Confused Newbie

moray · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jun 01, 2004 Posts: 3

I'm looking to get a PDA + Sat Nav system.

I have been looking at a few sites, and would like the TomTom system.
My biggest problem is what PDA to get. The main use for the PDA would will be for Sat Nav (I've already got a laptop for using when away from home), so I probably don't need the latest state of the art PDA.
I like the IPAQs, but what model + accesories would I need?

Although I can fully understand the spec of a normal computer, PDA specs/features mean nothing to me. Is there any online guides explaining the various PDA features?

I will also be looking at using the Sat Nav to replace my existing Morpheous Geodesy speed camera locator, and have been looking at the Trafcam package. Is this the best option for speed camera locating?

Another problem I'm going to have is that my new car (only 3 weeks to wait now :-) ), is going to have a heat reflective windscreen. I guess that I'll need a GPS re-radiating antenna to use any gps device inside the car. What re-radiating antennas are available?

Privateer · Posted: Tue Jun 01, 2004 9:53 pm Post subject:

Hi Moray,

to the forum.

A large proportion of the people here use iPAQs so you’d be in good company if you went for one of those. I’m afraid that I’m not fully up on current iPAQs, but there are basically three that you could look at: 2210, 4150, and the 5550. It depends on whether you do want to use the iPAQ purely for SatNav or for other things once you get one. Do you need Wi-Fi? If so, then the 4150 or the 5550 are the ones to go for. Other wise the 2210 seems the choice for many especially as it has both SD and CF slots which is a real boon.

This leads us onto storage for map data. You can either use SD or CF if your PDA accepts it. SD is smaller than CF, but CF is generally cheaper than an SD card of the same memory. As for memory size the absolute minimum is 256MB but the bigger the better. If you use SD then keep away from the Scandisk make, which has a very poor reputation on this forum.

Your next consideration is the type of GPS receiver of which there are three: CF, wired, and Bluetooth. Bluetooth has come of age and whilst there are many different ones have a look at the Fortuna Clip-On or the Navman 4100. If you use Bluetooth then you can locate the receiver on the rear parcel shelf, as your rear screen will probably not be heat reflective. Alternatively you could go for wired and TomTom’s own is pretty good.

If you go for TomTom Navigator 3 then you have a choice of additional POIs (including a free Speed camera database) and a POI detector like CheckPOInt or GPSAssist. I used to run a Morpheous Geodesy and the free camera database is as good in the areas than I’ve travelled. Thumbs Up

Regards,
_________________
Robert.
iPhone 6s Plus, iOS 14.0.1: iOS CamerAlert v2.0.7
TomTom GO Mobile iOS 2.3.1; TomTom (UK & ROI and Europe) iOS apps v1.29
Garmin Camper 770 LMT-D

moray · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jun 01, 2004 Posts: 3

Having looked at iPAQs a bit more, I'm beginning to understand the different features.
I'll probably go for the 4150, (to get the wifi support for connecting to the laptop), although I may stretch the funds and get a 5550. I'll have to wait until I get the new car and see how much money I have left first.

I've been looking around, and can get a Kingston SD 512Mb for about £80. I'd guess that this would be a good card as it's from a reputable maker?

I'm planning on getting the wired tomtom GPS reciever, as I see the BT one only lasts about 5-6 hours between charges, and I'm quite often on the move for longer than that. Also I'd prefer not to have the hassle of having to remember to charge the reciever.

The idea for putting the receiver on the rear parcel shelf wouldn't work very well, as it's a hatch, and the rear window is near vertical. I was planning on positioning a re-radiating receiver under the plastic grill at the bottom of the windscreen (I got this idea from the morpheus site for locating there re-radiating antenna), and then running the re-radaiting into the passenger compartment near to the wired reciever (possibly in the glove box or under the dash).

I'll wait until I get the GPS working, and then consider the different Speed Camera options. I liked the idea of Trafcam, as it tells you the type of camera you're approaching, but I'll probably try the free options first.

