[spadival]

Originally Posted by Ketan

yes, I'm there,, the only thing I dont know is how to get them to the maps in SatGuide and then route to them.

You can add POI's (Points of Interest) into Satguide maps (i.e. Destinator maps) using POIedit. However, you can not add "roads" as such. So if your POI is far away from any road on the map, it will route you to the closest "road" to the POI.

[vrrraju]

Hi,

I bought the Royaltek Bluetooth GPS receiver an year ego in Milan, Italy. I couldn't get to use it until yesterday when I connected it with SE P990i. I loaded the Trail Explorer and went on a short test trip of about 7KM(measured both on the Odometer/GPS). I recorded the trail and saved it on the phone. Once back home, downloaded the KML file then posted on Google Earth. I could see that there was to some extend very much on route. Of course sometime the trail went out of the Road close to 50m away, I hope it was due to the resolution of the GPS receiver.

So very happy that my purchase of €65 was not that bad. I hope if I can increase the resolution of the GPS receiver in the Trail explorer it would give me even better results. So happy for the purchase.

Royaltek RTB2100 Bluetooth Receiver
Sony Ericsson SE P990i
Trail Explorer GPS recording Software

[coolmob]

well i tried searching but there is no thread relating to navigation systems for cars available in india.

so can anyone of you suggest a good navigation system for metros like delhi and mumbai, any reviews on such things...

ive heard a lot about the navigation features of the devices provided by mapmyindia but feel the price is on the higher side.

[Technocrat]

You can go through following thread

Satnav GPS (Satnav Launches GPS Navigation Software)

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

Gurus, the other thread only speaks about devices, maps, licenses, etc.

My question, if I want to use GPS on my car, what equipment should I buy?

On this forum and web sites, I find GPS receivers; I find GPS enabled phones, I find GPRS phones, I find google maps, I find car computers. I find PDAs. I find bla bla bla bla. I know what those the acronyms stand for; what I would appreciate is experience sharing on GPS devices you people have. Like the "what ICE setup you have" thread.

[ak916]

Hi - I have used two GPS enabled phones. Nokia Navigator 6110 and HTC TYTN II. I can only talk about those.

Nokia 6110
+ points: Has the legendary nokia simplicity. Software comes bundled with the phone and makes it a steal at 13k. You get a nice phone, with good display and a capable music phone.
- points: Since the software is made by nokia, map updates might be slow or if nokia decides to drop pursing navigation - you might never get map updates. Battery life with the GPS is pathetic. you need a car charger all the time.

HTC TYTN -
+ points: Seriously Fast and a very very capable GPS navigation system. It can challenge a pure GPS device, any day of the week. windows based so 3rd party maps can be added. Comes with one city activation free.
- points - if you have big fingers, then this is not the phone for you. LOL

[SLK]

I have a gps phone the N82, Nokia maps are outdated, and inaccurate.

Google maps do not have routes mapping.

The only maps I found good were MapmyIndia.com, I haven't tried this on my phone but I believe it should be ok. They also have other GPS options/ devices on sale.

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

Hope the answers to following questions will add more value to the thread:-

1. We have phones with GPS built in. So what are those GPS receivers for? (there is a bluetooth GPS receiver for sale in the classifieds section); but that thing does not have any screed. ???????

2. Looks like we need software to view the maps, even for GPS enabled phones. At least for some phones.

3. Looks like maps are available only at a price. Are all maps compatible with all software? What are the compatibility issues between the phone / software / maps?

4. What other devices are available. Means something like a dedicated GPS receiver with a screen?

Has anybody tried this :- http :// www. openstreetmap. org/ (remove the white spaces - added them to prevent link parsing). Looks like that if we are not satisfied, we can actually feed in information to improve the site - I cannot parse much of the info there.

[hydrashok]

Originally Posted by BaCkSeAtDrIVeR

Hope the answers to following questions will add more value to the thread:-

1. We have phones with GPS built in. So what are those GPS receivers for? (there is a bluetooth GPS receiver for sale in the classifieds section); but that thing does not have any screed. ???????

