Hiya Paul
It's the GlobalSat BU-353 mate
Around 30 quid and it's one of the cheaper ones but a reputable/large firm
They have sold millions of these around the world, but it seems the problem with them is not the GPS chip but the USB to Serial chip that they contain.
That chip is made by a firm called Prolific and they are well known to have issues.
In fairness this setup worked on the roof for a good few months but has been dropping out all the time for a year to the point that I just didn't use it properly. The only way to do it was to unplug and replug the USB when it dropped out to give another 10 minutes or so.
Anyway it seems to be much happier connected direct to the laptop and I have downloaded the latest driver v1.80 direct from prolific's website.
Mine works perfectly well in the corner of the windscreen, maybe give it a try??