iPad and Navigation

[Airmonger]

This is all great information! I just got in and installed the Ram Mount in my 80 Series.

What mount did you use on your 80?

love this thread... this is what i have done in my truck as well... here is a pic of the mount in my tacoma!!!

I'll post more pics... but i use it for OBD II, navigation, music, movies, and more.....

What Ipad cradle is that? Ram Mount obviously? How are you using the Ipad for OBD II? So much to learn!

Here is what I have done for my Tacoma. The Ram-a-Can - shipped for less than $60 how could I not. The can feels like its filled with cement, the neck seems to be a solid piece of aluminum(watch for fatigue) and it crams down pretty good in the Tacoma cup holder.

 

[Dave Bennett]

I like that.

 

[Airmonger]

Its pretty clean and surprisingly it doesn't get in the way of the center console or the shift knob, even in L.

 

[Dave Bennett]

That's key. And it is easily removed or hidden when needed, or transferred to another vehicle

 

[Andy G]

Quick question - are the maps stored locally on the iPad, or do you have to have internet access for the maps to continuously update on it?

I'm guessing the maps are stored on the iPad, because those without 3G (like me) wouldn't be able to use the darn thing!

 

[Airmonger]

Quick question - are the maps stored locally on the iPad, or do you have to have internet access for the maps to continuously update on it?

On the App, Topo maps for Ipad they are stored on the drive for use whenever you need them. You can only download 20 quadrants at a time so it takes a while to get everything you need.

The green area highlights the maps downloaded

Can you toggle them on/off? Its hard to see the whole area with the maps highlighted.

Has anyone figured out if you can download a whole state or area at a time other than the 20 quads at once?

 

[DavidG]

My buddy has this app on his ipad: http://www.motionx.com/

Played with it a bit and it looks really good. He has the GPS HD. You can look a topos, street maps, satellite maps and more. It has lots of cool features.

MotionX is excellent on the iPhone. I can only imagine it would be outstanding on the iPad. Coupled with a jailbreak-connected external BT (SiRF III or better chipset) GPS receiver it would really be nice...as long as the app recognizes it.

 

[benedmonson]

MotionX is excellent on the iPhone. I can only imagine it would be outstanding on the iPad. Coupled with a jailbreak-connected external BT (SiRF III or better chipset) GPS receiver it would really be nice...as long as the app recognizes it.

This is a post that I just made in the GPS Hardware Section:

Yesterday I drove from Ridgway to SLC using my iPad wifi only and new Bad Elf GPS. My software of choice was Motion X Drive the iPhone version as you cannot download the new sweet iPad version unless you you have the iPad 3G version??
The setup was easy, but found out right off the bat that you will have to have an active hot spot in the vehicle to get anything more than the most basic map. Once I activated my Verizon Hot Spot the Motion X software came to life and the message on my screen about no live maps available disappeared.
The iUI was fun to play with along the route and well thought out, but the ipod section to play your music thru works only in portrait mode and we couldn't select our playlist so we had to play one song at a time.
Now for the Bad-Elf part of the deal! Over the period of 6-7 hours the software told me that my iPhone had lost its GPS signal and to make sure that the GPS had a clear view of the sky. Our iPad was installed on the windshield with our new Ram Mount and had a clear unobstructed view of the sky, or as much as it was ever going to have. This would happen every 5-10 minutes and got to be very annoying! I couldn't figure if this was the GPS or the software having a problem or both?
The other thing that I noticed about the Bad-Elf was with the charger. If you have ever seen the little GPS device you will notice that the with it connected to your iPad thru the 30 pin connecter you only have a very small mini usb port available to charge your iPad. The small mini usb port is located on the bottom of the Bad-Elf and at best provides a loose connection for charging. Combine the loose connection with normal driving and it is a challenge to keep juice in you iPad. Upon arriving in SLC we noticed that we were down to 57% power, but the charger had been plugged into the Bad-Elf all day???
So after the first day of use in a real world driving situation I would say not very happy with the Bad-Elf.

 

[1leglance]

HA see you should have stayed with the Acer and lived in PC land
Just giving you a hard time Ben, I know you guys are on the bleeding edge here and that can cause real hassle as you test products, buy/return and try to find the right combo...
trust me even us PC guys are watching this

 

[tdesanto]

HA see you should have stayed with the Acer and lived in PC land

I tried to tell him the same thing.

trust me even us PC guys are watching this

This is very true.

 

[off-roader]

trust me even us PC guys are watching this

Sure are...

