Recycling an Android Phone As a Handheld GPS? 328
imblum writes "So my dad's antique handheld GPS unit just went toes up and I was considering replacing it for him with an old Android Smartphone. All he really needs it for is hunting and camping (no navigation), so I don't want to pay for cell or data service. I found the program Mobile Atlas Creator to download map files onto the SD card, and an app called Maverick Lite to view them. Now all I need is to decide on an Android phone. I was considering a Samsung Behold II ($100-200 on Craigslist), but thought it would be nice to get some input from the Slashdot community. It seems like I can get a lot more functionality for the money out of an old Android than I could from a big name handheld GPS. Does this plan sound reasonable? Is there anything I'm overlooking?"
Re:Battery life might be a concern. (Score:5, Interesting)
It might not be a good idea for multi-day hikes, but you can probably get reasonable single-day battery life out of many or most models. Particularly if you power off the other radios, and if you can power off the unit itself when it's not being actively used.
As to why this and not a dedicated GPS unit - sure, a dedicated unit will probably have better battery life, and it might be better for GPS usage in other ways as well. But it's almost certainly less flexible. I can really only use it for GPS - what if I also want to take pictures or make notes about each location I'm at? Sure, I could carry more dedicated devices to handle those functions. But at some point, isn't it worth carrying one device which can serve several functions while fitting in my pocket? Also, a dedicated device probably comes with the software package that it comes with. Adapting a smartphone means that you're running a mobile computing platform which just happens to have a GPS sensor - you can probably pick among several options for the software, or even program your own. Some smartphones also have additional sensors like accelerometers or compasses which could improve the functionality - not all, of course, but potentially valuable if you can get it. Maybe some dedicated GPS units have this as well, but I doubt that the really cheap ones do.
For the subby, the situation they describe really does make it sound like a dedicated unit is at least worth a serious look. A dedicated unit is more likely to "just work" and that's likely all the guy wants.
Re:Why? (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Why? (Score:5, Interesting)
No. It is moronic to be less prepared than you could be. In some cases using a map and compass instead of a GPS is moronic, because it puts you at risk, even if you're pretty good with them.
I've certainly been in that situation. I once got caught on a high plain by a sudden blizzard. The day was beautiful, not a cloud in the sky. I looked up and saw the clouds boiling over the mountain range to the east, and I started running like hell to the west. I had about three miles to where the plain dropped off as the crow flies, maybe twice that on foot. Meanwhile the storm roared down the mountainside like an avalanche. I made it about halfway before it caught me, pelting me with big fat icy snowflakes that were whipped by the wind so they hit like snowballs.
Now, I probably *could* have made it out of there with my map and compass, but it would have been a challenge and taken much longer. Just trying to read the map in the wind and driving snow would have consumed precious minutes. So instead, I whipped out the GPS which made navigating down to lower altitude a piece of cake. Most importantly, it made getting to lower altitude quick. I passed dozens of potential false trails on the way out that I was able to ignore with confidence. After reaching the edge of the plain and descending a few hundred feet, the blinding snowstorm turned into a relatively gentle rain.
I'm not saying throw away your map and compass. You should have them and know how to use them well. But its reasonable and sensible to make GPS your first line of defense (and carry backup batteries) because when you're in trouble, time matters.
Wilderness navigation (Score:2, Interesting)
I think I can consider myself a pro. For 30 years I ran or was navigator on multiweek back country expeditions, about 6 weeks worth a year.
Map and compass is sufficient most of the time. No batteries required.
I have had a few situations that the GPS saved my bacon.
Much of the Canadian Shield has low relief. Hills are glacial till, or gently rounded granite. There are many stretches where the hills are only 30-40 feet tall -- comparable to the scrub pine and spruce.
Many of these hills look very similar -- the glaciers came down and moved in one general direction, so their crests are more or less parallel.
Fortunately the lakes have unique features.
Small windy streams embedded in heavy forest cover are tough. You can't see the hills around you. The stream channel is embedded in peatmoss and willow, and has shifted greatly in the 30 years since the map photography is done. Best you can do without a GPS is track general direction, and use dead reckoning.
One time I was trying to find a portage trail through a 10 year old burn. The fire had flashed through, leaving most of the trunks intact. They fell, and left a 3 foot thick layer of pick-up sticks on the forest floor. Meanwhile the jackpine grew in, so the landscape was covered in 3-12 foot christmas trees on one foot spacing. To see, you had to be up on the pick up sticks. To move you were constantly climbing carefully up and down. (branch stubs were sharp)
It was overcast with not even a bright spot to indicate sun position. No wind. Raining.
There was less than 20 feet of land relief over the entire 2 km span of the portage.
I found that even with a compass I was many degrees off my bearing after even 50 yards.
After that trip, I had a GPS. It lived with my camera in the pelican case most of the time. Sometimes whole trips would go by and it would never come on.