It is very common for there to be confusion about the role that GPRS plays in fleet tracking. Here are a few notes that will hopefully clear things up.
- GPS (Global Positioning System) is a network of satellites that broadcasts signals used by receivers to pinpoint their current location.
- GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) is a means of sending data packets over a cellular network.
So as you can see, GPS and GPRS are two completely different things, though the terms “GPS Tracking” and “GPRS Tracking” are often used interchangeably. This confusion generally comes about because both acronyms – both extremely similar acronyms – are used to describe technology used in fleet management and tracking.
For clarification: a receiver in a fleet tracking device utilizes information from GPS satellites to find its location and then transmits location data via GPRS to a server that stores that data.
Say that 5 times fast!