More on GPS

Since last I mentioned GPS devices (link below), I’ve been playing with them non-stop.

The Nav4All service is nice, though I can’t get the voices to work, but it does the trick in giving directions. I even can get the directions in landscape orientation when I put my N93 down and open the screen in the viewing mode. I’m curious when and how much they will start charging this summer when the free time is over.

I recently switched to the Nokia GPS device (the LD-3W, I think it is). It’s pretty and slick and doesn’t rattle like the Holux (the Holux has a switch, the Nokia has a button). Minor, since the devices spend their time in my running belt or in my pocket.

In any case, I have no idea how to really compare them. So far the Holux only seems to pick up 3 satellites, while the Nokia seems to pick up 4 from the same location. The other thing is that the Holux I have came only with a USB charger. The Nokia gets charged with the standard small plug phone charger, which is better for me. Interestingly, both use the same kind of battery (the one from the Nokia 6600, 3650, 6630 and so on – the BL-5C).

I really think it’s going to end up being a matter of preference. I don’t want to seem partial to Nokia or shill their product (I work at Nokia). Also, I think the Nokia is more expensive at the moment, so that would influence my selection as well. But I didn’t get the Nokia sales pack, only the GPS module, so I don’t know what you would get in a sales pack.

What’s more, when I got the Holux, I didn’t know that Nokia had come out with a new GPS device. Y’see, the Holux has this new SiFR III chip that’s supposed to be super. And, as far as I knew, the one Nokia GPS device I knew of never mentioned what it had. But, reviewing the specs of the new Nokia GPS device online, I saw that it also has the SiFR III chip-set. So, I’m expecting this new Nokia module to be as good as the Holux (if not better) and better than the earlier generation Nokia GPS module (naturally).

David Smith has a few more comments on his site.

A parting thought:
One question that I get when talking about GPS and coming from Nokia is, why isn’t GPS in all the phones?

No idea.

I am sure there is a reason related to size of chip-set, power issues, usability, licensing, pricing, target users, etc, etc, etc (as Yul Brynner would say). It’s one thing when you make thousands of niche devices. It’s another thing when your business case calls for millions of phones.

So far, Nokia has the modules and a GPS phone cover. But, integrated into the phone? I have no idea if that’s a reality (it’s a big company). The closest I know is the Location Framework in Series 60. Maybe one of the licensees will design a GPS phone. Go bug them. 🙂

Link: Lifeblog: Is GPS all that it is cracked up to be?

Soon I’ll also be testing the Nokia Wireless GPS Module (imaginative name, huh?), too.