GPS Origins Upload Review

There are several different DNA tests available from HomeDNA, but this is a review of their "GPS Origins Algorithm" test which allows you to upload your raw DNA data from another company for an ethnic origins analysis. It costs $39 and as far as I can tell, it's pretty much the same results you'd get if you'd bought their "GPS Origins Ancestry Test" for $199. It does not include DNA matching with other testers or any kind of  health report.

Migration routes seem a little misleading, and generic

I found the results to be not very accurate, and even a little bit misleading. The information talks a lot about prehistoric and ancient origins, even though an autosomal SNP test doesn't generally go back that far. Other info says the test results "begin over 1,000 years ago" which is consistent with other autosomal ethnicity tests, which usually state the results represent about 500-1000 years ago. There's also a lot of information about Y and mtDNA which makes it sound like these include Y and mtDNA, even though it doesn't. It even has a map showing "migration routes", one in red and one in blue, which makes it look maternal and paternal. Not only is that impossible since I am female and don't have Y-DNA, but there is also a note: "Although both Migration Patterns represent your Maternal and Paternal DNA routes, we do not differentiate which route is maternal and which is paternal." So why make them blue and red? And why are there only two "routes"? I have several European origins, not only according to my tree, but also according to this ethnicity report. While GPS Origins do offer a Y test and an mtDNA test, they are not included in the autosomal DNA test.

Info on my Sardinian migration route when clicking on
one of the map markers (above)

The migration routes are suspicious because they don't offer much explanation as to how they determined these routes. From what I can tell, it seems like the "routes" are just generic info tossed up for people who get results in one part of Europe or another. For example, I got 11.7% in Sardinia, and my "blue" route shows it starting in Sardinia and moving north through Italy. Basically, the routes just seem to be providing generic info on the common migration pattern of Sardinians. The other "red" route appears to be from either my Fennoscandia results or Western Siberia. Again, I'm not very clear on how they chose these two routes, or why there's only two of them, apart from the fact that they seem to be trying to make them look like paternal and maternal results when they're not.

GPS Origins claims the migration route include "precision targeting—sometimes down to the village or town" which is a gross exaggeration. The map markers may look precise, but when you read the info attached to it, you can see it's not that specific.

The results in Sardinia, Fennoscandia, and Western Siberia are a little off to begin with. I'm getting 21.5% in Fennscandia, 11.7% in Sardinia, and 11.6% in Western Siberia. I do have Scandinavian roots in Norway, but it should only about 12.5%. The Sardinia results are probably coming from my Italian ancestry, but peaking in Sardinia doesn't seem right. As for Western Siberia, I have no ancestry there at all.

My ethnicity percentages

My full results are:

#1 Fennoscandia 21.5%
Origin: Peaks in the Iceland and Norway and declines in Finland, England, and France

#2 Sardinia 11.7%
Origin: Peaks in Sardinia and declines in weaker in Italy, Greece, Albania, and The Balkans

#3 Western Siberia 11.6%
Origin: Peaks in Krasnoyarsk Krai and declines towards east Russia

#4 Orkney Islands 11.5%
Origin: Peaks in the Orkney islands and declines in England, France, Germany, Belarus, and Poland

#5 Southern France 9.9%
Origin: Peaks in south France and declines in north France, England, Orkney islands, and Scandinavia

Why are they talking about Y and mtDNA in my autosomal
DNA results?

#6 Basque Country 9.3%
Origin: Peaks in France and Spain Basque regions and declines in Spain, France, and Germany

#7 Tuva 8.1%
Origin: Peaks in south Siberia (Russians: Tuvinian) and declines in North Mongolia

#8 Southeastern India 5.4%
Origin: Endemic to south eastern india with residues in Pakistan

#9 Northern India 5%
Origin: Peaks in North India (Dharkars, Kanjars) and declines in Pakistan

#10 The Southern Levant 3%
Origin: This gene pool is localized to Israel with residues in Syria

#11 Arabia 1.6%
Origin: Peaks in Saudi Arabia and Yemen and declines in Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and Egypt

#12 Northwestern Africa 1.1%
Origin: Peaks in Algeria and declines in Morocco and Tunisia

#13 Western South America 0.3%
Origin: Peaks in Peru, Mexico, and North America and declines in Eastern Russia

You can compare this with my results from other companies here.

The Legal Genealogist says GPS Origins is one not to bother with, and based on this I would agree. I definitely would discourage anyone from buying a test with them, considering it costs $199 compared to the more popular DNA companies charging $99 or less. You're basically paying twice the amount to get inferior ethnicity reports and no DNA matching with other testers. As for the $39 upload, it may be worth it for curiosity sake, but don't expect much from it. I found it very disappointing.

Here's another thorough review from another blogger.