Impressions of the Spot unit after a month

[gasman]

Originally Posted by Bevan

I would like to see basic instructions and definitions for the light patterns molded into the case cause I use mine so infrequent that I'm unsure how to correctly operate/interpret with 100% certainty.

Bevan

I placed a label on the back that says .... TRACK PRESS OK FOR 5 SEC. That and the sticker that's on the back already is all I have needed.......

[ronschreck]

I have read this thread with interest since I did use a borrowed SPOT when I landed at all of the public use airports in South Carolina on July 4th of last year. I have since installed an APRS transmitter in my RV-8. I would be interested in comparrisons of the two systems by others who have experience with both.

IMHO the APRS is just what I want in a tracking system. The initial cost was less than $200. No subscription fee. Position reports every minute (less when turning). Accurate postion, speed and altitude reporting. Track can be viewed by anyone with internet access. No hassle operation: just turn on the master switch and its tracking. I have used the APRS all over the US and find that it even tracks in mountainous terrain if you aren't deep in the valleys. While it will not send a 911 message, if I go down I am reasonably certain that my last position will be reported within one minute of impact.

BTW, I have clicked on the "track me" link on several SPOT user's posts and have yet to see a currrent track. What gives? Click on my "track me" link and you can see my last flight or select any date since I installed the APRS to see where I went on that day.

I know SPOT has some features that APRS does not, but I think anyone considering purchase of any SPOT, APRS, 406 ELT should weigh the benefits of each and make an informed purchase. In my case, APRS won.

[L.Adamson]

Originally Posted by ronschreck

I know SPOT has some features that APRS does not, but I think anyone considering purchase of any SPOT, APRS, 406 ELT should weigh the benefits of each and make an informed purchase. In my case, APRS won.

I'm just not into a ham license, finding a place for an antenna, etc. I turn the SPOT buttons on, place on the glareshield, and turn it off after landing. Has never failed in mountainous areas (nearly all my flying is in mountainous areas), and we know that help is on the way within two minutes of hitting that 911 button......... from experience. Yet, all three methods certainly do have advantages over the other.

Note: for those that don't know, my wife placed here headphones on the SPOT after landing & taxiing up to the hangar. This activated the 911 feature, and I got a cell call within two minutes.

L.Adamson ---- RV6A

[Sam Buchanan]

Originally Posted by ronschreck

I have read this thread with interest since I did use a borrowed SPOT when I landed at all of the public use airports in South Carolina on July 4th of last year. I have since installed an APRS transmitter in my RV-8. I would be interested in comparrisons of the two systems by others who have experience with both.

IMHO the APRS is just what I want in a tracking system. The initial cost was less than $200. No subscription fee. Position reports every minute (less when turning). Accurate postion, speed and altitude reporting. Track can be viewed by anyone with internet access. No hassle operation: just turn on the master switch and its tracking. I have used the APRS all over the US and find that it even tracks in mountainous terrain if you aren't deep in the valleys. While it will not send a 911 message, if I go down I am reasonably certain that my last position will be reported within one minute of impact.

BTW, I have clicked on the "track me" link on several SPOT user's posts and have yet to see a currrent track. What gives? Click on my "track me" link and you can see my last flight or select any date since I installed the APRS to see where I went on that day.

I know SPOT has some features that APRS does not, but I think anyone considering purchase of any SPOT, APRS, 406 ELT should weigh the benefits of each and make an informed purchase. In my case, APRS won.

Excellent report, Smokey, and a fine datapoint for those of us interested in APRS coverage nationwide.

In case someone is reading this thread and isn't familiar with APRS, we have a dedicated forum on this site:

http://www.vansairforce.com/communit...play.php?f=104

There are stickies and threads on the forum that will answer most of the questions anyone would have.

The Tech ham license is very easy to obtain and shouldn't discourage anyone from getting involved in APRS. The equipment is inexpensive, easy to install, has great support, cost nothing to use..........and works great.

Anyone interested in APRS is encouraged to ask any questions on the APRS forum. "Pete the Geek" Howell (the father of RV APRS) or other experienced users will promptly fill in the gaps for you.

[rvmills]

Originally Posted by ronschreck

BTW, I have clicked on the "track me" link on several SPOT user's posts and have yet to see a currrent track. What gives? Click on my "track me" link and you can see my last flight or select any date since I installed the APRS to see where I went on that day.

I know SPOT has some features that APRS does not, but I think anyone considering purchase of any SPOT, APRS, 406 ELT should weigh the benefits of each and make an informed purchase. In my case, APRS won.

Smokey,

I have a SPOT and am installing an APRS now. I'll let the SPOT tracking subscription run the rest of this cycle, and will have the chance to do some side-by-side testing...and will report back on it. Then I'll probably go to the lower cost version of SPOT for the OK/HELP/911 features, and use APRS as my exclusive tracker. Concur with you that the APRS tracking feature wins the race among real-time trackers (APRS/SPOT/iPhone Tracklog are the ones I've seen tested).

As for the link to SPOT tracks: the URL that gets sent to those you send an OK message to is strictly a map of the one SPOT hit where the OK button was pressed. It doesn't update or move. To get to a user's live track, you need to know the link to that user's "SPOT Shared Page". I tried to put mine in my OK message, but it is too long. So for those that I want to be able to see my track, I've sent the link to my shared page, and ask that they bookmark it. Then when they get my OK message, they can go to that bookmark.

My OK message currently says "follow me on my SPOT shared page". After I put in the APRS, it'll say, "follow me on aprs.fi"!

Ya know, I just re-read your post, and you are probably talking about the links to those folks shared page...my bad. In that case, it could be that they have their shared page set to display only the last 24 hours (other choices are 7 days and 30 days). If they haven't flown in that period, there will be no tracks.

OBTW, the TW fairing is working great! Thanks!

Cheers,
Bob