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Main Boards => Gear => Topic started by: harland on 06:35:45, 05/07/20

Title: SATMAP
Post by: harland on 06:35:45, 05/07/20
Refurbished devices £70-£130:-
https://www.satmap.com/gps-devices.html?cat=245&dir=asc&order=position%2F&utm_source=Satmap+Systems+Newsletter&utm_campaign=73d8734363-SMR2020-07-04_ABCD_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_c6325efb8c-73d8734363-175321025&ct=t(SMR2020-07-04_ABCD_01)&mc_cid=73d8734363&mc_eid=4b8b460446
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 11:23:44, 05/07/20
These look interesting. I am looking at one and it says:-

Great Britain Whole 1:50k MapCard (Ordnance Survey - Landranger).

Does that mean I won't need to buy maps for the U.K.? Just looking on Amazon and have seen they have maps of areas in the U.K. for these devices, like Derbyshire for example, on SD cards that are £40+.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: harland on 12:05:37, 05/07/20
Certainly the £130 one shows 1:50000 GB map included, the £110 one says full GB map - doesn't show the scale. Worth phoning or emailing first but they are a good company. Some of the cards will be 1:25000 so you need to check whether the 1:50000 is OK for what you need.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 14:07:06, 05/07/20
Certainly the £130 one shows 1:50000 GB map included, the £110 one says full GB map - doesn't show the scale. Worth phoning or emailing first but they are a good company. Some of the cards will be 1:25000 so you need to check whether the 1:50000 is OK for what you need.


Am looking at getting this one https://www.satmap.com/active-12-gb-adventure-edition-a1-refurbished.html (https://www.satmap.com/active-12-gb-adventure-edition-a1-refurbished.html)


Reckon that will be ok for general hiking please?
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 14:30:29, 05/07/20
Actually, think this one might be better as it has OS map included, rather than the adventure mapping which doesn't show PROWs.



https://www.satmap.com/active-12-solo-1998.html (https://www.satmap.com/active-12-solo-1998.html)
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: harland on 16:13:48, 05/07/20
Actually, think this one might be better as it has OS map included, rather than the adventure mapping which doesn't show PROWs.
https://www.satmap.com/active-12-solo-1998.html (https://www.satmap.com/active-12-solo-1998.html)
But that one only has 1:250,000 OS map i.e. not 1:25,000, so somewhat limited.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 16:40:47, 05/07/20
But that one only has 1:250,000 OS map i.e. not 1:25,000, so somewhat limited.


Nearly messed that up! I ordered the first one I linked to, as I thought I might as well get the adventure map included. Didn't realise the maps were 250k, rather than 25k.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Apache on 04:39:54, 06/07/20
How long does the battery last and what does the unit weigh? These (for me) fundamental details appear to be missing in the specifications.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: harland on 06:28:56, 06/07/20
From SATMAP's website:-
"The older Active 12 with a built-in rechargeable battery, weighs 210 grams, it has a width of 7.6 centimetres, a height of 13 centimetres and it has a depth of 3.2 centimetres. The screen size is 5 centimetres wide and 7.1 centimetres tall. That is the viewable screen size.

The new Active 20 GPS is 310 grams, so it's a little bit heavier, but it does have a much bigger, higher capacity rechargeable battery in the unit. So that weight does include the battery. It's 7.1 centimetres wide and the height of it is 14.6 centimetres and the depth is 3.7 centimetres. The viewable screen size is 5 centimetres wide by 7.4 centimetres tall.

The Lithium Polymer rechargeable battery can last between 12 and 16 hours."

