This is a tiny bluetooth Gps receiver which I bought from movable Fun Ltd, I bought this to associate to my O2 Xda 2i Pda and it cost nearby £40. I was intially finding on google for cheap Gps receivers and this came up as the cheapest. I understanding at that price they'll be a catch, and the catch ordinarily being poor performance, but I was pleasantly surprised! This thing no ifs ands or buts does work, and works well!
After searching for preliminary reviews on this gadget I came up with very tiny other than the reviews from movable Fun Ltd, which I was reluctant to trust for fear of them being somewhat biased. I understanding for £40 I'll take a chance and so bought it, all credit to movable Fun the receiver arrived the very next morning. Upon chance the box I was a tiny disappointed, all the there was by means of instructions was a small sheet of paper that had been loosely translated from Japanese to English by a dyslexic toddler. You can download the user by hand from here and the Tomtom pairing by hand from here. After following these instructions you will have it set up in no time. Another thing I noticed was that there is no manufaturer's name or marks in any place on the gadget or the packaging, which makes searching for support quite difficult.
A nice touch with this tiny gadget is that it is supplied with a battery that is base to a lot of Nokia phones (3.7V 850mAh Li-polymer battery, Bl-5C), a quick quest on ebay means that you can get change batteries for these receivers for about £4 which is good to know should you need one.
What's In The Box?
Bluetooth Gps Receiver x1
12v In Car Adapter (Usb) x1
Basic Instructions x1
Battery x1
Usb Charging Cable x1
Installation
Provided you follow the tiny instructions for pairing with your device, and the Tomtom setup instructions, you should be up and running in less than 5 minutes. I have only expensed the receiver once since I bought it about 2 months ago, the battery just seems to last forever! The supplied in car charger and Usb cable means that the receiver can be expensed on the move from a 12v source and can also be expensed from any Pc or laptop. From cold start up the receiver aquires a usuable Gps signal exremely quickly, quicker than most of the no ifs ands or buts costly Gps receivers that I've come in palpate with. The gadget is very small and can no ifs ands or buts fit into any space in your car, or even your pocket if you're using it for walking or cycling.
One small question I did have is that when using it with my Xda 2i the Tomtom software would often freeze and cause me to stop the car, reboot my phone, then carry on my journey. At first I understanding this was the follow of the Xda losing its association with the bluetooth receiver and hence confirming my fears about the price of this product. It speedily became apparent that this was not the case and it was in fact an issue with my Pda and the Tomtom software.
I speedily discovered a workaround for this issue between the Tomtom software and my Xda that enables the whole principles to work flawlessly. I shall write a 'how to' on this workaround shortly as I'm sure many other Xda 2i users share the same problem.
I do know that there is a known issue when using any bluetooth Gps receivers with the O2 Xda 2 (note not Xda 2i) due to the bluetooth stack settings that are shipped with the phone, please be aware of this before buying this gadget as you are sure to encounter problems.
Key Features
Compatible with TomTom, Navicore, and all major Gps software packages.
12 parallel satellite-tracking channels for fast acquisition and reacquisition.
Provides first-rate navigation carrying out in city environments.
Built-in rechargeable Lithium-polymer battery provides more than 10 hours of constant use.
Unit can be expensed with the included car charger while still in use.
Mini-Usb charger compatiblty, charge not only the Bluetooth Gps Receiver but also compatible Pdas & Smart Phones with the same charger.
3 colours Led to show the status of Bluetooth/Gps/Power activities of this device.
Specifications
Gps receiver: L1, C/A code, 12 channels
Tracking sensitivity: -152dBm (average) or better
Acquisition sensitivity: -139dBm (average) or better
Ttff (Time to First Fix): Cold Start: 50s (average) / 60s (95% possibility)
Warm Start: 35s (average) / 40s (95% possibility)
Hot Start: 2s (minimum) / 6s (95% possibility)
Positioning accuracy: acceptable Positioning aid (Sps), Waas (optional) 2Drms: approx. 5m
Measurement data output: update time: 1 second
Nmea output protocol: V.3.01
Baud rate: 38400 bps (8-N-1)
Datum: Wgs-84
Type: Gga, Gsa, Gsv, Rmc
Power consumption: 75mA (average)
Bluetooth: Bluetooth version 1.2 compliant
Class 2 carrying out (up to 10 metre range)
Serial Port Profile (Spp)
Output terminal: Type B Mini-Usb (Ttl Level)
Antenna Type: Built in Patch Antenna
Battery: 3.7V 850mAh Li-polymer battery, built-in charger
Led: Power (red), Gps (green), Bluetooth (blue)
Dimension: 64(L) x 39(W) x18.5(H) mm
Operating temperature: -20°C ~ +60°C
Storage temperature: -20°C ~ +60°C; Battery: -20°C ~ +45°C
Conclusion
A great tiny gadget that performs well beyond its price range. Check if there is any known issues with your gadget and bluetooth Gps receivers before purchase as this will save you a lot of headaches. The only thing that lets this stock down is a lack of documentation and online support, other than this well worth the buy!
johnsreviews rating: 8/10
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| Price : $4.99 | Post Date : Jan 08, 2012 09:21:07
