iphone 4, GPS and hiking

[gbagua]

I was wondering if there is an iphone application that provides decent GPS capability here in Australia, SE Queensland.

For example, if I were to hike this location:

http://www.wikiloc.com/wikiloc/view.do?id=2125638

Can I get away with the iphone?

Cheers.

[frenchy_84]

You need to be abit more specific with what you are expecting. Do u want your own map image, aerial imagery, or want a gps track to follow, or just simple coordinate plots. There are apps that do all of that. What is it that you want?

You can also search existing topics on the forum as they have been talked about a lot previously

[gbagua]

Hi,

Thanks for replying. I need a map I can follow so I don't get lost while following a hike. That would also include the ability to save coordinate plots and finally upload Australian maps of the areas I am intending to visit. Let's say for example, next Saturday I want to hike The Steamers in SE QLD, which require considerable navigation skills. So I want the GPS app. to minimally perform without me getting lost.

I don't need a full-on device, just the basics will suffice.

What do you recommend me?

[frenchy_84]

I recommend you use the forums search feature.
If you already have digital maps or are able to get them I recommend bitmap or mapsntrax (or whatever the new one is called, they were both written by SOB). Another one I use is trimble outdoors navigator, it is free and allows you to cache imagery so you can use it when you don't have phone reception. You would just need to import point of interest coordinates from a map to help navigation.

[gbagua]

If you already have digital maps or are able to get them I recommend bitmap or mapsntrax (or whatever the new one is called, they were both written by SOB).

Is this app. an example of digital maps?

http://www.memory-map.co.uk/iphone/

Cheers.

[wander]

I have played around with this concept with MudMaps and MudMaps HD and come to the conclusion that it's OK but will never really replace a paper map. Primarily for the shear area you can see on a map and relate to in the field. On 4 ski touring trips and 2 Flinders wanders this year I really put effort into the concept of iPhone as a map and GPS. It did work but was hard work and not efficient. The screen size really makes it difficult to relate the map to the terrain in known never-mind unknown terrain. The zoom features in the maps mean you are always trying to re-scale in your head the map to relate it to the terrain.

I have modified my approach now to incorporate the GPS just to give me the coordinates and drop them onto the paper map only if required and to have preloaded waypoints for areas I know the navigation maybe awkward should the weather or forest reduce visibility of the terrain shapes or landmarks. I'll know how this approach works late December.

No I am not interest in the map on a dedicated GPS option, see below.

OR I am a map dinosaur and out of touch with the Modern Age and should crawl back to my nice safe paper cave with my compass.

[frenchy_84]

viewtopic.php?f=21&t=7421
viewtopic.php?f=21&t=10975
viewtopic.php?f=21&t=10578

Oh wow look what the search function came up with...

[Son of a Beach]

I recommend you use the forums search feature.
If you already have digital maps or are able to get them I recommend bitmap or mapsntrax (or whatever the new one is called, they were both written by SOB). Another one I use is trimble outdoors navigator, it is free and allows you to cache imagery so you can use it when you don't have phone reception. You would just need to import point of interest coordinates from a map to help navigation.

As frenchy said, Maps n Trax does all that you've listed. If you want to get third party maps into it for offline viewing it can be a bit tedious and slow to import them (depending on what format they are in - eg, a calibrated GeoTIFF will be much less mucking around than an uncalibrated JPEG or PNG, but it will do all of them OK). Once your maps are imported and calibrated it should be all good to go. Or you can use the online maps, and can save some online maps for offline viewing. (I'm the developer, so I am biased of course.)

[gbagua]

OK thanks for your links and extra info. No, I was just thinking of uploading the GPS tracks from wikiloc and a map of the area using Google Maps (is there anything better out there?). Bear in mind I am new to all this technology, I was brought up in the old school of topo maps.

[Onestepmore]

OR I am a map dinosaur and out of touch with the Modern Age and should crawl back to my nice safe paper cave with my compass.

