Customer Reviews

Sony GPS-CS3KA GPS Digital Imaging Accessory (White)

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This makes geo-tagging easier.

I had a different GPS logger before which was Windows-only. It worked well but the software was a bit kludgy. It did things I didn't care about. All I want is the GPS coordinates in the photo's file. It was trying to be a photo-organizer. When I moved to a Mac I saw the Sony GPS logger and the fact that it doesn't require an OS and does everything on the fly and thought, "This is what I want - it's just shy of actually having the camera do it but it's getting pretty close."

This GPS logger includes Windows software for organizing your photos and importing them and showing them on a map, etc. I haven't tried it.

Anyway, the basic deal is this: You synchronize your camera to the clock in the display of this device (which is better than my old one which didn't have a display - you had to synchronize it at the computer or using a separate GPS or some other synchronized timepiece). You go out and take pictures and carry this logger with you. At the end of the day you slide your memory stick or SD card into this device and it will add the coordinates to each of the pictures. Nothing more you need to do. If you take those photos and load them onto Flickr then they'll show up on the map there.

Two annoying things:
- You have to open/close the back cover when you insert your flash memory. The back-cover is more like a traditional batter cover but there is a little switch there that looks to see when the cover is open or not and the unit will not function if the cover is open. I suspect that this is to stop someone from pulling the flash memory when it's updating but it seems like a needless extra step.
- It will only update photos in batches of 60. You leave the flash memory in the device (with the cover closed) and just cycle through multiple sets of 60 photos (it sees whether the photo already has the info and excludes it from the next batch). Still, kind of annoying that you can't just put the flash memory in and say, "do it!," and have it update the entire lot.

It uses a single AA battery which is nice as you can just take some rechargeable batteries with you and swap them out as needed and recharge them when you get home. My old GPS logger had a specialized internal battery, which worked fine, but I had to remember to bring something that would let me charge it each night (a USB mini-B cable and some kind of power source). With this I can just swap the batteries out when needed and, if I forget, I can just buy some AA batteries when I'm out.

The good:
- Accuracy of position finding is very good
- The bundled software is excellent
- Battery life is very useful, 15 hours are easily reachable
- Set-up and operation is very simple
- Relatively short time to find satellites (usually around one minute after start up)
- Small size
- Display for set-up and operation data
- Theoretical possibility to geo tag your photos without a computer

The bad:
- Documentation is spartan - you need to go on the internet to find additional information
- Set-up of GMT is not intuitive - you have to figure out the Daylight Savings Time settings first, which is not mentioned in the documentation
- You have to absolutely set your camera time exactly in sync to the GPS time; the unit records a measurement every 15 seconds, so if you are off a few seconds and move your position quickly, like in a car or so, the tag will be a couple of hundred yards off; believe me, that happens more often than you think, and the only way to remedy this is to undertake a manual correction in the bundled PMB software - which, thankfully, is very easy to do ...

The ugly:
- You have to remove the cover to access the SD card slot ... what a boneheaded design decision ...


I use this unit extensively to geo tag my photos now - bought it originally to have this functionality available for my blog ([...])

It took me a couple of (frustrating) days to figure out, why my photos were not tagged correctly at first: the device uses GMT as basic time and to set your local time, you have to figure in the effect of Daylight Savings Time ...
But after that hurdle was taken, the tagging worked great.
The in-device tagging functionality also works flawless - but you have to remove the cover every time you want to insert a SD card. It also drains the battery more quickly.
Because the device will hold several hundred hours of geo logs, there really is no need to tag the files directly on the SD card. It is much more convenient to this via the bundled software, where you can correct single tags if you need to - and believe me, the need will arise as soon as you are hooked, and you only will accept the most precise location data possible anymore ... :)

To sum it up:
The GPS functionality works great, battery life is great, the software is great, the position of the SD card slot is stupid. I am very happy with this little gadget.

