[pct-l] smartphone as two-way, also?

[Thomas Jamrog]

If I had it to do all over again I'd buy a used Garmin eTrex for under $100 and download Halfmile's waypoints and just turn it on when I was heading toward lost.  It would have saved me days of wandering around looking for the trail in the Sierras this year.  
Uncle Tom 



On Oct 27, 2010, at 12:37 PM, Kevin Cook wrote:

> Maybe I got good battery life because the phone is only a couple months old?
> I'll be happy if I can run it all day on a full charge, but I was pretty
> pleased to see it only used ~50% of the battery. It was probably a little
> more than half, but it was still "green".
> 
> It took 24 hours to download that test section, but again, my internet at
> home sucks and I probably grabbed mare data than I needed. Most of it was
> downloaded yesterday when I got to work and hopped on the wifi here. We have
> a 20MB connection, so it downloaded much faster. I'm going to try
> downloading some more PCT in smaller bits to see how long it takes. The
> trail twists and turns, so I had to download a really large area to make
> sure I covered all the surrounding areas as well. I'm concerned about that
> time too. Since the plan is to download the next section when I'm in town,
> 24 hours is way too long.
> 
> I'm eager to hear how well the nPowerPEG works. It sounds like I better get
> mine ordered asap if I want to test with it before the trip. It's going to
> start snowing here soon, so it will be harder to get real hiking in for
> testing. Please let me know when you get yours!
> 
> I'll have to look into that waypoint limitation in MotionX. I still haven't
> tried importing anything because you have to email them the file. I'll go
> start that now and let you know what I find out.
> 
> Thanks for the info. That PEG has me really excited!
> 
> On Tue, Oct 26, 2010 at 10:16 PM, Halfmile <halfmile at pctmap.net> wrote:
> 
>> Kevin,
>> Your getting impressive battery life on your iphone using the GPS,
>> sounds like at least 4 or 5 times longer than my old iPhone 3G. I
>> wonder if the improvement is all related to new hardware or if the
>> apps you are using somehow cycle the GPS off and on to save power.
>> 
>> Regarding the nPowerPEG I ordered one on September 13, on October 25 I
>> received this update that says in part:
>> 
>> "However, due to a delay in the delivery of a unique, custom-made
>> battery that goes inside of the PEG, it is taking us longer than
>> expected to fulfill orders. Our supplier is delivering small
>> quantities of batteries each week, and as soon as they arrive, we
>> build and test units in attempt to fulfill our outstanding orders as
>> quickly as possible."
>> 
>> I can't say how well they will work, but don't expect a quick delivery
>> if you decide to order one.
>> 
>> On Motion X I have the full (not trial) version but I haven't used it
>> much in the last year...I pretty much gave up on it back then. Sounds
>> like it's better now, maybe I will have another go at it when I have
>> some extra free time although 24 hours to download maps doesn't sound
>> that promising, hopefully it's much faster with a better internet
>> connection.
>> 
>> -Halfmile
>> 
>> On Tue, Oct 26, 2010 at 4:53 PM, Kevin Cook <hikelite at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> Let's also no forget the video camera, journal, compass, maps,
>> flashlight,
>>> guidebook(? this just occured to me), and probably more things I'm not
>>> thinking of.
>>> 
>>> I put the 2 apps through their paces a bit more. The topo app only shows
>> me
>>> topos. I much prefer the data in MotionX. I can't tell how much space
>> each
>>> topo is taking, but I'll find that out. I do know it took awhile to
>> download
>>> each one. I downloaded 4 or 5 to experiment with. It is much easier to
>> put
>>> halfmile's waypoints into though. Just browse to his site, and there they
>>> are. I also just tried to see how much data Section A uses in MotionX. It
>>> took quite awhile to download this tileset, but it's HUGE. The app
>>> originally  estimated it would require 477MB, but it ended up only
>> needing
>>> 430MB. It took FOREVER! OK, not literally, but it took more than 24
>> hours.
>>> It kept losing network connection as my internet at home is spotty right
>>> now, so everytime I moved the phone around between different parts of the
>>> house, work, remote sites, etc, it would interrupt the download. The nice
>>> thing is, it will resume where it left off. Of course I had to look at it
>> to
>>> tell it to try again. Oh well, at least it finished! I downloaded from
>> Campo
>>> to ~San Gorgonio Pass with a ~60 mile width. I think when I hike, I will
>>> break it up into smaller sections, but I'll have to experiment more. I
>> only
>>> downloaded the paid version of the app Friday.
>>> 
>>> Halfmile, I think the problem you had with MotionX's limited # of
>> waypoints
>>> was because you were using the trial version? It only allowed me to save
>> 1
>>> track in the trial version. I was worried I would lose day 2 of a ride,
>> but
>>> I was able to leave the recorder paused, email myself the first saved
>> track,
>>> delete that one, and then send myself the 2nd one. Now that I have the
>> paid
>>> version, I don't think there are any limits to how many tracks or
>> waypoints
>>> I can use, other than memory limitations in the phone.
>>> 
>>> In regards to battery life, my iPhone used half a full charge running the
>>> GPS all day on my ride 2 weekends ago. We rode from Flagstaff to the
>> Canyon
>>> via the AT trail and forest service roads. We were out of cell range most
>> of
>>> the time, based on checking the signal when I would pull it out to take a
>>> picture or whatever. I actually had 2 apps tracking the ride, but I don't
>>> think it affects battery to have multiple apps accessing the GPS. We had
>> a
>>> supported camp, so I was able to charge it up for the 2nd day of riding.
>>> Again, I used up around half the fully charged battery. Much of the time
>>> both days I was also listening to the iPod!
>>> 
>>> Perhaps I should pull this out to another thread, but I'm planning to use
>> an
>>> nPower PEG to keep it charged. Has anyone used one of these? I know
>>> Burnie(Megan) used on this year, but she never mentions it in her journal
>>> except at the beginning. From the website, it sounds like a few hours of
>>> hiking will fully charge the phone, so I should have continual access to
>> the
>>> device. I wrote all this yesterday, but waited until I had a final size
>> for
>>> the above data. I noticed someone mentioned this device earlier today.
>> Maybe
>>> I should put this in that thread or start another.
>>> 
>> 
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