[Russell-Evans]

I bought the Amod 128MB GPS Photo Tracker - AGL3080 before I received the Droid as a B-day present from my wife. The cost is minimal, $57.95, not counting 4-7% Cashback from Bing.

It uses three AAA batteries, is pretty small, and just works. The size of the GPS is 3.5 inches long, by 1.5 inches wide, by 7/8 of an inch tall. With the three Eneloops AAA batteries installed, the weight is about 3 oz. The mini USB B to USB A cord for connecting the unit to a computer is 18 inches long. You can turn the unit off when not needed so the 15-20 hours of battery life can actually be days or weeks of use depending on the frequency of shooting periods. Switching the unit on again when you are ready to shoot creates a new log file. I don't think there are any limits on the number of files or the number of data points in those files, except for the limits imposed by the 128Mb storage size and the file system.

Turning the unit on and getting tracking only takes a couple of seconds when the satellite data file doesn't need to be replaced. When it does need to be replaced, it like all GPS units, it takes awhile for the file to download. I think the file has to be downloaded ever two months or if the GPS physically makes a large leap when turned off. I'm not sure of the actual distance required, but it seems pretty large.

The 128Mb size sounds small by todays standards, but I choose to log all the data, and set the polling interval to five seconds, which gives something like ten days of data storage on the device. The photo track merging software that came with it I didn't install, as I think it only supported jpegs. I just went directly to another software solution. The unit doesn't have a clock on it, so you have to sync your camera with another clock, which mean setting the clock on the camera before setting out to shoot. The interface is primitive so you set it up and leave it, although the marketing material makes it sound like you can do this on the fly. You can, it just requires understanding the LED codes, but it just wasn't something I wanted to do or needed to do.

Over 15 hours with three standard AAA batteries.
Chipset: SiRF Star III high performance low power GPS receiver IC.
Channels: 20 parallel tracking channels.
Protocol: NEMA 0183 GGA, GSA, GSV, RMC. WAAS/EGNOS
Maximum log points: 1,380,000 (RMC), approximate 3,833 logging hours.
Logging mode: 6 logging modes, can be set in device setting mode.
Interface: USB 2.0 full speed, appears as thumb drive.

The unit next to my "funny" house keys to give an idea about size.




Thank you
Russell

[Nimrad]

Try an iphone with a GPS app. That should be pretty compatible.

Thank you
Russell

I'm sorry, but awful suggestion. It would drain my battery extremely fast and I wouldn't be able to use the phone at the same time. My iPhone will only work as a backup solution when I haven't brought my regular GPS-solution.

[Nimrad]

Still haven't found the right device by the way. Why is there nothing with ~40 hours battery life and storage on memory card(I'd like to be able to store 2 months of GPS tracking, or 6 months for that matter for long-term travel and photography).

[Russell-Evans]

I'm sorry, but awful suggestion. It would drain my battery extremely fast and I wouldn't be able to use the phone at the same time. My iPhone will only work as a backup solution when I haven't brought my regular GPS-solution.

The iphone must suck eggs then. I can use my phone when tracking and I can have the gps on all day without killing the battery. Oh well, maybe the new iphone will be better?

Thank you
Russell

[Russell-Evans]

Still haven't found the right device by the way. Why is there nothing with ~40 hours battery life and storage on memory card(I'd like to be able to store 2 months of GPS tracking, or 6 months for that matter for long-term travel and photography).

The little unit I posted will store 159 days of data at 24 hours a day. That's a year for 12 hour days, a year and a half for 8 hour days; just with 128Mb of storage. If you need 40 hours of battery, just take another set of three AAA eneloops, problem solved.

Thank you
Russell

[Nimrad]

The iphone must suck eggs then. I can use my phone when tracking and I can have the gps on all day without killing the battery. Oh well, maybe the new iphone will be better?

Thank you
Russell

Can you really run your iPhone with GPS-tracking for 10 hours without killing the battery?

I think though you understand that I can't use the iPhone for that sort of stuff every day when travelling. I need to use it as a phone too you know.. And music, and GPS-navigation etc. etc.

The little unit I posted will store 159 days of data at 24 hours a day. That's a year for 12 hour days, a year and a half for 8 hour days; just with 128Mb of storage. If you need 40 hours of battery, just take another set of three AAA eneloops, problem solved.

