BT-Q1300ST:Qstarz BT-Q1300ST Nano Keychain Bluetooth GPS Data Logger (66 ch MTK, 200K waypoints, Dual Bluetooth/USB, Armband, Qsport Software)

This unit is magnificently small, with a very handy keychain connector. I love the size and ease of carrying it around. The unit connects with a simple mini-USB port, which is very standard, and I have several of these cables around already. No problem there.The unit picks up a good enough signal, although it does seem weaker than some other products I've tried; it does appear to take extra long to get a GPS lock. Also, the LED indicators are a little vague, but so far I've had no problem getting the unit to log my path.Where I do seem to be having problems is connecting the unit to my Mac. The enclosed software is Windows-only, and the small-size CD doesn't even fit in my iMac or laptop Mac. I read online that MyTracks and GPSBabel should work with it, and they do; however, I have a lot of trouble getting the software to recognize the unit. It takes several tries, and the recognition is unpredictable. Sometimes it works, sometimes it does not.Once it connects, I can easily download a .gpx format file to my Mac. Then I use Jeffrey Freidl's geoencoding plug-in for Lightroom to geo-encode my images. Accuracy seems to be "good enough".Given the high price, I wish the unit's connection to the software was more reliable. However, I'll cross my fingers and make this my main geotagging unit.UPDATE 5/2/2011: I really wanted to love this unit. However, I just can't get it to connect to my Mac anymore. I have tried this with three different Macintoshes: an iMac, a Macbook, and a Mac Pro. I have tried GPS Babel and MyTracks. Nothing connects. Unfortunately, I did not save the packaging, so I cannot return it.

This gadget works very nicely for geotagging photos. You just turn it on before you leave, and it automatically logs the GPS coordinates of your route in a 5-second resolution (can be configured for 1-second resolution from a PC).There are two main uses for this device. You can synchronize the GPS coordinates with your photos, as long as your camera's clock is accurately set up. The Qstarz doesn't require clock adjustments, because it grabs the time from the GPS satellites. I'm using HoudahGPS on my Mac to download the coordinates in a GPX file, and the GPSPhotoLinker program to automatically synchronize that with my photos. All I have to set up is the timezone (GMT+x hours), with the daylight saving time accounted to it. So for example most of Europe is GMT+1 during the winter, and GMT+2 during the summer.In addition to geotagging photos, I can plot the exact route on Google Earth and other applications. The Windows-only program that comes with the device can track your average and maximum speed, the distance, and calculate the number of calories you burned while running, cycling, etc. The Qstarz can also be used as a GPS receiver attached to your computer, but I've never tried that. The device can be connected to the PC or Mac via a short USB cable (supplied) or wirelessly (bluetooth). Fortunately the USB cable is standard, and I can use it to connect my camera to my computer as well, and you could use the camera's cable to connect the Qstarz as well.I've extensively used this device during my European vacation. I was able to tag all my photos automatically and accurately. By tagging I mean not only the GPS coordinates, but the name of the city/county/country as well.The Qstarz acquires GPS signal in less than a minute, and maintains that connection for the entire day. The only time I lost signal was when I went underground, inside the thick walls and ceiling of a medieval castle, or inside a cavern. Within a minute after coming out it automatically reacquired connection. While there's no GPS signal the device automatically stops logging and restarts it as it gets signal.I recommend that you don't turn off the device during a trip, because if you forget about turning it on, you won't have the data. The BT-Q1300S is capable of running for the entire day (from sunset to sunrise easily). I don't exactly know it limits, though.The disadvantages are relatively minor to me:* There's no overcharge protection. You shouldn't leave this connected to your computer for a long time, because you damage the unreplaceable batteries. This is ridiculous, how hard would it have been to add overcharge protection?* There's only one button. You press that for 4 seconds to turn it on/off, 2 seconds to turn logging on/off, and tap it to log a single entry right now.* The LEDs that indicate various statuses are extremely hard to see outdoors (almost impossible, unless I shade it with my hands). You also have to memorize their meaning, because it's far from obvious.* There's no LCD screen, but honestly I never even look at it during my trip.* The software that comes with it is for Windows only, and if you want to reprogram it to 1-second logging, you must do it from Windows, as far as I know. However, I can do everything else on my Mac using free applications.The reason I did not subtract 1 star for these issues is because the device just works. I press the button for 4 seconds before I leave in the morning, and can leave it alone all day, knowing it does the job. But you must be careful not to leave it connected to the USB overnight.

I like this GPS logger very much. And if you don't mind fiddling a bit to use it then you probably will to. First, the single-button control takes some getting used to; you use one button to turn it on, turn it off, and to control logging. The instructions give the basics but it takes some practice to reliably get it into the mode you want. I've found that watching how the lights blink as you hold the button down is the easiest way to control it. The manual gives 2-sec, 3-sec, 4-sec, etc. but the lights are more reliable. But, once you have that down it's easy. Second, if you don't want to (or can't because you use a Mac) use their software then you have to find your own solutions. Happily there are several options from "High Geek" (GPSBabel [...] in "raw" mode), through HoudahGPS [...], GPSBabelFE [comes with GPSBabel], and my favorite GEOTag [[...] Again, once the right settings are found then it's a breeze. With GEOTag you can pull the GPX track data and assign it to your photos easily which was all I was looking to do. HoudahGPS or GPSBabelFE will also pull tracks in several different formats including KML for input into Google Earth so you can plot your track right on the Earth. Both are GUI front-ends to GPSBabel which does all the heavy lifting.So whether you are looking to plot that bike ride or hike or, as am I, Geo tagging your photos, this is a very good logger. I especially like the size ...