QSTARZ 5Hz GPS Recorder review
Feb 19, 2010 geotag, gps navigation, gps reviews, qstarz
People at Qstarz kindly sent us the latest 5Hz GPS recorder that we recently talked about so we have a short review for you. The product is actually called BT-Q1000ex Xtreme Recorder but we won’t be using that because it is a hassle to type or say. We’ll simply call it the 5Hz GPS recorder – highlighting one its best features. It can update/log your position 5 times a second! That’s pretty extreme and makes this device almost a specialty gadget for those who need it.
You may be racing cars or bikes and need to know how you’re handling every single curve or skiing down mountains and need to keep track of exactly where you’ve been without missing a single turn – in which case this is the correct GPS recorder for you.
Let’s talk about the features first and then we’ll move on to build quality, included software, battery life, etc.
QStarz 5Hz GPS recorder uses the MTKII 66 channel GPS receiver which is sensitive down to -165dBm. It comes with replaceable with a Helix 1000mAh battery that can last up to 42 hours – and has a motion sensor to help you get the most out of it. There’s a POI button on top that lets you manually record points if you choose to and the ability to store 400000 waypoints. QSTARZ 5Hz GPS recorder can also beep at you as a way to communicate its status.
The GPS logger itself is built nicely – all plastic but still sturdy yet lightweight. There’s a button on the side that lets you switch from the extreme 5Hz mode to a more regular 1Hz mode which also serves as the power button. The three LEDs on the front side tell you about bluetooth, battery, and GPS signal status. Great hardware, but we were unhappy with the accessories that came with it. It comes with a fake leather pouch which is transparent nylon on one side and Velcro on the other. They’ve also included another Velcro that you stick to your dash and attach the leather pouch to. Definitely doable but ugly. There are also two long Velcro strips that we think my serve as some sort of armstrap or as a way to attach the GPS recorder to your bike or something similar (come to think of it.. why are we complaining? they were at least courteous enough throw in some useful things. Did your $600 smartphone come with a case? No? Didn’t think so…)
People at QStarz always include decent software with their products and the 5Hz GPS recorder is no exception. It comes with QSports, and QTravel analysis software. QSports is very handy if you want to quickly analyze your daily,weekly, etc performance and even comes with a “Lap Analysis View” that can show avg/max/min speed, split and cumulative split info if you’re into motor sports racing or good old running and biking. QTravel is great if you want to geotag your photos. You just point the software to your photos and it matches the timestamp on them to the time you’ve hit the POI button and shows them on a map. When you’re traveling just make sure you’re in 1Hz mode and vibration sensor is left on (ON by default) while you’re vacation so you wouldn’t even have to charge it once while you’re busy snapping photos.
Another feature of QStarz 5Hz GPS recorder is that it can act as a bluetooth GPS receiver for a laptop or a smarphone. Not a feature very sought after these days… but it’s there if you need it.
The beep signals are very useful – for example if you get a GPS fix it will beep at you twice or three times if you’re out of memory, though we never were able to get to that point. A long then a short beep means the device went into sleep mode which happens after ten minute inactivity.
The 1000mAh battery did last a long time though we just didn’t have enough time to push the advertised 42 hour limit. It charges via USB and is replaceable which are both pluses.
Overall QSTARZ 5Hz GPS Recorder is a high quality product that delivers what it promises and comes with good quality software to finish the job when you’re back in front of your computer. Definitely recommended.
UPDATE: shopqstarz.com carries the QSTARZ Q1000ex.
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