Odd ?? GPS question perhaps

[Lewton]

Can anyone recommend, hopefully from experience, a tablet, such as a Samsung, Asus etc that's got good enough GPS capability to operate excellently in very, Very remote areas where there are no trails?
Many tablets boast GPS capability but are very poor or useless in very remote places.
I apologise that this is a bit of a naughty question because it concerns a trip to a very remote part of northern Norway and not UK.
I will have downloaded maps beforehand possibly from Nordeskart and may well use Gaia maps as well.
From what I've read it will need to have a dedicated GPS chip and accurately receive directly from satellite.
I want something with around a 7 to 8" screen so that I can read the map trails accurately officially you know what I mean. Looking to spend up to £ 150.
Thanks.
Lousy question, I know. :\

[clem_f]

As far as I know GPS signal should be fine wherever you are. In fact worse in cities than in the wilderness areas as there are no buildings to get in the way. You could have a problem getting a fix on the GPS satellites in a dense forest or maybe a gorge. Ususally the GPS needs to be able to "see" 3 satellites at least to calculate your position. Mobile phone coverage is another matter of course - that will more than likely be hopeless in the wilderness. As long as you have offline maps and the software to use them on the tablet you should be fine.

Personally I wouldn't use a tablet, as most of them have poor battery life when using GPS and larger power demands than phones, so charging them in the wilds with a battery pack may not be practical. As far as which device, I couldn't give any advice I am afraid. I use a Blackberry Leap phone for navigation, it has an excellent GPS chip which holds a much better fix than other phones I have used, and acquires the signal faster. It however is not much good for most as it uses blackberry's software and not android, so you have to know how to install the appropriate software on it. I am not sure what mapping app would be best for norway.

[rogasb]

I have previously had this problem around Malselv area.

My solution was to use paper maps - the Norwegian ones are very good - and a basic eTrex GPS.

Position can be transferred to the map or a destination can be input to the GPS which will give you an arrow to follow.

If you are not using trails then this (or a compass) is the best solution.

The eTrex running continuously lasts all day on a pair of AA batteries and a couple of spares in the rucksack are of minimal weight. It is showerproof and rugged enough to survive being dropped onto hard surfaces (yes I have checked that out, but not intentionally)

[WalkWithWallace]

GPS will work anywhere providing you're not in dense forest or a gorge etc. I wouldn't take a tablet though, bulkier and not the easiest to charge when compared to a smartphone. Can you not just use a phone and stick it in flight mode?

[Lewton]

Hi
Thanks everyone for your advice. Because weather conditions are extremely variable, I've decided to go with paper maps plus eTrex. I'll also preload specific maps' data from recommended sources. Thankyou. 👍