Nikon GP-N100 GPS Unit for Nikon 1 V1 Digital Camera

I just received my GP-N100 yesterday and started comparing it to a GeoPIc GPS I bought for my D3 a couple years ago and am impressed already. First, you should know there is a Nikon GP-N100 Utility available that will download assisted GPS files they say decreases the time to determine location. I did that prior to Test 2 as well as updated the firmware.Test 1: Inside my house, a two story, I was on the first floor and not near a window. I did not time it but both GPS's took a minute or two to determine location on first use. (I have not used the GeoPic in over a year.) After uploading to my computer I used PhotoMechanic to do the map location. The GP-N100 was spot on, the GeoPIc was off by about 12 feet.Test 2: Outside on a golf course tee box near my home, open to sky. The GP-N100 acquired within 2-3 seconds, the GeoPIc 5-6 seconds. Using PhotoMechanic again for the maps, both GPS's were dead on for the location in one corner of the tee box.I am taking a trip soon going down the coast of South Carolina, and am looking forward to using both of these GPS's so I can easily identify photo locations in the future. Something else I like about the GP-N100 is it is very compact and light. With that special connector on the Nikon V1 it also does not require a cable connection as is required on the GeoPIc/D3. I highly recommend this GPS, especially at the great price I got from Amazon of $105.

This device does the job it advertises, but not without some important caveats -- these represent nearly 13 months of use (about 4-6 times per month) :(1) the time it takes to lock onto a signal is often unacceptably long.(2) the unit will fail to lock onto a GPS signal in many indoor areas--so much so that I consider it "for outdoor use only," and find it a surprising stroke of luck when it acquires a lock indoors. The unit hasn't ever locked onto GPS while indoors in less than about 3 minutes.(3) since the unit uses the hot shoe, it doesn't permit the simultaneous use of a flash. This is an important consideration, and, IMO a major design flaw (though it is nice to have the unit fully powered by the camera's long-lasting battery, obviating any need for the hassle/degenerative lifespan of rechargeable batteries or the cost/environmental impact of disposable batteries.(4*) The unit is rather large and makes the camera somewhat awkward to store with its protruding head. The unit could've been made smaller (please see NOTE below).*NOTE: Though I am an engineer, I don't have enough expertise with this type of system to claim this as fact; it's just my (educated) opinion.

It usually does the job, i.e., quickly figures out where it is and turn on the green indicator light. But in some days and places it seems to take forever to lock up the satellites. Could be due to lousy satellite geometry but my phone will have a solution sometimes when the GP-N100 does not. Seems to happen more often when under tree cover, as during a walk, and the camera is first turned on. Now I usually turn the camera on when I first start to walk and wait for it to lock up and then turn it off until I need it again. What's confusing is that even on the days when it won't find itself when under tree cover it will find the sats and lock up inside the house!It does not seem to run the battery down very fast on my V1 but of course the V1 does have the big battery.I have been pretty diligent about updating the satellite file every two weeks so I cannot comment on how it operates when the sat file is out of date.For me it was worth the money. Now I don't have to fool around with trying to geocode pictures from my GPS tracks.

If you're a little OCD and like to know exactly where each photo was shot, a GPS add-on is the way to go. I love the fact it uses the camera's battery, not it's own (one less battery to keep track of). And while it talks about taking up to 40 seconds from a cold start to locate satellites, I've never had ti take that long. I like the Nikon V1 system of running accessories off the camera battery. It runs the battery down faster, of course, but I always carry two or three extras along anyway, so not big deal. Especially as the V! battery is the same as my D7000, so I have four batteries available.

I really like the new unit but the only complaint I have is that the directions are in Polish. I've researched the internet for the company to find directions in English but can't find it.I would also encourage the seller to include the tracking number of the item. Mine was delivered past the quoted time frame.

This costs more than I like it to, but it works. The first time in a location takes longer than follow up tries. But it was very accurate.I have a tendency to forget to use it because I often leave the flash on the camera, and you can't use both at the same time. This is definitely the down side of the product, which is really more of a problem with the camera. But buyers should be aware of this.It is very small and light, so it is not a problem traveling with it. The biggest problem is for people who tend to lose things, because it is so small you are at a risk.

works good, but, drains your camera battery

good addition to the Nikon 1 system. great for traveling. takes a few seconds to equier signal but I got one indoors which is typically unusual. recomended

Very good

A la sortie de mon V1 j'avais hésité à le prendre compte tenu du prix.Quelques années plus tard, un peu moins cher, une promo et enfin la géolocalisation sur les photos sans avoir à passer par un iPhone pour tagger une ou deux photos et sans servir pour celles de mon V1..Pas nécessaire.. Mais tellement pratique et discret..

le informazioni per l'uso del dispositivo sono frammentate e non facilmente accessibili in particolare per quanto riguarda il softwaremi stupisce che Nikon non provveda

Tamaño reducido, muy rápido para captar posición en caliente, un poco menos en frío. Precisión extraordinaria, muy superior a otros GPS para cámaras que poseo.

Der GPS-Empfänger ist sehr klein, leicht und muß lediglich auf den Blitzschuh aufgesteckt werden. Eine Batterie braucht er nicht. Trotzdem entleert er den Kameraakku relativ wenig, was nicht selbstverständlich ist. Es wird geografische Länge und Breite sowie die Höhe im Kameramenü angezeigt bzw. in die EXIF-Datei des Fotos geschrieben. Bei Lightroom, iPhoto etc. bekommt man so über Karten eine gute Übersicht, wo man das Foto erstellt hat und damit auch eine gute Übersicht über die Reiseroute. Weiterhin kann man die Kamerauhr hochgenau automatisch einstellen, da diese im GPS-Signal enthalten ist. Man muß es aber nicht und kann diese Option auch in der Kamerasoftware abwählen.Auch GPS-Daten kann (muß man aber nicht) sich über USB schon vorher reinlesen, damit das GPS schneller betriebsbereit ist.Bei leicht bewölktem Himmel oder wenn es gerade in warmen Urlaubsländern gar keine Wolken gibt, findet der GPS-Empfänger sehr schnell die Position meist unter 30 Sekunden. Beim oft bedeckten deutschen Wetter im Regelfall unter 1 Minute. Nur bei richtigem Regen gibt es oft keinen GPS-Empfang. Wenn das Wetter nicht zu schlecht ist, klappt GPS sogar in Räumen (wenn man nicht gerade im Keller ist) ganz gut. Der GPS-Empfänger ist also voll alltagstauglich.Ja, es wäre schön gewesen, Nikon hätte das GPS schon eingebaut. Aber der Preis ist akzeptabel und die geringe Größe passt gut zur Nikon 1.