Pocket Co-Pilot GPS Hell?

[Jason Dunn]

Rick writes to us with a tale of woe about his Pocket Co-Pilot GPS sleeve:<br /><br />"Thought I would report a miserable experience with the Pocket Co-Pilot GPS sleeve for the IPAQ. First I would like to say that Travroute has been excellent to deal with, but the product simply does not work for many users. Craig at Travroute has said they have had many users who cannot get the units to work. I have had patches and even a replacement unit and it still doesn't work. Apparently the units have worked for some users while other users have very slow satellite acquisition times. After trying from November till March I finally gave up and sent the package back for a refund. Assuming I get my refund promptly I have no complaint about Travroute as they have tried to get the product to work. Apparently the manufacturer had not solved a lot of problems before distributing the product. I had hoped that this would be the ideal GPS solution as it was self contained and has a compact flash slot built in. I wonder how other systems are doing out in the real world."<br /><br />Any owners of this product have more luck than Rick? It seemed like a great concept when I first saw it...

[bargle]

My Magellen GPS 310 works great. It goes for under 100$ and his has a diplay built on. So when I don't need or want to use my iPAQ with it (geocacheng) I can still use the device... The downside? the 3rd decmial point on the built on splay is not shown. However it is NEMA compadable, there fore the 3rd decmial dose show up if you need that higher accuracy range, when you use GPS software....But for under 100$ Damn worth it.

[bargle]

Dose anyone know of any cards that are compadable with CE? I just got a dual slea and drool over the consept of one less cable.

[GregWard]

I've not tried the Co-pilot so can't speak from experience on that. However, I have played around with quite a few of the others and they pretty much all seem to suffer from that very first initialisation - it can take ages AND it has to have a totally clear view.
You can normally set "new location" manually (and I've always had to do so) but that's only half the story - you also have to set the right time for it to match the time/position against it's almanac. I've not yet found a unit that let's you set the time manually (it picks it up from the Satellites once it's initialised!).
So a brand new unit probably thinks it's Dec 31st 1999 and in Taiwan (or whatever). So it "looks" up and expects to see Sat 5 straight overhead and Sat 13 just over there etc - clearly it doesn't find them in the "right" places if you're in New York in March 02!
I'm not sure if the GPS software then takes ages to work out where/when it really is or if it needs to download an update to the almanac or something. What I am sure of is that this first "lock" takes for ever and will consistently fail if it doesn't have a really good view. Like I'm talking "take it into the Garden and leave it for a couple of hours!" - not always this bad but I have literally had to do this.
This really raises the question of whether it's all worth it. But you only have to do this once in my experience. If the unit "wakes up" in the same location (and the battery means it still know what time it is) it should acquire pretty much immediately and even with a poor view. If it gets off a plane in a new location it takes longer but normally acquires reasonably quickly - unless you're moving when you try to re-acquire.
Trouble is that the initialisation can give you a "false positive" on suspecting a faulty unit and you give up on it and think "even if I did get it working this is too bad to be of any use". But it is - normally - worth persisting.
No idea if this is what happened to you or not - I have no knowledge of whether there are specific hardware issues with the Co-pilot - but it has often been an issue for me. The card/add-ons seem to suffer more from this than the all in one units.

[Speed Racer]

I have been using Pocket CoPilot 2.0 and the Navman GPS sleeve since it was released last fall. First and foremost let me say that this combination of hardware and software works very well for flexible on the device trip planning and real time turn-by-turn directions if a few conditions are satisified.

To get the quickest intial acquisition times you need to meet the following conditions:

* Install the patch that allows you to select the "nearest city".
* Place the iPaq in a location with an unrestricted view of the sky.
* The GPS must remain stationary until it locks on to your location.
* The GPS must be near a road that is shown on CoPilot's map.
* Connect the iPaq to a power source.
* Time and date on the iPaq are set correctly.

If you did all of the above you should be able to consistently get an intial fix in less than five minutes.

With that said I have to say that I'm pretty disappointed by the rigidness of the conditions to acquire a fix. In my case I live in a condominium complex that is not shown on the map and 90% of the time it fails to find its location because it is too far from the nearest road listed on the map (150 yards) regardless of how long I wait. So that means I have to get in my car and drive to another location to wait for it to find its location which is a major pain.

I find that 9 times out of 10 I have to do an intial fix because I am not in the exact location as the last time I used it. Also I need to mention that you have to do an intial fix if you have done a soft reset since the last time you used CoPilot.

To make matters a little more frustrating CoPilot has an extremely hard time getting a fix if you are moving. This becomes very apparent if you lose a fix for more than a few seconds while driving. The only way to let CoPilot catch up is to pull off to the side of the road. The moment you come to a complete stop it will normally lock on. As long as you still meet the conditions listed above and you haven't driven too far since you lost the fix.

