The GPS Blog, GPS Download, GPS App For iPhone, iPad, Android

There are a wide variety of companies that provide receivers for Global Positioning Systems (GPS). Among these companies is Magellan GPS. Although Magellan GPS was not the first electronics company to develop GPS receivers, they have been innovators in the field ever since Magellan GPS was founded in 1986.

Global Positioning Systems (GPS), the Early Years

It all began in 1978, when the Global Positioning System (which at the time was known as Navigation System with Timing and Ranging, or NAVSTAR) was launched by the United States Department of Defense. Eleven satellites were placed into orbit, and they were originally intended for military use. However, it wasn’t until 1985 that the first GPS receiver was created by a European electronics company, Sercel. The next year, Magellan GPS was founded in Santa Clara, California.

Magellan GPS Leads the World in GPS Technology

In 1989, Magellan GPS introduced the world to the first handheld commercial GPS receiver. Although other GPS companies, such as Ashtech Corporation and Dassault Electronique, provided ample competition in the development of GPS technology, Magellan GPS remained a leader in GPS innovations for the next decade. In 1997, the company announced the completion of the first handheld global satellite communicator, the GSC 100. Later that year, Magellan initiated a handheld GPS receiver that cost less than $100. It was the first of its kind in the world, and brought affordability in GPS technology to the average consumer.

By 2006, many competing GPS receiver companies merged under the name of Magellan. The original companies included Dassault Electronique, Sercel, Thomson-CSF, and Ashtech Corporation.

What are some of the Products Produced by Magellan GPS?

Magellan GPS is responsible for many of the GPS receiver devices available today. Their products have become an essential part of daily life for many people. The Magellan Road Mate 2200T, for example, is a flawless navigational system for drivers. With a touch screen that allows the driver to enter any address, the system provides both vocal and visual directions to virtually any destination. The Magellan Crossover GPS is the first handheld, pocket-sized GPS in the world, and it includes all of the advanced features that larger systems have.

Magellan GPS has been in the middle of GPS technology since the beginning, and they have continued to show initiative and drive in the field of GPS technology. What “firsts” can we expect from this company in the future? The possibilities are endless!

There was a time when one needed bulky portable GPS units to find directions for a location and other related needs. All that has changed with new GPS technology and it is now possible to buy some of the most amazing high-tech and portable devices. For example, there is a selection of laptop GPS’s that have many wonderful features such as voice direction, touch screen display, high sensitivity GPS receivers, WAAS technology, Bluetooth capability and MP3 player functionality.

Many More Advances have been made in GPS Technology

Laptop GPS technology has certainly made many advances, allowing you to use your GPS in the car and experience the benefits of the ability get to places without getting lost and find the fastest route to a particular destination. Laptop GPS means that you have the ability to store and save information to utilize at a later date. The benefits to business are tremendous, and you can see that in the case of land surveyors who can use a laptop GPS to generate maps of lands and roads as they are plotted.

It is hard to imagine today what the police force and emergency personnel would do without a laptop GPS. Using this method of querying for direction, they can reach a crime scene in much quicker, and track down criminals and stolen goods more effectively than ever before. You can also get the latest in traffic reports thanks to your laptop GPS, which will assist you in avoiding rush hour congestion and arriving home from work much quicker and with less stress.

You can also use the laptop GPS to find your way around the city, know what the places of interest along your route are, plot a trip and become better acquainted with new surroundings when you move to a new part of the country or go on a vacation. There are certainly endless uses for your laptop GPS, and only your needs, budget and usage will constrain you in choosing an optimum solution.

Before purchasing a Laptop GPS, make sure to do your research and know the different brands and how each one functions. With a laptop GPS, you can have a complete system for navigation, and with features like two-way voice technology, you will be able to receive voice instructions to help you make it to a particular destination. Some of these high-tech systems can even respond to simple voice commands. If you do happen to miss a turn, the laptop GPS can instantly correct the situation for you by providing an alternate route. Your GPS can also provide detour features to help you negotiate alternative when you experience unplanned and unexpected traffic delays. Nothing can get you where you want to go faster than a GPS.

