GPS Mapping

[Edward Buker]

I was working on my Garmin Dezl and struggling trying to alter a route that I was planning on the small screen. You can do it, but it is not a lot of fun. There is frustration with using the waypoint methodology which was a carry over from the marine software and trying to review a long route is a pain at best. There are things that the Garmin does very well like lane assist, and the use of POI files (Point Of Interest) but other things do not always work so well. There are times that I have to go to car mode to be able to take a road that I know is acceptable for an RV.

I had gained an affection for Street Atlas from Delorme given it was easy to plan a route and check it as well on my portable PC. In my last motorhome I had an external monitor set up overhead and was a happy camper using that software. I noticed that someone had posted that they were using Delorme Street Atlas on a Fujitsu Q550 tablet. That tablet was a 2011 design for business and started out at $1000 but as with all technology I saw that there was a new well equiped version on Amazon new for $279. It has a bright screen, reasonably responsive, and responds to both a touch and a stylus with the stylus being more accurate. The sound is very weak from the tablet so you will have to use the earphone out jack with an alternative speaker amp or an earphone to hear instructions on the road.

http://www.amazon.com/Fujitsu-STYLISTIC-Q550-10-1-Net-tablet/dp/B0053EUNFU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368733456&sr=8-1&keywords=q550

 It requires an inexpensive USB GPS which I had already purchased from Delorme. With a RAM mount from West Marine and a little woodwork we are all set up. I have the Alpine system, with the back up camera and there are unused audio input leads in the Aux mode that the camera uses. I have fed the audio out from the tablet to the Alpine so the ceiling speakers now provide Nav instructions. You could also play stored music if you like. One really nice surprise is that the Fujitsu has very good dual microphones and voice commands like zoom in, zoom out, directions, or next turn which  provides audio turn instructions works very well. For not much more than $300, all mounted, I think it is a bargain addition. It may not be right for everyone but I thought a couple of techies out there might be interested.

I will continue to use the Garmin for lane assist etc. It will be good to have a back up GPS on board with easier planning. I can plot a route on my laptop and copy the file over to the tablet using a flashdrive or just create it on the tablet. The unit has Wifi and Bluetooth and I have not experimented if I can stream Pandora from my phone over bluetooth to the Alpine. Let you know what I learn when I have some time...

Later Ed

[Joel Ashley]

Nice job Dude!  And in the same exact place I set the suction cup plate for my Nuvi 350.  May be a plan for my iPad now.  

Joel

PS - are you putting clear anti-skid buttons or something on the bottom wood section to keep the tablet from sliding off during turns?  Maybe could have wrapped the bottom wood piece up around at the ends?

[Steve Huber Co-Admin]

Ed,
I share your frustration with Garmin. Years ago I had a Street Pilot. With it I could plan my routes on the PC and then download them to the unit, which would store them. Not  so with the "NUVI" generation.
Nice job on the install!
Steve

[Edward Buker]

Joel,

I took the photo of the wood mount before I was finished. The base now has two velcro tabs to secure the tablet and two clear anti skid buttons in the groove that the tablet rests on (good guess on that one) The wood mount is narrow to allow for the storage of a partially exposed stylus in a hole I bored on the left end and to expose a speaker and power lead on the bottom of the tablet right end. It is nice that it all worked out to not be in the way and is all very visible from the driving position. It can also be swiveled to face the passenger seat although it is a bit more distant for viewing.

Steve,

That is one of my big frustrations with the Garmin. They have a program for the PC called Basecamp where you can plan a route and then download your route to the Garmin. What actually happens is the waypoints you used to make your route get transmitted to your Garmin. The issue is that the algorithms used to calculate the route between the waypoints is different in basecamp on your computer than it is in your Dezl Garmin or Nuvi....don't ask me why, it just provokes a litany of colorful language on my part.

That issue makes it impossible for you to plan and view your route on a computer, all you can really do is view your waypoints and hope for the best. This is a holdover issue from the fact that the marine side, where Garmin started, always had straight lines between waypoints, so all was well when you used a computer for planning and sent the waypoints to a marine GPS plotter.  It was all the same. I have had several discussions with Garmin about this and they keep putting it into engineering but so far this issue has not had any action.

I never used Street Pilot but  it probably was much like Street Atlas. I will be happy to know that the route I planned is exactly what I am using on the tablet.
Looking forward to having the two options. Thanks for the install compliment.

Later Ed

[Dave Cunningham]

Very cool Ed, nice install, as soon as I saw it I thought "hey why don't I do that with my iPad " then realized that it does not have a USB  imput, So this USB GPS that you speak of is self contained and requires no antenna? Tell me more , where do you get one?

Thanks,

Dave

[Brad Burgess]

"Bad Elf" GPS plugs into iPads.

Brad Burgess
06 Momterey

[William Brosam]

another option is one of the andriod car stereo decks, like what power acoustic offers 9" screen and can load on gps programs from the app store.

and also some stereo decks allow an ipod or iphone to be placed on the front to be used as the gps

[Wayne Tull]

I bought the Fujitsu Q550 tablet (price went up $20).  Wasn't happy with how the touch screen responded to finger touch, but after doing the latest up grades from Fujitsu and recalibrating the screen all is well now. Nice Win 7 tablet for the money. A couple of the upgrades are really slow.

[Edward Buker]

Dave, Wayne, and all,

We have been on the road and spent 5 days in Austin but could not get on the forum...ended up "banned" while on Tangonet. Enjoyed Austin and all it offered. The USB self contained module with a built in antenna sits on the dash and is available from DeLorme and probably others. It is inexpensive and new versions work quite well. Like you Wayne, the updates were slow, mostly Windows updates from 2011 until now were the culprit. I am happy with the performance and for the money it would be hard to beat.

I have the 2009 version of Street Atlas and I hear that the 2013 version is not much better. What it lacks is a good lane assist. I am hoping that Delorme or Microsoft gets on the ball here and does some real upgrades now that Windows tablets are coming down in price. I found that I was too optimistic with regard to the voice commands. Works well when the coach is quiet but on the road noise will give the screen a mind of its own when it thinks you have said something.

 I have been running the Dezl by Garmin and I follow that on the road with the tablet as a back up. I can set the scale on the tablet for a broader view and see what is coming up. The Dezl gives me the close in and lane assist...both have a place. The voice with the audio sent over the Alpine is clear and loud, I like that. I have the tablet counting down miles and time to our daily destination, and next route change. I give the edge to the Garmin if I had to pick just one, it is all in the software. I do the trip planning on the tablet for ease. Time to get rolling...
Later Ed

[Wayne Tull]

Currently Streets & Trips 2013 $20 at the Microsoft store download only.

[Joel Ashley]

The September issue of Consumer Reports, p. 51, rates GPS units.  They recommend the Magellan Roadmate Pro 9165T for large vehicles.  I think that one has lifetime traffic updates and Good Sam camping software, as do several other Magellan 7" models, some less costly.

The CR editors also noted and very much liked an altogether new method of unit mounting invented by Garmin.

Joel