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GPS in Tablets


Alan2

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I'm looking for a Tablet that has a built in GPS.  I want to be able to use it to navigate in my car using my Android Galaxy cellphone as a hot spot.  If I'm in the woods and out of range of cellphone towers, I can still locate my position, locate caches, and track myself.  The tablet has to be able to add apps like I have in my Samsung Galaxy cellphone. Any recommendations? Thanks. Alan. 

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41 minutes ago, Alan2 said:

I'm looking for a Tablet that has a built in GPS.  I want to be able to use it to navigate in my car using my Android Galaxy cellphone as a hot spot.  If I'm in the woods and out of range of cellphone towers, I can still locate my position, locate caches, and track myself.  The tablet has to be able to add apps like I have in my Samsung Galaxy cellphone. Any recommendations? Thanks. Alan. 

 

Samsung tablets have 8" and 12" screens.  They have built-in GPS, compass and other sensors suitable for Geocaching Apps.  You have to decide what you want in a tablet.  If it's for a desk, a larger screen is good.  If you're planning to carry it around in the wilds, you need a case that keeps the tablet dry, which adds size and weight.  So the smaller tablet might be suitable, but if you want a compact screen, a phone night do instead (with or without a SIM chip), especially if you plan to mount it in a car.

 

The Official App works in portrait mode, which is cool for a phone, not so cool for a large screen.  "GPS" may be there, but not all tablets are suitable for all Apps.  So if you have a tablet or to in mind, ask around, so you know the pros and cons before purchase.

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1 hour ago, kunarion said:

 

Samsung tablets have 8" and 12" screens.  They have built-in GPS, compass and other sensors suitable for Geocaching Apps.  You have to decide what you want in a tablet.  If it's for a desk, a larger screen is good.  If you're planning to carry it around in the wilds, you need a case that keeps the tablet dry, which adds size and weight.  So the smaller tablet might be suitable, but if you want a compact screen, a phone night do instead (with or without a SIM chip), especially if you plan to mount it in a car.

 

The Official App works in portrait mode, which is cool for a phone, not so cool for a large screen.  "GPS" may be there, but not all tablets are suitable for all Apps.  So if you have a tablet or to in mind, ask around, so you know the pros and cons before purchase.

Thanks.  It seems Samsung Tablet S5e 10.5" has a built in GPS hardware.  But it's a two year old model.  Samsung also has an 11" Tablet S7 that's new and more powerful.  But it seems you have to connect an external GPS receiver to get a GPS signal although it will use the tower cell location to give you approximate locations.  Are they accurate?

 

Do you know if Geocaching app works on tablets?  Google navigation maps? Do other apps like The Photographer Ephemeris also works as they use GPS location?

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4 minutes ago, Alan2 said:

Thanks.  It seems Samsung Tablet S5e 10.5" has a built in GPS hardware.  But it's a two year old model.  Samsung also has an 11" Tablet S7 that's new and more powerful.  But it seems you have to connect an external GPS receiver to get a GPS signal although it will use the tower cell location to give you approximate locations.  Are they accurate?

 

Do you know if Geocaching app works on tablets?  Google navigation maps? Do other apps like The Photographer Ephemeris also works as they use GPS location?


 The 11” Samsung S7 tablet has built-in GPS, GLONASS, BDS, and GALILEO.  The official App runs in portrait mode, which makes it kind of inconvenient with a keyboard case.  It’s a good idea to have a protective case for outdoor activities, so be sure you are OK with carrying around a big tablet in a case.  I definitely don’t Geocache like that.  It’s awkward, plus I don’t like having to turn the screen brightness all the way up to see a screen in sunlight.

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20 hours ago, Aguila317 said:

Have a look at the Samsung Active 2. It is rugged and has an 8" screen. The stylus is very handy when wearing gloves on the winter. 


That’s why I asked how small a “tablet” the tablet may be.  If it’s handheld, many phones might be fine instead of "a tablet", even using WiFi only, such as connected to another phone.

 

Edited by kunarion
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I have been using a Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 8 inch in my Jeep for a couple of years.  I now find it indispensible for navigation.

 

I have a JK so added the JKE-Dock ( https://vectoroffroad.com/products/jke-dock-2011-2017 ) and RAM mounts.  It holds up well even in the most rocky/washboarded conditions.

 

RAM has mounts you can hold your tablet in and thread in a charging cable to keep it going all day.  Jeep JK has 110 volt and 12 accessory (formerly called cigarette lighter) socket so it's easy to have a little charger and cable run up to the dash and plugged in for continuous use.

 

For software I have c:GEO for around town, it works well with Open Street Maps, though it was intended to run live which I do not like at all.  So I take the tablet offline every time I have it up, so it isn't cluttering the display with all the cheches I own, are disabled, I'm not looking for, etc.  I load pocket queries, often only the solved puzzles and various other .gpx stuff.

 

I also use Locus Pro with downloaded USGS Scanned Topo Maps (not the current ones, which leave out a lot of historical detail)  Thanks to the roomy 32GB of memory I have all of California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Oregon, southern Washington, Western Colorado and New Mexico at my fingertips in excrutiating detail.  I also us it to keep track of where about 10,000 benchmarks might be, since I like to find these some times.

 

This setup is like the proverbial Swiss Army Knife.  It has everything and I can link to my phone for hotspot interwebs whenever I need to see those specials from the grocery store or I have a wet log I need to replace.   My S2 is out of production, so at some point I'll need a new tablet, I will only go with one which is not integrated with a telecomm package, since I like to manage my connection (keep c:GEO fro doing what the author wants, but I do not want.)

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