Gaia Tablet Options

[M Rose]

The iPad can connect to the iPhone via Bluetooth but I do not know if location data is something shared via Bluetooth

It does not share location over Bluetooth... you need a gps Bluetooth receiver like a SPOT or Garmin Glo

 

[socal66]

I have an iPad Pro that runs Gaia great but I have been very surprised how well Gaia also runs on an inexpensive $130 Samsung 8" tablet that I just purchased. Unlike the iPad the Samsung has GPS built-in even though it is wifi only and at the low cost point I won't cry too much if the tablet is lost or broken. My Jeep has a large display console that supports Apple CarPlay so I just use Gaia on my iPhone and connect to that for navigation which eliminates the need to have either tablet on my dash. When I need to navigate through the maps more easily or in camp my plan now is to just breakout the Samsung at that time.

 

[Klppdx70]

I have an iPad Pro that runs Gaia great but I have been very surprised how well Gaia also runs on an inexpensive $130 Samsung 8" tablet that I just purchased. Unlike the iPad the Samsung has GPS built-in even though it is wifi only and at the low cost point I won't cry too much if the tablet is lost or broken. My Jeep has a large display console that supports Apple CarPlay so I just use Gaia on my iPhone and connect to that for navigation which eliminates the need to have either tablet on my dash. When I need to navigate through the maps more easily or in camp my plan now is to just breakout the Samsung at that time.

I use an older iPad mini that’s a WiFi only version. It still does have a gps chip. Perhaps yours is different. In my case, typical phone/tablet gps chip may not ping satellites as often as is useable for off-road navigation, so I supplement with a SkyPro GPX160 that pings both US and Russian satellite systems up to 10x/second. I’ve found it very useful in the cloudy PNW months or in areas of dense cover. It connects via Bluetooth to any device you like. Works great with Gaia.

 

[Autism Family Travels]

I have a samsung LTE 8" tablet. It works great.

 

[F8OO]

I have an iPad Pro that runs Gaia great but I have been very surprised how well Gaia also runs on an inexpensive $130 Samsung 8" tablet that I just purchased. Unlike the iPad the Samsung has GPS built-in even though it is wifi only and at the low cost point I won't cry too much if the tablet is lost or broken. My Jeep has a large display console that supports Apple CarPlay so I just use Gaia on my iPhone and connect to that for navigation which eliminates the need to have either tablet on my dash. When I need to navigate through the maps more easily or in camp my plan now is to just breakout the Samsung at that time.

That is great to know. I'm an apple guy and i've been running Gaia off my phone for a bit, however, the last time i was on the trail, while running Gaia I received a phone call, my iphone 11 pro crashed and it took an entire 10 minutes to power back on properly. It was very strange and the first time its ever froze.

So here I am. I think instead of buying an iPad for $400 - $600 CAD that I will look into a Samsung for about $200 or so.

Cheers!

 

[Downs]

I just ordered a Lenovo M8 to replace my borked no name tablet, 90 dollars shipped to my door with mil/first responder discount. I'll update after it gets here and I have some time behind it.

 

[Autism Family Travels]

That is great to know. I'm an apple guy and i've been running Gaia off my phone for a bit, however, the last time i was on the trail, while running Gaia I received a phone call, my iphone 11 pro crashed and it took an entire 10 minutes to power back on properly. It was very strange and the first time its ever froze.

So here I am. I think instead of buying an iPad for $400 - $600 CAD that I will look into a Samsung for about $200 or so.

Cheers!

Same thing here. I use apple for my phone, and I have an Ipad. I am using the galaxy tablet for my jeep for a few reasons. Ease of connectivity. i can connect ANY device via bluetooth to it, there are apps available for android for backcountry/vehicle use that are just not available for iOS, and the price of the device. Also, out of all my LTE devices, the samsung gets much better range and reception. My Ipad is LTE as well as my sons. Our 3 iphones and 2 ipads are showing no signal while I still have 2 bars worth on the samsung. I am close to moving away from apple all together because of this issue.

I would not hesitate on the android tablet at all.

 

[Kyjeeper]

I just recently went with a Samsung tab8, Runs Gaia just fine. Pick up a micro sd card, some RAM mounts and go.

 

[Autism Family Travels]

I have a 512gb SD card in mine. I should be able to download sat imagery and everything with it.

