GPS systems

GPS on this shelf meant a dedicated navigator with its own screen, the kind that sat on a dashboard or in a hand, not a watch. An earlier portable menu had also carried a GPS label. Both open this page.

The receiver needs a view of the sky to compute a position. A first lock after a long time in a drawer can take several minutes. After that, locks are quicker. The map is a file in the unit's memory. An outdated map still shows your position. It misses new roads and one-way changes. Map updates were a paid download tied to the brand's software, and that software is the piece that ages out when the company stops issuing files. A unit that will not see satellites in the car but works on the sidewalk is often a metallic windshield or a dash position under the slope of the glass.