Bluetooth GPS

[rv468]

I?m considering a PDA/Bluetooth GPS for my RV4. I would be purchasing Anywhere Map software to run on this system. Anywhere Map also sells a Sentinel Bluetooth GPS. Can anyone with this combination tell me if the Bluetooth connection is reliable? I have a Bluetooth headset for my cell phone. It often looses the connection for no apparent reason. Do the Bluetooth GPS units do the same thing?

Thanks in advance,
Cameron Smith
RV4 #68 painting

[Fallguy]

Works better than the wired one in the cradle I used to use and allows cleaner placement on the dash of my work truck.

Seidio made mine.

I'm not sure I would trust it in the air except as a backup, but I've not had a problem.


Wade

[Dgamble]

I have the AnywhereMap Bluetooth GPS, and once I got it configured correctly (I had some conflicts with the Bluetooth XM Wx box at first) it has been completely reliable. I don't use it as my primary GPS since I have a Garmin 295 right next to it and bought the AnywhereMap mostly for the XM weather, but if I chose to use it as my primary nav my problem wouldn't be the reliability of the GPS, it would be the comparative weakness of the PDA display as compared to the Garmin.

Originally Posted by rv468

I?m considering a PDA/Bluetooth GPS for my RV4. I would be purchasing Anywhere Map software to run on this system. Anywhere Map also sells a Sentinel Bluetooth GPS. Can anyone with this combination tell me if the Bluetooth connection is reliable? I have a Bluetooth headset for my cell phone. It often looses the connection for no apparent reason. Do the Bluetooth GPS units do the same thing?

Thanks in advance,
Cameron Smith
RV4 #68 painting

[DC YXer]

I also use a Bluetooth gps to drive a kind of a junior varsity EFIS on a handheld - but my hardware is different on both ends than yours. I use a Teletype GPS and a Palm T5 running Flightmaster software (www.flight-master.com) and I love it. The Bluetooth connection is rock solid, and the lack of extra wires all over the cockpit is a real nice convenience.

There's a trade-off for that, certainly, in that since both the GPS and the handheld run on internal batteries and not ship's power, I'm limited to about three hours of flying before one or both needs a recharge. Not a problem for me, given the kind of flying I do, but it could be a real limitation for others - in fact, the only people I would NOT recommend this combo to are the serious cross-country guys.

Both the Bluetooth connection (and the Flightmaster software) get a big thumbs up from me.

[svanarts]

FlightMaster and it's flight planning counter-part Co-Pilot on the Palm platform are the best kept secret in moving map software. Far more reliable than a Windows Mobile product. I use Flight-Master on a Palm T3 with a Garmin GPS 10 blue tooth GPS and it is rock solid. I am a former user of AnywhereMap on an HP iPAQ and the combination was bullet-proof there as well. Though I didn't use any other blue tooth products in conjunction with it.