3 GPS Facts That Hollywood Adds
- February 10, 2016
- Posted by: Moise Louissaint
- Category: Misc. Security

GPS, global positioning system, devices have become extremely popular as our late. Almost to the point of being apart of almost everyone’s everyday life. But with anything with any amount of popularity, comes expectations that sometimes are just beyond belief. Hollywood had helped fuel these stories by taking what GPS units can actually do, and taking it up to the next level. This is hopefully going to help you separate the facts about GPS, from the Hollywood fiction.
- The accuracy of your GPS is only as accurate as the size of the chip. What this means is most units don’t show the exact location of a person, or vehicle. It just gives you a rough area. The larger the chip, the more accurate the reading. So if you are tracking a loved one, or a vehicle, you should probably keep this in mind.
- Along these same lines, if you’re talking someone, we’ve all seen where the GPS dot moves nice and smoothly along a map, showing every precise move. This is just Hollywood showboating to make things interesting. In all actuality, it comes across as a blinking dot that randomly jumps from spot to spot. This is because it takes a few for the data to bounce back to the receiver. Location is always more accurate when you are using GPS for directions. But this style of tracking takes a couple to get back to you.
- Another piece of fiction that many people choose to believe comes in the form of how stealthy GPS units are. I’ve personally witnessed someone trying to find a unit small enough to slip into someones wallet unnoticed. This is diverging straight out of James Bond. And like James Bond, this is totally fictitious. Units are small enough to stick on the undercarriage of a car relatively unnoticed, but that’s honestly about it.
When it comes right down to it, you need to know the realistic expectations. If you are needing a GPS for a specific reason, know all the wear and tear it’s going to take, and realize that it is a highly likely hood that it it’s going to be found. But If you are using it as backup security for if your car is stolen, just realize that the GPS will duo what you are going for, as looking as the battery lasts. Also, before jumping into spy mode, do your research and know the laws as they regard to the uses of GPS.