My experience is that it lasts all day without a problem with reasonable use but presumably it will depend upon how you use it i.e. if you constantly keep "playing" with it the battery will run down quicker rather than just keeping it switched on to allow it to do it's job of tracing your route/tell you where you are. If you wild camp then you would presumably need to carry either a spare Lithium battery/AA batteries or solar power pad (if that is what it's called).
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 08:58:34, 06/07/20
Sounds ok. Just needing something so I'm not using my phone so much. Have a couple of spare power banks so charging it on the go won't be a problem. Thanks for your help.  :)
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: harland on 09:02:40, 06/07/20
If you are only out for the day you are not likely to need it being charged on the go and you could just plug it in and recharge it overnight.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 19:40:33, 06/07/20
I was planning on going on some short breaks hiking so it'd definitely be used for a two or three consecutive days. I'll see what I think of it when it arrives and check the battery length.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: pdstsp on 19:43:08, 11/07/20
Battery life is good in my experience.  Currently using around 30-40% in a seven hour walk. I also carry spare battery caddy just in case. Love my strap 20.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 08:32:40, 12/07/20
My Satmap came and on first impressions of the kit, I am impressed. It has come with all the little extras I'd need like extra-waterproof case, and canvas case, as well as different charging items etc. I've turned it on, but of course I need to go outside on a proper walk to test it out thoroughly.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: harland on 10:00:56, 12/07/20
When you are out do you know that you can put it in a "sleep mode" where it continues to work in the background monitoring everything e.g. distance, location, ascent, descent etc but saves on the battery. Useful if you don't want/need to check it very frequently.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: forgotmyoldpassword on 11:21:45, 12/07/20
My Satmap came and on first impressions of the kit, I am impressed. It has come with all the little extras I'd need like extra-waterproof case, and canvas case, as well as different charging items etc. I've turned it on, but of course I need to go outside on a proper walk to test it out thoroughly.


They're really good devices, I've used them for a while and once you get used to the features and the buttons/directional stick it's quite powerful - particularly for conditions where you're going to get constant wet/wind and don't want to be pulling out a mobile phone and draining battery/potentially losing it.


Only thing is make sure it comes with mapping installed.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: alan de enfield on 12:00:15, 12/07/20
The mapping can be very expensive depending on what you want - however, once you have it you'll never need to buy another map (OK footpaths get diverted etc)

I have the Platinum cards for both North and South of the UK and they cover every part of the country at 3 scales

1:10,000 (1mm on the screen is only 10 metres 'on the ground'
1:25,000
1:50,000

You can zoom in on each of those (although the detail is still that at the original scale) you can have, for example the 1:25,000 zoomed in to 1:11:000 or the 1:10,000 zoomed into 1:2,000

Streetview at 1:10,000 shows individual houses, gardens etc.

You can adjust the power usage by having it update every 10 seconds, or 30 seconds instead of every second - how far do we walk every 10 seconds ? Do we need an update ?

My battery lasts about 16 hours (2 days at 8 hours)

(https://i.postimg.cc/BLDLt4Py/C2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/BLDLt4Py)
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 18:08:02, 13/07/20
When you are out do you know that you can put it in a "sleep mode" where it continues to work in the background monitoring everything e.g. distance, location, ascent, descent etc but saves on the battery. Useful if you don't want/need to check it very frequently.


I've noticed it has sleep mode with different settings, so that is a good feature as there will be plenty of times I won't need to use it.




They're really good devices, I've used them for a while and once you get used to the features and the buttons/directional stick it's quite powerful - particularly for conditions where you're going to get constant wet/wind and don't want to be pulling out a mobile phone and draining battery/potentially losing it.

Only thing is make sure it comes with mapping installed.


Yes, I've seen that stick is definitely powerful and will take a little getting used to. I keep pressing that damn screen! I used to have a waterproof phone, but dropped it last year and now it has a few cracks at the corner of the screen, so obviously not so waterproof now. This device will make up for that.



The mapping can be very expensive depending on what you want - however, once you have it you'll never need to buy another map (OK footpaths get diverted etc)

I have the Platinum cards for both North and South of the UK and they cover every part of the country at 3 scales

1:10,000 (1mm on the screen is only 10 metres 'on the ground'
1:25,000
1:50,000

You can zoom in on each of those (although the detail is still that at the original scale) you can have, for example the 1:25,000 zoomed in to 1:11:000 or the 1:10,000 zoomed into 1:2,000

Streetview at 1:10,000 shows individual houses, gardens etc.

You can adjust the power usage by having it update every 10 seconds, or 30 seconds instead of every second - how far do we walk every 10 seconds ? Do we need an update ?

