Bushnell BackTrack Original Personal GPS $35 at Officeworks Online (Hobart) + In-Store

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kabigon on 11/08/2012 - 13:29 officeworks.com.au (1019 clicks)
Last edited 14/08/2012 - 15:56 by 1 other user

Edit: For online orders, all capitals seem to be sold out except Hobart.

Goes for around $100 locally (http://www.shopbot.com.au/pp-bushnell-backtrack-price-175545…), next cheapest I could find delivered to Australia is ~$48 from a US eBay seller (http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Bushnell-Backtrack-Handheld-GPS-P…)

A useful purpose for such a device you ask? Why not grab a free Whopper (http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/76986), go for a long walk in your nearest forest / desert / mountain range to burn off those calories and then let this device help you find your way back for another round ;)

Features:

• Store and locate up to three locations
• Utilizes the latest digital technology:
  
  • High sensitivity SiRF Star III GPS reciever
  • Self calibrating digital compass
• Weather resistant
• Operates on 2 AAA Batteries (Not Included)
• Compact size stores easily in your pocket or purse
• Lanyard included for easy attachment

With the world's easiest-to-use personal location finder, getting back at the end of the day is as easy as pushing a button and following an arrow. Utilizing GPS
technology in its most basic format, BackTrack™ has only two buttons and stores up to three locations. At the end of the day, select your location and the BackTrack displays direction and distance to travel. Use it to find your car in a crowded parking lot, your treestand or the trailhead, even to rendezvous with your group.

It's extremely compact and stows conveniently in your pocket, pack or purse.

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Officeworks

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  cashless on 11/08/2012 - 13:44

  +1

  nice find. be great for bush walking & finding way back to car in big car parks

  • 

    [Deactivated] on 12/08/2012 - 13:36

    You still need to carry packets of breadcrumbs if you park undercover in the big shopping centres.

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  hoxygt on 11/08/2012 - 14:38

  Seems like a great bargain but I cant see if you can enter lat/long and navigate to that point or even display current lat/ long. Does anyone know if it can do this?

  • 

    nothommus on 11/08/2012 - 14:50

    Aparently you cant.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abpz_obBvCA

    Big drawback on what otherwise i would immediately buy. Regardless, ill probably still buy it..
    EDIT: Time to go for a drive to the local OW, who aparently has stock and do a spot of geocaching on the way home :)
    Sounds like a good way to spend a lazy saturday me thinks.

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  halfrabbit on 11/08/2012 - 14:50

  Looks like a great deal, but it's a shame there's a $25 delivery fee, since I'm not from a major city.

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  bargaino on 11/08/2012 - 15:14

  +2

  It is as crude a GPS as you can get.
  For an extra $14 the same shop will sell you a GPS which displays maps, lets you enter coordinates, and even does navigation.
  If that is not enough for $14, it also plays MP3, movies and Angry Birds, and makes phone calls in an emergency.

  • 

    Russ on 11/08/2012 - 23:19

    So true. It seems crazy to buy a device which can only do one of those things.

    For only a little more, you could take photos too.

    You forgot the most important function: keep the kids entertained on long journeys.

  • 

    lepenseur on 11/08/2012 - 23:39

    manic,
    could you be specific about which handset does those things please ? (can't tell from the descriptions)
    Thanks

    • 

      bargaino on 12/08/2012 - 00:12

      could you be specific about which handset does those things please ?

      Any Android phone. You can get a Telstra-locked one for $49, and just use it on wifi.
      Google Maps will cache for offline use now.

      • 

        lepenseur on 12/08/2012 - 01:34

        Thanks for your reply, but if the phone does not have GPS built-in, how does it get its location when you are in the bush ?

        The handsets that have GPS seem to cost some hundreds of $

      • 

        bargaino on 12/08/2012 - 11:08

        Sorry, Wrong. Any proper Android phone has GPS, e.g.
        http://www.officeworks.com.au/retail/products/Technology/Pho…
        (not that I recommend that particular model :-)

        Out in the bush, you might be better with a $30 bluetooth GPS, and an old phone running GPS software, e.g. Symbian.

      • 

        lepenseur on 12/08/2012 - 16:28

        So, Manic, when you say "… has GPS" you are referring to a software function that relies on either a wifi or GSM connection to work, and which won't provide positioning data without this.

        In the context of a discussion of a dedicated GPS device that stands alone and works anywhere on the earth's surface as long as it can see the sky, most people would be taking GPS to mean hardware GPS based on an internal satellite receiver, as also have the mobile handset models which list GPS in their specifications and which do cost hundreds of dollars and upwards.

        That's a highly-qualified "GPS" you're suggesting as an alternative. People going bush trust their safety to these devices.

      • 

        bargaino on 12/08/2012 - 20:18

        +1

        Take it easy. You are a cynical one.
        The phones have a real GPS satellite signal receiver. No internet needed, just get the right software, and it can be free.
        They use assisted GPS, which means they will take advantage of the network, if available, to request data from a server ot get a faster initial lock.
        The $49 price tag is for an old model with carrier subsidy. Still, makes it hard for a standalone GPS to compete.

      • 

        retiredfeline on 12/08/2012 - 20:34

        Manic is correct. GPS receiver modules dropped precipitously in price years ago that including one in a smartphone is not a big ticket item. What GPS receiver manufacturers sell is a lot of ancilliary data and services to make the raw coordinates useful.

      • 

        lepenseur on 13/08/2012 - 00:41

        Fair enough.

        I'm just wondering how we can tell which handsets have actual GPS hardware, as opposed to pure software/network positioning. I looked through all the handset specs on the OfficeWorks web site (not authoritative, I know) and only one, I think, stated "GPS" in the specifications.

        For example, I have a Nokia E63 in which, with wifi or GSM, Google Maps can indicate a remarkably accurate position (only occasionally getting it wrong) but there is definitely no GPS hardware inside.

        So, Manic, are you saying that just about any Android handset does have a GPS satellite receiver ?
        I didn't know that. What do I look for in the spec's to be sure ?

      • 

        Russ on 13/08/2012 - 02:58

        +1

        If you want to know if a mobile phone has GPS, or any other feature for that matter, look it up on GSMarena. Here is the GSMarena page for the Huawei X3 that Woolworths sells occasionally for $69:

        http://www.gsmarena.com/huawei_u8510_ideos_x3-3840.php

        In the "Features" section, it says "GPS Yes, with A-GPS support".

      • 

        lepenseur on 13/08/2012 - 08:57

        Russ: OK, I see, thank you for that. I'll do some reading.

      • 

        bargaino on 13/08/2012 - 10:15

        If E63 was any older it would be rotary dial :) That was the crippled version of the e71, and they removed the gps as part of the market segmentation.

        Yes all Androids have GPS. Well, not counting no-name Chinese phones that are not Google-blessed and have no market access, or hacked. e.g. the Kindle fire :)

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  morpheu on 11/08/2012 - 15:34

  the OW page says it right there "BackTrack utilises GPS technology in its most basic format."! but the digital compass is a nice touch too

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  meong on 11/08/2012 - 15:46

  too bad its not that small and compact as I thought it would be. in addition it only saves 3 waypoints and doesn't allow you to enter coordinates.

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  coxjon on 11/08/2012 - 20:19

  Still a few at Midland, WA. They also have a model up (didn't look too closely) for $85

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  MarkB4 on 11/08/2012 - 21:52

  Good for a bit of wild bush walking.

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  dissin on 12/08/2012 - 14:08

  Bought 1 at nth ryde, NSW. There are 2 left. Will come in handy for exploring foreign city/country when I resign and travel.overseas for 1 year :-)