Using GPS overseas

[leek]

Dear Leek
I couldn't follow your directions, but...the manual of my Meridian says you don't need to do anything to turn WAAS on, its "all ready to go".
Has anyone downloaded or bought any international maps for the Platinum?

My instructions should have worked... If your WAAS is currently turned on in Aus it may be receiving ghost signals from the WAAS station that covers the pacific rim, but that wouldn't be good(unless you're in Darwin), so I would switch the WAAS off for use in Aus...

Contact me via PM or IM for further help...

[The Spindoctors]

I took my eTrex Legend (blue) to Vietnam and New Zealand. It was great to be able to confirm that you are in the country you think you are.

I used the unit on the train from Ha Noi to Hue to track our progress.

There is a great website with New Zealand maps for Garmin units at http://www.gpsriders.net/nz_mapping.html (not that this is news to Bear Left). I only learnt yesterday though, that it would have worked better if I set the detail to normal, not detailed. The result was I only saw streets at less than 5 km scale.

[alex]

I have just returned from a trip to France where my Meridian, and Meridian Gold both worked fine. Magellan Australia had loaded a European Card into the Meridian but it was not full street level mapping, probably just their 16Mb base map, it did have contours.
The only strange thing I noticed was that I got poor signal strength inside the hire cars (Peugeot 307 and Citroen Picasso), I presume there must be a high metal content in their windscreens. Any comments?...

On three out of four flights with Malaysian Airlines I asked permission to use the GPS in cruise and it was granted no worries, although on the first flight the aircrew wanted to know the instant it was switched on. This was coordinated with steward on phone to the flight deck.

The final flight, KL to Sydney, I didn't ask permission and that got the excited rush from the Hostess when she saw it (the Meridian Gold that is ). After explaining what it was they were happy for a while but about two hours out of Sydney the flight crew requesteed it be turned off as it was causing some minor interference to one of their displays which, supposedly, ceased when I switched it off. I spoke briefly to the captain after we arrived and he explained some of the older aircraft were more susceptible to interference from supposedly non-transmitting devices.

I can assure you Piggy that you donÂ’t have to turn your GPS upside down, just turn it clockwise instead of anti-clockwise.

[Ebenezer]

The only strange thing I noticed was that I got poor signal strength inside the hire cars (Peugeot 307 and Citroen Picasso), I presume there must be a high metal content in their windscreens. Any comments?...

Your presumption is correct. I'm not sure if it is from demist wires inside the glass or from a coating on the outside of the glass, but I have heard stories of people needing an external antenna in such cars, or a re-radiating antenna for GPSrs that don't accept an external antenna. Fortunately my trusty 1997 Laser does not have any such technology, so my GPSr works fine inside the car.

[pprass]

I have downloaded the Europe basemap onto my MeriPlat and have ordered Europe Streets for a trip to Italy, Switzerland and Greece in June. A bit expensive for just one trip, but we will be driving around so I just bit the bullet and did it. I have also been advised to initialise the MeriPlat when first turn on in Europe so it doesn't try to find the satellites that it was locked onto in Australia (?)

[Ebenezer]

I have not had experience with MeriPlat, but my Garmin eTrex tries to find the satellites for a minute or two, and then asks you what you want to do when it can't find them. It gives you the option of letting it figure out where in the world it is (which takes about 5 mins max), or you can tell it roughly where it is (which tends to be faster - assuming you know roughly where in the world you are).

Interestingly, one time I switched my GPSr on in Sydney when I had last used it in Singapore. It was close enlough that it could figure out where it was based on its previous position. Unfortunately it was too hot to go looking for the caches at Bukit Timah.

[ToolkiT]

I have just returned from a trip to France ....
The only strange thing I noticed was that I got poor signal strength inside the hire cars (Peugeot 307 and Citroen Picasso), I presume there must be a high metal content in their windscreens. Any comments?...

I just got back from a trip to HK, Holland and Thailand.
GPS worked fine there even in my parents Citroen Xsara Picasso, but I did put it all the way in front under the windshield..

I even introduced my parents to caching and they liked it very much...
Tried a cache in Bangkok, but didnt find it