GPS Questions

[coyhuntermn]

I carry both a Garmin Rhino 530 and my Iphone. I have an app on the Iphone called topo maps its only $10 you can download any topo quad in the US and its unlimited. They are shaded relief and store on your phone so they work anywhere you don't have to be in service. It would be the bomb if I had the ability to only turn on the GPS and not wireless currently its all or nothing. When the phone is out of service it will scan constantly for signal which kills your battery. I think the Android phones can independently control that. I would recommend a smart phone over a stand alone GPS more bang for your buck and safety assuming you can get around the battery issue.

 

[coyhuntermn]

I noticed garmin has Birdseye "satelite photos" now for its newer handhelds and there is a new rhino that falls into this category. There is a $30 per year subscription for a combo Birdseye, topo 24k and city streets that would be very powerful and cheaper than buying the datasets.

 

[Leveller]

I carry both a Garmin Rhino 530 and my Iphone. I have an app on the Iphone called topo maps its only $10 you can download any topo quad in the US and its unlimited. They are shaded relief and store on your phone so they work anywhere you don't have to be in service. It would be the bomb if I had the ability to only turn on the GPS and not wireless currently its all or nothing. When the phone is out of service it will scan constantly for signal which kills your battery. I think the Android phones can independently control that. I would recommend a smart phone over a stand alone GPS more bang for your buck and safety assuming you can get around the battery issue.

Thanks for the heads up on the iPhone app. I also have the 530 but carry my iPhone so this will be a sweet combo

 

[Drhorsepower]

I have that same app. I love it. I also have it on the iPad and very nice to view them on a bigger screen

 

[307Wapiti]

I carry both a Garmin Rhino 530 and my Iphone. I have an app on the Iphone called topo maps its only $10 you can download any topo quad in the US and its unlimited. They are shaded relief and store on your phone so they work anywhere you don't have to be in service. It would be the bomb if I had the ability to only turn on the GPS and not wireless currently its all or nothing. When the phone is out of service it will scan constantly for signal which kills your battery. I think the Android phones can independently control that. I would recommend a smart phone over a stand alone GPS more bang for your buck and safety assuming you can get around the battery issue.

I can't be sure without having bought the app myself but I would think you could go into your settings and turn on the airplane mode. I usually do that to be able to use my phone as an alarm clock without draining the battery while it was constantly searching for service. Now it might disable the GPS functionality too, but it would be worth a try.

 

[Leveller]

Who is the author of that app guys? TrailBehind? If so, it says in the preamble that, since V2.0, Offline Topo Maps is no longer free. Do they just mean the $10 initial download?