Cellphone plans and Geocaching?

[+BouvyKory]

Howdy all. I hope this is the right forum to ask this question. If not, please feel free to move, of course.

 

My VZW contract is up next month and, although I've been with them for five+ years, I'm considering switching to another provider that makes better use of GPS, specifically for geocaching.

 

I've heard good things about Sprint, especially with this announcement and they seem to have a nice mobile broadband plan to boot. I could stay with VZW but heard their VZ Navigator is really flaky for GPS usage.

 

I'd also be open to some kind of data plan with a Blackberry. Not really all that interested in an iPhone because I've heard the GPS is a bit dicey since it's cellular based and not satellite based.

 

Oh, also wanted to mention that I use CacheMate on a Palm m130 and GSAK.

 

Thanks much, in advance, for any insight anyone might offer!

 

Regards,

Kory

Edited February 25, 2009 by KoryFer

[+J10fly]

Just a little info for you on the iphone. You may be thinking of the old one there. I love my iphone! Can't wait for the new model to come out this year! As for the iphone 3G:

 

iPhone 3G uses signals from GPS satellites, Wi-Fi hot spots, and cellular towers to get the most accurate location fast. If GPS is available, iPhone displays a blue GPS indicator. But if you’re inside — without a clear line of sight to a GPS satellite — iPhone finds you via Wi-Fi. If you’re not in range of a Wi-Fi hot spot, iPhone finds you using cellular towers. And the size of a location circle tells you how accurately iPhone is able to calculate that location: The smaller the circle, the more accurate the location.

[+SkellyCA]

I have sprint, my friend has AT&T. We went hiking to May Lake in Yosemite last year; we were kicking back on top of a hill and he was talking to people and I had no signal

[+Patuxent]

Have you considered T-Mobile and the G1? I'm using it now for caching and there are some dedicated apps for it. The GPS works great and leverages google maps for the navigation.

[Andrew16v]

I love my iPhone also. As stated above, you are confusing the old iPhone with the 3g iPhone, the 3g iPhone uses satalite GPS - not the cell towers. I have been extremely happy with my 3g and I could honestly write a 1000 reason why I love it . . but I won't go that crazy.

 

I will say that for caching it has been great. I recently just got into the sport and that is only because of the iPhone app ($2.99). I have never done it with out my iPhone, but I did run into a fellow cacher one day back in the woods and he had a Garmin Nuvi. I understand that he could load your way points onto it, but he still had carry around the printed out details on the cache and also had to keep refreshing his location. He was blown away at the Geocaching App. The fact that I can look at the description, recent logs, hint, and navigate using the gps cords and a gps guided compass (only lame part about it) - without even leaving the app! Then if I have the service (which in my location, is always the case) I log my find right right then and there!

 

Check out my screen captures

 

If this all impresses you, wait till you browse the 15,000 apps with an average price of said $3.13!!!

 

I think you need to find out what service is the good for your area. After all, no matter what the phone can do for you, it won't do squat with out service!

Edited February 26, 2009 by Andrew16v

[+MoonPhoenix]

I have Sprint with a Blackberry. The service is usually pretty good across the country. There will be some places where one provider will get service and another will not, it happens with all providers. Sprint has one of the largest networks around. Sprint's main roaming network is Verizon. Sprint has some of the best prices around also.

 

Now, the bad. Sprints customer service is the absolute worst. If you have a problem, don't expect much of a resolution. As an example, it took Sprint over a year to activate MMS on Blackberry's, while telling their Blackberry users that MMS would be released "very soon" and that they couldn't provide a specific date because eof legal issues. It also took Sprint over 6 months longer than any other provider to release the more recent Blackberry OS.

 

I have been with Sprint for over 10 years, I've also been with Verizon, Alltell and AT&T during the same time frame. I choose Sprint for their value and good signal across the country.

 

I would recommend talking to friends about their service with different providers in the area you will be using your phone.. Each provider has a 30 day "try out" period also.

