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Geode


Wed Feb 7, 2001 - 12:00 AM EST - By James Hromadka

Product Info
Details

»	Name Geode
»	Company GeoDiscovery
»	Size 2.4" x 4.3" x 1.2"
»	Weight 5.7 oz. w/ batt.
»	Memory 3 K on Visor when inserted (GeoView maps take extra)
»	Accuracy 2-3 Meters
»	Fact Sheet & User Opinions

Availability

»	Unknown

Pricing

$289

Geode Info Application

Geode Info main screen

Geode Info is where you can view your current location's latitude and longitude, adjust power settings, and use a full-screen compass. You can access Geode Info in several ways: the Visor's application screen, on the GeoView Mobile's home screen, or by selecting View | Geode Info while looking at a map.

The main screen on Geode Info lists the current lattitude/longitude, GPS Time and date, current speed, etc. The speed is in km/h and there isn't currently a way to change this to miles/hr. The Status is important as it shows the type of GPS connection. Here are some of the status messages and what they mean:

No GPS Detected - No communication between Visor and Geode

Searching - No satellites

1 Sat - 1 satellite found

2 Sat - 2 satellites found

2D Fix - 2 dimensional location determined

3D Fix - 3 dimensional location determined

2D Est - 2 dimensional location estimated

3D Est - 3 dimensional location estimated

Dead Reck - Lost all satellites

Tap the Compass button to bring up a full screen compass. The entire dial rotates with a pointer towards North. I would have rather had the pointer going straight up with the directional dial rotating around it. This would indicate in a more intuitive way the direction you were facing. It would also be nice if your current heading were displayed in degrees.

The only applicable option here is to calibrate the compass by selecting Options | Setup. This brings up a Compass Setup screen that has you turn slowly around in circles to calibrate the compass. This is also one of the initial procedures that the Geode has you do when you first insert the module. The Compass Setup screen doesn't have a Cancel option, so if you select it accidentally, the only way to cancel is to press one of the hardware buttons (Datebook, AddressBook, etc).

The most significant feature of the Geode's digital compass is that you do not have to have a satellite lock to use it. This comes in handy when traveling in a car when you can sometimes lose a GPS signal. More on that later in this review.

Satellite Status >>