[pct-l] Pocket mail alternative

[Ellen Shopes]

I used the Peek on my JMT this year.  Like David, I did not find battery 
life to be an issue.  I brought a second battery, but did not have to use 
it.  I kept the unit off except when I wanted to use it, maybe 45 minutes a 
day to do entries.  Then I'd save the entry (until I knew I would be 
somewhere where I could send it).
I did find their customer service a bit of a pain.  Not being techno 
oriented, I often would have to spend a bit of time finding something out. 
Their on-line help isn't much.  On the phone, they're nice, but they aren't 
available 24/7, and still couldn't give me an answer when I did contact 
them.
Would I use it again?  Absolutely!   But I'd recommend getting it a month 
ahead of time so you can work out your own set of problems.
Ellen
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "David Thibault" <dthibaul07 at gmail.com>
To: "Kea" <keahiker at gmail.com>; <Pct-l at backcountry.net>
Sent: Monday, September 28, 2009 5:54 PM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Pocket mail alternative


> The Peek has an airplane mode that turns off the seek reception mode. 
> Also
> it only seeks cell connection when turned on.  Unlike a phone it doesn't
> have to be always on.  When you turn it on it attempts to connect and then
> downloads your new messages.  When its off it is off.
>
> I found I could go about a week without recharging it while actually using
> it about an hour a day.  That was more than enough time to read emails and
> compose journal entries.  I also used it as a book by using dailylit.com 
> to
> email me chapters of books one at a time.  Towards the end I wasn't 
> reading
> much casue I was too tired at night.  I also was able to get weather 
> reports
> with it once in a while (a nice feature).
>
> On Sun, Sep 27, 2009 at 5:32 PM, Kea <keahiker at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> I have hesitated about getting a Peek because of the question of battery
>> life.  For most of the PCT, there will be no signal so presumably the 
>> Peek
>> will keep trying to connect.  With cell phones I have used, this kills 
>> the
>> battery in no time fast.  The only solution is to turn the phone off when
>> there is no signal; but of course this does not work when typing in one's
>> journal.
>>
>> So my question is:  how does the peek handle no signal and how does this
>> affect the battery life?  I could find no answers in the Peek web site.
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Kea
>>
>>
>> 2009/9/25 David Thibault <dthibaul07 at gmail.com>
>>
>>>  I used a peek for journaling on the PCT this year with great success.
>>> If you want to just journal, the peek is a much better option than
>>> pocket mail.  It
>>> costs and weighs less and is easier to use. Worked great with
>>> postholer as they support email updates directly to journals.  Myself
>>> and Ice Axe used them this year
>>> and we were both very happy with them.  They are $20/month and I think
>>> you can now find the device for about $20 also.  I did go about a week
>>> without service at times
>>> but you just save your entry and send them when service is available.
>>> I carried a spare battery and only used it once (this could have been
>>> avoided too).
>>> I would not carry the spare battery again as it wasn't necessary.  The
>>> keyboard is bigger than most phones and that made a big difference for
>>> me as I had a phone available
>>> to use but could never get comfortable using the too small keypad.
>>>
>>> Day-late
>>>
>>>
>>> Ruckman wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>> in reference to the pocketmail. i know what you mean about having so
>>> many devices. pocketmail was a good thing to have when i did the AT in
>>> 03,
>>>  but nowadays theres a lighter option that i saw another hiker using
>>> that he raved about called the PEEK 2 ( think thats what it was
>>> called).
>>> the device was about $60, and $20 a month for service. thats all its
>>> used for is writing, sending and receiving emails and i think you may
>>> be able
>>> to directly send it to trailjournals. but the guy who had it was on
>>> postholer and he could directly send it to that. you dont need a phone
>>> to
>>>  send the messages either. it just sends them when it gets a signal.
>>> wish i had used one this year on the PCT. live and learn.
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Pct-l mailing list
>>> Pct-l at backcountry.net
>>> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>>>
>>
>>
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