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Bucky · 03-07-03, 03:32 PM

I have had a Garmin V for about a year now and ready to move on to something else. The Garmin V is ok but has some shortcomings (small screen, 19 megabytes of memory, and serial transfer of said megabytes...sloooww!). I saw a PDA that had a GPS interface and I thought this might be a good alternative. I don't have any real need for a PDA except for being a gps, but do
think PDA's would draw screens faster, have a better color screen, and have a lot more memory or expandable memory. I rely heavily on my gps for routing (driving directions). I am currently looking at the Dell Axim mainly because of price. I am getting rid of the Garmin V in order to get the Axim.

I have seen compact Flash GPS cards and while this looks ok. I want to position the Axim close to my old eyes where I can see the screen relatively easily. The CF card style GPS would have the antenna under the metal roof of my truck thus hampering satellite reception. Here is my thinking. If I get the seperate GPS receiver that hooks up via cable to the bottom of the Axim (this would also free up my CF slot for a CF Card, I could locate the receiver/antenna on the dashboard in clear view of the sky and keep the Axim close to me. I'm also thinking I could load the compact flash port with a 256 or 512 megabyte CF card. That way I could hopefully load up all of the street level maps for the entire state of Florida or maybe even the southeast part of the country on the PDA. I'm kind of confused about all of this. Also, I've been trying to read up on the difference on the SD memory and the CF memory. Do maps have to be stored on one or the other or can they both be used at the same time? I want to be a mapping fool! ;)

I am also planning to get the basic Axim for $250 less the $50 rebate. Will this run the pda/gps ok? Like I said, gps is really the only thing I am interested in for my PDA but maybe that would change in the future.

I saw a Holux GPS receiver that hooked up via USB. Would this hook up directly to the Axim? I've been reading about all manners of strangeness with regard to Dell and serial connections.

Is it possible to use the Navman software on a PDA/GPS setup other than the Navman...For example Holux? Why is say the Pharo so much more expensive than the Holux. I am trying to stay somewhat on a budget. Speaking of budget... Would it be better to buy a low end GPS like a $100 Garmin Etrex or something similar and interface it with the PDA? That way I could go geocaching and leave my expensive PDA in the car. Sorry to be so long winded...

Thanks for any
suggestions.

03-07-03, 03:32 PM	#1 (permalink)
Bucky Aximsite Rookie DAP Freshman Join Date: Mar 2003 Location: Orlando, FL. Posts: 66 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	PDA GPS Advice I have had a Garmin V for about a year now and ready to move on to something else. The Garmin V is ok but has some shortcomings (small screen, 19 megabytes of memory, and serial transfer of said megabytes...sloooww!). I saw a PDA that had a GPS interface and I thought this might be a good alternative. I don't have any real need for a PDA except for being a gps, but do think PDA's would draw screens faster, have a better color screen, and have a lot more memory or expandable memory. I rely heavily on my gps for routing (driving directions). I am currently looking at the Dell Axim mainly because of price. I am getting rid of the Garmin V in order to get the Axim. I have seen compact Flash GPS cards and while this looks ok. I want to position the Axim close to my old eyes where I can see the screen relatively easily. The CF card style GPS would have the antenna under the metal roof of my truck thus hampering satellite reception. Here is my thinking. If I get the seperate GPS receiver that hooks up via cable to the bottom of the Axim (this would also free up my CF slot for a CF Card, I could locate the receiver/antenna on the dashboard in clear view of the sky and keep the Axim close to me. I'm also thinking I could load the compact flash port with a 256 or 512 megabyte CF card. That way I could hopefully load up all of the street level maps for the entire state of Florida or maybe even the southeast part of the country on the PDA. I'm kind of confused about all of this. Also, I've been trying to read up on the difference on the SD memory and the CF memory. Do maps have to be stored on one or the other or can they both be used at the same time? I want to be a mapping fool! ;) I am also planning to get the basic Axim for $250 less the $50 rebate. Will this run the pda/gps ok? Like I said, gps is really the only thing I am interested in for my PDA but maybe that would change in the future. I saw a Holux GPS receiver that hooked up via USB. Would this hook up directly to the Axim? I've been reading about all manners of strangeness with regard to Dell and serial connections. Is it possible to use the Navman software on a PDA/GPS setup other than the Navman...For example Holux? Why is say the Pharo so much more expensive than the Holux. I am trying to stay somewhat on a budget. Speaking of budget... Would it be better to buy a low end GPS like a $100 Garmin Etrex or something similar and interface it with the PDA? That way I could go geocaching and leave my expensive PDA in the car. Sorry to be so long winded... Thanks for any suggestions.