2. Looks like we need software to view the maps, even for GPS enabled phones. At least for some phones.

3. Looks like maps are available only at a price. Are all maps compatible with all software? What are the compatibility issues between the phone / software / maps?

4. What other devices are available. Means something like a dedicated GPS receiver with a screen?

Has anybody tried this :- http :// www. openstreetmap. org/ (remove the white spaces - added them to prevent link parsing). Looks like that if we are not satisfied, we can actually feed in information to improve the site - I cannot parse much of the info there.

1) Phones with GPS built-in can act as standalone GPS devices. Buy a set of maps, load them on the phone and you're set to go. For a Nokia device, the Maps software is preloaded (Nokia Maps). Buy the map for the area you want and you're set. But practically, I don't think you get Nokia Maps for all of India yet.

You can buy aftermarket GPS software & load it on your GPS phone. Then buy the maps for the areas you want (usually from the same provider) and load them on the software. I use mapmyindia's iNavLoaded (bundle of SW & maps) on my Nokia E90. This setup keeps the maps in the memory (offline), so I can still navigate without GPRS (not all places have enough connectivity). For a short while (5 days) I used mapmyindia's iNavConnect (which was quite fine). Here, just the SW is on your phone. The Maps are dynamically downloaded through GPRS as and when the need arises, tile by tile. For this, cellular connectivty, GPRS/EDGE facility, and an unlimited GPRS package are a must.

GPS phones can also use Google Maps. Quite nice, except that you can't plan routes (I think) and you don't get turn-by-turn voice prompts. Also the maps aren't very detailed. Google Maps is free.

A separate GPS receiver is useful in the case of compatible phone without built-in GPS. A friend uses a Nokia E61i (that does not have built-in GPS) with a Holux GPS receiver (paired to the phone via Bluetooth). The Receiver provides the GPS info, while the rest of the stuff (including the display) is on the phone. If your phone has GPS built-in, you don;t need a separate GPS receiver. Generally a separate GPS receiver has better reception and locks on to the satellites quicker (wayyyyy quicker).


2). I think most of the answer to the 2nd point is in my answer to point 1. In the case of a Nokia Phone, "Nokia Maps" SW comes with the phone. You'll need to buy and download area specific maps separately. Some providers work on a subscription basis (Nokia does too, as far as I know). For example Mapmyindia used to charge 1100/- for 6 months.

About the SW, if you want to use a 3rd party provider's (a provider other than Nokia) you wil need separate SW. In most cases, the SW is literaly free (costs next to nothing), and you'll need to pay for the maps.

3) Yep, Maps need to be bought separately (if you plan to use offline maps, i.e. maps loaded in the phone memory). If you use a GPRS-based GPS setup, you buy a subscription (for a period of time), and not the maps per se. I don't think maps from one provider are compatible with the SW of another provider.

4) There are quite a few devices available. Mapmyindia & SatNav India seem to be the best known providers in India.

I'm not too familiar with the external GPS setup -- I'm just using the GPS in my E90 for kicks. I rarely drive outside the city, so for me the GPS is mostly just for fun But I guess there might come a time when I need to find my way through an unfamiliar place, and maybe then the GPS will help me.

I'm sure I've just touched the surface with my answers here -- I don't have much experience with GPS (well, almost zero experience), so I hope we'll get better info here

[SLK]

Originally Posted by hydrashok

I rarely drive outside the city, so for me the GPS is mostly just for fun But I guess there might come a time when I need to find my way through an unfamiliar place, and maybe then the GPS will help me.

Thats exactly what I've been waiting for! some unfamiliar place to go [for which I would have maps].

[badboyscad]

Currently, im using Mgmaps(Mobile GMaps - View maps from various sources on your mobile phone!) in my nokia 6220 classic. GPRS connections is not needed. This software can be used to browse maps offline.

the map coordinates( ".map" file can be downloaded from Map Creation Tool for MGMaps and converted into offline map tiles using gmapmaker (http://debin.net/gMapMaker/)

the map tiles can be stored in the mobile phone memory card and be browsed with mgmaps.

maps are pretty accurate but no voice navigation available( afterall, its a free software).

