Customer Reviews

Sony GPSCS1KA GPS Unit Kit for Most Digital Still Cameras

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

 

 

I bought this unit when I knew nothing about geotagging photos. It was Sony, after all, so how far wrong could you go?

Well... pretty far wrong as it turns out. Nicely styled, the Sony GPSCS1KA is simply not up to the task. It needs absolutely unobstructed access to the open sky, which is simply not practical. Right from the start I was disappointed with how insensitive it was. Like all such units, it has a light that glows when you have successfully locked on to a satellite, or more specifically, a series of satellites so that the position can be determined. I seldom had the pleasure of seeing that light glow. All too familiar was the frustrating blinking light that indicated that the unit was seeking a signal and not finding one.

Since then I have learned that the secret sauce in these devices is the GPS chipset. The leaders in this field are the latest MTK chipsets and the SiRFIII. I have since bought units from GiSTEQ and Royaltek that have these chips and have no such problems. The Royaltek uses the SiRFIII and is also compatible with some free Web software (included) called locr. this software makes it easy to tag your photos and then immediately see your photo locations on Google Maps within a locr window.

The GiSTEQ uses the MTK chipset and provides good performance and its own proprietary software for tagging and displaying on Google Maps. There is also an optional ($20 dlownload) "Pro" version of the included Phototrackr software for tagging RAW images, which is of particular interest to me.

All in all, the Sony is to be avoided until and unless a new model appears with a decent GPS chipset.

This product is a great theory, and is very easy to use. Turn it on, let it find satellites, and you're off. Unfortunately, it does a very poor job of maintaining links to the satellite.

If you intend to use this in an area where you do not consistently have a clear sightline to the southern sky, you'll be disappointed. It worked wonderfully traversing the countryside shooting pictures in parks and fields. However, enter a city with buildings of 2 or more stories high, and it spends a lot of time searching for satellites, and before you know it the battery is dead. We spent a long weekend in Boston, and another in Chicago. My Garmin GPS knew exactly where we were all the time, but this could only find us once every few blocks while walking the cities.

If your fine with mapping your pictures in clumps every few blocks, this is for you. Until then, I'm waiting for someone else to execute this theory better.

I found the unit to be reliable and as accurate as most other GPS locators I own (within the GPS accuracy of 10-22 feet depending on the number of satellites available. Some lat/lon were right on, and others, several yards off (my Garmin car nav often can't lock on a major highway either). Granted, it does need a good view of the sky, but it does keep trying. Battery usage doesn't seem extreme, but since it takes normal AA batteries, it is easy to replace. The Sony software is interesting, and if you would like to have it arrange your photos in a calendar view, it is a nice feature - I don't like the map function. As far as for processing and geolocating pictures, I use RedHen - it's a free download that synchronizes the Sony GPS logfiles with just about any digital camera's standard EXIF datafile. RedHen can drop icons onto a Google Earth map (also a free download). Make sure you save the new "Spatial Media" folder in the "My Places" folder so your images are available next time you open Google Earth. All in all, the Sony GPS recorder does everything I expected for a small footprint with a no-fuss USB interface.

I have two websites that contain around 100,000 photos I have taken since I bought my first digital camera in 1996. To coincide with a vacation to Walt Disney World this year, I thought it might be fun to get one of these GPS units to track where my photos were taken. I received the GPS-CS1 in September and used it for a few trials walking around downtown Des Moines, at the local Adventureland amusement park, and at the Kansas City Renaissance Festival. When powered up, it takes about a minute or so to lock on to the signals. Downtown was hit and miss due to all the buildings but it did a fairly good job one I had the time synchronized (my camera time was 2 minutes different). The test at the renaissance festival was also promising, and during my visit to Florida I uploaded Google map tracks each night from the hotel. Sometimes it is scary accurate -- showing us walking around Main Street, riding the ferryboat across the lake, etc. Othertimes it would lose signal and jump around to places we never were.

