Your PDA becomes a valuable navigation aid with Mapopolis.coms GPS add-ons for most popular makes of Palm OS and PocketPC handhelds. We tested the Mapopolis GPS for the Handspring Treo ($180 street). The bundle includes a National Marine Electronics Association–compatible (and waterproof) GPS module, a Mapopolis v.5.16 PDA mapping application, and downloadable street maps for the U.S. (excluding Alaska) and major Canadian cities.
The GPS add-on measures 2.5 by 1.9 by 0.9-inches (HWD) and weighs 6.6 ounces. A 9-foot power adapter (for boat or car) is included, though theres no special means of attaching the GPS to a dashboard. With the softwares icon-based navigation tools, its easy to view, zoom, scroll, and search Mapopolis maps, which you can customize with street colors and street, town, and landmark names.
The turn-by-turn directions feature lets you display directions as a text list or on the corresponding map. With the latter option, the GPS displays your current position on the PDA map as you navigate. The bundle worked fine on our tests with a Handspring Treo 270. The PDA application plus the Hartford, Connecticut, county map required 1,751K of PDA storage, which is noteworthy because Treos lack expansion to store map segments. But all in all, the Mapopolis GPS for the Handspring Treo is a compact accessory for road trips in unfamiliar territory.