The GPS tracker,  short for Global Positioning System, is a device that determines the approximate position of a person, automobile, or other moving objects utilizing satellite, cellular (aGPS), or radio waves. In its most fundamental configuration, the GPS tracker unit typically digitally connects with a network of satellites in low space orbit. From space, the networks of satellites triangulate the GPS device’s exact location. This means anyone can put the GPS tracker in a totebag, car, or on a person and determine their location..
Depending on the type of GPS tracker you choose, the locations it goes to are either stored inside the tracker itself to give you a historical documentation of just where the tracker has been, or with a real-time tracker, the positioning data may be digitally sent to a central database or an individual Internet-enabled computer in real-time, each time the device relocates. Originally popular among law enforcement officers, many businesses recently have made use of GPS technology to streamline operations and now even by families to protect their loved ones.

Comparing Real-Time & Passive GPS Trackers

There are two main kinds of GPS trackers: real-time and passive.

Real-Time GPS Tracker

Like all trackers, the real-time GPS tracking device continually communicates with space satellites so they can triangulate the unit’s current location. What makes the tracking real-time is the fact that the device transmits all data to the Internet constantly in real-time, allowing you to log on and monitor the tracker’s movements. Most GPS units also give detailed key data such as time, place, and the speed the tracker is going. At first primarily used by law enforcement agencies tracking criminals, GPS technology is now common to employers tracking fleet vehicles and families tracking their teen drivers or their family vehicle as it moves.

Passive GPS Tracker

A second key kind of GPS tracking is a passive tracker also known as a GPS logger. Like a real-time device, these devices continually send digital messages to orbiting satellites, but, instead of sending the device’s position in real-time, passive GPS vehicle trackers save location points within the unit itself. When you want to view exactly what locations the device has travelled, you then download the saved data recorded of all places visited. Passive GPS is ideal for law enforcement in an investigation, or possibly a person who loans a car to a co-worker, or family member and wants to check that they actually drove the car to the place they said.