go for Wired
I currently use and XDA IIi with a wired GPS Receiver, You can purchase a good cradle at http://www.pdamods.com/products.asp?cat=23 which enables you to charge the handset and power the GPS receiver through the cradle, the GPS receiver connects via a RJ socket in the cradle. You have the option to buy the cradle and the receiver as a package for around £85 which comes complete with various mounting options. Personally i went for specialized mounting bracket called a safety clip which is completely non destructive and is available from www.brodit.com. Hope this helps.

Ok.. now I got it. So a good option would be going for a tomtom mount.
Upon research, I found this one.
http://www.pdamods.com/proddetail.asp?prod=A11XDA2SMNT&cat=23
It has the option to buy a FUZION GPS receiver with it.
I think I will go ahead and order it.
Will I need another mount of some sort? I believe the tomtom cradle is already a mount with various mounting options.

FYI: I use this:
- Rikaline GPS-6010-X5 (approx. € 70)
- Brodit active holder (approx € 60)
The holder will both charge the pda and the gps reciever. Quality of the reciever is very good.
Also FYI: I do have a bluetooth carkit from Parrot. You will find out that bluetooth on this pda means trouble, probably also with the GPS.

Can you provide any urls for these products.
cant find the broadit holder on the website.

I have the TOMTOM BT
I have no problems with my XDAIIs .... but i also dont use a BT headset ! i just use speakerphone !
I love the BT, i can take it from car to car and mountain bike
I have the xda charging on a usb car lighter socket and 1 charge of the gps lasts 4 hours - enough for my journeys ... but a car charger for this is only 6quid anyway and i can mount it in the boot!
i agree the BT is crap on this device, but i hope a rom will fix it.
Rich

I'm using a Holux GPS cradle with an Orange SPV M2000. Has some issues when you first buy it but if you look for my input on the thread you'll see how I got around it and I now use it daily in my own car and also hire cars without issue. Wouldn't say i'd recommend it wholeheartedly but if the advantages are suitable for you and you're prepared to mod it a bit it might work for you. http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/modul...opic&t=13307&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0

Thanks for the comment. Seems like an interesting product.
Does anyone know where I can buy the Brodit Active Cradle For GPS for the XDA IIs?

GPS Receiver

All,
I have a MDA III and considering to purchase a Bluetooth GPS receiver and have narrowed it down to two devices
1)Holux 236
2)Rikaline 6033
Does anyone have experience of using any of these devices and how well do they work?
Thanks
Msuk

any reason why the BT 338 isn't on that list?
IIRC, the Holux will not be able to connect serially to the BA for lack of a proper cable.....
and the BT 338 is amazing,has great battery life and it works quite well with the BA. I have been using it with TomTom and so far,its been great!
Kaz

Either of those two are good solutions. My favourite is the Holux GPSLim236, as it has a hardware ON/OFF switch.
It's a better performer than the Globalsat BT338, more sensitive.
The USB-Serial Cable is available from HoluxUK should you ever want to use it as a GPS Mouse although why you'd want to I don't know!

comment +
kazmi said:
any reason why the BT 338 isn't on that list?
IIRC, the Holux will not be able to connect serially to the BA for lack of a proper cable.....
and the BT 338 is amazing,has great battery life and it works quite well with the BA. I have been using it with TomTom and so far,its been great!
Kaz
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep! My pda2k work just fine together with BT-338! Very good device!

I have just received a Qstarz BT 8080 (rebadged Rikalin 6033 I think) and it works flawlessly with my TT5 and only took a couple of goes to set up as "other Bluetooth device". The reason I changed from the supplied tomtom GPS unit is that the Qstarz automatically detects 12v line in and powers up; and then powers-off when the voltage drops. I can now hard-wire the GPS into my car ignition circuit and not have to press any buttons, so can hide it.

I've just bought an APOSsite Solutions GPS626 wireless receiver.
You can see it here: http://www.apos-tec.com
I was gonna get a Holux but the man in the shop warned me that he has had several faulty ones returned. He could have said nothing and made more money off me (because the Holux costs more than the APOS one) but the fact that he didn't spoke volumes to me!
I'm using it with Tomtom 3 (until I get a copy of Tomtom 5) and it all seems fine. Nice and quick to start up, too.

I have the BT338 and it is awesome.

I have a Holux GPSLim236, I've owned a couple of different bluetooth recievers and the holux is just ace, hard to think how you would improve on it.
I you can afford it ,it really is the best.

cable or bluetooth to GPS?

Does anyone know if I could get a USB GPS receiver (such as the GlobalSat BU-353) to work with my elf if I connect using a female-mini usb converter?
I'm thinking that this would draw less power than using a bluetooth GPS receiver - would this actually be the case?
Cheers
K

i would say yes bluetooth draw more power but gps's are normaly used in cars where one can charge ones pda at the same time

Yes, but with a bluetooth receiver I'd end up using two chargers rather than one and I'd also like to use away from a vehicle. Would the usb connection charge as well as 'talk'. I'm not entirely sure how standard USB maps to mini USB to be honest ...

i dont believe that a wired gps device can charge the pda
also with htc devices (with 1 exception) cant use other usb devices
as they cant usb host

Thanks, it sounds like I'd be better going for a bluetooth GPS

Spend a few pennys more and get the entire gps unit. Are you realy going to be able to operate your phone as a gps interface while driving? Sounds like a great way to get a ticket ot me state side.

