GPS for vocalisation recording

[Peter and Toni <>]

I use several different Android smartphones and tablets for detailed GPS 
mapping.  The modern smart phones are brilliant in heavy forest.  Mine 
is capable of tracking more than 20 satellites, including the russian 
ones.  Older GPS could only track 8 so quickly lost signal under cover.  
In heavy rainforest the phone kept a fix at all times when previous 
surveys had seen older GPS lose all signal.  Every year the phones get 
more sensitive.  For instance they will easily get a fix from inside a 
house, as long as there is a window in the room.  Accuracy and 
repeatability are far improved from older dedicated GPS I have owned, 
although I am sure newer dedicated GPSs have also improved.  I use 
Oziexplorer to manage maps and waypoints.  It can download the waypoints 
to excel for easy manipulation.  There are similar programs available 
for Apple. Battery life can be a bit short, but I also carry a small 
battery pack that can recharge the phone if out all day.  Having your 
birding app, GPS and phone in one instrument makes juggling hardware a 
lot less of a problem.  As long as you don't lose it or drop it.
cheers
Peter
On 01-Oct-13 12:41 PM, Merrilyn Serong wrote:
> Garmin handheld GPS units are very good.
> Here is a link so you can compare the different models.
> https://buy.garmin.com/en-AU/AU/cOnTheTrail-cHandheld-p1.html
> They are not cheap, but if you want a good one...
> Cheers,
> Merrilyn
>
> On 1/10/2013 11:59 AM, David Richardson wrote:
> > One of the points mentioned in the original post was that the GPS be
> > capable of deep forest satellite acquisition.I don't know much about 
> > iphone
> > or camera GPS functions but I doubt they would operate accurately in
> > situations other than clear sky satellite acquisition.That is why a
> > dedicated GPS unit,and a very good one at that,would be of more use.
> > perhaps someone on list who has knowledge of this could post a relpy
> > addressing that point?
> >
> >
> > On Tue, Oct 1, 2013 at 10:27 AM, Peter Shute <> wrote:
> >
> > > I suspect that the main difference between a phone GPS and a dedicated
> > > one, apart from not using up the battery of your precious communication
> > > device, is accuracy. I'm told I shouldn't expect better than 30m 
> > > accuracy
> > > from an iphone.
> > >
> > > I suspect Google Earth coordinates can be off by that much too, if the
> > > difference between the images of roads and the corresponding 
> > > linework is
> > > anything to go by.
> > >
> > > Peter Shute
> > >
> > > Sent from my iPad
> > >
> > > On 1 Oct 2013, at 9:06 am, "Martin Butterfield" <
> > > <>> wrote:
> > >
> > > If you don't have a mobile phone, my camera (Panasonic TZ40) has a GPS
> > > function which - if activated -  includes geocoordinates with 
> > > images.  I
> > > suspect many other mid-range cameras now have this functionality.
> > >
> > > It seems that the need for a dedicated GPS for simply recording point
> > > locations is well gone.
> > >
> > > Martin
> > >
> > >
> > > On 1 October 2013 08:30, Peter Shute <<mailto:
> > > >> wrote:
> > > If you mean you want to save and name a way point so that you can just
> > > read out the way point name into the microphone, then I would have 
> > > thought
> > > most would allow that. Some probably just automatically number the way
> > > points, but you could read out that number.
> > >
> > > I just use my phone's GPS (have never tried a dedicated GPS), and I 
> > > read
> > > out the coordinates directly at each new location. I could mark a 
> > > way point
> > > and then later copy its coordinates into the metadata, but it seems 
> > > just as
> > > quick to type it out while I listen to the coordinates I read out. 
> > > It gives
> > > me two chances to get it wrong, but it also means the coordinates 
> > > aren't as
> > > likely to get separated from the recording.
> > >
> > > I'm hoping I can find a way to get the phone to read out the current
> > > coordinates so I can just hold it up to the mic. That should 
> > > eliminate the
> > > first kind of error, but it's inspired more by laziness.
> > >
> > > Peter Shute
> > >
> > > ________________________________
> > > From: <mailto:
> > > > [
> > > <mailto:
> > > >] On Behalf Of Roger McNeill [
> > > <>]
> > > Sent: Tuesday, 1 October 2013 7:52 AM
> > > To: 
> > > <
> > > Subject: [Birding-Aus] GPS for vocalisation recording
> > >
> > > All,
> > >
> > > I know this has been raised a few times over the years, so apologies 
> > > for
> > > that, but the technology and brands keep changing and it is 
> > > difficult to
> > > keep up.
> > >
> > > I need a Handheld GPS to support my vocalisation recordings. The main
> > > requirements other than the obligatory battery life, ruggedness, light,
> > > international maps, deep forest satilite acquistion, etc, is the 
> > > ability to
> > > input multiple way points and link them to a specific recording.
> > >
> > > Most of the units I see on line seem to have a detailed  drill down 
> > > menu
> > > but what I am looking for is a compact unit whereby I can quickly 
> > > enter a
> > > location, note the 'location reference' in my recording and then weeks
> > > later when I am back home, download that way point into my computer 
> > > when I
> > > am doing my Meta data?
> > >
> > > Up until now I have been doing it after the fact off Google Earth 
> > > and this
> > > is getting very old.
> > >
> > > Also, the ability to pre-load waypoints is probably standard, but also
> > > required.  I am a hand held GPS novice, if that is not already 
> > > evident by
> > > the questions, so any and all help is appreciated.
> > >
> > > Cheers,
> > >
> > >
> > > Roger
> > >
> > >
> > > Roger McNeill
> > > Samford Valley, SEQ
> > > ===============================
> ===============================
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