Magellan GPS 315

I bought my magellan 315 on a whim from Maplin Electronics, who also sell some of the support stuff. I had read Ranulph Fiennes accounts of using one. I do a bit of foreign travel to hotels and the like, and thought it would be a good way of always finding my way back. I found the machine took some time to get used to, but once learned became intuitive. Does it work - definitely yes, but sometimes the information is not helpful. It is good for calibrating the speedo in your car, as it will record not only direction of travel, but also speed, and possibly ETA. I also got mine to work in an airplane, and it was fascinating watching the inbuilt map move, showing ...  Read the complete review

Having bought a GPS for trekking purposes about a year ago, having had the magellan brand recommended from a friend in the Military, the model I bought, the GPS Blazer12 has now been replaced by an upgraded version. I paid just over 100 pounds for mine and it has been worth every penny. With a multitude of different map datums and grid reference systems, it is nearly impossible to get lost with one!. However, a note of caution DO NOT USE IT ON ITS OWN WHEN OUT IN THE COUNTRYSIDE/MOUNTAINS as, if it fails and no back-up is provided you're gonna be up s**t-creek! Always use it as a secondary piece of kit to the map and compass. The blazer12 is an excellent ...  Read the complete review

The GPS (Global Positioning System) is maintained via 27 or so satellites provided by the US Government. With a suitable reciever, you can (within say 50metres) find your position anywhere on the Planet. The Magellan GPS 315 is a 12 channel parallel receiver, which can communicate with up to 12 "birds" at any given time. There are a choice of "read-out" screens giving information such as speed, altitude, co-ordinates etc. Other screens offer a "plot" of your path, so you can eventually re-trace that path just by reading the screen. Most usefull of all are the user waypoints. These allow you to ...  Read the complete review

As far as James Bond style gadgets go GPS has got to be the best available to non 00 agents. GPS, like most technology, has come down in price dramatically as more companies produce them. Basically they tell you where you are and how to get to here you want to go. The system uses satellites to triangulate your position. The satellites are owned and operated by the US Department of Defence and until recently they held a few tricks up their sleeve. For them GPS is a military system, so they wanted to stop other users getting the most accurate reading. They added a code to the satellites signal and they only gave the code to their very best friends. The ...  Read the complete review