Looking for a change in your road travel experience? Need guidance getting from one location to another seeing as though you are “directionally-challenged?” Want to throw away that paper map once and for all? You can do all of these things and more by simply taking control of your navigation experience with a handy gadget created with this purpose in mind. Lot’s of other people before you have falling victim to the peer pressure, only to be happy that they did. So what are you waiting for? It’s time for you to learn the four reasons why we all need GPS systems.
Safety and Convenience
One of the most cited reasons why we all need GPS systems is the safety and convenience they provide. Whether you’re traveling across the country, or across your city, it is good to have the added assistance of an accurate, always predictable, electronic device to help guide you on your journey. By getting your hands on one of these units, you never have to worry about pulling out your paper map again, as the virtual map gives you up-to-date information on where you’re traveling in 2D or 3D viewing options. When was the last time a paper map did this for you? With this type of device in your corner, you get a convenient driving experience with the added assurance that you and your children a safely traveling from point A to point B.
Never Get Lost
If you very often point left when you’re speaking the word “right” then it is possible that you are directionally challenged. But that is okay, because one of the reasons why we all need GPS systems is that these handy devices are never confused and can guide you across the country when you can’t guide yourself out of a paper bag. A navigation system in particular is perfect for those needing turn-by-turn instructions to their location – the entire way. The way it works is very simple. Once you enter the “to and from” locations, the device simply will guide you by voicing instructions like “in 500 feet, turn right.” Once you get to the point of needing to turn, the system will voice the words “turn right.” With this type of hands-on instruction in your corner, you simply can’t go wrong. Just make sure when the system tells you to turn right, you turn right.
Finding Businesses and Other Addresses is a Breeze
Another one of the reasons why we all need GPS systems is the POI (point of interest) database that allows you to locate businesses and other addresses by simply scrolling through listings that may be over a million deep. So let’s say for instance, you want to dine at a specific restaurant in your area, but when you get there, you find out it is closed for remodeling. At first, you’re disappointed, that is until you remember that your friend had gone to another great restaurant and had been trying to convince you to go for a long time. You want to call your friend for directions, but he is traveling overseas and can’t be reached. Instead of giving up on this tasty experience, you can visit your POI database to find a listing for the restaurant. After you’ve found it, you simply map out directions, have the system’s navigation guide you, and enjoy the best dining of your life.
That’s definitely one of the benefits of these databases, but many devices take their POI feature even further to offer some variation of proximity alerts, which let you know when you’re within a certain distance of a POI – especially if one is a school zone or safety camera. It will let you know to slow down in time with both visual and audio alerts, then rest when you can regain your normal speed.
Download Great Software
One of the reasons why we all need GPS systems is that, in addition to getting to take advantage of all of the extras that come with most systems, you can also download more great stuff. There are websites all over the Internet that offer free software for better mapping options, more detailed navigation features, and even programs that allow you to share your road trip experiences with others.
Found enough reasons why we all need GPS systems in our lives? If this list isn’t enough for you, there are many more where that came from. But if you think about it, the benefits listed here can definitely improve your quality of travel many times over. So think about this when you’re looking for more reasons why we all need GPS systems. You’ll find that if you just think about it, you already have every reason you need.
By: Jeffrey Meier
Posts Tagged ‘Convenience’
How GPS Locators Help Find Lost People And Vehicles
December 27th, 2009
When your visiting a strange country or city wouldn’t it be nice to be able to push a button on a hand held device, and find out exactly where you are. With the advancements that have been made with technology people are able to do this today with a GPS locator.
For safety and convenience, there are GPS locators that have been designed to look like wrist watches for children, and they are able to help parents keep track of their children at all times. Some GPS services can be tracked through a family’s home computer, while others are designed to connect to a GPS service system and a child’s location can be learned by making a phone call. A child’s location can be tracked to within five feet. This type of service can provide the parent with the nearest street address of their child, or if its requested they can contact emergency services.
Still other GPS locator units are installed in cell phones and its location can be tracked with a simple phone call. You can contact the location unit using your telephone and the cell phones whereabouts can be quickly located. As long as your child is carrying a GPS device, you can feel comfortable knowing that you will be able to locate your child anywhere using your GPS locator unit.
Keep Tabs On Anything Important To You
You can track virtually anything you want to with a GPS locator since the size of these units have grown significantly smaller over the past few years. You could even use one to track down and locate your luggage if it does not arrive on the same plane as you did, this makes finding lost luggage a lot easier for airlines. It won’t get your luggage to you any faster, but with a GPS locator inside of your suitcase you know will know where luggage is located, and how fast it is being returned to you.
With a GPS locator unit hidden inside your vehicle, you will have an extra set of eyes on the new driver in your household that is trying to earn your trust while they are driving your car. If they tell you they spent the day in school, but the GPS locator unit tells you they were at a nearby amusement park, you can use this knowledge to teach your child a lesson in honesty.
By: G. Mira
Bluetooth GPS Vs CF GPS
November 3rd, 2009
For some people there is a debate over which to choose a Bluetooth GPS receiver or a compact flash GPS receiver. I have used both so I am writing from experience. There seem to be quite a few advantages a Bluetooth GPS receiver has over a cf GPS receiver.
The main advantage would be versatility, you can use a Bluetooth GPS receiver with a Bluetooth PDA as well as a compatible Bluetooth mobile phone whereas with a cf GPS receiver you are limited to only a compatible PDA as mobile phones usually don’t have a cf slot.
Another advantage is with regards to battery life, some Bluetooth GPS receivers have exceptional battery life lasting up to 26 hours, some mobile phones also have a long life, although a PDA won’t last anywhere near that, when using a cf GPS receiver the PDA battery is usually depleted faster as the it has to also power the cf receiver since the cf receiver can’t work on its own
The third consideration is convenience, one can find some new GPS receivers that are extremely small, the Holux GPSlim 236 comes to mind, because of their size and sensitivity you can stick them in your pocket and still get a very good signal so you don’t have anything sticking out of the PDA as is the case with a cf GPS receiver.
Another thing to consider is that a lot of newer PDAs seem to be loosing the compact flash interface, a good example is the Fujitsu Siemens Loox 720, it has being rumoured that the Loox 720 replacement won’t be including a cf interface. My conclusion would be it seems that manufacturers don’t consider the cf interface that important to include in newer PDAs, kind of like being phased out so it might not be a good idea to invest in cf devices
My final argument would be that when it comes to using a GPS receiver for driving, it is easier to position a Bluetooth GPS receiver in a convenient position where it can receive a better signal than with a cf GPS receiver because since the cf GPS receiver is fixed to the PDA, you are limited by how much you can move the PDA around and still have a good view of the PDA screen.
Based on all these facts I would consider a Bluetooth GPS receiver a better choice to a cf GPS receiver.
By: Francis Ononye
