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(More customer reviews)Bought the Pharos 525 2 weeks ago. It's a very neat device, and is one of the first to include all three wifi, bluetooth and gps in the one unit. It is smaller than most PDA's, but has the same amount of pixels as other QVGA Pocket pcs (320x240) in its smaller screen, giving it a very sharp and readable appearance. Its big enough. Battery life is great - I accidentally left the GPS running one morning on arriving at the office, it was still going when I next looked at the device 8 hours later! My old Garmin Ique would've been dead after about 45 minutes without power with the GPS running. The GPS receiver is also super sensitive, and does not require a flip out antenna, meaning you can often leave the device in its pleather case while operating the GPS, and not in your car window if you don't want either, a nice nod to convenience.
I can't agree with the other reviewer comment "Nice job Pharos". The device is basically a rebadged HTC Galaxy, aka Qtek G100, aka Dopod P100, aka I-mate PDA-N. Pharos has done nothing to the unit apart from added their splash screen at start up. The only thing Pharos has done is include their Ostia software, which is, quite frankly, absolutely terrible and without doubt the worst GPS software I've ever used. Hopelessly old fashioned and non-intuitive, the worst thing of all is that its routing algorhythms are way off and the routes it chooses are shockingly terrible. I'd have no confidence to travel somewhere unfamiliar with this software - you will get to your destination, but it'll probably take you a while, on the scenic route - this is what those rip off New York style cabbies must use!
Thankfully, you can bin this terrible software and install something else. I'm currently running Mapopolis, which is an excellent inexpensive program, not the best looking (blows Pharos's terrible effort away, mind you) but the routing, directions and features included are excellent, and the mapping is bang on. You can even try before you buy off their website. Other good ones are TomTom 5, Copilot 6 and Iguidance.
All in all, very happy with the device now - just be sure you budget in some extra to change the navigation software - even if you've never used GPS before, and think the supplied Pharos Ostia is OK, you owe it to yourself to at least have a look at one of the other programs - you'll change your mind very fast!
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Pharos Traveler 525 2.27-Inches Bluetooth Portable GPS NavigatorThe Pharos Traveler GPS 525 Portable Navigation System is the first pocket GPS device to combine Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0 into a single, compact device. With the GPS 525, you can access your Outlook e-mail and make PC-to-PC calls via Wi-Fi while you're traveling, and with its advanced GPS navigation tools, you'll never get lost. This is truly the first portable device that's designed for today's mobile professional.Preloaded with the top 50 U.S. metropolitan maps, the GPS 525 uses GPS satellites and digital street maps to show you where you are, locate points of interest, or set a route to your destination. The uniquely sensitive GPS receiver ensures you'll be able to get a position fix just about anywhere. You can find hotspot locations while you're on the road, download maps over high-speed connections, look up Points of Interest (POI), and much more. The device includes a 512 MB SD card with maps of 50 major U.S. metro cities preloaded. A highly accurate and sensitive SiRFstarIII GPS receiver built into the GPS 525 will keep you on track, and voice-prompted, turn-by-turn directions will make navigation through unfamiliar territory a breeze. For car travel, the unit comes with a windshield bracket mount and 12-volt car charger. The device features an easy-to-see color screen with a durable windshield bracket mount that allows for both landscape and portrait screen orientation, as well as a three-dimensional mapping perspective or two-dimensional overhead view. In addition to its advanced GPS capabilities, the Pharos Traveler GPS 525 includes Microsoft Windows Mobile applications such as Pocket Outlook, Windows Media Player, and Internet Explorer. You can seamlessly sync GPS navigation with your Outlook database of contacts so you can navigate directly to any of your Outlook contact addresses. The Pharos Traveler will guide you along the way with voice-prompted, turn-by-turn instructions and will give you the choice of taking the highway or the back roads. The GPS 525 also features Voice Over Internet Protocol, or VOIP, functionality that operates via a built-in 802.11b wireless receiver with 64-128 bit WEP standard data encryption. In other words, having the GPS 525 in the palm of your hands will make you wonder if you ever need to go to the office again. What's in the Box 525 GPS unit, windshield bracket mount, AC adapter, 12-V car charger, USB SD card reader, headset, 512 MB SD card, and navigation CD with U.S. maps.
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