I've been wanting to address this subject for a year or two now. I may not have worded all this perfectly, but the general concept is sound.
So, I submit this, for your consideration.
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GPS firmware, is the life of the equipment. It takes a lifeless piece of hardware, and lets it listen to the right sounds.
If you are in the market for GNSS equipment, then it is always a good idea to check and see if the company charges for firmware updates, and if they do, how much. And, how often.
I am seeing surveyors and folks that use this equipment, buy it, and it works great. Then, in 2-3 years, it is slow, sluggish, and not at all running well. So, they trade it in. Get a newer set of gear.
The support company installs NEW firmware, and resells the old gear, as "refurbished". When, the surveyor could have bought new firmware, or as is the case with Javad, they are free.
So, it is always a good idea to see about firmware, if you are buying new GPS.
Just an observation.
N
Trimble is free for the first year or two, after that you need an extended firmware warranty, which is basically a subscription.
Leica was free when I worked for them, but I'm pretty sure that changed about ten years ago; I would suspect that their policies are similar to Trimble's.
Well I've had ten years of free firmware updates from Novatel for my Sokkia GPS kit, that has come to an end now due to the hardware reaching end of life (see my earlier post). I'm going to have a couple of nice paper weights sometime soon!
Well, Artie, maybe not.... they simply will not work as good, has been my experience. Not that brand, but that was what happened to my old gear. Functionally, they may work for a long time, but just not as well. Degradation.
Unless, some of the manufacturers have BUILT planned obsolescence into them. Some Print heads STOP PRINTING after a certain date. They literally are programmed to SHUT DOWN after a certain date. I think that is rotten. But, I have my suspicions, that some MFR's might try that.
Any and all Satellites, that behave "Normal" it will probably be fine. Any new satellites, or changes in orbits, and it simply won't know what to do with it. I'd say that 2-3 yrs after the last firmware update, will be the Practical EOL. But, they will degrade, slowly. Longer "float" times, and slower fixes.
I'd always watch for "date controlled degradation of performance". I hear about "Pick a dealer near you" alot. I say pick the best gear, and company.
N
I don't think my old Z-12s have had a firmware update in over 15 years. Just last week I dusted them off and collected several hours of data, submitted to OPUS and got results just like always. I use the same point to observe on and the new answers agree within a few mm to the average of dozens of previous results obtained by several receiver/antenna combos over a period of 5 years or so.
I don't think the new stuff will ever last as long as the old mil spec bomb proof gear made in the early days of GPS.
I don't think is affects passive GPS, (static) as much as corrected RTK.
N
