tk5039

Q: Does gps function work on ipad air with wifi only and no internet connection?

I am new to Apple hardwares and am planning to buy an ipad air with wifi only and have following questions:

1. Does gps function work on ipad air with wifi only and no internet connection?

2. Does ipad air already have gps navigation software installed? I am looking for turn by turn voice announcement.

3. How to download maps? and which countries are included in the maps?

Thanks a lot for your help in advance.

iPad

Posted on May 8, 2014 11:02 AM

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Q: Does gps function work on ipad air with wifi only and no internet connection?

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  • by Ralph Landry1,Helpful

    Ralph Landry1 May 8, 2014 11:05 AM in response to tk5039
    Level 8 (41,782 points)
    May 8, 2014 11:05 AM in response to tk5039

    The WiFi-only models have to have a WiFi connection to receive the GPS signal, so without that you cannot get a turn-by-turn guidance.  The iPad comes with Maps installed, I have used mine in the US and in France and in Austria...can't say about any other countries but assume they are available.

  • by robdrage,

    robdrage robdrage May 8, 2014 11:06 AM in response to tk5039
    Level 4 (2,772 points)
    May 8, 2014 11:06 AM in response to tk5039

    The wifi only model does not have a built in GPS chip like the wifi+Cellular models.

     

    If true navigation is desired you would need another GPS device such as Bad Elf.

  • by JimHdk,

    JimHdk JimHdk May 8, 2014 11:16 AM in response to tk5039
    Level 7 (28,565 points)
    iPad
    May 8, 2014 11:16 AM in response to tk5039

    The WiFi-only model has NO GPS hardware. Location Services on these models works by seeing WiFi router MAC addresses and looking up their location in an Apple database of router locations. If there are no nearby mapped WiFi routers then Location Services won't work.

  • by tk5039,

    tk5039 tk5039 May 9, 2014 9:43 AM in response to robdrage
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 9, 2014 9:43 AM in response to robdrage

    Hi robdrage,

     

    If I get ipad air with wifi+cellular, does it come with navigation software for turn by turn voice announcement without internet connection and cellular plan?

    I understand internet is required to download maps.

    thanks again.

  • by snozdop,

    snozdop snozdop May 9, 2014 9:49 AM in response to Ralph Landry1
    Level 5 (5,810 points)
    May 9, 2014 9:49 AM in response to Ralph Landry1

    The WiFi-only models have to have a WiFi connection to receive the GPS signal

     

    That's not right. The WiFi model does not have GPS, regardless of whether it has a WiFi connection.

     

    WiFi can provide limited geo location by using the known location of nearby WiFi access points, but that is not GPS by any means.

  • by robdrage,

    robdrage robdrage May 9, 2014 10:00 AM in response to tk5039
    Level 4 (2,772 points)
    May 9, 2014 10:00 AM in response to tk5039

    I do not know, as I do not use it, perhaps others here can answer better.

  • by paulcb,

    paulcb paulcb May 9, 2014 10:45 AM in response to tk5039
    Level 6 (19,114 points)
    May 9, 2014 10:45 AM in response to tk5039

    If I get ipad air with wifi+cellular, does it come with navigation software for turn by turn voice announcement without internet connection and cellular plan?

    No.  The only nav software the iPad comes with is the Maps app and it requires real-time downloading of maps.  There ae several nav apps that have built-in maps, i.e. Navigon.  Google for nav app reviews.

  • by SkyRat78,

    SkyRat78 SkyRat78 Dec 2, 2014 8:39 PM in response to tk5039
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 2, 2014 8:39 PM in response to tk5039

    Its very strange but I have an iPad Air (wifi only) and have just driven all over Phuket Island (on holiday in Thailand) without being connected to wifi and the gps knew where I was the whole time. Everything I've read said it doesn't work so I'm trying to find out why it did for me!

    I connected to the wifi at hotel and planned a driving route. Once I left the hotel the wifi dropped out of range but the GPS followed me around the entire island. I could tell where I was at all times.

  • by MichelPM,

    MichelPM MichelPM Dec 2, 2014 9:38 PM in response to tk5039
    Level 6 (13,653 points)
    iPad
    Dec 2, 2014 9:38 PM in response to tk5039

    Wifi IPads use a passive GPS system by picking up both GPS satellite signals as well as detecting nearby Wifi hotspots.