 

[teebes]

This is a post that I just made in the GPS Hardware Section:

Yesterday I drove from Ridgway to SLC using my iPad wifi only and new Bad Elf GPS. My software of choice was Motion X Drive the iPhone version as you cannot download the new sweet iPad version unless you you have the iPad 3G version??
The setup was easy, but found out right off the bat that you will have to have an active hot spot in the vehicle to get anything more than the most basic map. Once I activated my Verizon Hot Spot the Motion X software came to life and the message on my screen about no live maps available disappeared.
The iUI was fun to play with along the route and well thought out, but the ipod section to play your music thru works only in portrait mode and we couldn't select our playlist so we had to play one song at a time.
Now for the Bad-Elf part of the deal! Over the period of 6-7 hours the software told me that my iPhone had lost its GPS signal and to make sure that the GPS had a clear view of the sky. Our iPad was installed on the windshield with our new Ram Mount and had a clear unobstructed view of the sky, or as much as it was ever going to have. This would happen every 5-10 minutes and got to be very annoying! I couldn't figure if this was the GPS or the software having a problem or both?
The other thing that I noticed about the Bad-Elf was with the charger. If you have ever seen the little GPS device you will notice that the with it connected to your iPad thru the 30 pin connecter you only have a very small mini usb port available to charge your iPad. The small mini usb port is located on the bottom of the Bad-Elf and at best provides a loose connection for charging. Combine the loose connection with normal driving and it is a challenge to keep juice in you iPad. Upon arriving in SLC we noticed that we were down to 57% power, but the charger had been plugged into the Bad-Elf all day???
So after the first day of use in a real world driving situation I would say not very happy with the Bad-Elf.

It sounds like you have on of the new Verizon Ipads, which are only wifi units (which do not have a GPS chip). I really wish Apple had done better marketing between the various versions of the devices.

The '3g' model, available on AT&T service, contains an actual GPS chip that does not require cell service and perform perfectly fine, even far, far away from towers.

 

[teebes]

This is a post that I just made in the GPS Hardware Section:

Yesterday I drove from Ridgway to SLC using my iPad wifi only and new Bad Elf GPS. My software of choice was Motion X Drive the iPhone version as you cannot download the new sweet iPad version unless you you have the iPad 3G version??
The setup was easy, but found out right off the bat that you will have to have an active hot spot in the vehicle to get anything more than the most basic map. Once I activated my Verizon Hot Spot the Motion X software came to life and the message on my screen about no live maps available disappeared.
The iUI was fun to play with along the route and well thought out, but the ipod section to play your music thru works only in portrait mode and we couldn't select our playlist so we had to play one song at a time.
Now for the Bad-Elf part of the deal! Over the period of 6-7 hours the software told me that my iPhone had lost its GPS signal and to make sure that the GPS had a clear view of the sky. Our iPad was installed on the windshield with our new Ram Mount and had a clear unobstructed view of the sky, or as much as it was ever going to have. This would happen every 5-10 minutes and got to be very annoying! I couldn't figure if this was the GPS or the software having a problem or both?
The other thing that I noticed about the Bad-Elf was with the charger. If you have ever seen the little GPS device you will notice that the with it connected to your iPad thru the 30 pin connecter you only have a very small mini usb port available to charge your iPad. The small mini usb port is located on the bottom of the Bad-Elf and at best provides a loose connection for charging. Combine the loose connection with normal driving and it is a challenge to keep juice in you iPad. Upon arriving in SLC we noticed that we were down to 57% power, but the charger had been plugged into the Bad-Elf all day???
So after the first day of use in a real world driving situation I would say not very happy with the Bad-Elf.

Are you running the latest IOS update on your iPad? I would reach out to the bad-elf folks as something doesn't sound right. As a use of the integrated GPS, I haven't faced these types of issues.

Some folks on the bad-elf forum chatting about the various 30-pin cable types, too. If it wasn't charging correctly, it was more than likely not able to transmit data properly, either. Good luck!

 

[jrose609]

My boss handed me a 64GB, 3G Ipad earlier today for a Christmas gift. I know very little about these things. Looking forward to reading more about the navigation ideas. Those mounts in the Tacomas look great.

Dang! Good for you! I like your boss.........

 

[wesel123]

My boss handed me a 64GB, 3G Ipad earlier today for a Christmas gift. I know very little about these things. Looking forward to reading more about the navigation ideas. Those mounts in the Tacomas look great.

Is he hiring?????? Please.......................