This is a simple GPS data logger that does not need a computer. Thus no Windows vs Mac stuff. Set the time and time zone, strap it to your camera strap, and go. When you're ready, take the SD card (or silly Sony memory stick) from the camera, put it in the CS3KA, select "Match" and you're good. Geotag info is written to your photos. Then import them into iPhoto, or Google Earth, or whatever. No software needed, no computer needed. Just like much acclaimed Photofinder, but the GPS lock takes only seconds. The LCD screen is even readable in bright sunlight without back-lighting. My only complaint -- it should come in black to match most cameras.

This little GPS has solved a problem I've been working on for months: how to easily and quickly add geotag data to digital photos taken with my Nikon D60. There are lots of recommended solutions online, such as:
- take one photo at each spot using your GPS-enabled iPhone, then upload from iPhone and camera and use iPhoto (yes, I'm a Mac) to copy the location data to other pics taken at the same spot (tedious, approximate, needs a PC)
- carry a small GPS while taking photos, download the GPS track file to your PC, convert it to a compatible format, and merge it with the photo files (extremely tedious, needs a PC and special software)
- buy a Nikon GP-1 and attach it to the flash shoe on the camera (bulky appendage on the camera, chews up battery life, doesn't work with D60)
I've tried the first two methods and they work but they're tedious, require a PC, or have other problems. You can also buy one of the few cameras with internal GPS, but that's expensive and doesn't help me with my D60.

This little Sony GPS-CS3KA sweeps away nearly all those drawbacks. I've only used it for a couple of days and have found it does exactly what it claims, quickly and easily. I shoot hi-res JPG, thus avoiding the non-Sony RAW problem mentioned elsewhere. (Somewhat understandable on Sony's part, since the various brands' RAW formats are so different.) Here's how it works:
- You turn on the Sony GPS (insert one AA, press On button) and let it "triangulate", in the arcane terminology of the instruction booklet, meaning acquire the satellite signals.
- Select the time zone you're in and set Daylight Savings if needed.
- Sync your camera to the GPS' time. I found it easy to set my Nikon's time to within a couple of seconds of the GPS' time, which gave me excellent location accuracy.
- Take photos all day, while keeping the little Sony in an outside pocket.
- Slip the camera's SD card into the back of the GPS, select Match on the menu and wait a couple of minutes for the GPS data to be added to the photo files on the SD card. (It will only do 60 at a time, so you may need to repeat this step.)
That's all.

I drove around with the GPS lying on the dashboard, stopping to take pics of landmarks. After processing as above, I uploaded the pics to iPhoto and checked their locations in Places on iPhoto. All of the locations were strikingly accurate: within a few yards of where I took the photo. Keep in mind, of course, that the object or landmark in the photo may not be anywhere near that photo-taking spot; e.g., a photo of Mt Rainier taken from downtown Seattle.

Yes, the back cover is a little flimsy, but that didn't bother me, and I don't find it inconvenient to remove and replace it when inserting the memory card. I used the little wire loop inside the cover to add a camera-type wrist loop (not included) for safety.

All in all, I'm very pleased to have found this little item just before a trip to Asia, where those geotags will come in really handy. I'll update this review after the trip, and report how it held up under heavy daily use, tropical humidity, etc. Also whether it's a problem (time, battery life) to match the files in batches of 60, after a full day of shooting a few hundred pics.

When I first heard of this device I was super excited to get it. I take a lot of pictures and often go scouting looking for interesting areas. In the past I carried a GPS and took a picture of its screen to recall where I found interesting places I might want to see again.

Alas, as soon as I opened the manual (which is not written by someone whose first language is English, but it is usable) I realized it was only going to work on JPG files, not RAW files (except for some Sony cameras). Of course I only shoot in RAW. NUTS! I should have realized this before I bought it. It only makes sense it isn't going to be able to handle a bunch of proprietary RAW files.

If you don't know what I mean by RAW, this device will work nicely for you. For 95%+ of the people, this won't be an issue for you, but for those of you with a DSLR who are really serious about your pics and use RAW images, this GPS won't work.

