My brother just introduced me to Motion Based, a web-based application that translates global positioning system (GPS) data into useful information and lets you share it with others. Only problem is, I need a GPS to record my various hikes and bike rides in the first place.

There are only about a thousand GPS systems available right now, so my options are somewhat limited. But, hey, I’ll see what I can do about whittling the list down to something manageable.

Today, I’m going to look at the HP iPAQ 310, which pegs itself as a “Travel Companion.” I like that. Makes it seem dog-like. You can customize your trip on your PC then download it to the iPAQ to keep you going in the right direction. (I’ve needed that more than once during my jaunts around California by bicycle.)

Maps are shown in 3D on a display that’s 4.3 inches diagonally. There are “millions” of preloaded points of interest, including restaurants and museums. The touch screen lets you slide the map around with your finger. Directions are supplied in spoken and on-screen formats. It’ll show you the geographic way to your Outlook contacts. There’s a handy world clock, for scheduling those US-Brazil-India phone meetings while on vacation. And you get a compass, a useful addition to a GPS, by all means.

Best, it’s more than just a GPS. This one provides you with entertainment too, including music, videos, games and photos.

Let’s see what the reviewers say about this one.

The overall consensus appears to be it’s a great value for the price ($265-$450), and the software that runs it is buggy.

As old_cotton from NY describes for its strengths, “Beautiful 800*480 high resolution LCD Screen; Built-in SDHC reader; MP3 Player; Bluetooth; WinCE 5.0 OS.”

But, says PGFan from CA, “The software hangs.”

Another common complaint is the low volume — especially a problem if you’re using text-to-speech and you want to hear directions. Says tableau from MA, “Even if you hear the instruction, you would not know what it is mumbling about.”

PGFan solved this problem, “by using an FM transmitter to listen to the music and directions through the car stereo.”

Next time, I’ll look at a system from the company everybody else wants to beat: Garmin.