WiGLE.net

Right now I am using a delorme earthmate lt-40 gps and I was thinking about getting another gps that acquires a fix in less time. What kind of gps would be good?

I am a fan of the USGlobalSat BU-353. I have 3 of them. They are waterproof, and I just slapped it on the roof, and the magnet holds strong, and it is aerodynamic. Gone through snow and rain no problems.

I also have one of these (USGlobalSat BT-338).

I found the earthmate, and I might have had an older version, would sometimes lose a fix just going under a bridge.

With the 353, I've been able to get a 3D fix while flying in a commercial plane and putting the unit in the window. It rarely loses a 3D fix, and reacquires coming out of tunnels pretty quickly.

So far I've only worked with Delorme Earthmate USB, Delorme LT-20, Garmin GPS 18 and a Garmin eTrex Venture. My observation is that the Delormes lock signal MUCH better than the Garmin. The Garmin GPS 18 will lose signal if tree cover even gets just a little thick. My rule of thumb is if there isn't sunlight on my dash because the trees are shading it, the Garmin will lose signal.
Delormes seem to need going under a long bridge to get them to hiccup. I know I have sat at a stop light under a large over pass and retained 3-D lock with my older Delorme though. My Garmin handheld eTrex holds a better lock than the GPS 18. The eTrex performs just as well as the Delormes for me.

As far as fast lock acquisition, I can't say any of them lock faster than another. What seems to be the most important factor is proximity to the coordinates the GPS was at when it was last on. In other words, if I shut down my rig in the driveway and then turn it back on the next day in the driveway, acquisition will be quicker than if I turn it on the next day half-way across town. All the devices seem to need to do extra calculations (takes time) to figure out where they are.

YMMV, this is unscientific data based on several years of observation while wardriving.

Right now I am using a delorme earthmate lt-40 gps and I was thinking about getting another gps that acquires a fix in less time. What kind of gps would be good?

Did you receive a PM response from me? I tried to send a message, and it looks like it is stuck in the outbox?

EDIT: Nevermind, I think it switches out of the Outbox after the recipient of the PM logs in? Maybe?

I am a fan of the USGlobalSat BU-353.

I have good luck with these as well. I have two of them, they work well in Linux.