Well, OK it won't work as sold.

I DID NOT want to give this device up because it would really make my life a lot easier when on a scouting expedition. So I did some looking around.

You can use the Sony GPS's software to upload its log file to your computer. You can then use free software called GEOSETTER to look at the GPS log and the dates on your RAW files and have it update the EXIF information in the RAW file. GEOSETTER probably doesn't support EVERY raw file, but it supports many and it supports DNG so you can always convert your camera's RAW file into DNG and then GEOCODE the DNG.

I suspect (but haven't had time to experiment), you could actually use GEOSETTER with any hiking GPS that allows you to grab tracks (the GPS log) and save to your computer.

Outside of that I probably don't have much to add others haven't said. It seems to be pretty well built, has a decent carrying case, and is intuitive. You really don't have to read the manual. The USB plug was VERY tight though. But I used my own mini USB cable that is always dangling free for all my various devices.

I'm giving this 3 stars because it doesn't work for my application. Had I used JPG files, it would get at least 4.

Postscript: since writing this review, I have learned to use Geosetter to extract GPS logs from this device, my hiking GPS, and my auto GPS. Most of the time I actually use the hiking or auto GPS to geocode pics because I'm already using them. However, on the occasion where I don't have either with me, this GPS is in my camera bag and I can turn it on and use it for geocoding the pics I take.

I'm looking forward to trying this out on this weekends' expedition.

I bought this device primarily to geotag my photos, and it has worked very well so far for that application. Set up was easy. You have to enter your offset from GMT (e.g., New York is -5 hours). There's a chart in the manual to help you with this. You also have to sync the time on your camera to the time on the GPS device.

Once the device was set up, I went for a walk and took some pictures. Upon returning home, I removed the SD card from my camera, inserted it into the GPS device, and the device matched the GPS log info to the pictures. I then imported the pictures into Picasa on my MacBook Pro, and was rewarded with a map showing the locations of my pictures flawlessly. The ability to geotag a batch of photos at the touch of a button, without having to jump through a series of software hoops on your computer, is a definite plus.

That said, if you want to load your GPS logs onto your computer so that you can view your tracks, you're going to need to jump through those software hoops after all. On this front, it would be nice if this product came with Mac software. But it doesn't. I was able to work around this issue, however. When you connect the GPS device to a Mac via the supplied USB cable, it appears in Finder just like a flash drive. You can then copy log files from the device onto your Mac. Once I had the log file on my Mac, it took a little trial and error to figure out how to do anything with it. Ultimately, I used the shareware program "gpsbabel" to translate the Sony format (which turns out to be "NMEA 0183 sentences", though the Sony documentation doesn't tell you that) to a format recognized by Google Earth (Google Keyhole Markup Language (kml)). Once that was done, I was able to open the translated log file in Google Earth and view my track. It would have been nice if the the device had come with a program to do all this. But, the workaround is pretty straightforward.

I also tried the supplied Windows software running on Win7 under Parallels, and it seemed to work fine.

This is a great device. I bought it to add GPS data to my photos without another PC. The Sony GPS-CS3KA works great consistently. Hopefully one day most cameras will have this capability built in. But until then, this tool works on all SD/SDHC cards and Sony's memory reguardless of memory speed or size. The device is not restricted to only one camera like a Eye-fi card. Aside from the issues noted below, I would recommend this device to anyone. Please note that I am a prosumer/photography enthusiast. I am not a professional or even a semi-professional photographer.

Please take into account:
1. GPS Reception -
******a. The GPS receiver generates logs and subsequently embeds GPS into matching jpg photos with the same date/time information. However if you map GPS entries to Google or even the included mapping tool, you will see that the logged GPS location shifts even when you haven't. For instance, I tool pictures of a family event. I left the Sony reader in one location in the backyard the entire time. I know without a doubt that the unit never moved, but the logs showed more than 50 different positions for photos over a six hour time. I realize I am not looking for 5m accuracy but it was annoying to see so many positions when I know the GPS receiver never moved.
******b. The receiver will have significant issues receiving a signal for anything between you and the satellite. For instance, the cruise ship's metal or high-rise buildings will cause issues. For many, it is obvious that a signal will not get through but I think it should be noted for people before they buy.

