Solar Powered Bluetooth GPS Review Upcoming…

How long can it last before a charge?  How big is this unit with it’s solar panel extended?  Does it work as well as a typical Bluetooth GPS?

Unboxing

Firstly, in the box you receive the unit itself, an antislip pad, a Li-ion Battery, a car charger and a user’s manual.  There was no wall charger.  I was a little surprised about that, but this did charge relatively quickly considering it uses the sun’s rays in addition to the cigarette lighter in my car.  It features a unique clamshell design where the solar panel is on the bottom and the gps antenna is on the top.  You simply rotate the antenna 180 degrees away from the solar panel and you are ready to receive signals and charge at the same time.  It’s sturdy and well made, though surprisingly light.  When fully extended, it’s about the size of my pda.

The unit is pictured closed

Now you can see the solar panel face up, and the gps antenna is not at the correct angle.

Now the gps antenna is starting to face upwards.

Now we are ready to locate satellites and navigate.  Too bad I can’t drive my desk.

First Impressions

I took the new i-Blue 757 Solar GPS Receiver test unit, generously donated by BuyGPSNow.com, for a test drive last night.   It connected quickly with my Dell Axim x50v running wm2003se and helped me easily navigate the beautiful Chicago streets with ease.  I’ve always had a gps mouse receiver and have had to use a powered cradle, but I felt absolutely liberated with this Bluetooth receiver.  No more powered cradle, no more wired mouse, mo more wired mess in my car!

What’s Next

According to Transystem, the makers of the iBlue, this receiver should last a whopping 30 hours without a charge, and up to 100 hours with solar charging.   Further, it’s also equipped with a permanent standby feature so you never have to turn it off.  When you turn your nav software on, it will activate the iBlue and wake it up.  I’m going to test these features and many others.

[tags]gps, bluetooth, solar[/tags]