The advent of freely available GPS devices and vehicle tracking systems has meant that fleet managers have been able to keep a closer eye on the exact location of all of their vehicles quickly and easily. As GPS tracking has become more popular, free tracking systems have made an appearance, such as Google’s ‘Latitude’ and the independently operated ‘Locatea.net’. So if there are free vehicle tracking systems now available, why pay for a system?

Put simply, the free systems are not specifically designed for business users. Google’s Latitude in particular is more of an extension of the social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace, enabling those who choose to participate in it to see the location of friends and family across the world. Although a very good (and fun) system, it really doesn’t have a practical application for the modern fleet manager who wants to incorporate an accurate vehicle tracking system into their business plan. In the same vein, Locatea.net allows those who are members of the site to see the location of those who wish to be tracked, and herein lies another weakness in the two sites’ application as a business tool. Participation is voluntary and those who do not wish to be tracked simply remove themselves from the database, effectively becoming invisible to the tracking system.

A paid-for system that is tailor-made to a business model design is far more accurate and reliable. Paid vehicle tracking systems are set up for the individual user, enabling them to track and monitor all vehicles in their fleet to within a few metres. But it’s not just a case of ‘Big Brother is watching you’ with vehicle tracking systems. Their use is also beneficial in many other aspects of modern fleet management, including optimising delivery route planning, providing protection for vehicles, reducing a fleet’s motor insurance levels, improving customer care levels and minimising the risks of unauthorised mileage or speeding offences. Once GPS devices have been fitted to a fleet the information can be relayed back in real-time to a central control point, through which the transport or fleet manager can then update drivers of any changes to scheduled routes or additional pickups or deliveries. This ensures that the nearest available vehicle can be despatched to a customer, reducing waiting times and improving customer relations.

Paid systems also benefit from regular updates and servicing by the provider – something that free systems do not offer. Although free services may update their mapping functions, for example, these are still only designed for general use and have no route-plan function availability. Although Locatea.net does offer a courier route planner, again it is only a general map-based GPS system rather than a specialised function that can be customised to suit an individual company’s needs.

Fitting a fleet with GPS tracking can also lower the cost of fleet motor insurance, making the company a considerable saving in the long term. It offers a greater degree of security and should vehicles be stolen, a silent alarm can be triggered informing a central control point of the theft. This gives a fleet manager the ability to respond more quickly to a vehicle theft, alert the Police and consequently have a greater chance of recovering the vehicle undamaged.

For professional and business use, a paid vehicle tracking system is a worthwhile investment and although the free systems are perhaps a fun and even useful addition to the general public’s GPS tracking network, for businesses they do not offer the comprehensive features that a paid-for system does.

The advent of cheap (and even, in some cases, free) GPS tracking systems has revolutionised how the general public move from point A to point B. The days of paper maps are regarded as numbered by many. However, GPS has far more applications than acting as mere electronic maps and GPS tracking has become an important business tool in fleet management. Vehicle tracking enables fleet managers to keep a close eye on the exact location of all their vehicles and also allows them to gather information on how the fleet is operating, optimum routes and even incidences of speeding.

Recently Google and Locatea.net have thrown a new ingredient into the mix – free GPS tracking. Google has launched ‘Latitude’ – a free access system showing participants their exact (to within a few metres) location on the planet and the location of all their friends and family who sign up to the system. More of an extension of their highly successful ‘Google Earth’ package, Latitude is a fun way of keeping in touch with friends and family, but it doesn’t really have a practical application in the business world. The same is true of Locatea.net, which gives an accurate portrayal of the locations of everyone who wants to be involved in the programme. And herein lies the problem with free vehicle tracking systems. They are really more of an addition to social networking collectives and do not as such have a practical application as a business tool. Free vehicle tracking is also voluntary, so it’s easy to exclude yourself from the system should you so wish to.

Paid vehicle tracking is completely different. Designed for a specific purpose, it allows fleet managers to manage and control fleets of vehicles for business use. A paid-for system is a tailor-made business solution that is far more accurate and reliable than a free system. Not only does it allow a fleet manager to identify and locate all vehicles on the system – it also supplies vital additional information that can make an important contribution to the overall efficiency of the business. Vehicle tracking systems supply information about unofficial out of hours usage, calculate average speed of vehicles and can act as a locator beacon in the event of an emergency (particularly important if the fieldworkers are operating in remote locations). GPS devices also act as a security measure. If a vehicle is stolen, a fitted GPS tracking system will enable the fleet manager to locate it immediately, notifying police and ensuring that the vehicle is recovered as quickly as possible. Because of their use in this aspect, GPS tracking systems can also help to reduce the overall insurance costs of a fleet and so save the company money in the long run.

Another major advantage of paid-for vehicle tracking systems is the after-care and systems support that it brings with it. Updates and both hardware and software are covered by a warranty, which means that the system is always operating at maximum efficiency and running costs can be kept to a minimum. With free systems, updates are much more generic in nature and less frequent. Although the mapping functions may be updated regularly these are still only designed for general use and rarely have additional features attached that are business-specific in nature.

For fleet management and business use, a paid vehicle tracking system is a worthwhile investment. By carefully selecting a supplier that can provide you with a custom-made system which suits your business needs, the initial investment can actually turn into a business asset that will save your company money over time.

Several General Positioning System (GPS) maps are already provided with your GPS device when you buy it. Because these maps are offered for free, there is an overhead in getting them. Indeed, these maps do not allow any tweaking in order to meet your specific needs. Another drawback of these built-in maps is their lack of knowledge about your given destination. For instance, let assume you want to travel to Philippines; it is obvious that you will appreciate details about this location beforehand. If your device was purchased in Brazil, you will be very lucky if it has any knowledge about Philippines. Therefore this GPS map cannot act as a travel aid.

Many GPS devices are used as travelling guides for a trip. Therefore GPS devices have superseded our old map artifacts. You may be wondering how useful a GPS device is. It is obvious that having detailed information about your trip in advanced will only make it more enjoyable, faster, safer and reduce any risks during your trip.

Although there are several programs that can be purchased to install new GPS maps on your device, there are also several free programs that can be used for the same purpose. In order to use these, some software prerequisites should be installed at first. These include the cables of your device. You do not to worry about it because they are included with your device when you purchase it.

They are also many websites that can help you to design our own GPS maps. By customizing your maps, you will be able to pinpoint specific locations you are fond of. These include restaurants, bars, night clubs, schools and so forth. You may add traffic reports in your GPS maps in order to avoid traffic jam during your journey.

Another outstanding benefit of GPS systems is their ability to record several maps. For instance, if you are traveling a lot to the same place, your GPS device can save all your personal information once so that the trip you will not be asked to enter your personal details and preferences.

When you have a GPS system, you may find it easier to have many maps about your trips. This will make your trip very enjoyable. You should therefore spend some time looking at pre-installed maps as well as other amazing features of your system.

Briefly speaking, GPS maps offer you the unique opportunity you explore your final destination without heading there. This is very interesting because it is sometimes recommended to glance at a country before formally deciding to go there. Some GPS maps provide outstanding features such as an unlimited online access to view, print, save aerial pictures. Some of them also come with bunch of programs allowing you to personalize them, add texts, graphics, compute GPS coordinates, upload your GPS coordinates and plot them atop of your maps. Updating new GPS maps to your device can be a very daunting experience. There are available in many shopping centers not for free. If you are looking for free stuff, you should definitely look on the internet as several, interesting maps are available.