Often the question comes up: What will the next likely advance be in GPS chip technology?  Often the answers stoke the imagination - what could new uses for these small and portable chips possible be?  What is the next thing that people will want to either track or map the movements of?  Sometimes, however, the answer to the first question is a little less exciting than usual but still important.  For 2012 we predict that the advances in GPS chip technology will not revolve around the methods of using these GPS chips for tracking and mapping, but rather the ways the chips themselves are shrinking.

GPS chips are already getting incredibly small.  We’ve seen chips measuring as little as 2.9 x 2.9mm.  Take out a ruler and you’ll see just how small and amazing that is.  The smaller these chips get without losing their effectiveness, the more uses we will be able to find.  Thus while news about advances in GPS technology that centers around the size of GPS chips may not be the most interesting or exciting news there is, it could be the first step toward incredible advancements in how this technology is used.

One caveat as you follow this technology – unless these new shrunken chips have power supplies and antennas that are as powerful as their older cousins, there may be problems with how functional they are at transmitting signals under less than ideal conditions (e.g. when implanted in a pet).  So while the size of the gps chips that we see in 2012 may be impressive, we will also follow the related issues of whether these new chips also have adequate power and antenna capabilities.

One thing is for certain – GPS Chip Technology remains interesting to follow and consider!