2. Battery life - Many reviews shows 15-20 hours of use per AA battery. I was able to get 48 hours, but this is with caveats. I logged GPS data for ~48hrs but did NOT tag any photos. Of the operations that the GPS receiver performed, the jpg embedding process seemed to use the most power. I also took a risk to getting corrupt data by waiting so long to change batteries, but I was testing the device's range and had no real data or photos to lose. I would not gamble screwing up photos on old or bad batteries.

3. GPS logs - The NMEA .log format is not immediately compatible with Google maps. There are several log converters available. Unfortunately for some, most(not all) of the log exporters are only available for the Mac. Also please note that the tagging process is neither instantaneous or fast. Tagging is also limited to 60 photos, so you must rescan for large shoots. Photographers and enthusiasts can relate to all-day shoots with hundreds of photos, so the tagging process will take a while. For instance, I shot a multi-day wedding and took several thousand photos. Several thousand photos tagged slowly can be painful.

4. Receiver case/tether -
******a. Tether: The tether is meant to hold the receiver on your camera case, belt look or something held to your extremities (not in your pocket). Given the value of the GPS, I recommend getting a better case (make one if you have to) because the case that comes with it is rather flimsy.

******b. Case: To tag photos and/or change the battery, you have to open the back of the case to insert our memory or add/remove the battery. This is extremely flimsy given the fact that Sony placed a toggle on the back of the unit to detect whether the case back is on or off. This feature is not a show stopper but take care when you remove the case back or it will likely break.

******c. GPS/Case protection: Please note that the GPS receiver has NO (ZERO) weather protection, so if you have high humidity work (i.e. tropics) , work in a sauna (Louisiana or Houston) or find yourself working in the rain sometimes that you better have the receiver in a more protective enclosure.

5. Software - The included software is ok, but only compatable with Microsoft and is little better than shareware compared to better photo packages on the market. It does what it is supposed to. Additionally, you can use the software to show your trips or correct GPS logs if necessary (see point 1.a on GPS reception). The device simply connect to your computer like any USB device and is detected as another drive whether on MAC or Microsoft.

This little item is something which I use a great deal because of being a genealogist. I'm always searching for cemeteries with burials of my any ancestors so this helps me to be able to locate a particular cemetery again.

The Sony GPS logger can help you to geo-tag your photos with ease. Its most impressive capability is its lengthy battery life. However, the major shortcoming of this unit is it can log data points only in 15 second intervals. Here's a detailed accessment of the pros and cons.

Pros
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- Software Makes Geo Tagging Your Pictures Easy
Sony really did a bang-up job on the software. The user interface on the software is intuitive and user friendly. It comes with GPS Image Tracker and PMB.

o GPS Image Tracker
After you plug in the unit, the GPS Image Tracker immediately launches and asks if you would like to import the log files. Click on Yes.

> In no time, it shows you a an embedded Google map that traces the path you took. You can zoom in/out of the map or drag to move it. You can see your route overlaid over a satelite image as well. (I took a long drive to the Animal Ark in Reno yesterday, and it traced my route, plus all the pit stops I made along the way. Nice!)

> The right pane on the app contains an area that you can drag and drop the files you want to geo-tag. After you have done that, "push pin" icons are placed on the map with each icon corresponding to an image (it takes about a minute to complete this operation on 3-400 images). Clicking on each icon selects an image on the right pane. Clicking on an thumbnail image on the right pane brings up a larger thumbnail with all the GPS tag information (Latitude Longitude, GPS date-time) as well as file location and file name.

o PMB
PMB is a picture viewer, editor, and more. The picture viewer, like the GPS Image Tracker, allows you to view the location where the picture was taken on Google Maps. You can seamlessly upload your pictures/videos to eDeco, YouTube, Daily Motion, Photo Bucket, Picasa, and Shutterfly.


