Geocaching Australia

So I just destroyed the screen on my Garmin asus a50 by dropping it on a footpath. While I realise that no phone will ever be as awesome as it was I can't find anymore for sale anywhere and if I can get the screen fixed it would cost more than the phone. Therefore I've decided I figure I might look at a different phone. So what Android phone do you use and how accurate is it for geocaching?

I've used a HTC Desire which worked really well (but sucked the battery), but I use a Samsung Galaxy Tab while we're driving around with the windscreen mount and car charger for driving directions. You couldn't use it for much more, the accuracy seems to be metres out at a time, but we also prefer "country" caches, so you don't always need the GPS.

I have a work mate that uses the Motorola DEFY and swears by it.

We both use c:geo (and glad to see it's continued development), although he uses the Groundspeak app as well. I use the GS app on the iPhone, and find it rather rubbish (IMHO).

I've never used a phone all day for caching (I prefer to use a Garmin Colorado 300), so I'd be curious to see what peoples response is like to battery life.

I use a Desire.

Seems to work OK, though I tend to use my Oregon when doing a 'proper' day of caching.

GPS in the Desire seems ok, I've done a few tests averaging waypoints with it and my Oregon and get the same results.

I still don't consider it my primary caching device though.

I have an etrx that I use for proper caching, but it's handy to use the phone for the impromtu caching. Does anyone have any experience with the HTC wildfire?

CraigRat wrote:I use a Desire.

Seems to work OK, though I tend to use my Oregon when doing a 'proper' day of caching.

GPS in the Desire seems ok, I've done a few tests averaging waypoints with it and my Oregon and get the same results.

I still don't consider it my primary caching device though.

+1

PirateRock wrote:I've used a HTC Desire which worked really well (but sucked the battery), but I use a Samsung Galaxy Tab while we're driving around with the windscreen mount and car charger for driving directions. You couldn't use it for much more, the accuracy seems to be metres out at a time, but we also prefer "country" caches, so you don't always need the GPS.

I have a work mate that uses the Motorola DEFY and swears by it.

We both use c:geo (and glad to see it's continued development), although he uses the Groundspeak app as well. I use the GS app on the iPhone, and find it rather rubbish (IMHO).

I've never used a phone all day for caching (I prefer to use a Garmin Colorado 300), so I'd be curious to see what peoples response is like to battery life.

Although I don't use my Desire as a full time caching GPS, I probably could, and the battery use wouldn't be an issue unless I was on a long hike, because I have a car cradle for it which keeps it charged. On a hike, you'd probably just need to take a spare battery.

cantanga wrote:I have an etrx that I use for proper caching, but it's handy to use the phone for the impromtu caching. Does anyone have any experience with the HTC wildfire?

I have a wildfire which seems to work well with c:geo - I'm impressed with the GPS reception and the battery lasts a long while when the mobile internet is turned off.

until my garmin oregon 450T that I got for last Christmas I used an Iphone with geosphere as my only caching gpdr for about 18 months, found 300 caches with it and placed 5 I think with no accuracy complaints.

CraigRat wrote:I use a Desire.

Seems to work OK, though I tend to use my Oregon when doing a 'proper' day of caching.

GPS in the Desire seems ok, I've done a few tests averaging waypoints with it and my Oregon and get the same results.

I still don't consider it my primary caching device though.

The same for me, but I use a Hero and an eTrex.

One thing to bear in mind is some caches you may not be able to get a data connection so unless you've saved the co-ords before you head out then it may not be much use

s_mc500 wrote:One thing to bear in mind is some caches you may not be able to get a data connection so unless you've saved the co-ords before you head out then it may not be much use

One of the reasons I'm with Telstra
I've found a great use for the phone being to navigate me from cache to cache while I'm driving, via Google Navigator.
You find the cache you want to go to in c:geo, then select Navigate, and it takes you to the cache you selected using turn by turn navigation with spoken street names.
I have an in car sat nav and used to enter the nearest street address or the coords (only takes dd mm ss) but I find the phone much easier.
Still use the Oregon to find the cache, then use c:geo to put in a preliminary find report which I edit (read "expand") when I get home.

s_mc500 wrote:One thing to bear in mind is some caches you may not be able to get a data connection so unless you've saved the co-ords before you head out then it may not be much use

That's no problem, I prefer to run offline caching by using geohunter and GPX files. Tried c:geo buts it's GPX import is utter rubbish.

Have you checked Dick Smith? They might still have some a50's in stock. I bought one for the wife a few months ago for $199 (locked to Optus though)

norkmeister wrote:Have you checked Dick Smith? They might still have some a50's in stock. I bought one for the wife a few months ago for $199 (locked to Optus though)

Yep tried all canberra ones. They have none, and according to their computer they have none in stock anywhere. Their website doesn't even list it anymore. Also tried Optus, JB, Harvey Norman and any place that I can think of that sell phones (including BigW, Kmart and the likes). As far as I can tell the A50 is well and truely gone.

cantanga wrote:So I just destroyed the screen on my Garmin asus a50 by dropping it on a footpath. While I realise that no phone will ever be as awesome as it was I can't find anymore for sale anywhere and if I can get the screen fixed it would cost more than the phone. Therefore I've decided I figure I might look at a different phone. So what Android phone do you use and how accurate is it for geocaching?

Following a posting on groundspeak.com, I decided to separate the problems: choose a phone for use as a phone, and just make sure that it has Bluetooth with the SPP protocol (it should have, unless a manufacturer removes it). Then add a GPSr logger, the "Bluetooth GPS" application and you've the phone you wanted and accurate GPSr for geocaching.

The cost, of course, is an additional piece of hardware and setting up more software. But it's smoother than approaching GZ using an iPhone and then hand entering coordinates into a Garmin Oregon 550 as a friend of mine has been known to do. (OK, he preloads caches when he knows where he's going, and the maps available for $$$ for the Garmin are way ahead of the free stuff Google et al provide.)

My exact configuration is documented in a Groundspeak posting:

http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index. ... pic=282037