Re: Unhappy with DeLorme USB GPS

Interesting comments.   I have the exact problems with mine that you are having Bob.   I have an antique Garmin 12xl and it is FAR superior in it's ability to pick up a signal.  I spend most of my time in the 2d mode or the dreaded red zone even when the sky is very clear and open.  I will try adding an extension to the cable as I am using a Dell 8500 which is probably putting out a lot of interference if Nospam is correct.  I want to try Delormes Blue tooth if they ever get it on the market.  Maybe that would eliminate the interference........  

-Jack

[EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:

On Fri, 17 Oct 2003 22:45:45 -0700, "Walker" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
wrote:

  

I just got a new DeLorme USB GPS receiver and tested it today. I am not
impressed. DeLorme claims that it has superior signal receiving capability
but it sure didn't show it today. It takes forever to find satellites and
even when it had 6 or 7 in view, with decent signal strength, it went into
the 'yellow' or 2D mode several times. That didn't effect the display map,
other than change colors, but it makes me wonder about what it will do in
close spaces such as a canyon or a forest canopy. My Garmin 12Map isn't
great under those conditions but it's still effective. I had it on the dash
within inches of where the external antenna for my Garmin sits. It had an
unobstructed view of the sky through the windshield. I was at a gas station
and it lost all of the satellites and went into the red while under the edge
of the canopy. That has never been an issue with the Garmin.

I'll pack the Garmin along for backup but I'm going to give this a good try
before putting it away. It's very convenient and I want it to work. I'm
definitely not a novice but I've never used a 'mouse' receiver and maybe I'm
missing something or doing something wrong. I'll gladly trade the
inconvenience of setting up the Garmin for the reliability if it comes down
to a choice.

Is it possible that the lower power from the USB port affects the signal
amplification? Does using the optional 'power pack' make a difference? Does
the speed of the laptop have any bearing?

Bob Walker
[EMAIL PROTECTED]

    

This is a bit dated but I ran across your message in archives and
thought I'd put in my two bits worth.
Won't go into the specifics unless you're interested, but I found that
the usb Earthmate was given more signal sensitivity like they
advertise, but at the cost of being less able to handle interferance.
Newer high powered laptops love to leak rf at the frequencies that jam
gps. You either need to move the receiver much further away from the
computer ( I couldn't get far enough away from inside the cab of a
pickup ) or use a slower computer. For instance, my newer Thinkpad
runs at 1.2 ghz and the Earthmate won't work unless I leave it outside
on the roof of the truck. My older Thinkpad runs at 233 mhz and the
Earthmate does everything they advertise it can do, even sitting on
top of the computer.

Unfortunately, the Delorme software won't run on that machine because
it's such a resource hog. I got around it by putting the Earthmate on
a 10ft usb extension cord and tossing it in the back of the truck
where the walls shield it from the computer, then tossing the usb
earthmate in the junk drawer where it belongs when I got home. The
older serial port Earthmate works fine on the dash and the slightly
lower accuracy isn't a problem since the Delorme maps are between
400-1000 feet off for most of this area anyway.