Smart Phone (N95) and caching without data plan- possible?

[+JimChristiansen]

My old cell phone is dead and at the end of its contract. I've never owned a smart phone before and have focused in on the Nokia N95 as a possibiliy or the HTC Magic.

 

The N95 has a great camera (for a phone) and an ok gps... yes, I know- no digital compass!

 

The HTC Magic was my other choice but I've read that the camera is terrible even though it's 3.2 megapix.

 

Question-

 

Can I use the N95 for geocaching without a data plan? It looks like the Trimble Geocache Navigator requires a plan.

 

Are there other apps out there for the N95?

 

Maybe I need to suck it up and get the HTC Magic and live with the camera it has...

 

N95 or HTC Magic???

 

Thanks, Jim

[+wwerner]

Which country?

Edited September 17, 2009 by wwerner

[+tekkguy]

It looks like GPXBrowser doesn't use a data connection, since you import GPX files from pocket queries. Seems like you could probably do that with a data cable or the card reader. The program hasn't been updated since 2007, though ...

 

I was geocaching with a Windows Mobile phone (a Pharos Traveler 619) until I got my Garmin. I had no data plan and used BasicGPS for my files, since it supported LOC and GPX files (started out as a non-premium member, after all). I LOVE my Pharos phone. I got it for $199 at TigerDirect, and it is unlocked, so you can use it on T-Mobile or ATT in the US. Just pop in your sim card, tell it what network you're on, and you're done. Plus, it supports WiFi so if I'm home or at the office, I can get a data connection for a while to do updates, etc. The best thing about the Pharos phone is since it's an unlocked phone, I didn't have to extend my contract for it, or pay a huge amount.

 

You could probably do something similar with the HTC Magic if you didn't have a data plan, but I don't know what Geocaching apps are available for it.

[+JimChristiansen]

Which country?

 

Hi- I live in Canada.

 

Thanks