So overall, it works pretty well but can't always be perfect. I'm not sure if there are any better alternatives. This unit works as advertised, and works pretty well. On the Mac, I use a program called HoudahGeo to line up images with the GPS log files, but the GPS-CS1 comes with PC Windows software that does the same thing. I can then export them to KLM files or even a KMZ archive to use with Google Earth. I do not know if the Sony software does as much on the PC side, though.

One rechargeable AA battery lasted from 9am to 11pm or so, maybe a bit longer. I was impressed with that. The battery life is very good, and the unit blinks to warn that it is running out. I kept two batteries with me each day (15 minute Energizer rechargeable) and that worked great for the entire trip, charging them back up at night.

I expect more casual folks would not stress the unit out nearly as much as I did.

One problem -- the holder clip came off somehow and slipped from my camera strap and the unit fell to the ground, breaking the battery door. One call to Sony's 800 gave me an address to send the unit to for a replacement or repair, so we'll see if they make their 7-10 days they claim.

UPDATE on 6/14/2008: As of Mac OS X 10.5.3, Mac support works again. The GSP-CS1 will mount on the Mac like a memory stick, so it's good (for now) for Macs.

The idea is great; wander around, take pictures and have the included software tag my pictures with GPS data (via EXIF data). The included software detects the unit and imports the GPS data. Another module detects attached cameras/MSD and imports the data and does a great job of marrying the two; so it does exactly what it is supposed to.

Problem is the unit: it takes a LONG time to acquire a signal (compared to other GPS units)- I would say my longest wait was about 3 minutes (unit on my dash, sitting stationary on the road outside my house). It often drops signals (like passing under a bridge) and can take some time to re-acquire. It is pretty much useless in a city with buildings over 3 stories (or big trees?)

I picked one up as I saw it on the shelf at Fry's; it is going back this weekend. I am ordering either the GlobalSat DG-100 from Amazon or the QStarz BT-Q1000 (if they release it to retail soon).

The shape of the unit is also unwieldy; it is a lot bigger than I thought it would be and it is triangular with rounded edges- so it rolls across the dash of my car (the only place I can get a reliable signal)- even with my 'sticky pad'.

In short it allows you to know where you were. It's relatively accurate. A good value for the money, the software is not as tested as it should be and there are problems. Also, the software could do more such as show a trail of where you've been.

With that said, it does what it promises

I was hoping for more features in software, better battery life. I found the casing to be a bit light.. Not something I would buy again.

As an avid outdoor lover I find myself all over Southern California with my camera taking pictures of our experences. Later it's difficult to remember which pictures were taken where. Using this Sony GPS it couldn't be easier. Simply carry the device along with you and it records where you were at what time and then matches that to the time data from your camera. Included software will automatically attempt to import camera media with pictures and then merge that with the GPS files writing the GPS coordinates into the metadata of the photos. The next step is to go to the web where you're pictures will be display on Google's maps allowing you to place yourself back at the photo site. The GPS is a bit bigger than I expected but small enough to drop in my camera bag.

It doesn't have lots of bells and whistles; It doesn't have a cool display; It doesn't have a bunch of options and features.... It does one thing, it does it well and it does it consistently.

If you're looking to attach locations to your photographs, or even to "bread-crumb" a route for later use, the CS1KA will do the job. The device is super-simple to use (one button, two lights... It's hard to get simpler than that...) and the software does its job and is simple to understand. All in all, a good match to the job of geo-tagging photos, and it will work with any camera that produces jpg files.

So, go out and have fun; shoot lots of pictures; bring them home and you'll be able to show exactly where they were taken. If that's what you want to do, this is the workhorse to do it.

Sony GPSCS1KA GPS Unit Kit for Most Digital Still Cameras I have only used this device briefly to check on it's viability for use while on vacation trips. It works just great - wish I would have had it on recent trips to Alaska and Wyoming where 100's photos were taken but now can't remember the exact place of some of the scenic photos. Maybe some day Sony will have a device like this built into a camera.