When you buy a gps, do you have to subscribe to a service or is it free?

Question

When you buy a gps, do you have to subscribe to a service or is it free?

Answer 1

The navigation part of the GPS unit is free, although the manufacturer may offer to sell you updated maps periodically. (The most recent update for our family's unit was free.)

Some GPSes offer the ability to subscribe (for a fee) to traffic information updates carried in the signals of local radio stations, sometimes even offering to route you around the congested areas.

Answer 2

The basic gps is free.

Some GPS system need their tracking data updated, but some dont.

There are several GPS systems in the world, some are more advanced than others, more precise and such.

The US GPS system uses a deviation. The military knows which satellite are given what deviation and thus they can have hyper accurate data. Civilian transponders are not provided with the deviations.

It is said that the Russian system is coded and now has been opened, but has no such deviations. The Russians can shut the system down, but they cannot control who is using it while its running.

A-GPS requires a cellular connection.