In the western parts of the United States, there are large sections of land available for personal use within the National Forest system. Whether you are driving or riding, hiking or fishing, a handheld GPS unit is essential for keeping your bearings in the vast expanses of unpopulated areas. Every year, people get lost in the uninhabited areas of the western region and some even die because they cannot find help, or they panic and head off into the wrong direction. Having a handheld GPS can save many people from the threat of being lost, and assist them in getting quick assistance when it becomes necessary.

The first step to avoid getting lost in the mountains or forest is to mark the location of your vehicle before starting out on a hike or bike ride. As long as that initial waypoint is added, you can always backtrack to your starting point. A handheld GPS can make any outing into the great outdoors safer for the participants. However, safety is only one important function of the handheld GPS. If you find a great place to camp or fish, you can program the precise location into your GPS, for easy return trips. The same holds true for the hunters following game. Having the handheld GPS allows the hunter to safely track his progress, so that he can focus on the chase without the concern of knowing how to get back to camp.

Handheld GPS Problems

While there is no doubt to the usefulness of a handheld GPS, there are some problems with these devices that should be considered before purchasing one. Handheld GPS units usually run on batteries, making it very important to have extra batteries available when you head out on a trek with your device. You don’t want your GPS unit to lose battery power when you are in the middle of nowhere without a way to get back to camp. If you forget extra batteries, don’t assume that you will be okay without them. It is better to find a place to buy batteries and be a little late to your destination, than to not have them and be lost in the middle of uninhabited territory.

It is also important for you to make sure that your GPS will work effectively in the area that you are heading into. Sometimes the unit may not work if it located in a deep canyon, or heavily wooded area, for example. Losing the signal is as good as not having taken the GPS along with you at all. Despite these limitations, by exercising some common sense and a bit of preparation, a handheld GPS can make wilderness trips safe adventures.

GPS (Global Positioning System) devices available today are navigational tools used to find specific location data, and are many times more accurate than any previous system known to man. GPS watches, in particular, use twenty-seven satellites and a huge network of technical computers to calculate the user’s location (latitude and longitude) to within a few meters. When using GPS watches it’s very easy to keep track of your current location and speed and the direction and distance to your destination.

GPS watches can program your route in advance and they can save and chart your trips from previous data. You can store all of the coordinates of interesting vacation locations, and you can retrace your steps back to your starting point. GPS watches have become a prerequisite for the mountain climber and avid hiker. Because of the valuable properties of this watch, millions of dollars have been saved searching for lost sportsmen. Even in terrain with no landmarks, or in conditions of low visibility, you will know exactly where you are and how to get to your destination. GPS watches are becoming known as the hiker’s bible. It has made this sport easier and much safer.

The Highlights

Today, GPS watches are also being used by scientists, farmers, surveyors, soldiers, delivery drivers, dispatchers, sailors, fire-fighters and lumberjacks. People from all walks of life are using GPS watches in different ways to make their work more productive, safer and easier. GPS watches combine an altimeter, barometer, thermometer and compass with the GPS functions. All of these components are packed into a single watch. Your watch can plan your routes from home while looking at a map, and then save them into your watch. When out in the field, your watch will tell you which way to go and how fast you are moving. It will tell you how far you have traveled and how far you still have to go. It even tells you when you will be arriving at your destination.

You can designate a “home” position and then when you hit the “find home” button from any location, you will receive the route and the distance back. When you go on an adventure without a route in mind, you can use this watch to keep track of your position, speed and distance. But, most importantly, you will able to find your way back to where you started from. Getting lost is not even an option with this watch. What’s more incredible is that when you find a place of interest, such as a camp site, scenic view, fishing spot or even a fabulous antique store, you can save the coordinates into your watch. GPS watches are single navigational computers, and have created adventure for the seasoned sportsman and seasoned shopper, simply by a flip of the wrist.