Smart Phone GPS App or GPS unit??
Equipment
Wyoming Elk Hunting: Can I use my smart phone with a GPS app in place of a gps unit. I've heard Hunt OnxMaps as well as Gaia will do a sufficient job. Just want some opinions before I go buy an expensive GPS unit.
Yes I have used Gaia on two iPhones for two seasons now from the NWT north of the NW Passage down to AZ near the Mexican border and a lot of areas in between. It works where ever I am at. Best $20 one time fee I have spent! You can put it on 5 devices too. It's on our iPad and our two phones right now. Google Earth type photos are sure nice in the field! Try it!
Apps work great if you have a way to keep your phone charged.
I like having several back up options in all things hunting. Although I'll continue using Onx Maps with my GPS the GAIA app looks like a great app. Thanks for pointing it out! X
You have to remember to put your phone in "Airplane" to conserve battery. You may get 8-10 hours depending if you are letting a track run. A GPS unit can go 24 hours or more. You can replace the AA battery in GPS. Many phones are not able to change battery. I use my phone as it has satellite maps to assist with my GPS unit which only has topo maps.
Phone apps work well, when they work. An Anker E5 or E7 will keep you charged up.
"You have to remember to put your phone in "Airplane" to conserve battery". You can only do this with a droid - it will not work on an Iphone. I use Backcountry Navigator on imagery and OnxMaps for public/private on topo. I like both of those because you can use the track option to see where you have walked. I agree to get a battery bank so you can charge your phone in the woods. If you plan on going off the grid for a week id recommend the Anker 20800 mAh or the 26800 mAh. If you're going to be truck camping then get Anker 3350 mAh and recharge it every night.
I have an iPhone and have Airplane mode....
Lol you cannot use gps while on airplane mode with an Iphone.
Edit - I got rid of my Iphone a little over a year ago because I wasnt able to use GPS on Airplane mode. I looked online and some people are saying that you can now. Glad they fixed that problem!
Now that some great info!
Thanks!
Anyone use Avenza Maps on their phone?
Avenza Maps is a mobile map app that allows you to download maps for offline use on your iOS, Android, and Windows smartphone or tablet. Use your device's built-in GPS to track your location on any map. Plot and record information about locations, import and export placemarks, measure distance and area, and even plot photos. You can easily browse and purchase maps from all over the world using the convenient Avenza Map Store—online or in-app.
https://www.avenzamaps.com/
Lots of misinformation on this thread haha
I have stopped using my Garmin units and swapped solely to my iPhone because it works so well. I use the onX maps.
The GPS will absolutely work without cell service and when in airplane mode. You can download maps ahead of time for those times when you won't have cell service.
I get much better battery life and run time out of my iPhone than I do with lithium batteries in a Garmin unit. I can get a few days of battery life out of my iPhone in airplane mode. I'd rarely get more than a day out of my GPS on lithiums.
I also prefer recharging my phone via an external battery (I like Dark Energy...very hunter friendly). To me carrying one of them beats carrying a pile of batteries to power a GPS (which might be a dozen or more AA on a 7 day hunt).
Lastly, you're already likely going to be carrying a phone. Chances are you won't be leaving it behind so it's not like you're carrying extra weight.
Bigeasy, do you keep your units on the whole time you're hunting? I get a whole 30 day elk season, and then some, out of two AA lithiums in my Garmin eTrex.
what destroyer said is true about iphone not working in airplane with GPS, but I think it applies to older models. mine would absolutely not work in CO last yr in airplane mode. I had downloaded and cached the maps I wanted for OnX, but it would not show my location in airplane on saved maps. Now I have a iphone 5, so this sounds like it changed with the 6's?
Possibly the confusion is over whether you can see where you are on the phone without having previously loaded the map beforehand. Yes an iphone will absolutely work in GPS while in airplane mode - I have done it. I even think I did it on my last phone, a 5S, but not quite as positive about that. Here is a link to a good site that gives tips on how to save battery life on phones while out hiking (or in our case hunting).
One other tip I would share, especially if truck camping, is this great little gizmo I got for Christmas. My son bought one, and actually jump-started his vehicle 4 times on one charge! It is meant for charging a phone, but has little jumper cables you can plug into it. It is no bigger than the biggest phone, ok maybe a bit thicker. See pic
I had saved the panels(cached maps) when I had service and turned on the saved maps function in the OnX app when I got to location I was going to use at with no cell service, when I did that I could not view my location in airplane mode. now I could view my maps obviously but it would not bring up my location. I have the 5s as well
Bull shooter x 2 on the portable battery. I bought several for family and for gifts , great for hunting /boating etc. a little heavy for backpack hunts but used mine in BC this year for iPhone. On Amazon u can find the same unit under different names, mine is from Bolt Power. Has the cable that will jump off my Ford F-150 when totally dead as well as a multi unit pigtail to charge iPhones, iPads , mini USB units. Also has a light on it. Great gift for wife/ teenagers. One son has used his to jump start several of his friends vehicles and said "the chicks dig it".
