Is it possible to use tablet as trail GPS?
- Thread starter 04rnr
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Fern
New member
@%1;
You will need wifi for it to work.
You will need wifi for it to work.
not unless you can download the maps to your sd card in the tablet.
Fern
New member
Yes you can use a gps. Go use google maps and they will let you download a select of your map and you could still use gps if its in the area of where your map is downloaded.
wcjeep
Member
I download offline Google maps to various devices. Google time limits the maps for 30 or 40 days. Works great. Your Tab 3 should have no problems with offline maps. Have not used offline topo maps. There are a couple of vendors in the Google Play store.
Offline Google Maps also help your everyday device find and lock on faster with cellphone coverage.
Offline Google Maps also help your everyday device find and lock on faster with cellphone coverage.
Fern
New member
I stand corrected. Learn something everyday.
Ojai4Runner
Member
^^^This is what I do. I've used downloaded google maps on my iPad and it has worked well many times, in many places, when I had no cell service.
daveherrmann
New member
I do stuff like this for a living, I have a mobile app that runs on a tablet...
you will need a gps chip in the tablet, while it can use wifi to triangulate, since you are going to be in the woods, if you even have a wifi signal, the location may not be well known (your phone will use the wifi strength and the gps or agps chip in your phone to locate the wifi signal and upload that info without you knowing, this is how the location gets to be well known).
if you have a gps chip, then yes it will work but as others have pointed out you will need to download maps.
now, if you have built in nav, you could set a start point and turn on the bread crumb feature and use that. not perfect but it will work somewhat
you will need a gps chip in the tablet, while it can use wifi to triangulate, since you are going to be in the woods, if you even have a wifi signal, the location may not be well known (your phone will use the wifi strength and the gps or agps chip in your phone to locate the wifi signal and upload that info without you knowing, this is how the location gets to be well known).
if you have a gps chip, then yes it will work but as others have pointed out you will need to download maps.
now, if you have built in nav, you could set a start point and turn on the bread crumb feature and use that. not perfect but it will work somewhat
mcox522
New member
If your tablet has a gps chip, then yes. I use my old Nexus 7 tablet with Gaia topo maps all the time and it works great. Download the maps before hand and you are good to go. They have many different layers and you can plan your trip on their website on advance and sync it to your tablet. It's pricey though at $30/year I believe.
The apps others have stated will work fine too, just make sure your tablet has a GPS chip and you are able download offline maps.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using Tapatalk
The apps others have stated will work fine too, just make sure your tablet has a GPS chip and you are able download offline maps.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A3000 using Tapatalk
Fo sho
I also use Gaia GPS on an old iPad (no cellular) and as long as I download maps in advance, it's fantastic. With GPS alone, it's plenty accurate for our purposes.
I've found the yearly subscription worth the $30 as it offers dozens of layers to choose from (such as Nat Geo and USFS MVU maps, among others).
I also use Gaia GPS on an old iPad (no cellular) and as long as I download maps in advance, it's fantastic. With GPS alone, it's plenty accurate for our purposes.
I've found the yearly subscription worth the $30 as it offers dozens of layers to choose from (such as Nat Geo and USFS MVU maps, among others).
04rnr
New member
Hey all,
long story short, I picked up a Garmin GPSMAP 64s https://www.amazon.com/Garmin-World...qid=1518394057&sr=8-2&keywords=gps+garmin+64s at a local pawn shop, $100 OTD so I will use this for now, and then later do a laptop. I appreciate all the input and suggestions. Please keep them coming, you all ROCK
:first:
long story short, I picked up a Garmin GPSMAP 64s https://www.amazon.com/Garmin-World...qid=1518394057&sr=8-2&keywords=gps+garmin+64s at a local pawn shop, $100 OTD so I will use this for now, and then later do a laptop. I appreciate all the input and suggestions. Please keep them coming, you all ROCK
:first:
daveherrmann
New member
just to be clear, a stock tablet will work for GPS, it will triangulate off the wifi card. if you go off road, there is no wifi. without a local wifi to triangulate to (actually 3 or more), there will be no gps.
a gps chip should get you to within 10 meters, wifi triangulating in a remote area may as much as 65000 meters, but again that relies on a well known fixed wifi spot, the more its reported the better it gets
I would hate to see you going out with a wifi only tablet and get lost
a gps chip should get you to within 10 meters, wifi triangulating in a remote area may as much as 65000 meters, but again that relies on a well known fixed wifi spot, the more its reported the better it gets
I would hate to see you going out with a wifi only tablet and get lost
Thai
Elite Member
Couldn’t you “hotspot” your phone and then run the tablet off your phone’s GPS?
Moose.and.Me
New member
Just FYI. I use a old iPad mini with Gaia maps. As stated above, I just download the map area before heading out. My iPad doesn’t have the cellular/GPS chip in it. I use a Bluetooth GPS from Amazon to fix that problem and it works great.
Dual Electronics XGPS150A Multipurpose Universal Bluetooth GPS Receiver with Wide Area Augmentation System and Portable Attachment https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006M49G80/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_TiBGAbC6MNNBY
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Dual Electronics XGPS150A Multipurpose Universal Bluetooth GPS Receiver with Wide Area Augmentation System and Portable Attachment https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006M49G80/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_TiBGAbC6MNNBY
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Ron Burgandy
New member
Verizon ellipsis 8 tablet works great. built in gps and can add cellular to it, cheap to.
