But the Freedom mini-GPS has managed to pull in and lock signals any- and everywhere. And not just the required three either. I've seen it lock in seven of ten available satellites.

Setup on both Windows Mobile 5 and 6 was extremely simple. All you need to do is turn on the Bluetooth and "Add new device," assign it a COM port, and you're good to go. Setup on the PC was a bit more difficult. I've never had an easy time of setting up Bluetooth devices on my PC. I blame it on how the OS implements Bluetooth.

It seems that when using a Bluetooth dongle (at least the one I have), enabling the service and creating relationships is a bit of a pain. And I found it to be so with both Windows 2000 and XP, on both a laptop and a desktop PC. But, according to a friend of mine, apparently adding new devices and creating a relationship on a laptop with Bluetooth built-in is much simpler. As simple as on Windows Mobile, I'm told.

A simple glance at the LEDs provides all necessary information. When blinking, the blue LED confirms a Bluetooth connection. When solid, it is in low-power mode. The orange LED denotes satellite lock. When blinking, it has a lock. When solid, not. And the red LED lights up when charging, and turns off when fully charged.

I'll grant that it doesn't come with any software, but I haven't been all that impressed with "included" software when it comes to GPS devices anyway. I'd much rather choose my own mapping and navigation suite, ensuring I get something I'm happy with. But it does come with both the USB charging cable, and the car charger.

One of the best mapping/navigation programs I've ever used was Mapopolis. Alas, they no longer sell to the consumer market. And the map subscription I purchased was not for GPS-enable maps; at the time, I didn't have GPS and saw no point in paying the extra cost.

What to do?

Try out a bunch of GPS suites, on both the PC and Windows Mobile, that's what.

Many of the more well-known names in the mapping/navigation industry have contributed software applications to this article; and many have not. Of the companies approached, TomTom, Pharos, and CoPilot declined to participate.

Maps for free
Of the many freely available Windows Mobile GPS applications, I can personally say that Google Maps, with both satellite and graphic maps shown in Figure B, Microsoft's Live Search, and Earthcomber all work perfectly well with the Freedom mini-GPS.

FIGURE B

Google Maps offers both graphic maps and satellite captures. Click picture for a larger image.

Google Maps and Live Search, shown in Figure C with satellite and graphic maps, both require a wireless data connection. Earthcomber does not. All of its maps and data are maintained on the device.

FIGURE C

Like Google, Microsoft's Live Search gives you satellite and graphic maps. Click picture for a larger image.

Of the free applications, Earthcomber, in Figure D, was the most like Mapopolis, and my favorite; if a bit slow.

FIGURE D

Earthcomber's free map utility. Click picture for a larger image.

But it may have been slower due to the number of congruent maps I installed.