Travel Technology - putting GPS on my laptop

Hi all

I was driving up 395 outside of Carson City the other day ,
and was thinking how it would be helpful to have a GPS set-up on my laptop which I has with me ,

So how can I do it ? what do I need to buy (off Ebay ) and do it the cheapest I can,

can I transfer the data from the GPS onto my laptops harddrive ? I hate to have a CD running all the time on the laptop....

Is a USB GPS reciever what I need ?
do I need to attach it to the dashboard or ????

is there a cheap way to have it "talk" to me like new cars do ?

Anything else that I need to do ?

thanks for your help

Rally

so, you can probably get an older garmin or copilot serial GPS, but then you have cables.

Or, get a bluetooth device, and use that.

microsoft streets and trips, has the software now, with GPS interface and maps. And, it can be found for free.
you should be able to find a NMEA gps device for maybe 25-40$ on ebay, or maybe 100$ for a nice used bluetooth GPS device, no cables, .

You don't need to go "used" to get a decent Bluetooth GPS receiver under $100; many high-quality units (GlobalSat BT-338, Holux GPSlim 236, i-Blue PS-3200) are priced less than that now.

I have The GlobalSat BT-338, and generally have a lock within 20-30 seconds.

true, these days though, I would recommend a sirfIII chipset, which lots the fastest and holds the signal best. I think the ones above, if at sub 100$ new, are going to be sirfII at best?

microsoft streets and trips, has the software now, with GPS interface and maps. And, it can be found for free.
.
where can you get it for free ?

I do not mind cables, its a Chevy van , the laptop sits betwen the seats on top of the ice chest , so the GPS unit can sit on the dash and the cable will be short......

Rally

it comes and goes, check on fatwallet for what the latest deal is.

as well, about a month ago the GPS receiver, cable and S&T 2006 was 25$ after rebate. Should still be found for that amount.

that is a complete package for 25$

I bought the Holux GPSlim 236 for just under $100 on EBay and love it. While I use it primarily with my Axim, it has come in handy with my laptop.

Small unit, bluetooth enabled and great battery life.

true, these days though, I would recommend a sirfIII chipset, which lots the fastest and holds the signal best. I think the ones above, if at sub 100$ new, are going to be sirfII at best?

The Holux is a SiRF III based unit, as is the GlobalSat BT-338.

The Holux is a SiRF III based unit, as is the GlobalSat BT-338.


indeed they are! nice pricing.

I just traveled 7 states with an old Delorme Tripmate. I bought it on Ebay a while back for $20 or $25 bucks. I picked up a cheap copy of the 2004 Delorme street atlas on CD to use with it. It worked perfectly fine. One suggestion would be to get a power converter from 12v to 110v. I installed one in my vehicle which powers both the laptop and the GPS.

I use teletype

For about $100- $130 you can get a new GPS18 Antenna and Software from Garmin. That would come with warranty, etc. Good product and has a USB Cable about 6 Foot long with the Receiver/Antenna being about the size of an Altoids Can.

Here is a nice deal on the connected serial port GPS, for laptop including new software.
I use copilot for PPC, and it works great

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=A0655906

59$ shipped, can't be beat