- 3 Month's Worth of Logging
The internal memory is able to hold 3 month's worth of data (or over half a million data points: 90 x 24 x 60 x 60 /15 == 518,400).

- 15 Hours Battery Life
No, I'm not just quoting the specs. I use rechargeable batteries and the battery life on this unit is 15+ hours - easy. A word about the battery indicator - it almost always shows 3 full bars of power left even after 12 hours, so it's not a very reliable gauge of battery life.

- Small Size
The unit measures 2 1/4 x 3 inches -- about the size of one of those pagers of yesteryear. Its small size allows it to easily fit in your shirt pocket. Alternatively, you can also attach it to your belt or backpack using the velcroed belt loop on the back of the case.

Cons
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- GPS Coordinates Recorded At 15 Second Intervals
Although the GPS tracking is very accurate, the accuracy of the geo tracking is limited by the time interval at which every GPS coordinate is recorded. The GPS coordinates are recorded every 15 seconds. There is no way to set the time interval between each data point.

- Some Raw File Formats Not Supported
Some raw file formats such as Canon's CR2 format is not supported.

- Absent PMB & Image Tracker Integration.
There's no way view an image in Image Tracker as an enlarged image in PMB, for example.

- Image Tracker Quirk
You have to manually make time zone offsets/adjustments on the Image Tracker software in order for the geo tagging to work correctly. For example, I have to select GMT -07:00 (an offset of -07:00 from Greewich Mean Time) in order fo the images to be tagged correctly.

- Cumbersome SD Card Tagging
If you want to tag your files right on the unit itself, the unit will tag your file in batches of 60 pictures -- not a recommended method if you have hundreds of pictures to tag.

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The software deficiencies aren't that big of a deal because you can avoid them altogether by using third party software. But a major (and rather grave) shortcoming of this unit is it can log data points only in 15 second intervals (there are other units that log data points in 5 second intervals). Personally, it's not a problem for me because it is accurate enough for my purposes. But you may want to take that into account before making a purchase decision.

This is my second GPS system for my D90. First one worked ok but was a general pain to use. Difficult to tell if it was working, had to screw around with the PC software, etc.

This is as close to a pain free, no brainer GPS as you are going to get. Has a little screen so you can see what's going on. Works with any camera that uses SD cards.

You don't have to mess with any cords to your camera, and no fooling around with your computer. You turn it on, put it in your shirt pocket, and at the end of the day put your SD card in and it writes out all the GPS locales to your pic files. You can leave it on all day on an AA battery....never did actually run out of battery but I used rechargeables and put in a fresh one each morning.

Have used it in photo workshops in Death Valley, Arizona, and Utah.

I do download everything first to my pc just for safety's sake, then put the card in for update, then download again. But as yet have not had a single problem.

Seems to be able to grab and keep the satellite signals very well. I had it in the pocket of my Levis and it still worked fine.

One minor thing....at the end of the day, when you are ready to get the GPS data into your pic files, even though it might have thousands of data points, it only writes GPS data to 60 pics at a time. Maybe just a failsafe in case the battery fails or something. Don't know. But it keeps track of where it stopped so you just click, click and it starts back up right where it stopped. Takes a couple of seconds per pic.

Very smart little device. Some very clever thinking in this product's development. Like I said, you can't more goof proof than this thing.

If you can read you can set the GMT for the clock in about 5 seconds. Can't believe some people can't figure that out.

Only three other things you have to remember.
(1) Remember to make sure your camera is set to the same exact DATE and TIME...easy to see in the GPS screen.
(2) Remember to turn it on.
(3) Remember when adding GPS to your pic files, it only updates 60 pics at a time so you have to be sure it has done all your pics before you take the SD card out.

Highly recommended.