Thanks
Moray

DavidW · Posted: Wed Jun 02, 2004 10:52 pm Post subject:

The 4150 or 5550 would both be reasonable choices - though if you're not interested in expansion packs (sometimes called sleeves), the only significant gain with the 5550 is that it has more RAM (128MB rather than 64MB). There are other minor differences, but they're not likely to matter much (for example, the 5550 has fingerprint recognition security). It's also bigger and heavier than a 4150.

The 5550 seems destined to be replaced fairly soon - there are a new range of iPAQs coming, though all we've got are rumours from fairly reliable sources. The new high end machine, supposedly called the iPAQ hx4700, will apparently not support expansion packs (which HP appear finally to be dropping - they never really developed this technology after they merged with Compaq). The new machine will, if the rumours are right, have a VGA resolution screen (just a little larger than the current 5550 screen - all current iPAQs are quarter VGA), a CompactFlash slot as well as an SDIO slot and a 624MHz processor - retaining the 128MB RAM, built in Bluetooth and built in Wi-Fi of the current 5550.

Some reports indicate that HP has already declared the 5550 end of life and might have stopped manufacture already.

If you're serious about the 5550 as opposed to the 4150 and can hang on two or three months, it may well be worth the wait. There are other new machines coming (another one that might make its appearance fairly soon is the rumoured iPAQ 6310 - which is an iPAQ Pocket PC Phone Edition with built in GSM/GPRS hardware - the irony of the model number bearing in mind the very successful Nokia 6310i phone is not lost on me!). On the other hand, the chances are that the 4150 will be one of the last machines to be replaced from the current range, as it's the most recent of the current iPAQs.

Don't forget that you can use the 2210 with a CompactFlash Wi-Fi card or even an SDIO Wi-Fi card.

We've had mention of the Kingston SD card before. It's from a manufacturer as yet unknown. Unfortunately even good brands (like Lexar) have rebadged some mediocre and even terrible SD cards.

Panasonic made SD cards are usually regarded as the best performing - my experiences bear this out, with Toshiba made cards a reasonable alternative (the read speed is close to Panasonic, but they're much slower at writing). I recently went from 256MB Toshiba to 512MB Panasonic.

Currently, a 512MB Panasonic made SD card can be had from ValueFlash for around 100 pounds delivered. This situation will change over time - for now, they've probably still got the batch of 512MB Integral cards that they know are Panasonic (if you mark the 'intended usage' field "Must be Panasonic" when you order, they should know what you're on about). In time, that batch will run out - they think if they get another batch from Integral it won't be Panasonic. However, they'll try to keep Panasonic made cards available - the performance is worth it.

Definitely avoid Sandisk SD cards and rebadges thereof - they're abysmal.

I hope that's helpful. Speed camera stuff is probably best left until your system is set up.

David

moray · Occasional Visitor Joined: Jun 01, 2004 Posts: 3

I was hoping to get a gps system up and running by the end of the month, as I'm going on holiday to wales + ireland (I know there's no map coverage for ireland yet so it'll have to be the good old atlas for there).
So I'll be buying one of the current iPAQs, and from what you've said, I think I'll just go for the 4150, and spend the bit extra on a panasonic SD 512mb card for it.

Thanks guys for the advice.

Moray

DavidW · Posted: Thu Jun 03, 2004 12:18 am Post subject:

That sounds like a good plan - you can always hang around waiting for something new to come along, but there comes a point where you have a need for the equipment and you have to buy. I've just reached this point with a laptop and video projector - I know, particularly with the laptop, that there'll always be enhancements around the corner, but the other user I'm going to share this laptop with needs it within the next few weeks, so we had to get Dell building the machine now.

The 4150 is, by all accounts, a very usable machine - and the extra spent on a 5550 is probably not worthwhile.

Don't forget to budget for a good car mount. I don't think TomTom have yet brought out a proper car kit for the 4150, but hopefully someone has a recommendation, possibly from amongst the Brodit range (I'm using a Brodit mount on a Brodit ProClip in my car). Brodit 849591 (that's a link - click on the smaller words) may do it - use it with a TomTom cable for the GPS. The cable plugs into the mount, and the iPAQ goes into the mount. See http://www.brodit.com (also a link) for details of the ProClips) - don't forget to select Right Hand Drive! You'll need to find someone that sells the Brodit bits and pieces - try Handnav (see the adverts to the right...).

David

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