Thank you
Russell

That's awesome except I need to either bring tons of batteries or buy a big charger that will take up precious space and weight when travelling. Other than that, it would be perfect...

[Entropy]

I had an AGL3080, I was not happy with its lock times nor its sensitivity/accuracy performance. It seems to be using non-optimized settings for the SiRF chipset, and since the interface to the SiRF goes directly to the logger, you can't change it.

It appears, unfortunately, that you have a choice of an in-unit rechargeable Li-Ion battery OR large memory, not both. The i-Blue units with MicroSDs are AAA-powered, while the Li-Ion powered ones have built-in memory. Seems common to the other units too.

[GingerBeer]

I went with the Gisteq PhotoTrackr Lite. It is still on its way to Australia but I'll update with some comments once I've used it a bit.

I had been using a GPS tracking program on my Blackberry Bold and the Geosetter software. It all worked fine but the GPS was a severe drain on the Blackberry's batteries. Not a major problem day-to-day but for things like weekend camping trips, particularly when I need to use the GPS navigation to get home, it wasn't ideal.

[Russell-Evans]

I had an AGL3080, I was not happy with its lock times nor its sensitivity/accuracy performance.

As long as the unit didn't need to update the file, the times for start up are pretty quick on mine, about 2 seconds. When the file needs updating, the six minutes or so for updating can seem like a lifetime. The Droid and a car GPS we have are the same, so I assumed this was pretty universal. This is an interesting read: http://gpsinformation.net/main/warmcold.htm .

The accuracy is also pretty spot on for my unit. I tried both firmware versions and the one without the damping was really jumpy and was all over the place, but the one with the damping was pretty amazingly accurate. It could be off by about which side of a residential street I was on, but that was about it. My issue with the unit is mostly with the lack of a clock to be able to photograph. This isn't really a concern now that I have the droid and know its clock is synced to the same satellites.

Thank you
Russell

[Russell-Evans]

Can you really run your iPhone with GPS-tracking for 10 hours without killing the battery?

I've never had an issue with the battery giving out so can't really say I've noticed for sure. To be sure I'll test it out for you. I'll charge the battery to 100% and once's that's done, I'll start tracking and see how long I can go without a charge. This will include some talk time, probably an hour or so, as I call my mother usually everyday and talk for 30-40 minutes with few other short calls.

EDIT: I tested the battery life with tracking. I'm getting the 15% low battery warning at about 10.4 hours of tracking. This is with the phone with very little other use, a couple of phone calls is all. I guess buying another battery for the Droid might be a good idea.

I think though you understand that I can't use the iPhone for that sort of stuff every day when travelling. I need to use it as a phone too you know.. And music, and GPS-navigation etc. etc.

I see, different use pattern. I'm using GPS-navigation and music in the car where there is a charger. I don't walk around with music and headphones. I do use the navigation for walking, but I think the app behaves much differently in walking mode, it isn't doing audio, isn't doing street view, and isn't having to update the maps as I'm not walking that fast. I do try to turn off wifi and run an app killer to maximize battery. Web surfing seems to be where I lose the most power.

That's awesome except I need to either bring tons of batteries or buy a big charger that will take up precious space and weight when travelling. Other than that, it would be perfect...

You are going to need a charger for any electrical device. Leaving it at home thinking you will get enough battery time on any electrical device is going to catch up to you sooner or later. You're going end up carrying a charger at some point after that. If you bought a standard battery type GPS, you could just buy batteries locally if a charger is that much an issue, however. I personally just don't like to use disposables unless I have to. I carry a flash so carry a charger for the eneloops anyway. The eneloop charger I have weighs about 4 oz. The AC/DC charger I have for the camera and the Droid charger weighs about the same. That's about 12oz in chargers.

If the trip is not work related, where I try to save weight is in not carrying a laptop. I just have enough SD cards to last for a reasonable time, and the Droid for whatever connectivity I need. If the trip is remote, then this is a different set of requirements.

Anyway, if it doesn't work for you, it doesn't work for you, and I was only trying to give you some more options to think about, not convince you that this is the only possible solution. Using the Droid works for me for day to day tracking, so I thought the Ipohone could work for you. The little AMOD unit works for me when I want to save all the battery I can on the Droid. That's all.

