My goal this year is to take my Jeep off the beaten path and explore a bit. Camp, trails, etc. I do not want to rely on my cell phone service to much so I began researching some options.
One of the first things I did when I got my JKU was to find a 430N on eBay and install it. I wanted the in dash factory nav as well as the hard drive for music. I love it so far but the nav leaves a lot to be desired. Now don't get me wrong, it works fine and gets me to my destination, but I also wanted something that could be used off road, camping, and hiking. Especially, without a Wifi or data signal so I don't have to rely on my phone.
I researched some options and fell upon the larger tablet option. I thought this was great as I had an original iPad mini (Wifi only model) that didn't see much use anymore. Then I read there was no built in GPS, but Bluetooth options existed.
I found favorable reviews for the Bad Elf GPS Pro 2200 so I grabbed one. It can be used standalone that can track you so you can overlay the trail on maps once back on a computer or tethered with up to five devices at once. Well worth the cost (~ $150 on BH Photo or Amazon)
Next up was deciding on which programs were worth the money to install.
GAIA GPS - $20 on iTunes - Love this! This is a great app, especially when off the beaten path. You can download the portions of maps you need and save them directly to the tablet. All different types of maps are available, topo, street views, satellite images, NOAA, and more.
YouNeedAMap (YNAM) - free ($5 upgrade option) - Grab this now for free! I've used it to track myself around town and to and from work and it's been working wonderfully. You don't need the $5 upgrade, but I figured for the money it was worth it. YNAM provides a map of the 50 states, roads, terrain, lakes, streams, etc. This is a great addition even without the GPS features because if you know where you are you can always use the map to check out the surrounding area. Think of it as a complete atlas of the US on your phone or iPad.
CoPilot Premium USA - $15 - In addition to the two above which are mainly for topography, off road, camping and the like, I wanted an option for turn by turn navigation in the USA. With this premium package you get unlimited GPS navigation with offline maps, spoken turns, and more! I've found this to work better than my in dash factory Garmin backed system. It reroutes faster, shows the next two steps coming up and has more detail shown in street names.
Got everything together, ordered a RAM Mount, Arm, and cradle and installed.
So far, love it. Feels like I have so much navigation power at my finger tips. Plus i put all the apps on my phone so I have that option as well on foot or just for a smaller screen.
I wanted to mount it without altering anything permanently. The way I mounted it also allows for the passenger to swing it towards them to view and navigate for the driver.
Due to the way the arms grab the iPad there is some slight movement when moving but nothing that is a deal breaker.
Bad Elf App
Mount setup
Apps:
CoPilot USA (day and night mode)
GAIA GPS
You Need A Map
Great shot of the view from the driver's seat
One of the first things I did when I got my JKU was to find a 430N on eBay and install it. I wanted the in dash factory nav as well as the hard drive for music. I love it so far but the nav leaves a lot to be desired. Now don't get me wrong, it works fine and gets me to my destination, but I also wanted something that could be used off road, camping, and hiking. Especially, without a Wifi or data signal so I don't have to rely on my phone.
I researched some options and fell upon the larger tablet option. I thought this was great as I had an original iPad mini (Wifi only model) that didn't see much use anymore. Then I read there was no built in GPS, but Bluetooth options existed.
I found favorable reviews for the Bad Elf GPS Pro 2200 so I grabbed one. It can be used standalone that can track you so you can overlay the trail on maps once back on a computer or tethered with up to five devices at once. Well worth the cost (~ $150 on BH Photo or Amazon)
Next up was deciding on which programs were worth the money to install.
GAIA GPS - $20 on iTunes - Love this! This is a great app, especially when off the beaten path. You can download the portions of maps you need and save them directly to the tablet. All different types of maps are available, topo, street views, satellite images, NOAA, and more.
YouNeedAMap (YNAM) - free ($5 upgrade option) - Grab this now for free! I've used it to track myself around town and to and from work and it's been working wonderfully. You don't need the $5 upgrade, but I figured for the money it was worth it. YNAM provides a map of the 50 states, roads, terrain, lakes, streams, etc. This is a great addition even without the GPS features because if you know where you are you can always use the map to check out the surrounding area. Think of it as a complete atlas of the US on your phone or iPad.
CoPilot Premium USA - $15 - In addition to the two above which are mainly for topography, off road, camping and the like, I wanted an option for turn by turn navigation in the USA. With this premium package you get unlimited GPS navigation with offline maps, spoken turns, and more! I've found this to work better than my in dash factory Garmin backed system. It reroutes faster, shows the next two steps coming up and has more detail shown in street names.
Got everything together, ordered a RAM Mount, Arm, and cradle and installed.
So far, love it. Feels like I have so much navigation power at my finger tips. Plus i put all the apps on my phone so I have that option as well on foot or just for a smaller screen.
I wanted to mount it without altering anything permanently. The way I mounted it also allows for the passenger to swing it towards them to view and navigate for the driver.
Due to the way the arms grab the iPad there is some slight movement when moving but nothing that is a deal breaker.
Bad Elf App
Mount setup
Apps:
CoPilot USA (day and night mode)
GAIA GPS
You Need A Map
Great shot of the view from the driver's seat