My battery lasts about 16 hours (2 days at 8 hours)

(https://i.postimg.cc/BLDLt4Py/C2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/BLDLt4Py)


Mine came with the 1:25,000 Adventure Map, so whilst not an OS map, it is still very detailed. I might look out on ebay for maps in the areas I'll be going to most, like Yorkshire Dales etc. It is good to see the difference the scales offer tho, so thanks for posting them.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: alan de enfield on 19:26:59, 13/07/20
I was very disappointed with the 1:25k adventure map - an absolute waste of money.

From the SatMap website :
Our Adventure map is a recreational map, which has been compiled using the community generated OpenStreetMap (OSM) database therefore Satmap are not responsible for the accuracy and maintenance of the map data and some areas will be more detailed than others.
We have joined forces with the creators of OpenCycleMap to create a customized layer designed for our device and our customer’s needs.
This new mapping layer is exclusive to Satmap, featuring main street names, walking and cycling routes, hilltop names, contours and much more.

 
 

Really strange, walking along a footpath and it suddenly disappears off the map.
The map is apparently generated by 'public' generated maps and is not related to the OS.
If no one has reported a footpath there is not one shown on the map.
It may show where car parks are, it may show where 'water taps' are, but for walking it gives a false sense of security.


I'd really recommend the proper 1:25k OS maps for the SatMap - they are excellent.



 
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: ninthace on 19:37:27, 13/07/20
Reminds me of my early days with my Etrex before I downloaded OS mapping.  I was using the Freizeitkarte for the UK and was wandering downhill looking for a field boundary showing on my screen, then I realised in Freizeitkarte straight thin black lines with abrupt angles were contours!
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 22:52:35, 13/07/20
It should be ok for following a pre-installed hike shouldn't it? Is it a gpx?
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: alan de enfield on 23:13:34, 13/07/20
It should be ok for following a pre-installed hike shouldn't it? Is it a gpx?


I really wouldn't want to use it, the background maps are basically for cyclists and show all the useful cycling stuff (like bike shops) but little of interest to walkers.
Give it a try and see, it may do what you want it to.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: ninthace on 23:25:15, 13/07/20
It should be ok for following a pre-installed hike shouldn't it? Is it a gpx?
If it is pre-loaded you should be fine.  My first gps had no maps at all, just a little human icon following a line.  I got quite good at bendology to match the shape of the line to the route I had planned to work out where I was.  I used to still take a paper map with the route printed on it.  I suggest you do the same at least at first, it will give you confidence in the device.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 08:16:49, 14/07/20
I research where I am walking and have my phone and maps for back up, so it should be ok until I can afford to buy OS maps for it. Fingers crossed!
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: alan de enfield on 10:03:26, 14/07/20
I don't know whereabouts you are, or your walking areas, but if it is any use to you I have a North UK SatMap OS card at 1:50k. (1:50k is roughly the same as the old 1" to 1 mile that many of us grew up with)
It covers everywhere North of a line from North Lincolnshire to Liverpool, I think you previously said you 'did' some walking in the Yorkshire Dales (this card covers them).



As you know, with the SatMap you can zoom in to any scale you want anyway but the detail will be less than a 1:25K.


https://www.satmap.com/great-britain-north-1-50k.html (https://www.satmap.com/great-britain-north-1-50k.html)


You are welcome to it free of charge, if it is any good for you.
I'd rather you had a usable map card than the 'Adventure' card.




(https://i.postimg.cc/Yj5Xr4s1/A2.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/Yj5Xr4s1)




Edit to add screen shots.


These 2 screen shots are both using the 1:50K card.
One shows the screen at 1:50k, and the other is exactly the same 'centre' but using the 1:50k card, zoomed into 1:25k




Top one is 1:50k, bottom one 'zoomed in' on the 1:50k card to show at 1:25k


Click on the pic to see it larger.




(https://i.postimg.cc/MnRFBpxV/IMG-20200714-154255.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/MnRFBpxV)




(https://i.postimg.cc/bD6CPGHc/IMG-20200714-154422.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/bD6CPGHc)
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: alan de enfield on 18:42:00, 15/07/20

Posted today - good luck.
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: Little Foot on 19:26:14, 15/07/20
Alan is a star, and a wonderful one at that. Thank you!
Title: Re: SATMAP
Post by: harland on 19:32:54, 15/07/20
Agreed, very generous. O0