Satmap Man Interviewed

Mostly outdoors gear evolves, a jacket gets a slightly better hood, a new fabric comes along and makes you a little more comfortable, but it's rare for a new product to really shake things up.

Simple Idea...

If you've ever been baffled by the complexity of most GPS units, you'll appreciate the simplicity of what Richard set out to do, basically, he says, his aim was 'to put a great map in the hands of people, with a red dot showing them exactly where they are'.

The reason, he says, that existing GPS units don't do that, is that their roots are in the car market and driven by hardware rather than mapping. Useability in the outdoors seems to come second to adding more and more features and more and more complexity. 'Mapping,' says Richard, 'seems like an afterthought'.

'Don't quote me on this', he pleads, 'but I wanted to develop something that anyone could use, even my old mum. Something that the majority of people out on the hills would be able to pick up and, walk away using it five minutes later. It's got to be easy to use in all conditions, night and day.'

Cut No Corners...

Richard's ex-RAF and has spent the last ten years working with GPS tracking systems for vehicles, so he knows the technical side of things well. But that's only half the battle.

That means the Active 10's been developed from the ground up to work purely as an outdoors navigational unit. It's not a re-shelled PDA. That meant choosing each component to maximise battery life and, not content with that, including the ability to work either with normal AA batteries - which can give up to 60 hours of use with lithium cells - or an integral, rechargeable lithium polymer battery pack.

Then there's the operating system. It's Windows CE, but unlike any other CE-based navigational device we're aware of, it doesn't use a touch screen. Instead Satmap developed a toggle and button interface.

'Touch screen,' he says, 'is totally unsuitable for the outdoors. It just breaks. It's telling that the military just don't use it outdoors.'

To underline that, the Active 10's screen is protected by a replaceable polycarbonate screen protector, the sort of stuff they use for riot shields and the case is designed to be both robust and waterproof from the ground up.

Maps...

Most existing GPS units work most effectively in conjunction with mapping software loaded onto a PC, Satmap takes a different approach. The mapping, all familiar and effective Ordnance Survey stuff - 'Brilliant mapping! Says Richard - is supplied on SD memory cards.

That means the whole unit is 'self contained and more portable'. You could, for example, head off to the Lakes for a week and plan routes on the hoof using just the relevant map card and the unit itself. No need for a PC or laptop.

It's also compatible with existing mapping software like Memory Map, Anquet and Tracklogs in that you can download previous routes to the Active 10 in GPX format, so you can still use that software, though not, unfortunately, the mapping.

On top of that, Satmap's web site will house a free online route planning section where you'll be able to create your own routes then download them to your Satmap using Satmap's own soon to be released, SatSynch interface, which will also come with Mac drivers in the next few months.

Not cheap but worth it...

Satmap unit comes with a free UK road basemap, but to use it properly, you need to invest in the OS mapping, which is available in a variety of ways from custom-ordered areas through to the £99 National Park and National Trail packages.

That sounds expensive, but if you look at, say, the Lake District, you're getting full 1:25,000 and 1:50,000 maps of the entire National Park for only around £20 more than you'd pay for laminated paper maps of the same area. On top of that there's locking on the map cards, so you could lend your maps to a mate, or swap them, and they'll work forever regardless of upgrades.

The cost is due to the OS licencing system and Richard admits that initially he thought the prices were high, but the more he's used the mapping and compared it to other options, the more he's come to believe that it offers 'incredible value'.

'Compared to other mapping, their maps are so much better. I think, on reflection, the royalties are entirely justified.'

Bear in mind too that you can buy the full UK in 1:50,000 format for £165 or individual counties at £29.99 - choose your county carefully, mind. We'd suggest Lincolnshire...

Hands On...

We'll be bringing you a full review shortly, but we can tell you now that the Active 10 is by far the most intuitive GPS unit we've used. It's taken an almost Apple-like approach by eschewing things like 3D fly-throughs in favour of simply concentrating on doing what it's designed to, simply and effectively.

It's being trialled by Mountain Rescue Teams as well, and when we spoke, Richard was bubbling over excellent feedback on its night-time capabilities.

'They're delighted,' he says. 'We've worked with MRTs and taken heed of their feedback and because we're a small company, we're more responsive.

'And we've tried to aim Satmap right across the spectrum, so it's simple enough for a navigational novice to use, but still with enough advanced features to satisfy an expert MRT-type user.'

The Bottom Line...

'We want,' Richard rounds things off, 'to revolutionise navigation and leave people free to enjoy the hills because ultimately that's why they're there. We go out into the outdoors to enjoy it, not to worry about getting lost.'

And first impressions are that Satmap might just manage it. There's a brilliant simplicity and stripped-down useability to the new Active 10 that's almost Apple-like and that can't be a bad thing. Full review to follow.

For more information see www.satmap.com