Customer Reviews

HP iPAQ Bluetooth GPS Navigation System for 1945, 2200, 3900, 4100, 4300, 5100, 5400, 5500 series

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I use this GPS with my IPAQ 1945.

Pluses:
- Works great with the IPAQ 1945; good, clear voice guidance; good maps; good software
- Very straightforward, very friendly user interface -- light year ahead of my Magellan GPS.

Minuses: It is great so why I gave it only three stars?

- The GPS receiving unit is just a small hard plastic device and as slick as a hockey puck on your car's dashboard. I just don't know where to put it without it sliding off into the floor board each time I make a turn. I tucked it between the winshield and the dashboard, but that is not a good place as it can be very hot under the sun.
- The so-call bracket for your PCPocket is a joke. There is not a single piece of information on how it should be put together or at least how it should look like assembled. Anyway, after a some trials and errors I managed to put it together and found that it simply does not work on the car's air vent as intended. It simply cannot hold the IPAQ. It is quite frustrated because simple you cannot use this GPS receiver/IPAQ while driving unless you can find a suitable holder for your IPAQ.

- For walking/hinking: Unlike other GPS's where the receiver and display is in one unit now you will have to hold two (2) devices in two hands. It simply awkward and not workable while walking/hiking. I even try to hang the GPS receiver around my neck in a clear plastic bag, but it did not work out because the receiver would bounce as I walk and make the display jittery and jumpy.

So here I have, in my opinion, a technical marvel that I really like, but as a practical matter, I cannot 1) use it in my car until I can find or devise a way to safely mount the IPAQ display, and 2) walk/hike with it because it will require two hands to hold both devices!
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Additional review after three weeks, with one long trip from Texas to Florida:
- Yes, it did give opposite turn instructions a few times. My guess is that, in this case the highway exits were very close to each other and the software's position predictor probably estimated that I already missed an exit/turn and issued the turn around instructions.

- Bought a Akron holder for my IPAQ, so that now it can be firmly attached to my windshield at a good viewing angle.

- Bought an inexpensive cell phone case, with plastic window for the GPS receiver. This cell phone case, which holds the GPS receiver, can be clipped to my belt and the GPS receiver still can receive good satellite signals.

- Found out that it will take a long time to generate and down load a big map such as the entire state of Texas. I suppose this is a function of the PDA -- not much I can do about it.

- Wish that I can enter known GPS coordinates as destinations. Bummer.

Overall I am a much happier camper now. I jacked it up to 4 stars!

I've been using this product for 3 months after evaluating other products such as Pharos, Navman and Socket.

The strong points are:
1) quick TTFF(Time to First Fix). A cold fix usually can be obtained in under 2 minutes. Make sure it is mounted with a clear view of the southern sky. You can use a velcro sticky from a crafts store if the rubber surface is not adequate to prevent sliding. Most peoiple mount it on the dashboard. Be careful in hot sunny climates as the black surface can cause the unit to overheat.
2) Long Battery life: you can expect up to 8 hours with the lithium ion rechargeable battery. This is pretty good for most bluetooth receivers.
3) Works well with IPAQ devices. No pairing relationship is required. This is often not the case for other bluetooth receivers.
4) The mapping software is no-frills and works vey well. You can store important locations as favorites and also use addresses from your contacts on your PDA.

Cons:
1) The Black Case can cause unit to overheat in sunny locations when placed on the dashboard.
2) Glare from the PDA screen is noticeable in sunny daylight situations. This is a problem eveident in all PDA GPS solutions. It is safer and less distracting to rely on the spoken directions as the GPS will warn you well ahead of any turns. I would recommend using a quality vehicle mount with external speaker and charging built in. The ARKON unit is a good device.
3) Low audible output. Again, an external vehicle mount is a good idea when using this in your car.

I have used this system with both an iPAQ 1945 and 4155. Worked with almost no issues on both devices. The "puck" has never slid across my dash, since it has a rubber backing. Even in my sports car it stayed put around quick corners.

I download maps of 3-5 states onto a SD card and the data seems quite accurate. I have only had one incorrect turn given in the past 4 months.

The battery life is 6-7 hours and the fact that it uses the same charger as the iPAQ is great. I always keep the iPAQ plugged in and mounted to my dash at a good viewing angle. The Bluetooth connection is almost never dropped, so no complaints.

The only "issue" I have is the application doesn't always close out properly, so I tend to do a soft reset after using the software. Works perfect every time once I got in this habit.

Buy it and you will save time and avoid frustrations driving in unfamiliar locations.

This GPS receiver appears to work great with my 4155. I've only used it a few days, but I am very pleased so far. Installation of the software and first connection to the GPS went very smoothly. I like the way that it will start the Bluetooth connection automatically on startup of the software. The maps are from NavTech and seem to be pretty complete. I've found a few mistakes, but they are generally less than the web based mapping programs. Having a power cord that is compatible with my PDA is very helpful as well.

I plan on using this GPS while hiking. GpsDash (app for navigating and tracking with a raster map) works well with this receiver.

