GPSS add on for ipad?
 

anybody know of a GPS System that can be added to an ipad?

I'm not talking about something for use in cities or on highways - instead, I need something for back country use that will show good maps.

Bad Elf.

» Compatible Apps » Bad Elf

Unless you can load the map without the internet you will have a pretty blue dot in the middle of a blank display. If your map program can pull up the data layer it will work.

Foreflight. You can try it free for a while.

My Nokia E71 Smartphone on SmartTalk ($45 a month unlimited) includes GPS. Apple phones are a rip off.

GAIA. Its 9 bucks and you can download unlimited maps.

Wow, way to be a douche and not answer the question at all. he wasnt asking about the iPhone.


Randy, like glen said, unless the maps are stored in memory, it will be useless. Why not get a purpose built gps, that is more rugged, will be able to locate you in the backcountry, and will load the maps.

You want a backup E71?

I have one with N American firmware, no ATT crippling.

Sitting in a drawer, make me an offer.

My Android phones have built-in GPS - and obviously, EDGE/3G/4G to download map tiles if you're off the path you pre-cached over WiFi before setting out.

My Android tablet can tether to a phone for data and pair with a $10 bluetooth GPS for positioning data.

(Somewhat annoyingly, same tablet for non-US markets was available with both 3G and built-in GPS - some folks have added back the GPS chip to the empty spot on the motherboard).

With an iPad, you're limited to whatever Apple lets you do with your hardware, though.

You can tether the iPad to a phone via wifi. That's not the question at hand. Most places that are worth being in the backcountry won't have cell signal though.... So drop that point.

We use Ipads in the airplane and the Dual 150 GPS units are spot on. As accurate as the onboard units and last for 10 hours on a charge. Well worth it.

What Joe said - and they are wireless - connect via bluetooth. I have one on my boat...

http://www.thehulltruth.com/attachme...-ipad_dual.jpg

http://www.thehulltruth.com/attachme...ipad_dual2.jpg

http://www.thehulltruth.com/attachme...ipad_dual3.jpg

http://www.thehulltruth.com/attachme...ipad_dual4.jpg

http://www.thehulltruth.com/attachme...ipad_dual5.jpg

OK, the GPS is cool, but where are you getting the map? For the airplane you probably use nav charts. Where can you get the road map that is all loaded on the iPad?

will have to preload a map is my guess.

why are you bringing a ipad into the backcountry anyway? isnt the idea to get away from it all? what are you going to do when the battery fails? learn how to use a map and compas and you will never have technology let you down.

I suspect that is what I'll have to do.

I'm not even sure the iPhone or iPad have enuff GPSS antennas in them to do it right.

But, you'd think somebody would make an a plug in pod you could strap to the nice hi-res iPad screen and use... maybe the Dual 150 GPS is what I need...


Ted - I am pretty good with map & compass, having spent 8 months/yr for 4 years in wild areas mapping things, plus some other time after that. In my off months, I sat in the basement of a building looking at U-2 overflight photos, which were on a big roll that you cranked to move across the landscape...

But a GPSS provides incredible capabilities for my work - I used to use a ground stn. for triangulation when I was working on an Army base some years ago - that let us locate things to a couple of inches.

Today, civilian systems are so good they can do that all by themselves, not to mention that some points of interest are easier to find via GPSS than via maps or aerial photos.