Thread: GPS Nav Without Coverage or Service

I am looking to buy a used Mogul or possibly Touch on ebay.
Used for wifi/internet browsing, some games, and hopefully as a seconday GPS for some geocaching. Will not be used as a phone but it seems these devices are cheaper than PDAs.

My question is will the GPS work because for now I will NOT be buying any service for the phone. Basically will GPS work without a data plan or any cell service etc? I understand Google Maps would not work because it downloads maps, but other apps like Garmin/IGO work?

It will mainly be a hobby for now.

Thanks

All HTC devices are designed to use the GPS module, with or without cellular service. That does not mean that you will be able to use the feature with all devices. Many of the CDMA carriers have a habit of locking out the GPS feature so that you have to pay them an extra fee to use the GPS module. The Mogul is a CDMA device & may have the GPS locked out. To guarantee that your device is fully functional without cellular service, buy a GSM device. An unlocked GSM device will also give you the option of using the device with a prepaid SIM card if you have the desire to use it with data, or as a phone at any point.

Thanks for the info.

If I flash a new rom on the device would that unlock the GPS from whatever a carrier has done?

I plan on flashing WM6.5.

This gpsone whitepaper says the MSM7500 chip in the mogul will work in standalone mode ftp://up.ppcgeeks.com/Titan/GpsOne%2...pdf/gpsone.pdf

So am I correct to think it would work for me because I will not have any service or coverage?

If you plan to flash a custom ROM, you should have no problems; granted the cook removed any restrictions before creaking the ROM. As I already stated ALL HTC devices have GPS modules that work in standalone mode. This is standard when they leave the factory. It is the cellular carriers that place the restrictions on the device; Not HTC. As long as all carrier restrictions are removed, then you can use every feature that is built into the device.

Great. Thanks for clarifying for me as I am new to smartphones in general. I didn't want to end up with something that did not have a true GPS.