Comments on: Geotagging with the Mac-friendly GlobalSat BT-335

By: Bodo

Bodo — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 10:33:07 +0000

I got a reply from Globalsat (in TW) and yes, according to them, BT-338X is compatible with GlobalSync (Mac OS X).

Regards,

Bodo.

By: Bodo

Bodo — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 11:12:13 +0000

OK, thank's Bruce, I have sent them a mail now, let's hope it works fine, I'll drop you some lines about the reply later...

By: Bruce

Bruce — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 06:11:36 +0000

Bodo you can contact GlobalSat support here.

By: Bodo

Bodo — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 00:00:58 +0000

Hi, can someone tell me if GlobalSat BT-338x is compatible with GlobalSync or LoadMyTracks software and can be used with a Mac? It seems BT-335 can't be found in any store over here in Sweden anymore (out of stock everywhere) while BT-338x is available.

By: Bruce

Bruce — Fri, 01 May 2009 21:29:17 +0000

Hi Ray. I've recently returned from a trip to Florida where I used the BT-335 to log over 13,000 track points to associate with some 540 photos. It's nice to be able to leave the unit in the filter pocket of my camera bag after turning it on, then forget it until I put the camera away—with the confidence that it will have logged everything pretty accurately. I did top-up charge it a couple of times during our trip just to be on the safe side (I've never even seen the low battery LED glow), but battery life certainly exceeds my expectations having been so disappointed with the stamina of the otherwise excellent Holux M-241. I agree it's a shame GlobalSat didn't see fit to implement waypoint marking, but the easiest workaround for this is to fire off a non-artistic shot on the camera (e.g. of a landmark, direction sign etc.) and use manual time stamp matching to obtain waypoint coordinates. Like Maria I find myself using LoadMyTracks in preference to the GlobalSync software; in my experience it connects to the logger via BT more reliably and I continue to experience data corruption when downloading data via GlobalSync. I do like HoudahGeo but can't leave GPSPhotoLinker alone either ;-) Each app has particular strengths and whilst it might come down to personal preference for a given geotagging task I see no reason to use one app exclusively.

By: Ray

Ray — Fri, 01 May 2009 20:20:15 +0000

Bruce,

You did this review in 2008. Have you looked at it any further? I am currently using Delorme software on the PC but moving over to the Mac. Unfortunately, there is little, other than the software you mention, available on the Mac. Delorme's Street Atlas and Top USA products are great and I suspect I am going to have to use them in a VM. I also have used GeoBuddy for geotagging but have a copy of HoudaGeo, which you seem to like a lot. I like the idea of this unit and its ability to work with the Mac. I can get it for US$70 but the only thing I do not like is the lack of waypoint marking. I currently use a regular GPS for geotagging, but lke the idea of a small unit to put in the pocket.

Any updated advice or comments would be appreciated.

By: Charles C

Charles C — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 23:31:03 +0000

Thanks for the tip David, I'll have to give that a try.

It looks like the wild elevation readings is a software bug after all. If I use the Globalsync 2 software, any elevation value that is less than zero will have bad readings. If I import the same data using Load My Tracks, the elevation data is correctly shown as a negative value.

It even has the issue with their PC software. If I export the data to gpx, I get the elevation error but if I use the default .gsd file format then it comes out normally.

By: David Svantesson

David Svantesson — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 18:33:04 +0000

@Charles C: I also had this problem for long time and didn't understand why. But today I found a solution. When switching between "Recorded data: position/ position, time, speed / position .... " I saw that the recording interval changed between them. I switched between all the possibilities and set the same recording interval for everyone, and then restared my unit. Now, it worked! I guess this is a bug in GlobalSync.

I hope this solves it for you too!

And thanks for this very good review of BT-335!

By: Bruce

Bruce — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 12:40:55 +0000

I can't say for sure Charles but if you can download in LoadMyTracks but not GlobalSync it would seem to suggest a GlobalSync bug. I have been able to change the recording interval reliably via GS on the BT-335; I was unable to get GS to work with a DG-100 I had for testing at all, so I think there are some remaining software/ hardware interface issues. You could try contacting GlobalSat support but as they outsourced GS development I'm not sure how far you'll get. But making them aware of the problem would be a start.

By: Charles C

Charles C — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 16:14:43 +0000

I am quitting GS and turning the device off and then back on but the recording interval never changes. I also am unable to download a 1.9MB track using GS but it does download if I use LoadMyTracks. It seems to just hang about 75% of the way through when using GS.

I also have to launch, connect, try to download, quit, relaunch and try again to do anything with the device. It never works on the first launch but will work on the second. Have you experienced this?