GPS/ NAVIGATION

Submitted: Monday, May 24, 2010 at 12:25

ThreadID: 78726 Views:3420 Replies:4 FollowUps:7

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GPS Units, Navigators & SatNav

In this article we look at ready to go navigation devices and satnav units. You'll learn how different devices work, their limitations and advantages plus we include a section on the hybrid Hema

Peter Horne [Krakka]

Was looking at 5 and 7 inch gps's on ebay, what are peoples thoughts on essential features. ie: internal flash memory, expandable external memory, reversing camera compatability, screen size and/or resolution, windows5.0CE or windows 6.0CE, No. of channels/ 12-20-32-64. etc,etc. My current gps is a Garmin 12XL so quite a step up what ever I do.

Regards
Peter

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Reply By: Member - Doug T (NT) - Monday, May 24, 2010 at 12:33

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 12:33

Forget all about ebay, I have read where people get a gps from there, the problems arise (and this is for Garmins) when the purchaser tries to register it, updates, codes etc, and no warranty, gawd damn it the price has come way down, go and get one from a reputable dealer and get the after sales service,

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Follow Up By: Fab72 - Monday, May 24, 2010 at 12:43

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 12:43

Agree .... talking to someone who knows their product will answer most of the questions you have based on your exact needs. JB Hi-Fi have them cheap and so do Dick Smiths.

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Follow Up By: Member - Doug T (NT) - Monday, May 24, 2010 at 12:58

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 12:58

Fab72
The trouble with places like DSE, Harvey Norman and JB-HI is that the sales person knows stuff all about the product he/she is selling, all they want is to get a sale and see the product go out the door, Johnny Appleseed GPS and GPS-Oz know the products and will give after sales service and help the buyer choose the right product.

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Follow Up By: Peter Horne [Krakka] - Monday, May 24, 2010 at 15:57

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 15:57

Thanks Doug, but can get the equivalent to 5" Hema navigator on ebay for under $200.00, Australian seller, Australian warranty and aftersales service. You are right about HN and DSE, JB no idea.

FollowupID: 687996

Reply By: Member - res.q.guy (Vic.) - Monday, May 24, 2010 at 14:47

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 14:47

Hi Peter
The following sites may be of interest to you :
Deals Extreme
Menu System
Cheers
Neil

AnswerID: 417941

Follow Up By: Member - joc45 (WA) - Monday, May 24, 2010 at 21:57

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 21:57

Yep, bought one of these, works well, now have Aust iGO and raster maps installed, OziCE, all on an 8GB SD card (comes with 2GB and USA maps). Nice unit. Only criticism is the battery life, about 1 hour, but if you're running it in the car, then not a problem.
5" is a nice size - the 7" ones can be a bit too big up on the dashboard.
Gerry

FollowupID: 688062

Reply By: Member - Gary J (NSW) - Monday, May 24, 2010 at 15:27

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 15:27

I won't go into the pro's and con's of brands or which retailer to buy from.
7" screens are fairly big and can be heavy. Extra weight on the mounting bracket, not usually as bright as smaller screens and could cause problems with forward vision.
I think 5" is a good compromise.
Having said that, I bought an unlocked 5" unit on ebay, runs windows CE 6.0, SIRF IV chipset, 2G internal flash memory and now has Oziexplorer maps loaded.

AnswerID: 417945

Follow Up By: Peter Horne [Krakka] - Monday, May 24, 2010 at 15:58

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 15:58

Thanks Gary, good info.

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Follow Up By: Dasher Des - Monday, May 24, 2010 at 16:49

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 16:49

G'day Krakka, There is a bloke around here who can chase down cheap deals on most things IT. Not sure about his reputation though. Just to give you a heads up, he drives a Challenger and it's been at the repairer's for nearly a week now.

FollowupID: 688006

Follow Up By: Peter Horne [Krakka] - Monday, May 24, 2010 at 16:57

Monday, May 24, 2010 at 16:57

Thanks Dasher, will look him up.
Regards
Peter

FollowupID: 688008

Reply By: Member - Rod V (NT) - Sunday, May 30, 2010 at 12:06

Sunday, May 30, 2010 at 12:06

I bought a hema navigator 5 which I used on my 8500km trip from Katherine Adelaide Melbourne, through the Snowy tracks looking for the huts, up to Bourketown and west back to Katherine via the Savannah track. It never missed a beat took me through the major towns and missed all the toll roads, will be using it through the Gibb River road next month, good thing is you can load your own maps via Oziexplorer plus get memoryMaps as well. If you buy them from Ebay you have trouble with warranty.

AnswerID: 418761