Review of Solmeta Geotagger N2 for Nikon

Geotagging your photos is very useful because it allows you to display your pictures on a map helping you remember where you took them. Furthermore, you can use reverse geocoding to automatically add location information (country, nearby places) to your image by using a webservice such as geonames.org.

The good stuff

The Solmeta Geotagger N2 makes it very easy for you to add geographical information to your images. It’s a small GPS that you slide into the flash shoe and connect directly to your camera. Every time you take a photo it writes the coordinates directly into the Exif header. Furthermore, it also records the height and the direction using its contained electronic compass. This works perfectly and the big advantage over a separate GPS device is that you don’t have to synchronize the location data with your photos later with specialized software. The manual is also pretty extensive and helpful.

Solmeta Geotagger on top of Nikon D300
Solmeta Geotagger N2 on top of Nikon D300

Since I have never owned any other GPS, I can’t compare the technical details such as precision or speed of acquisition (cold start/warm start) of the signal with another device. To me, the Solmeta N2 seems precise, fast enough and does what I need. I press the shutter of my Nikon D300 to focus and then take my shot. Within a second the N2 reads the satellite signal and writes the data to the image file.

What I especially like about the N2 compared to the Nikon GP-1 is that it has its own batteries. It only drains power from the camera when they are empty. The batteries are rechargeable over USB. Unfortunately, they can only be replaced by a Solmeta technician.

The annoying stuff

The socket where you plug in the connector cable between the camera and the N2 can be covered with a rubbery flap to prevent the intrusion of dust. So far so good. But the flap is faulty in design. It’s not possible to move it out of the way enough, so it always gets sandwiched between socket and cable.

jammed flap
Flap trapped between socket and cable.

The bad stuff

The switch to turn the Geotagger N2 on or off and to control power management is not easy to set and is rather cheaply made. It has three positions which can be set by sliding it into the wanted position. But setting it to the middle position (Auto) is difficult because the mechanism to snap it into position is way too weak and wears out quickly. As a consequence you always slide it too far.

Solmeta Geotagger N2
Switch to turn the Geotagger on is flimsy and hard to slide into the right position.

What is really disappointing though, is the poor quality of the cables which come with the N2. The head of the plug that goes into the Solmeta N2 to connect it with the camera is half plastic and already bent after a few uses.

connector plug
Head of connector plug is partially made of cheap plastic instead of metal.

Even worse is the head of the plug which is used to connect the Geotagger with a USB port. It is completely made of plastic! Why on earth save a few cents on a cable? I would even be willing to pay a little more for an otherwise great product!

Connector plug
Head of plug to connect the Geotagger N2 to the USB port is completely made of cheap plastic.

Where to buy

I bought mine directly from Solmeta in China. They are very friendly and even sent the N2 customs free (you know how that works…).

You can also buy it from MBK Sicherheitsdienst Elektronik GmbH.

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6 Comments

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  1. I got the N2, but I am not seeing it on my D300. Is there any tips to get this thing to work?

  2. Solmeta oldest version DP-GPS N2 was designed with fixed datacable. Then it was developped to cable detachable
    model as Geotagger N2. It solved various camera models compatability problem so it benefits lots of users with two or
    more cameras.

    I read somewhere on internet that Solmeta will launch a new model with cable fixed, without rubber flap and cable connector, all annouing stuffs will be disappeared. Maybe you could get a free one if you are good at negociation 🙂

    1. That would be nice, since I just killed mine. I carried the camera around with the gps on the top of the camera and the cable broke off…

  3. @Seb: Thanks for the tip to set the switch to “ON” instead of “AUTO”. I will do that in the future. I’m glad the USB-cable is better now.

  4. Hello,
    thank you for your frank critics. Here some info:

    1. The battery consumption of Solmeta Getagger is very low, when “GPS-auto-meter off” [GPS-Ruhezustand”] is activated on the camera. I would not use “AUTO” setting for this reason. Just keep it on “ON”. This will prevent starting times of the GPS – especially in bad GPS signal areas- and keep the indoor-function active.

    2. The plug is not meant to be pushed into the socket “to the hilt”. A gap is normal. Just push it in until it touches teh rubber flap. Pushing it in harder could damage teh socket in the long term.

    3. You are right, the socket and the plugs are not perfect.
    “The head of the plug that goes into the Solmeta N2 to connect it with the camera is half plastic and already bent after a few uses.” => It wont break as it is molded into plastic.

    4. “It is completely made of plastic! ” The USB-Cable is produced with the metal cover now, too. If you get problems with it, please contact me.

    Regards
    Seb