Using GPS on iPad 2 without a data plan . . .

[zelduh]

Is there an app I could buy to activate GPS navigation without signing up for a data plan from Verizon?

I bought my iPad 2 without intending to use the Verizon data plan, JUST so that I could use the GPS. But it does not appear to work without entering into a contract with Verizon.

Is there an app for working around this...?

 

[Blorzoga]

Is there an app I could buy to activate GPS navigation without signing up for a data plan from Verizon?

I bought my iPad 2 without intending to use the Verizon data plan, JUST so that I could use the GPS. But it does not appear to work without entering into a contract with Verizon.

Is there an app for working around this...?

There are several apps that have preloaded maps. Navicon, N-drive to name a couple. They should work with the wifi only ipad.

 

[zelduh]

There are several apps that have preloaded maps. Navicon, N-drive to name a couple. They should work with the wifi only ipad.

Real time? When I am driving on the road??? With turn-by-turn?

 

[deeddawg]

Real time? When I am driving on the road??? With turn-by-turn?

Yes. Yes. Yes.

Though in my experience the big screen is pretty ungainly compared to using an iphone for GPS nav.

There are several apps that have preloaded maps. Navicon, N-drive to name a couple. They should work with the wifi only ipad.

True, but only the 3G ipad have a GPS chip -- the Wifi only version does not. I remember reading that if you're tethered to an iphone some location info come over periodically, but from what I read it'd svck for turn-by-turn GPS.

 

[notjustjay]

You should not need to have activated 3G service in order to use the GPS.

However, it's possible that it may take longer for the GPS to acquire your location if you're not using 3G to help it out. The iPhone finds your approximate location by discovering the nearest 3G cell towers or nearby wifi networks, then looks them up in the location database. Once it determines your rough location, the phone can feed this to the GPS location algorithm to speed up its satellite lock.

Without this, the GPS has no idea where on the planet you are and must start locating itself "from scratch", which can take a few minutes on my hiking GPS unit.

This "assisted GPS" is the reason behind that whole "storing your location" kerfuffle from a couple of weeks ago.

 

[MrWillie]

Tom Tom.

It only does one thing, but it does that one thing very well.

You pay an extra $130 for 3G iPad and $60 for Navigon App (plus tax) when you can get a nice TomTom for well under $200 and it can stay in the car.

 

[henchman]

I use Co-pilot for my voice guided navigation on my ipad2.
I also have not activated my data service, as I can create a wifi hotspot for my iPod using my t-mobile Android phone, and use the 4g network if I want to.
I had a movie playing from Netflix this way, in my car on a long drive the other day, with sound coming from my stereo.


Very cool.

 

[MrWillie]

I use Co-pilot for my voice guided navigation on my ipad2.
I also have not activated my data service, as I can create a wifi hotspot for my iPod using my t-mobile Android phone, and use the 4g network if I want to.
I had a movie playing from Netflix this way, in my car on a long drive the other day, with sound coming from my stereo.


Very cool.

Till you get in a wreck, and they check your phone records. Whether it's your fault or not. God help you if someone dies or is seriously injured. Just a thought.

 

[henchman]

Till you get in a wreck, and they check your phone records.

Uum, I didn't say I was watching, now did I.

BTW, mind your own business mr. Hall monitor.

 

[Blorzoga]

Tom Tom.

It only does one thing, but it does that one thing very well.

You pay an extra $130 for 3G iPad and $60 for Navigon App (plus tax) when you can get a nice TomTom for well under $200 and it can stay in the car.

...until somebody smashes your window and steals it.

 

[henchman]

Btw, co-pilot is only 30,-

 

[Janet1]

The understanding I've gotten from what I've read, the only iPad 2 model with 3G has a built-in GPS chip. The wifi model only is "assisted GPS", and only will work when you are connected via wifi.

The 3G model though should work regardless of whether or not you've signed up for a data plan, but you will need to download an app that also has downloads the maps onto your iPad 2. Most of the maps, such as Google maps, are simply accessed through the internet, the maps are not actually downloaded on your iPad.

Most of the navigation apps that do have built-in maps that are downloaded on your iPad are the more expensive paid apps, such as MotionX GPS Drive.

A suggestion is to download the "NavFree" app, which is a free app, but you also have to make sure you download the local maps for the area you will be traveling through. I don't believe you can download Maps for the entire United States using this app.

Make sure your airplane mode is turned off as the GPS will not operated in airplane mode.

 

[deeddawg]

The understanding I've gotten from what I've read, the only iPad 2 model with 3G has a built-in GPS chip. The wifi model only is "assisted GPS", and only will work when you are connected via wifi.

You're mixing up "assisted GPS" with wifi location determination. Assisted GPS uses data broadcast by cell towers to allow a GPS chip to get a much faster lock on the satellites. Requires the 3G ipad model since they are the ones with a real GPS chip. 3G data does NOT need to be activated (speaking from personal experience) for this to work. Wifi only ipad's use a Skyhook type location determination (don't remember if it's actually Skyhook or an internal Apple version) that uses wifi router MAC addresses cross-checked to a location database. Basically there's a database of wifi routers and their locations, and the wifi ipads can get approx location through this mechanism.

A suggestion is to download the "NavFree" app, which is a free app, but you also have to make sure you download the local maps for the area you will be traveling through. I don't believe you can download Maps for the entire United States using this app.

Perhaps they've changed something, but Navfree for me has the entire US as one map. I've not needed to d/l individual maps.


In any event -- personally I find using my iphone for a driving GPS is much better than using my ipad. Perhaps if I had a passenger to wrangle the ipad, but it's too big to sit in the console and setting it on the passenger seat makes it unusable due to reflections of the sky. Perhaps with a mounting bracket; but when I travel for business I'm not hauling around an ipad mounting bracket to figure out how to put in a rental car. (at home my vehicle has built in nav, so I only need nav on my iphone or ipad when in a rental car)

 

[thelookingglass]

You're mixing up "assisted GPS" with wifi location determination. Assisted GPS uses data broadcast by cell towers to allow a GPS chip to get a much faster lock on the satellites. Requires the 3G ipad model since they are the ones with a real GPS chip. 3G data does NOT need to be activated (speaking from personal experience) for this to work. Wifi only ipad's use a Skyhook type location determination (don't remember if it's actually Skyhook or an internal Apple version) that uses wifi router MAC addresses cross-checked to a location database. Basically there's a database of wifi routers and their locations, and the wifi ipads can get approx location through this mechanism.




Perhaps they've changed something, but Navfree for me has the entire US as one map. I've not needed to d/l individual maps.


In any event -- personally I find using my iphone for a driving GPS is much better than using my ipad. Perhaps if I had a passenger to wrangle the ipad, but it's too big to sit in the console and setting it on the passenger seat makes it unusable due to reflections of the sky. Perhaps with a mounting bracket; but when I travel for business I'm not hauling around an ipad mounting bracket to figure out how to put in a rental car. (at home my vehicle has built in nav, so I only need nav on my iphone or ipad when in a rental car)

+973

GPS works fine with a nav app and with no data plan. I've used it personally.

Also can attest that the iPhone works much better than the iPad if you're driving alone. Fits very well right in front of the speedometer, and isn't so big that it blocks me from seeing how fast I'm going. The iPad is way too unwieldy unless someone is riding shotgun.