[+MoonPhoenix]

One other thing, the "Blackberry vs iPhone" is just another one of those "Ford vs Chevy" things. Each one has it strong supporters and strong opposers.

[+BouvyKory]

Wow, thx much for the excellent replies, everyone! I stand corrected, of course. Yes, I was thinking of the 1st generation iPhone and not the 3G version. jho135, thx for the great explanation of how the signal works between the various environments. Very helpful!

 

SkellyCA, I've heard that Sprint has a bunch of "pockets" across various areas so that would obviously be a concern for me, especially if I'd consider going caching in remote locations.

 

Patuxent (as in "Patuxent River"? ), I hadn't thought of the G1 for caching. Would you share a bit more about your experience with it and with T-Mobile in general?

 

Andrew16v, the screenshots are insanely helpful! Thx for doing that! That's certainly putting the iPhone a leg up for me, especially since I found out I could get a refurbished 3G model (8Gb) for $100. Was a bit leery about spending $200 for one but I might be able to do the $100. I'm trying to keep my number of gadgets as low as possible but if I could carry the phone and my eTrex Legend (hoping to upgrade to a Venture HC but that's another topic), I'd do away with the old Palm Pilot.

 

MoonPhoenix, I greatly appreciate your input on Sprint! I didn't realize they're using VZW as their main network. Now that they've activated MMS on the Blackberry, how does it work for GPS and geocaching? Would you mind expanding on your experience with it? (I like your Ford vs. Chevy analogy. Yep, that's what I gathered!)

 

Thanks again all!

 

Regards,

Kory

[+Mredria]

I second the G1. T-mobile's been good to us. We rattled some branches and got our whole family outfitted with 'em for 56$ each or something equally ridiculous.

The geodroid app is 9.99 now, but it works good and he updates it all the time.

[Andrew16v]

Just a comment about my screen shot. On the navigation screen, it shows the accuracy as .10 mi. That is only because I was sitting on my butt on the first floor of my 2 story house! When you're walking it goes to 156ft and then 56ft, which is the most accurate I've had it show. It's been pretty accurate so far. The compass is useless unless you're moving at a pretty steady pace in one direction, but the cords work great.

 

If you want any other scree shots just let me know.

[+MoonPhoenix]

I don't use my Blackberry for geocaching (I have an Oregon 400T I use), but I do use it's GPS often. The accuracy is on par with my Oregon, under open sky. Under cover, it usually doesn't get signal.

 

I have 3 cell phones with GPS, all of them (LG, Samsung and Blackberry) need occasional reboots to bring the GPS back online.

[+Wooden Cyclist]

I started geocaching 2 weeks ago with Cachberry loaded on my Blackberry Curve on the Sprint Network. Fity-Four finds in 2 weeks isn't bad for a newbie so you could say that my setup works well. Cacheberry is a full feature app. I load GPX files onto my Curve, import them into Cachberry and I am off and running. I usually get closer than 20 feet to the cache. Field Notes can be logged on the run and uploaded to Geocaching.com when I get home. If I were to list all the features and uses of Cacheberry I would probably exceed the character limit of this forum so just go to www.cacheberry.com and see what they offer. Cacheberry does not currently have a compass feature but that is due to be released soon. Compare the cost to other geocaching apps and you will see that Cacheberry is a real value.

 

I agree with MoonPhoenix on the Blackberry vs iPhone debate. It will never end and there will never be a clear winner.

[+m_and_w]

We've always used two devices - our trusty 60csx gps for navigation and a pda or cell phone for paperless info. We're currently using a blackberry pearl with Verizon for our paperless info. We used cacheberry for a little while, but for the past 8 months or so we've been using our mobile web site www.bcaching.com.

 

Since it's a web site, it only works if you have internet access -- and a signal, but it provides full cache details and let's you track your field notes and trackables which can later be uploaded as geocaching field notes from a desktop browser.

 

On blackberries it can also send cache coordinates to google mobile maps or blackberry maps. We've used that a few times to find hides in urban areas, but most of the time we use the 60csx.

 

Here's a few screenshots: