Customer Reviews

Zoombak ZMBK346 Advanced GPS Universal Locator

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

I was very enthusiastic about this product having just lost another bicycle in san francisco. I figured I'd keep it under my seat and next time I lose my bike I'd just locate the thief. Device arrived and I charged it and went to active it on their web site. Web site's ok but a little clunky - clicking on radio boxes to submit pages and finding small hyper links. They couldn't locate the device and after many attempts I thought maybe it was just difficult to get a signal in my building so I took it with me to a different location, still no luck. Over the next week I tried in no less than eight different locations, each time unsuccessful. I figured maybe it was being indoors so I even tried a few times while I was walking and every time it said it could not locate the device. This was the activation step so I finally left a voice message with their technical support (they promised they would call me back and they didn't). That wasn't such a big deal and I called them again. This time the person had me take the device outside and switch it off/on three times. After the third time it was finally able to contact the mothership. I was really hoping this was just a problem with the initial set up but I have tested it continuously over a week and managed to "locate" the device only twice. Once was at home only after placing it in the window and I was unable to repeat that feat. The second time it did manage to locate me in an open space near a freeway with good cell phone coverage but only on the second attempt and for some reason it didn't report it under safari on the iphone at the time . I have tried switching on continuous tracking thinking maybe it could follow me as I moved around from many locations to see how much of my journey could recapitulate but every time was unable to even initiate that process because it needs to contact the device. This was all in the San Francisco/Emeryville area and although Emeryville is pretty flat maybe the combination of coverage for tmobile and GPS just never coincides. A smarter device might have at least remembered where it was and reported occasionally when it encountered tmobile but in the end I had to sadly admit this wasn't going to stop a bike thief unless he conveniently waited in some incredibly rare location just as I happened to reinitiate a search. I must have tried 50 times to get a fix and the device obviously isn't broken because it could be made to work by toggling it on and off. I just don't think the technology is ready for San Francisco unfortunately ;( A few people have complained about customer service but I will say that other than not calling me back they have been very good to deal with.

I was excited about having this as a safety measure for our daughter heading off to college. It is worthless. We haven't been able to track it other than the first time it was activated (which, outside of standing it on a ledge facing the sky in broad daylight, was not able to be done). She has had it in her car, at work, etc. I even took it to work with me and I work in Buckhead in Atlanta. I'm on the 15th floor of a high rise and put it next to a HUGE window and it STILL wouldn't track it. I guess for someone who lives outdoors and tapes it to the top of their head, it might be practical, otherwise, don't waste your money!

This is really the first low cost/low monthly fee GPS location device on the market and it really does work well as long as you understand and are OK with what it can/can not do.

PROS
Cost - $40 after rebate is amazing and the monthly fee is modest as well
Size - very small and easy to carry, install, or conceal
Construction quality - rubber housing, rubber armored buttons
Ease of use - One one button on the device for ON/OFF with all other programming does via Web
Included accessories - They include a car and home charger with the Universal kit as well as a very nice carrying case
Event setup/reporting - you can have speed events, low battery events, and zone events with emails or SMS notificaitons

CONS
Battery life - we get ~45 hours with a total 20 location requests/events per charge which is far less than the 5 day/150 event figure they state
GPS lock ability - This is mixed sometimes taking over an hour after power on to get a fix and sometimes only a few seconds in the same conditions
Speed of event reporting - Once the unit has 'warmed up' and reported an event other events are reported quickly (0-3 min after they happen) but it can take up to an HOUR for an event to be processed/reported in some cases. For example, when we leave home in the AM and arrive at a different zone 20 min later it might be another 20 min before we get the SMSs that say we have left one zone and arrived in another.

Clearly this is not a 'real time' tracking device in the way that the $300/$30/month units are and the battery life is, IMO, poor. That said, the unit really does a good job for what it is and we are pleased with it. If installed in a car the battery issues go away so that would make for a better experience I think.

It's not very reliable. It will track sometime but will not track most of the time. Also real time tracking does not work at all. I returned it and got my refund on both product & service.

First off, customer service, which you will need since the product doesn't work right... is not helpful. PLeasant? Sure. Helpful? NO.

I was NEVER EVER EVER able to get my unit to work. PLUS I was stupid and bought a 2 year subscription, which they will not reply to any request to refund even prorated.

I highly doubt the Zoombak people even read these reviews, as they don't even had time to call people back. But I certainly hope that people considering this piece of junk read this.

Hmmm, I am guessing you want details so I don't look like a raving lunatic. Well, there are not. I bought it I subscribed. It NEVER worked. I called FOUR times had a conversation with someone TWICE. Both tims I felt like they really didn't know how to help me. The only contact I had with them since the calls was SIX months after I received my item I got my "free" cigarette lighter charger and around that time I received an email telling me that their customers info that was on file was compromised.

NICE. Don't waste your time. and if you are still in denial, don't be a moron like I was and buy a TWO YEAR subscription. What a joke!

The device reported the car being moved out of the geofence at 2am and it wasn't true. After one week it stopped working. Not reliable. Don't wasted your money.

Here's the deal:

1. Not real GPS, but cellular GPS = Will only give you an *approximate* location, which is often several blocks off the mark. Also works for nill if you are in the forest, mountains, lakes, open-space, etc. or even amongst tall buildings.

2. One year service agreement = Tricky, abusive, and dishonest, IMO. $[...] termination fee no matter what, even if the thing doesn't work for s**t. They don't guarantee anything except the bill. A little too one sided and terms are embedded in the fine print at the end of the activation process. Good for the company hustling this P.O.S, bad for you.

3. Cheap build = Sometimes it won't turn on, sometimes it won't turn off, sometimes you don't even know which it is. Also slow to charge.

Bottom Line: Might be good if you need to remember where you parked your zeppelin or DC-10 (ie. something large). I use this for my dog (ie. something small). For that purpose, it sucks. You need accuracy, speed, and precise coverage to find a dog roaming around, all of which this thing has not. For a dog, I'd say get some treats a good whistle instead; that's what I did.

For the second time in a month, the Zoombak server has been down again rendering the tracker useless.

I am sad to say the product does not locate or work right. Tech support seems nice and they have tried, but it does not show right on my account and the system says it needs a Software Update. I have tried this repeatedly. Nothing works. I am told to cycle it on and off and try the update button again. If it can't see the cell site or satellite from the SF Bay Area out in the open, then how can it really locate anywhere.

They should be able to do a "hard boot" or have a reset button sequence or something. I suspect it is trapped in some limbo land.

Oh well...money down the drain...

Works marginally well, part of the time. Sometimes it shows leave/enter when it is stationary for hours, wrong addresses, battery life is not good, and tracking history is all over the page (doesn't follow the streets/highways). Might be okay for a very general location, nothing to use to pinpoint though.