Qstarz BT-Q1000 Platinum Travel Recorder review

MikeB

The Qstarz BT-Q1000 Platinum is a GPS datalogger that records your travel as a series of datapoints. This datalog can then be loaded onto a computer and used to match positions to digital pictures to provide location information on you images, a process known as geotagging. These pictures can then be uploaded to an online photo album such as Flickr which is able to show the location the picture was taken on a digital map.

Last year I reviewed the Qstarz GPS Travel Recorder BT-Q1000 (click here for the article). Since then the company has released an updated version of the GPS Datalogger: the BT-Q1000 Platinum.

Click here to read the review.

Click here for a quicktime movie or here for a windows media version.
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Mike Barrett

zebsogo · Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 8:14 am Post subject: Mac Compatibility

Is this thing Mac Compatible ?

PaulB2005 · Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 8:32 am Post subject:

zebsogo · Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 8:36 am Post subject: typical

ahhhhh !!! typical........thanks for the reply though

philpugh · Posted: Thu Jul 31, 2008 3:46 pm Post subject:

Just come back from logging 6 days of sailing with my Q1000. It behaved wonderfully. 260Km of logging (at intervals of 20m over 45 hrs of sailing) and only one re-charge needed - provided by a portapack.

Only slight niggle was that the downloaded tracks (using their v4 s/w) created a .GPX file that wouldn't load into MapSource. I haven't tried this before (BT1000 GPX to Mapsource). However a quick run through GPSMapEdit created a compatible .GPX track which showed that we missed all the rocks.

The anti-slip base worked very well. I had it below deck on a shelf in my bunk and it stayed put even when we were sailing in Force 7s (peak wind speed in excess of 42 knots) with the boat at 45deg and bouncing off the waves. This is more than the contents of my stomach did - but that's enough of that Embarassed

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Phil

redvers · Lifetime Member Joined: Mar 19, 2004 Posts: 29

I've just got one of these from SuperGPS, ordered a week ago, the muppets sent a non-Platinum version first and refused to send the right one out until they had the other one back, which meant it's been touch and go as to whether I'd get it in time for my hols tomorrow!

Anyway, I hook this up to my advent 4211 and as i've no CD drive I download v4 of the s/w from Qstarz. All well and good to set it up to log every 3 seconds while I nip out to London City Airport at lunch to collect holiday money. Come back and hook it up again to transfer the log and it asks for a product key.

There is no product key 1) on the cd slip, 2) on the cd front, 3) saved on the cd as a file, 4) anywhere in the box.

Where is the product key meant to be? SuperGPS were useless and didn't have a clue. I've logged a call with Qstarz but it could be two days before I hear back from them, if I have email access. Will the v3 s/w work as well and without a product key, or am I screwed? The box this came in had one of the product seals broken, and the CD contents are files name for BT-Q1000 with no P so it's possible the CD has been swapped for the wrong one...

Any help gratefully accepted!!

Cheers,

Kev

MikeB · Posted: Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:58 pm Post subject:

I cant remember as I have tested too many devices, but I believe the original software that came with the non-platinum version that I reviewed did not need a key and just worked after installation.

The version of the Platinum I reviewed came with a CD with a product key on the paper cover.
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Mike Barrett

redvers · Lifetime Member Joined: Mar 19, 2004 Posts: 29

Thanks Mike, I suspect that I have been sent the non-platinum disc. The box had definitely been opened before it was sent to me (the bottom seal was sliced with a knife and they'd scored the box while they were at it).

The version of the s/w provided is 2.2 which looks ancient. I've found that v3.1 from the website works without a product key, but I've bought this expecting the v4 software with the bells & whistles, I shouldn't be hamstrung because someone has been unable to ship me what I ordered... it was bad enough that I was sent a 2nd hand non-platinum product in the first place, then I've just had so many issues in getting the correct item sent out, and now it's not going to work as advertised... and I paid extra for insurance but SuperGPS sent it out without it even being recorded delivery!

For the record, I do not recommend anyone buy anything from SuperGPS if my experiences of how they handle complaints is anything to go by!!

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