+torkel72 Posted May 8, 2013 Share Posted May 8, 2013 Got my camera in my breast pocket, and the compass points towards it, even though it's the opposite direction to the cache. Can I buy some kind of protection for my camera? Quote Link to comment
+Gitchee-Gummee Posted May 8, 2013 Share Posted May 8, 2013 A compass that points towards a camera, eh? Must be lots of iron in that camera. What type of compass are you speaking of? A regular magnetic compass, a three-axis electronic in a GPSr, a two-axis in a GPSr or a "Compass" in a GPSr without either a two or three-axis? Quote Link to comment
+torkel72 Posted May 8, 2013 Author Share Posted May 8, 2013 (edited) Hi, and thanks for replying. It's my mobile, and my Oregon. Mobile has a magnetic one, Oregon three axis. Edited May 8, 2013 by greenadventure Quote Link to comment
+torkel72 Posted May 8, 2013 Author Share Posted May 8, 2013 (edited) delete Edited May 8, 2013 by greenadventure Quote Link to comment
insig Posted May 8, 2013 Share Posted May 8, 2013 Most decent GPS handhelds have a compass in them. This compass works the same as a 'real' compass in that it uses the Earth's magnetic field. There is no way to block magnetic fields except by increasing the distance between the compass and whatever is interfering with the compass. Low-end handhelds don't have a compass in them and rely on using your direction of motion to point you to the cache, so they are not affected by proximity to certain metals and magnets. However, you can't use the 'compass' on those GPS handhelds when not moving. Quote Link to comment
+Gitchee-Gummee Posted May 8, 2013 Share Posted May 8, 2013 (edited) The Oregon does indeed have a 3-axis electronic compass. Inasmuch as it is capable of reading the (relatively) weak earthbound magnetic field, ANY magnetically inclined object in close proximity is capable of interfering with that Oregon compass -- probably even more so than a pocket-style magnetic compass being affected by a nearby LARGE magnetically inclined object. My suggestion -- if you are running both compass' at the same time -- you should consider either moving them further apart or disabling (turning off) one. While it may be possible to shield one from the other, I think that any shielding is going to render one of them useless anyway, so it most likely would be beneficial to simply turn one off and save the battery a little bit. Edited May 8, 2013 by Gitchee-Gummee Quote Link to comment
+Walts Hunting Posted May 8, 2013 Share Posted May 8, 2013 This problem will only occur when standing still or not moving very much. The Oregon switches to bearing based display as soon as you head out. Quote Link to comment
+kunarion Posted May 8, 2013 Share Posted May 8, 2013 (edited) Hi, and thanks for replying. It's my mobile, and my Oregon. Mobile has a magnetic one, Oregon three axis. Have you tried shutting off the phone? Does that fix the Oregon's compass? Have you calibrated the Oregon's compass? ... with the phone on and in your pocket. If you flip the phone around, does the compass point away from the phone? Is "WiFi" enabled on your phone? That can probably be shut off when away from Hotspots. I'd suggest turning the phone to airplane mode, but then you wouldn't have data nor phone calls. But it would be a way to test what's going on. It seems like there's something wrong with that phone. What kind of phone is it? The Garmin has a GPS compass setting. If you select that, it would eliminate the phone problem. Magnetic and GPS compasses each have their own advantages/disadvantages, but if you're carrying powerful electromagnets in your pockets, you may have to live with the GPS compass. Can you put your phone in a different pocket? Edited May 8, 2013 by kunarion Quote Link to comment
+fizzymagic Posted May 9, 2013 Share Posted May 9, 2013 It's a particularly cool thing about magnetic fields that you can't "shield" them in the way you can other fields. Well, OK, you can't shield gravity, either! This is why I always leave the magnetic compass in my GPS turned off. I don't find that it adds enough useful information. Quote Link to comment
+torkel72 Posted June 15, 2013 Author Share Posted June 15, 2013 Hi, and thanks for replying. It's my mobile, and my Oregon. Mobile has a magnetic one, Oregon three axis. Have you tried shutting off the phone? Does that fix the Oregon's compass? Have you calibrated the Oregon's compass? ... with the phone on and in your pocket. If you flip the phone around, does the compass point away from the phone? Is "WiFi" enabled on your phone? That can probably be shut off when away from Hotspots. I'd suggest turning the phone to airplane mode, but then you wouldn't have data nor phone calls. But it would be a way to test what's going on. It seems like there's something wrong with that phone. What kind of phone is it? The Garmin has a GPS compass setting. If you select that, it would eliminate the phone problem. Magnetic and GPS compasses each have their own advantages/disadvantages, but if you're carrying powerful electromagnets in your pockets, you may have to live with the GPS compass. Can you put your phone in a different pocket? Hi, It's my Canon camera not my phone, but thanks for your reply. Quote Link to comment
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