The only civilian "hand-held" GPS units in 1990 were the Magellan NAV 1000 and the Voyager Loran C. They were about 9 inches by 5 inches and thick. All they could do was receive, and that by logging into three satellites, one at a time, and then calculating the data for an approximate location. They did not transmit.
The "beepers " police used to track cars, etc. were small short-range radio transmitters - no GPS, you had to follow them (ground or air) with a receiver. So, not only impossible in 1990, but almost literally unimaginable. Also, in 1990 the US government, which controlled the GPS satellites, degraded the location accuracy for civilian use until 1999.
The "beepers " police used to track cars, etc. were small short-range radio transmitters - no GPS, you had to follow them (ground or air) with a receiver. So, not only impossible in 1990, but almost literally unimaginable. Also, in 1990 the US government, which controlled the GPS satellites, degraded the location accuracy for civilian use until 1999.
Edward Hoyt tells Detective Hays that Harris James had been carrying a pager with a GPS locator in it. But the scene was set in 1990, and the GPS wasn't available to the public until 1995.