VietNamNet Bridge – A lot of GPS (global positioning system) devices which have a small size like match boxes or cigarette packs, and can show the positions of motorbikes and cars have been available on the market.

Manh Dung, Business Director of Nguyen Viet Company in Tan Phu district in HCM City, said that there are three main individual GPS, including GPS PT30 (or GT3X and PT01), TK 102, and MVT100 which has just hit the market. A set of devices is selling at 2.5-4 million dong. TK102 proves to be the most popular product thanks to its small size which allows people bring with them or hiden in motorbikes.

In order to make the devices friendly to users, the individual supervision devices only have the buttons “on” and “off”. They do not have LCD screen and battery. They can work continuously for 36 hours, and then they need to be charged for continued use.

MVT 100, the latest generation of GPS device, which is now selling at 4 million dong, has the water resistant cover, uses the electricity from the vehicles’ battery, spare battery, and hidden antenna. When installing the devices, technicians can choose the difficult-to-discover places.

Nguyen Tien Hai, Director of Phu Minh Company, the importer of individual GPS products, said that buyers should consider the sources of the products carefully. Most of the products are imported from China which were manufactured by different enterprises. TK 102, for example, could be sourced from Xexun or MVT 100 from Meiligao.

Some Vietnamese enterprises have imported counterfeit goods and low quality goods to sell on the domestic market. The products would become incompatible to networks just several months of operation.

Nguyen Duy Nang from Intertek Vientam, said that the GPS devices available on the market do not have high accuracy level. Nang said that the service on supervising relatives via mobile devices has been provided by network operators since early 2011.

If comparing with the GPS devices, the service packages on defining the positions provided by network operators are better. The service packages can provide more reliable results, thanks to the LBS technology (Location Base Services) of the operators’ broadcasting stations.

In order to define the current positions of relatives, users have to register with mobile network operators and activate the function of GPRS data transmission in order to make continuous responses about the positions. Meanwhile, he can send messages to supervisors when necessary.

On average, the SIMs using to transmit GPRS data and make SMS messages cost 80,000 a month. When someone wants to define the positions of relatives, users call to the subscribers. After 10 seconds, the subscribers would automatically turn off, and a message showing the positions would be sent back to the callers.

In order to learn more about the positions or the names of roads written down in the messages, supervisors have to access to maps.google.com, then click to “Get Direction” and type the received numbers in the first blank cell in the left of the map.

Though the devices have been used more popularly in the Vietnamese market thanks to their convenience, questions have been raised about the legitimacy of the service. Lawyer Ho Ngoc Diep from the Ho Ngoc Diep law office in HCM City said that as for juvenile (under 18 years old), parents are entitled supervise all children's behaviors with different solutions, and they do not violate the "privacy." However, for the people aged 18 and higher, the use of the devices must be made on the voluntary basis.

Source: SGTT