I have sent an e-mail to TravRoute detailing the observed behavior but I have yet to receive any resolution to the finicky acquisitions. In my opinion it seems like a software issue because I routinely have signals from six or more satelites, according to the SATS page, when it is having a hard time finding my location. Hopefully TravRoute will follow through with a patch that resolves this issue.

[Pony99CA]

I have the NavMan sleeve version of Pocket CoPilot, and basically am happy with it. However, it does have several problems, and I've E-mailed their tech support twice without getting any reply. I also E-mailed them about their maps, and at least got a reply.

At the end of this posting is a copy of the E-mail I sent them, so other users can see the problems I'm talking about.

Steve

>>> E-mail to TravRoute's tech support &lt;&lt;&lt;

I have been using my Pocket Copilot 2.0 Jacket Edition for a few weeks now, and am generally happy with it. However, I have noticed a few problems which should be fixed (some of which are possibly my fault).

In order of importance, they are:

1. On my iPAQ 3870, I get the following error message after 30-50 miles:

> Sorry, Pocket CoPilot only works with the CoPilot GPS jacket.

Clicking OK causes Pocket CoPilot to shut down, and I have to restart it. This is extraordinarily dangerous while driving.

Note that I did not get this error when using my old iPAQ 3650 using Pocket PC 2000. Is this a known problem with Pocket PC 2002 or the 3870?

2. I don't seem to have any Points of Interest in my Pocket PC. I created a large map (25.5MB) for South and East San Francisco Bay Area, and I don't see any points of interest on maps displayed on the Pocket PC.

Also, I can't locate any of them using the Points of Interest dialog. All searches return "No matches found within 10 miles of the city."

This *may* be my fault, but I've tried it several times. Is there something special I have to do in the PC-based program to get this data when creating my map.

3. Driving directions, while technically correct, can be very misleading. For example, while driving home in Hollister, the directions took me on Highway 25 (also known as San Benito Street for part of its run). At the intersection of San Benito and Nash, Highway 25 turns left onto Nash (and later right onto Airline). You can see the green markings for Highway 25 if you display the Hollister map.

Unfortunately, the driving directions don't always reflect those turns. As I'm driving south on San Benito and approach Nash, the next direction that shows says "Turn right on Southside Road". If I didn't know that Highway 25 turned left, I would have continued straight on San Benito Street looking for Southside Road.

Granted, the auto-recalculation of directions might get me there, but I think the directions should have said something like "Continue on Highway 25 by turning left on Nash Road" or "Turn left on Nash Road to stay on Highway 25". Whenever a turn or jog is required to stay on a highway, the directions should reflect that.

4. There doesn't seem to be any way of editing a Favorite entry. For example, I forgot to type something in the Name field of one Favorite, and the only way to set the name was to reenter the favorite data, then delete the old one.

You could easily provide an Edit button on the Favorites page of the Options dialog. You could also allow a context menu when selecting a Favorite in the planning mode.

5. The Points of Interest dialog is badly formatted. The City, Type, and Find button extend off the right edge of the screen. This makes navigating the Type field difficult. Also, City list seems to have two untitled columns before a search is done.

6. When I arrive at my destination, the screen shows "You have arrived" (or something similar) in a star, which is good. However, I feel it should also give a voice prompt letting you know that you've arrived. This will alert you to look for the address or location you want and prevent you from driving past it.

Finally, while not really a technical issue, the data for my home town is ridiculously out-of-date (at least six years). I have sent a separate note about this to [email protected].

I have a Compaq iPAQ 3870 with a 256MB Compact Flash card in the Navman sleeve. Can you provide any help with these issues, especially items #1 and #2?

[AZMark]

was it bengle?

Pretec makes a CF GPS card as does Teletype. You can get the Teletype card for $199.00 at www.teletype.com.

Both should also work in a PCCard slot with adapter. The PCMCIA card that Teletype sells is much more expensive. I've read that lock (like the copilot) isn't that great, but the Teletype will allow for external antenna.

[Pony99CA]

I've not tried the Co-pilot so can't speak from experience on that. However, I have played around with quite a few of the others and they pretty much all seem to suffer from that very first initialisation - it can take ages AND it has to have a totally clear view.


Yes, the first initialization took a long time, but, even after that, acquiring the satellites still takes too long (in my opinion). Even knowing my last location and, presumably, the time, it can still take a few minutes to lock on to satellites. It certainly doesn't lock on in less than a minute, as TravRoute claims, if I have removed the sleeve.

You can normally set "new location" manually (and I've always had to do so) but that's only half the story - you also have to set the right time for it to match the time/position against it's almanac. I've not yet found a unit that let's you set the time manually (it picks it up from the Satellites once it's initialised!).


The update I received for the Pocket CoPilot did allow specifying what city you're located near, but the original version did not allow that. As for the time, I would hope that the unit gets it from the Pocket PC. It stores its data on the Pocket PC, and I see no reason why the GPS sleeve would not use the Pocket PC's clock.


I'm not sure if the GPS software then takes ages to work out where/when it really is or if it needs to download an update to the almanac or something.