As far as negatives, the manual is only available online in the form of a pdf. The kit came with a mounting bracket, but I can't figure out how to use it. The power switch could be a little better constructed also. These negatives are pretty minor overall.

I ordered this to replace a Navman unit I used to use with my 3870, however I lost the 3870 and replaced it with a 4155 and this.

The good:

- Excellent battery life
- Excellent GPS, locks in within a minute with cold start
- Bluetooth works great
- The unit comes with a power adaptor using the Ipaq connector meaning you only need carry one charger around
- The maps appear upto date
- Software is intuitive
- Routing is quick and auto-rerouting works well
- Spoken instructions are particularly good. I often don't use the display
- I like the points of interest and the way you can ask for a list and be directed to the nearest gas stations, restaurants etc.
- Never locked up

The bad:

- Only thing I've found better so far on the Navman was the map display

Generally very impressed!

The Hp Gps unit is a good buy, It has its pro's and cons. But overall is a great buy. Don't pay more than $200 for the unit though. Pros: The unit is small and easy to operate, Connects quickly and reliably,software is great and fairly reliable.
Cons: The holder as many have writtin is cheesy and cheap, it rocks when you make corners and requires you to tape a button with double sided tape to the back of your PDA. I would reccomend a different mount and one with a speaker like the ARKON Powered PDA & GPS Mount Kit listed in another review. I would also reccomend using velcro to fasten the gps unit to your dash otherwise it slides around. As far as using the gps for walking, it is a bit of a pain to use unless you put it in a T-shirt pocket, anything thicker than that and it wont recieve a signal.I sewed a velcro strip to my jacket and stick the gps to that. Also I would reccomend having at least a 256 or 516mb memory card in your PDA If you plan on travelling state to state. I put 5 state maps on my pda and it fills my 256mb card. So the more memory you have the farther you can go.

I have been using this for a week and am quite pleased with it. I downloaded the maps for CA and the surrounding states (AZ, NV and OR) and they all fit with room to spare in the 256 MB SD card of my 4355. I have used the Magellan several times when I rented from Hertz and I found the interface much much better. The feature that I like the best is that you could set your destination using your Outlook contacts; no need to enter address or street names.

I am giving it 4.5 stars because of an annoying feature of the flashing BT blue light from the 4355 (which is not really the fault of the GPS device)when driving at night but otherwise a really great product.

I have had this GPS Reciever for a month now, and it works very well. Sometimes it may be a little slow in getting a GPS signal, but the software is pretty good. Sure beats buying an in car system (the built ins from Honda, Infiniti, Nissan, etc) cost almost $2K! I paid $275 for this and another $290 (about) for the actual PDA. I think it's a really good deal. Plus I get wireless (iPaq rx3115) and all that other good stuff. All in all, a very user friendly system. Intial problems with set up have been solved with the help of the dedicated iPaq support line, which has been very friendly and nice. Surprising service for a technology company, in my opinion.

This unit does goes beyond what one could expect, especially for the price. My only other experience with a GPS has been the Hertz Neverlost system, available, when you rent a car. This little sucker did everthing neverlost did and more. If you have an IPAQ already and you need to know where you are going, than this is a must have for you. This is so precise, that it literally brings you to the doorstep of the street address you plug in! This is great especially at night, when it is difficult to see the street numbers on houses or business for that matter.
I am a pharmaceutical rep and my target list changes quaterly. This device has been the best investment dollar-for-dollar that I can ever remember making. If you are a pharma rep and your company privides you with an IPAQ, be careful. The program that your company uses takes up a lot of memory. It works OK on mine, but I find that I need to reboot it once in a while. This is a very small price to pay, for what this does. In short, this unit is for computer savvy people, who want a GPS. I wouldn't go out and buy grandma a new IPAQ and this device. For non-computer folks, consider the Magellan for the ease of use and userfriendliness.

Note: Although great in its day, this device is now way out of date. Unless you pick it up for 20 bucks somewhere, there are much better options.

Overall I'd give this product something like 3 1/2 stars, as the device itself is ok, but the way it works with the iPAQ is problematic. The hardware itself is pretty straightforward, although you can charge only either the device or your iPAQ at once, not both at the same time with the car adapter (you can use the iPAQ AC charger to charge the device at home, however). More problematic is the iPAQ itself (in my case, the 5450), which is simply unreadable in the car due to glare--I had to take it out of the holster constantly to read it. The sound at full volume is also barely audible, I had to turn off the AC and radio to hear it; I would check the volume and readability of your PocketPC device in your car before considering this solution. The navigation software is competent, although it is somewhat erratic regarding turns; sometimes it tells you to turn a block before, other times right at the corner. The software will lock up on you (necessitating a reboot) if you don't exit the program before turning your PocketPC off--you can't just turn it off when you reach your destination. The GPS unsurprisingly conks out in tunnels, and can take several minutes to find itself again. It has a tendency to slide around on your dash unless you find a flat spot. The good things about this device? The price--one of the cheaper GPS solutions you can get if you have a PocketPC; portability, you can upgrade your PocketPC device and still use this solution; you can use it with Microsoft Streets (with a bluetooth connection) on a laptop. It's probably best used however with a passenger reading the iPAQ for you.