DeLorme Earthmate and Solus Pro 1.5
 If
you do not own or intend on owning a Palm or Windows CE device
then read no further (but be forwarned that you'll miss out
on something really cool).
OK,
you're still reading. Great! Let's assume that you already own
a Palm or similar device. For this article, we'll focus on the
3Com Palm.
Our evaluation was done on a Palm IIIx. Palms are very popular
now and can be had for as little as $99. Let's also assume that
you already carry your Palm with you on a daily basis to and
from work.
Now
think about these following scenarios:
-
Had to go somewhere right after work that you've never been
to and need directions
- Wanted
to take a long trip and, again, needed directions
- Maybe you
own a low-end GPS which does not have maps, but simply position
data.
 Wouldn't
it be nice to be able to use your Palm to get from point A to
point B? Now you can! DeLorme has long been well-known as one
of the top Atlas & Gazateer manufacturers. Now that people
are getting more high-tech, DeLorme has brought out software solutions
to better serve their customers.
Enter
the Earthmate®
The
Earthmate is nothing more than a GPS receiver that can be plugged
into a computer to use appropriate software to display it's data.
DeLorme makes
many products that do this, like Topo USA, 3-D TopoQuads, and
others. The Earthmate is simple to use and fits in a shirt pocket.
The yellow receiver is powered by 4 AAA batteries and comes with
a plenty-long cable which ends at a serial connector. If you are
using a laptop, it would plug right in. The best way to buy the
unit is in a package with various other DeLorme products, for
example, their Road Warrior package, which includes Street Atlas
USA, Solus Pro and an adaptor cable for $199. On DeLorme's website,
they also sell blemished Earthmates for just $89.95.
Where are
we going with all of this, you may ask?
Enter Solus
Pro 1.5®
 So
let's now assume you've bought a blemished (scratched, etc.) Earthmate
for $89.95. What do you do now? You will still need to buck up
another $19.95 for an adapter cable to get the Earthmate into
your Palm or Windows CE device. Lastly, you will need Solus Pro
1.5 software. This $39.95 program is very simple to install and
use and is what will make your Earthmate talk to the Palm.
Note:
You do NOT need to buy an Earthmate if you already own a GPS unit.
In this case, you will just need to get the $19.95 cable and the
Solus Pro software. Total cost is then under $60.
So...how
does it work? --->>>
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2000 Rockcrawler. All Rights Reserved
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