[ak916]

Originally Posted by BaCkSeAtDrIVeR

Hope the answers to following questions will add more value to the thread:-

1. We have phones with GPS built in. So what are those GPS receivers for? (there is a bluetooth GPS receiver for sale in the classifieds section); but that thing does not have any screed. ???????

So it breaks down like this. A phone needs to be able to discover satellites in order to "latch" on to them and pin point your location. For this you take a basic bluetooth enable phone and pair it to a GPS reciever which is the size of a matchbox. The GPS reciever, is just that.. only a reciever which helps locate satellites and "transfer" the findings to your phone

2. Looks like we need software to view the maps, even for GPS enabled phones. At least for some phones.

Having a BT enabled phone and a reciever enables you pin point ur own location but you will need a map to see/recognize where you are. So that calls for additional software on top of ur BT phone and GPS reciever.

3. Looks like maps are available only at a price. Are all maps compatible with all software? What are the compatibility issues between the phone / software / maps?

Maps on Nokia 6110 are free for life. I think the other nokia models have only 3 month subscription. When buying the software you will have to consider the platform your phone is running on. Generally, Windows based maps are more widely available and getting latest map updates wont be too difficult.

4. What other devices are available. Means something like a dedicated GPS receiver with a screen?

Standalone devices are available from satnav and mapmyindia.

Has anybody tried this :- http :// www. openstreetmap. org/ (remove the white spaces - added them to prevent link parsing). Looks like that if we are not satisfied, we can actually feed in information to improve the site - I cannot parse much of the info there.

The issue of how quickly a phone is able to discover your location is pretty debatable. Nokia uses a GPS reciever made by Sirf while HTC uses Qualcomm. Sirf is the market leader in standalone GPS reciever AFAIK but when it comes to GPS married to a phone, Qualcomm is leading the way. It is a hot debate on which is better... my personal opinion is Qualcomm (TYTN) is better than Sirf (6110) though I dont know how much the superior RAM/Processor on the HTC contributed in this.

Hope that helps.

Oh and forgot to add... Airtel will give you a tough time if you have a windows based phone and want to activate GPRS. They will tell you it is not possible for you to take the 99 Rs unlimited download connection and that you have to take the 499 Rs limited download connection. But if you play with the setting, you can activate the 99 bucks unlimited connection on the same windows phone.. now where is that head banging thingie... aah here

[narry]

Originally Posted by BaCkSeAtDrIVeR

Gurus, the other thread only speaks about devices, maps, licenses, etc.

My question, if I want to use GPS on my car, what equipment should I buy?

On this forum and web sites, I find GPS receivers; I find GPS enabled phones, I find GPRS phones, I find google maps, I find car computers. I find PDAs. I find bla bla bla bla. I know what those the acronyms stand for; what I would appreciate is experience sharing on GPS devices you people have. Like the "what ICE setup you have" thread.

hi
i think the best gps for car is gamin
u can try contact india garmin dealer with preloaded man
a customer who want to spend money want buy complete set with gps receiver and maps
also mobile phone i donot recomend because mobile phone is to receive and make calls
if u want a standalone gps better to buy garmin
regards
narry

@hydra- how much did you pay for the offline map?

[SLK]

Originally Posted by ak916

The issue of how quickly a phone is able to discover your location is pretty debatable. Nokia uses a GPS reciever made by Sirf while HTC uses Qualcomm. Sirf is the market leader in standalone GPS reciever AFAIK but when it comes to GPS married to a phone, Qualcomm is leading the way. It is a hot debate on which is better... my personal opinion is Qualcomm (TYTN) is better than Sirf (6110) though I dont know how much the superior RAM/Processor on the HTC contributed in this.

The latest softwares have AGPS which uses gprs to locate satellites and conect to, really fast. Then the latest nokia maps 2.0 and google maps has network based location too.

I haven't played too much with GPS while on road, but here at home sitting in my room it connects within 30-45secs. [ inside the room]

Also the GPS receiver that comes built in blackberry curve is better them my Nokia in terms of accuracy/ strength.

PS: I have unlimited GPRS on my airtel which works with windows mobile too.