Jeep Wrangler Rubicon (JL 2-door) - Navigation (GAIAgps)

August 08, 2020

Jeep Wrangler Rubicon (JL 2-door) - Navigation (GAIAgps)

I had been investigating "Navigation (NAV)" options a while back when I had my JK Rubicon (2013) as the NAV was not that great in that Jeep.

From my initial discovery, I had a few methods to consider:

Dedicated device (something like the Magellan)
Use the Garmin NAV I have from my BMW GS Adventure (which is a great option)
Software based NAV with some sort of device (like a phone/tablet)

I chose the Software based option - which, at that time, was easy: I already had a tablet with a "real" GPS chip (GLONASS). GAIA had been recommended by a number of folks online it seemed like a good option. It is reasonably priced, runs on Android/IOS, I believe it is crowd-sourced from other users.

Overall I have felt that the GAIA GPS app and ecosystem is rather cool. I had investigated using GAIA and a Tablet a while back - and... I had some struggles with GAIA itself. However, those issues were my own fault based on lack of knowledge. We were in Moab and after we were a decent distance away from cell coverage, the "tiles" were no longer refreshing and gaining clarity - huh? Lesson learned ;-)

Install your (personal) maps ahead of time (routes, tracks, waypoints, etc..)
sync the device often
pre-download the areas you intend to visit (and then some of the surrounding areas)

A welcomed unexpected positive from pursuing this goal: I don't need to buy the most expensive (flagship) tablet all the time. Here is a situation that I find quite perplexing: I picked up an iPad Pro 11" - and not just for this trip, for other reasons specific to work. I kind of hate it. The iPad doesn't do anything poorly - but, it also doesn't seem to do anything (that I need, anyhow) really greatly either. The $300 keyboard (and stand) is great - but, I found I don't really need/want the mousepad. The Apple Pen is amazing - but.. I don't really draw extremely detailed nor complex things (I am using an online "visio" equivalent most of the time, which literally feels like crayon drawings. But.. that is not the iPad's fault. (one legit gripe: why can you still not realign the damned icons? Seriously? And why is it so difficult to manage files on the device? Ugh... I digress... back to the point).
So - after deciding that iOS is out, back to the drawing board. Which Android tablets have a "real" GPS chip? Turns out: not that many.. which is kind of nuts (but, as I type this, I am now wondering: does every tablet enabled for "Cell Service/LTE" have a GPS chip? I am kind of assuming the answer is: yes.)

I found the Lenovo Tab M8 FHD which was approx $125. Seriously? Seriously.

Some nice features:

still has a headphone jack (nice in a vehicle)
pretty great size
case is actually nice quality
audio is reasonably decent
it has microSD support (up to 2TB exFAT - wow)
it has GPS!

Now, strangely as I am writing this blog post and looking for supporting docs, I can't even find any reference to GPS. I don't know why Lenovo would not make a bigger deal about the functionality.

I grabbed some shots of the tablet using my Moto Z (sorry about the quality). Hopefully a month from now I am still raving about GAIA GPS and the Lenovo Tab M8 FHD