Portable GPS receivers are becoming more popular- everyone from hikers to fishermen and hunters to recreational geocachers are finding reasons to put a portable gps on their wish list. Global positioning satellite technology has never been so easy to use as when it is packaged into a portable GPS you can take with you wherever you go.
One of the most common uses of a portable GPS system is within cell phones. For the first several years that cell phones were popular, they had a serious drawback- you could contact 911 or other emergency services, but if you didn’t know where you were, neither did they. Cell phones have no location, as a landline phone does, and there was no way to track where they were sending signals. All that has changed with the advent of the portable GPS. Now, your cell phone can come equipped with the potentially lifesaving feature of global positioning satellite technology. By using the same 24-satellite system and triangulation procedure that GPS systems installed in vehicles use, a portable GPS can pinpoint your location- in some cases down to mere yards. This feature can absolutely save lives in the event of an emergency.
Cameras are also being made with portable GPS systems in them to enable photos to be imprinted with both longitude and latitude of the photo. You can also tag your photos to integrate with an online map so you can see exactly where your photo was taken.
It’s easy to understand how a portable GPS can be helpful when you are hiking or camping. Imagine the freedom gained when you no longer need to worry that you might get lost and be unable to find your way home. Of course a GPS device is no substitute for care and caution and should never be considered infallible, but there is no doubt your horizons can be expanded when you have this kind of precision help in finding your way.
Recreationally, in addition to using a portable GPS for hiking and camping, hunters can use one to find that secret lake, scout out the perfect spot for a deer stand or tracking nearly anything. In addition, the sport of geocaching uses a portable GPS to seek out hidden “treasures” and can provide outdoor activity and fun for the whole family.