Holox BT-541 Bluetooth GPS Review

First post, so go easy folks...
The Holox BT-541 Bluetooth GPS receiver is waiting for me to collect from the Post Office in the morning. I plan to test it out and then post my findings.
First off, it was £25 including delivery from ebay and I am fully aware that the makers have ripped off the "Holux" brand name. Not particularly bothered by that and am more interested in testing the little bugger out.
I don't however, have any other GPS system (other than Nokia N95) to compare it to, so do you guys have any particular information requests? I will do my best to answer your queries.
I'll be using it with Memory Map PDA software on HTC Universal in the UK using OS 1-25,000 maps. I'll probably try it out in conjunction with Nokia Maps also.

I've got a Holox, very nice little thing! Picks up GPS signals very quickly (under 30 seconds i think it was ... i didnt count too well...), and my HTC Touch picks it up via BT almost instantly!

Hmm.
First impressions not good. The instruction manual is delivered on a cd which none of my three drives will read.
I can't get any further than pairing the device with my Universal. After that I just get "Could not open COM port" errors. Any clues on how to set it up?

OK.
The problems with connecting were caused by the stupid GPS Connection program in WM6. The unit connected first time with my Nokia and gave an indoor accuracy of 18m. Cold start - 21s
Got it working on universal like this:
Device Paired
Select Serial Port service
Create COM port (I could only get it working with COM8)
In the External GPS Settings program select Hardware Com port as COM8
Baud Rate 38400
Select Software Com port as NONE
Deselect "Manage GPS Automatically" in the Access tab.
Now it works very well and the little blob on my Memory Map screen is able to follow me everywhere I go. There doesn't seem to be any lag at all and it happily follows me around while driving.

I took the Holox unit into the forest today for a workout. It's a 50 year old Scots/Corsican pine forest.
Cold start in 45s under the tree cover. I walked 2km and then drove a further 5km in a Land Rover. The GPS only lost its bearings once, for a distance of about 50m, putting me about 100m to the south of where I actually was. Not bad for being under constant tree cover.
The unit uses the same battery as my Nokia N70 and therefore getting a replacement battery when it dies should not be a problem. It'd be nice if it had a hole to attach a lanyard, but I guess something could be improvised.

Just wanted to say thanks for the review, I've really been wanting to get one of these but was a little put-off by the website, made me doubt it would actually work. Anyway based on this I think i will get one, thanks!

How is it charged? USB or normal plug

Got two of these off ebay. (1 Duplicate sent by mistake).
Great little device.
Flown a Cessna 172 with it using XDA2i , Memory-map navigator and Pocket FMS http://www.pocketfms.com .
Driven with it using Tom-Tom and HP rx3715, HP Hx2750, XDA2i and Palm Tungsten T3.
No problems pairing. Manual covers basic setting up, and LED indicators etc.
Mains charger supplied, but can be charged using standard USB A to Mini B from a USB port on PC, or via a USB adapter from a Car 12v source.

rontorbay said:
Got two of these off ebay. (1 Duplicate sent by mistake).
Great little device.
Flown a Cessna 172 with it using XDA2i , Memory-map navigator and Pocket FMS http://www.pocketfms.com .
Driven with it using Tom-Tom and HP rx3715, HP Hx2750, XDA2i and Palm Tungsten T3.
No problems pairing. Manual covers basic setting up, and LED indicators etc.
Mains charger supplied, but can be charged using standard USB A to Mini B from a USB port on PC, or via a USB adapter from a Car 12v source.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was thinking of buying one of these, but I hate having wires and chargers and stuff around my car - does this thing work while plugged into a charger? And once it's over-charged, do you need to disconnect it before it will start charging again etc? I'd like to get one and leave it permanently connected to a power supply, and just park it on my rear parcel-shelf or something?

thecellartroll said:
OK.
The problems with connecting were caused by the stupid GPS Connection program in WM6. The unit connected first time with my Nokia and gave an indoor accuracy of 18m. Cold start - 21s
Got it working on universal like this:
Device Paired
Select Serial Port service
Create COM port (I could only get it working with COM8)
In the External GPS Settings program select Hardware Com port as COM8
Baud Rate 38400
Select Software Com port as NONE
Deselect "Manage GPS Automatically" in the Access tab.
Now it works very well and the little blob on my Memory Map screen is able to follow me everywhere I go. There doesn't seem to be any lag at all and it happily follows me around while driving.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmmmm perfect. I've tried for two days to get a motorola t815/805 working, installing motonav (still not working) and I couldn't get any help at all through the motorola site or software. Your com port settings worked perfect, it finally paired up and google maps mobile found it.
I may not even try to get motonav workng, I'm so frustrated with that.