Thinking of using an iPhone on the CDT vs. GPS, but I wanted to get some advice from people who have used an iPhone in place of a standard GPS.
I’d love any information!
PacMan
iPhone on CDT - Continental Divide Trail
system
#2
Cell phones with gps capabilities rely on maps that are online as opposed to being on the phone itself. They only work when the phone is able to get a data connection. Phone service is extremely spotty on the CDT and ATT is the worst of all the carriers.
grumpy
system
#3
I’ve been using a stand alone GPS program on my Windows Tilt phone. You don’t need a cell phone connection, but you do need some sort of map with you to figure out where you are. Do a search on “BeeLineGPS” - I’m sure there is a version for the iPhone.
Bear Bag Hanger
system
#4
Actually, the way this works on the iPhone will depend on which app you use. There are apps which will let you download maps onto the iPhone’s local memory, and not rely on any 3G service. also, you can get GPS apps that are “mapless”, and will just operate like mapless GPS receivers (which was the norm until a few years ago).
furthermore, the iPhone’s GPS first looks to triangulate via cell phone towers, but if these aren’t available, it will look to satellites, so it should work on the CDT just fine. This is known as “assisted GPS”.
The main problem with this setup, is that the iPhone uses quite a bit of power when doing GPS functions. battery life is likely to be your biggest problem out there; especially if you try to do any real-time tracking. If you’re just looking up an occasional waypoint, you should be fine though. It’s not going to be as quick or accurate as a dedicated GPS receiver, but it should work in a pinch.
Jonathan
system
#5
You will get to use your phone function at least once per state when you cross the I-Highways… assuming your batt is charged… I liked making phone calls walking into & out of town on dirt roads usually which saved me time for doing chores & watching tv in the motel etc…
gingerbreadman