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Cheap GPS Antennas, Compasses, Oddball Gadgets And Junk



My previous post recommended using an external GPS antenna to improve accuracy. They aren’t actually all that expensive – you can pick one up for $20-30 on eBay. But for really cheap GPS antennas, you might try one of my favorite gadget sites, DealExtreme. You can get an external GPS antenna for as little as $7.50, or as much as $8.31, a price that includes shipping from Hong Kong. I have no experience with either model, no specs are given, and the connector description (“F-Cable”) is one that I’m not familiar with, so caveat emptor (“let the buyer beware”). Still, at this price, you don’t have much to lose.

DealExtreme is full of both useful and oddball gadgets, many at absurdly low prices, especially given that all the prices include shipping. Geographically-related, in addition to a few GPS-related items like the antennas, they also have dozens of compasses, from a digital compass with a built-in altimeter and thermometer for about $30, to a twenty-pack of mini-compasses for $2.60. Not to mention the combination butane lighter and compass for $4. Thousands of other items as well, from the useful to the absurd (Mario and Luigi air freshener, anyone?), most at astoundingly low prices. Takes a few weeks for the items to show up, but I’ve never had a problem with any order, including the one item that was out-of-stock (got a prompt refund).


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5 Responses to “Cheap GPS Antennas, Compasses, Oddball Gadgets And Junk”


  1. 1 Chris

    An F connector is the threaded connector used in cable TV systems. Just look at the antenna input on your TV.

  2. 2 Leszek Pawlowicz

    Could be, but at least one of the pictures of the cable connector doesn’t look at all like it, and the other one looks like it’s too small. The connectors for both GPS antennas don’t look like each other, so it’s odd that they’d both be labeled as “F-connectors”.

  3. 3 Chris

    I checked the links (for some reason my adblock software hid them). The cheaper antenna, the one with “F-cable” in its name, is actually an SMA connector. The second antenna looks like a MMCX connector. Neither of them are F connectors.

  4. 4 Leszek Pawlowicz

    Thanks – now I know which GPS antenna not to buy!

  1. 1 gps utilities
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