Do the GPS satellites actually allow downloading anything? I wouldn't think so, and I doubt the GPS products can download updates from anywhere else (which would basically require wireless Internet access).

This really raises the question of whether it's all worth it. But you only have to do this once in my experience. If the unit "wakes up" in the same location (and the battery means it still know what time it is) it should acquire pretty much immediately and even with a poor view. If it gets off a plane in a new location it takes longer but normally acquires reasonably quickly - unless you're moving when you try to re-acquire.


Again, that's not my experience. Yes, subsequent satellite acquistions are faster than the first, but they are rarely "immediate", and often take a few minutes.

In fact, they take so long that I think TravRoute should provide an audible warning once the satellites are acquired. This would prevent you from looking at the screen to see if the product is ready to navigate.

Steve

[Speed Racer]

Yes, the first initialization took a long time, but, even after that, acquiring the satellites still takes too long (in my opinion). Even knowing my last location and, presumably, the time, it can still take a few minutes to lock on to satellites. It certainly doesn't lock on in less than a minute, as TravRoute claims, if I have removed the sleeve.


My warm starts usually take about 45 seconds to acquire a fix as long the conditions are optimal.

* No soft resets since last use.
* Near location of last use.
* Clear view of the sky.
* Stationary.
* Near a road listed on CoPilot's map.

[Cliffbrooks]

Well, despite the fact that the maps are a bit out of date, I have nothing but positive things to say about the Pocket CoPilot GPS Sleeve. First, let me explain -- I have ABSOLUTELY NO sense of direction, so this device has been a life saver! I've found that even when street names have changed, if I just trust it, it will get me where I need to go. It even knows when I've exited the freeway and lets me know that I am on a ramp. AMAZING.

As far as signal locking, my experience has been pretty good. Once I've got the GPS secured and started, I just pull out of the parking lot and begin driving. Within about 1-2 minutes, it locks in on my location and begins directing me. It's fantastic.

I have found that in order to get my sleeve to work properly, I need to soft reset after sliding the sleeve on. Everything then works as advertised, and the driver display screen is second to none. A lot of people complain that the maps don't tell you what the side streets are, and I can see their point as the maps are virtually useless. The incredible driver's display makes up for it, by letting your know how many miles left to go, how many miles to your next turn, the name of the street you're on, and the name of the street you're looking for. What makes all this so special is that the text is large, and a simple glance lets you know what you need to know. When you know that you're next turn is Main Street, and you have 20 miles to go before you reach it, well, driving becomes so much more pleasant.

I've been lucky and virtually all of the addresses I've needed have been in the database, but I do hope they add the surrounding street names in the next version. Updating the maps is a must!

All in all, a sweet deal. I'm really sorry to hear that so many folks have had problems with their units. Really a shame.

[Pony99CA]

Well, despite the fact that the maps are a bit out of date, I have nothing but positive things to say about the Pocket CoPilot GPS Sleeve.


Well, I think maps that are SIX YEARS out of date is more than "a bit". Granted, I'm in a fairly rural area of California, but it's a fast growing area, and my street has been here for at least six years. They either don't have my street at all, or it's listed as "No Name".

First, let me explain -- I have ABSOLUTELY NO sense of direction, so this device has been a life saver! I've found that even when street names have changed, if I just trust it, it will get me where I need to go. It even knows when I've exited the freeway and lets me know that I am on a ramp. AMAZING.


I don't have much sense of direction, either, and I'm VERY near-sighted, so I bought it to help me find where to turn. It usually works, but if you read my E-mail above, sometimes it doesn't tell you to turn when it should.


I have found that in order to get my sleeve to work properly, I need to soft reset after sliding the sleeve on. Everything then works as advertised, and the driver display screen is second to none.


Yes, a soft reset is often required to get the Receiving indicator in Guidance mode, but not always. I think that's a problem, though, if it frequently requires a soft reset with no applications running.


A lot of people complain that the maps don't tell you what the side streets are, and I can see their point as the maps are virtually useless. The incredible driver's display makes up for it, by letting your know how many miles left to go, how many miles to your next turn, the name of the street you're on, and the name of the street you're looking for. What makes all this so special is that the text is large, and a simple glance lets you know what you need to know. When you know that you're next turn is Main Street, and you have 20 miles to go before you reach it, well, driving becomes so much more pleasant.


Yes, the displays are good. And if you have to know the name of a side street, you can click on the street (assuming you haven't driven so far that the street has scrolled off).


All in all, a sweet deal. I'm really sorry to hear that so many folks have had problems with their units. Really a shame.


As I said, I'm basically happy, although there are some significant problems -- no points of interest on my Pocket PC being the biggest. I just used it to drive from my house to the mountains near Yosemite, and it got me there without many problems. The biggest problem was "drift" -- occasionally thinking I'd left the road I was still on.

As I only paid $249 for it, I think it's a fair deal. If I had paid the current $349, I'd obviously be less happy. :-)

Steve