 

[John Bishop]

I use a Mad Elf GPS unit and bluetooth it to my Ipad. Works great.

 

[JPM78130]

Same thing here. I use apple for my phone, and I have an Ipad. I am using the galaxy tablet for my jeep for a few reasons. Ease of connectivity. i can connect ANY device via bluetooth to it, there are apps available for android for backcountry/vehicle use that are just not available for iOS, and the price of the device. Also, out of all my LTE devices, the samsung gets much better range and reception. My Ipad is LTE as well as my sons. Our 3 iphones and 2 ipads are showing no signal while I still have 2 bars worth on the samsung. I am close to moving away from apple all together because of this issue.

I would not hesitate on the android tablet at all.

I've got a Samsung Galaxy Tab A, I think. It's my second one. Anyway, it runs everything well and works fine with my Garmin GPS. The issue I have had with both is that they charge very slowly on my car charger. The charging won't even keep up with battery usage. I also have a small solar charger that works slightly better but not much. I've had this issue since day one with both devices. When I purchased the 2nd one the guy at the store I bought it from seemed to think it was likely a software issue, which wasn't the case. All of that to say, I'm in the market for something that charges faster on a car charger. Have you noticed anything like that with your Galaxy?

 

[Autism Family Travels]

I've got a Samsung Galaxy Tab A, I think. It's my second one. Anyway, it runs everything well and works fine with my Garmin GPS. The issue I have had with both is that they charge very slowly on my car charger. The charging won't even keep up with battery usage. I also have a small solar charger that works slightly better but not much. I've had this issue since day one with both devices. When I purchased the 2nd one the guy at the store I bought it from seemed to think it was likely a software issue, which wasn't the case. All of that to say, I'm in the market for something that charges faster on a car charger. Have you noticed anything like that with your Galaxy?

If you keep the screen on bust the charger can't keep up. There is a threshold on the brightness slider they show where you are max and still maintain charge. It's still plenty bright for us.

 

[KLTH19]

I'm using a Samsung Galaxy Tab A (has GPS) with a RAM mount designed for that tablet. Has proven to be rock solid so far across all kinds of terrain. The tablet was ~$100 on eBay.

The only gripe I have is that Gaia doesn't recenter your location on the map like a regular GPS would, so I need to keep manually moving the map as I drive.

Note also that if you use iOS you can run Gaia via CarPlay on your truck's screen now - so no need for a separate tablet/phone. Google won't let you do that as they refuse to support any mapping software other than Google Maps in Android Auto ;(

 

[Autism Family Travels]

Gaia does follow you if you tell it to

 

[Downs]

Got my Venkyo tablet returned and picked up a Lenovo M8 for just under 100 dollars. So far so good. Much better GPS chip, and the whole touch screen works lol

 

[1Louder]

To the author with charging issues. You need a charger that is 2.4ma vs 2.1. Common issue.

 

[Autism Family Travels]

To the author with charging issues. You need a charger that is 2.4ma vs 2.1. Common issue.

Even on 2.4a my tablet will do what he is saying.

 

[1Louder]

I'm using a Samsung Galaxy Tab A (has GPS) with a RAM mount designed for that tablet. Has proven to be rock solid so far across all kinds of terrain. The tablet was ~$100 on eBay.

The only gripe I have is that Gaia doesn't recenter your location on the map like a regular GPS would, so I need to keep manually moving the map as I drive.

Have you tapped the cross hair icon to change which direction the app orients the map or to center your location?

There have been on again off again bugs where when you pinch and zoom in or out the app stops centering.

 

[KLTH19]

Gaia does follow you if you tell it to

Where is this option? I've looked for it several tes.on trips and I don't see it anywhere.

 

[KLTH19]

I'm using a Samsung Galaxy Tab A (has GPS) with a RAM mount designed for that tablet. Has proven to be rock solid so far across all kinds of terrain. The tablet was ~$100 on eBay.

The only gripe I have is that Gaia doesn't recenter your location on the map like a regular GPS would, so I need to keep manually moving the map as I drive.

Have you tapped the cross hair icon to change which direction the app orients the map or to center your location?

There have been on again off again bugs where when you pinch and zoom in or out the app stops centering.

Thanks - the trick seems to be to toggle that icon to put it into 'Course' navigation mode. It needs to be put back into that mode every time you restart.