According to my use, no, it is not. I have currently let my 3G plan lapse as I have no need for it when not traveling. I just turned off my wifi service, and walked from one end of my house to the other end. The home location beacon on my Maps program moved to correspond to my movement, so it appears that no external connection is necessary. Accuracy is considerably improved with wifi enabled, according to the Maps program. Also, once you move beyond the map that was previously being displayed on your iPad, you will not be able to update any map without an external connection.
Ed
From: iPad@yahoogroups.com [mailto:iPad@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of jparkerg@yahoo.com
Sent: Friday, January 27, 2012 10:00 AM
To: iPad@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [iPad] Gps/3G
I suspect this is a pretty elementary question, BUT here goes:
Is a data plan required to use the GPS functions on a 3G enabled iPad?
I have gleaned that a GPS receiver is part of the built-in hardware for a 3G iPad...hence my question.
TIA!
John