Thank you
Russell

[Nimrad]

I'm gonna use it when backpacking... Weight and space is crucial. I can do with a USB-cable for charging, but chargers for 4 AA/AAA-batteries tend to be big. I already have a small AC/DC to USB charger, so a small USB-cable for charging won't hurt at all. I'm not bringing a laptop either, so with small intagrated memory I'd have to find internet cafe's to upload my files all the time. No way!

I have found 2 models that are both acceptable, but they ain't perfect, and they are very expensive.
The best is Genie GT-31. 31 hours and SD-compatible, but no autotagging photos on SD-card(I can live with that though).$135
The second is Wintec WBT-202. microSD and 28 hours battery. And this is also firmware-upgradeable. But, I don't know how good the reception is. I've never heard of the chipset it uses.

Unless someone gives me an alternative with good rechargeable battery, able to directly tag photos I'll soon buy the wintec.

[Entropy]

As long as the unit didn't need to update the file, the times for start up are pretty quick on mine, about 2 seconds. When the file needs updating, the six minutes or so for updating can seem like a lifetime. The Droid and a car GPS we have are the same, so I assumed this was pretty universal. This is an interesting read: Warm Start/Cold Start/Autolocate> What do they mean? .

The accuracy is also pretty spot on for my unit. I tried both firmware versions and the one without the damping was really jumpy and was all over the place, but the one with the damping was pretty amazingly accurate. It could be off by about which side of a residential street I was on, but that was about it. My issue with the unit is mostly with the lack of a clock to be able to photograph. This isn't really a concern now that I have the droid and know its clock is synced to the same satellites.

Thank you
Russell

Even without loading AGPS data, my iBlue 747A+ locked within a minute - indoors within my apartment! With AGPS data preloaded, lock time is practically instant.

Static navigation (damping) is bad when on foot. A good GPS unit should give a good track without static navigation enabled. The tracks from my iBlue are far less "jumpy" than the AGL3080s were, especially under tree cover and in gorges.

You shouldn't ever need to photograph the clock on the GPS. Your photos are timestamped in the EXIF, and the trackpoints are timestamped in the log - this is all you need to correlate unless your camera's clock is set wrong.

As to the u-Blox chipset used in that WBT-202 - u-Blox has quite a good reputation, just not sure how it compares to the MTK2.

[Russell-Evans]

You shouldn't ever need to photograph the clock on the GPS. Your photos are timestamped in the EXIF, and the trackpoints are timestamped in the log - this is all you need to correlate unless your camera's clock is set wrong.

A photo of a clock set to GPS time is the simple solution to time correlation. You have the GPS time captured and you have the time stamp to the second in the EXIF data. Now you can correlate the two. I'm not sure how you are correlating your data to the camera's clock?

I looked at an iblue tracker since you posted it and it looks like a nice solution. I just found the AGL3080 in my price range when I was looking about a year ago and bought it. I just don't have a reason now to spend again for a solution right now, as I'm happy with the performance.

Thank you
Russell

[Lowell Goudge]

A photo of a clock set to GPS time is the simple solution to time correlation. You have the GPS time captured and you have the time stamp to the second in the EXIF data. Now you can correlate the two. I'm not sure how you are correlating your data to the camera's clock?

I looked at an iblue tracker since you posted it and it looks like a nice solution. I just found the AGL3080 in my price range when I was looking about a year ago and bought it. I just don't have a reason now to spend again for a solution right now, as I'm happy with the performance.

Thank you
Russell

I use geotracker, which has a menu for time syncronizing the GPS and camera. You can make adjustments down to the second, and one of the fields shows the time your camera should be displaying, with your adjustment. The only time I have been tripped up is when DST changed a year or so ago, and I had an error of an hour that I had not considered.

[Russell-Evans]

I use geotracker, which has a menu for time syncronizing the GPS and camera. You can make adjustments down to the second, and one of the fields shows the time your camera should be displaying, with your adjustment. The only time I have been tripped up is when DST changed a year or so ago, and I had an error of an hour that I had not considered.

So you're reading the time right off the GPS?

Thank you
Russell