    The Apple Maps app uses these passive GPS modes when there is no constant Wifi or cellular signal.

    The only thing that needs to be done initially is to have a consistent Wifi OR cellular signal to initially program the route .

    Once this is done, then the Apple Maps apps uses the iPad's bulit-in passive GPS antenna and it will accurately follow your programmed route.

    I use my iPad 3 all the time as a GPS as long as the route is programmed in advance over WiFi.

    I drive a much older car and it does not have any bulit-in GPS capabilities and I do not own a portable GPS device like a Garmin or TomTom GPS.

    I use my iPad 3 and the Apple Maps app as my GPS.

    Even the bulit-in GPS navigation in our family's Kia Sportage has a passive GPS mode.

    So, iPads can act as a take-along portable GPS.

    I do not believe you can program or install new maps into any IDevice, but I am not 109% sure about this as I don't use the iPad's GPS functionality in that manner.

  • by SkyRat78,

    SkyRat78 SkyRat78 Dec 2, 2014 9:37 PM in response to MichelPM
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Dec 2, 2014 9:37 PM in response to MichelPM

    Well that's good to know and suprisingly difficult to find out... So in summary.. Connect to wifi, plan your route, disconnect wifi and off you go with fairly accurate GPS

  • by MichelPM,

    MichelPM MichelPM Dec 2, 2014 9:39 PM in response to SkyRat78
    Level 6 (13,653 points)
    iPad
    Dec 2, 2014 9:39 PM in response to SkyRat78

    Using Apple Maps, yup!

     

  • by SergZak,

    SergZak SergZak Dec 2, 2014 10:01 PM in response to MichelPM
    Level 5 (7,304 points)
    iPad
    Dec 2, 2014 10:01 PM in response to MichelPM

    Good info, MichelPM...I never knew that. Thanks for sharing.

  • by ggr001,

    ggr001 ggr001 Jun 3, 2016 2:21 PM in response to SkyRat78
    Level 1 (9 points)
    iPad
    Jun 3, 2016 2:21 PM in response to SkyRat78

    Despite a good try, with a new iPad mini and my iPad (version 3 I believe), it is not possible to maintain geo-position with a wifi only iPad.  It is certainly possible to establish a route to a destination when you initially have wifi, no problem.  But, once you lose wifi connectivity, the positioning data is lost.  I will agree it seemed to maintain position for perhaps 5 minutes, but suddenly the location data was lost.  I tried this with Google maps, HERE, and Apple Maps, same results.

     

    My conclusion is that it is not possible to use GPS of whatever flavor, without connectivity on a wifi only iPad.  My experience on my iPhone is certainly different but that has a full GPS capability built in.  Good luck but no success here.  I'm not sure if the architecture changed in the last 2 years, but I couldn't replicate the experience noted on the forum.

  • by Michael Black,

    Michael Black Michael Black Jun 3, 2016 2:50 PM in response to SkyRat78
    Level 7 (24,076 points)
    Jun 3, 2016 2:50 PM in response to SkyRat78

    A Wifi only iPad does not use GPS at all. It has no GPS receiver and is incapable of receiving any signal at all from a GPS satellite. Wifi only iPads use wifi location (which uses Apple's proprietary database of known wifi node approximate locations), and iBeacon microlocation, a technology developed by Apple and utilizing BT based microlocator beacons - see the Wikipedia info about it at https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBeacon

     

    But a wifi only iPad has no GPS functionality at all. iOS's location services subsystem is not inherently tied to GPS for location information.  Also note that "location services" is the iOS system that supplies apps with location information. Location services itself can, if the device has the hardware to support it, use data from a GPS system, but it can use alternate sources of data to provide iOS and your apps with location information.

     

    You yourself may be contributing to Apple's anonymous crowd based location collection based on the settings you have enabled for system services under location service's settings. Crowd based location systems and BT/wifi technology are on everyone's agenda for future location based services and technologies.

     

    p.s. All GPS systems are inherently passive systems - consumer GPS location systems merely receive GPS satellite timing signals and do not transmit anything.  That's also why, for iDevices with GPS systems, since about iOS 8.something, airplane mode does not shut off the GPS receiver and GPS will work on a cellular iPad or iphone in airplane mode.

     

    p.p.s sorry - meant to reply to ggr001

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