<3
I too am a dinosaur and trying to claw my way into the 21stC

There is a lot of this in 'technotalk'
I have bought a magellan 710 for hubby for Xmas so we'll have to learn how to drive that, a SPOT2, and I have a few iphone apps I have been playing around with.
Steep learning curve

[slparker]

Yeah I bought a garmin Montana a while back but find the screen so hard to use I still use maps and map to ground and I guess will turn the GPS on to get a grid reference if I need it. Probably could have bought the cheapest model to do that...

[findbuddha]

Try galileo-app.com

You can import maps from eg. MOBAC (MOBAC can download open cycle maps data, which has topo and often tracks)

I haven't tried it out in the bush (I have an android phone) but it seemed to work ok when I tested it for a friend.

[gbagua]

Various app. listed in this page.

Also:

GPS Kit
Groundspeak Geocaching

And finally maps:

Avenza PDF Maps
GPS-enabled maps for iPhone and iPad

You can also use Google Earth with MotionX GPS as explained in the following links:

http://www.gearthblog.com/blog/archives ... fline.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGv_ywtz8-M


Finally, an excellent guide that shows you how to use the iPhone as a GPS mapping device for backpacking.

[gbagua]

Any tips about how to extend the battery life of your iPhone? Here are some:

1. Wi-Fi OFF
2. 3G OFF
3. Bluetooth OFF
4. Reduce screen brightness
5. Auto-Brightness ON
6. Data Push OFF
7. Fetch new data > Manually
8. Auto-lock >1 min
9. Turn all the iPod (Music) settings OFF

[Son of a Beach]

Disable SIM card. The only way I know to do this (apart from removing it completely) is to set a PIN on the SIM card and then restart the phone and do not unlock the SIM. Of course you can't make phone calls this way either.

[gbagua]

Cool tip. I will use it too

Regarding maps, here's another proggie I just came across:

Mobile Atlas Creator

"Mobile Atlas Creator (formerly known as TrekBuddy Atlas Creator) is an open source (GPL) program which creates offline atlases for GPS handhelds and cell phone applications like TrekBuddy, AndNav and other Android and WindowsCE based applications. For the full list of supported applications please see the features section. Additionally individual maps can be exported as one large PNG image with calibration MAP file for OziExplorer. As source for an offline atlas Mobile Atlas Creator can use a large number of different online maps such as OpenStreetMap and other online map providers."

And Multiplans, a map application that works offline and that allows you to use your own maps, whatever their source, on your iPhone, iPod or iPad.

[Nuts]

If you haven't noticed gbagua, watch out in scrub using iphone apps, the inbuilt compass is not very helpful once the app resolution is not close enough.

[gbagua]

Care to rephrase that, me not understand.

[Nuts]

ah, ok. If you go anywhere scrubby (where you can't get a view/ point of reference) you will need (at least) a proper compass as well.
I have tried several apps and their inbuilt compasses and they rely on substantial movement (you need to walk a fair way) before they re-align (you may already realise this?) It is the same with direction indicators on the app map screens themselves, they are not sensitive enough (the ones i've used, some may be adequate?)

[gbagua]

Ah, yes, never used a compass though. What I know is that GPS go dead if you walk in canopy or thick forest cover. Offline maps are the way to go. Now, I am trying to figure this second beast out. It's giving me a headache already, I want to go hiking and not spend my life in front of my computer.

Any free digital mapping system out there for Australia and a decent iPhone app. for it? I don't want to install Java in my system so MOBAC is out of question, unfortunately.

Came across Shonky maps but they don't have the Apple app.

Memory Map, they are dodgy dodgy. Are they maps free or not? Do they offer maps of SE QLD, I couldn't see any here.

[Miyata610]

Hang on. An app can give a direction based on GPS input and your movement. In that case a good sat view is required. An app can also (or instead) use the inbuilt flux gate compass that detects the earths magnetic field. This method is independent of satellites (or GPS technology), or movement.

[gbagua]

Two more apps to the list:

Trails

"GPS app that allows you to record, export AND IMPORT tracks directly on your iPhone."

This one looks interesting:

Maps3D

"GPS app designed for all outdoor activities: the perfect companion for biking, hiking, running and traveling – with geocaching built in and the option to plan, record and share your rides or routes.

And imagine that this app doesn't display mountains and valleys as flat spots on a map, but in 3D – including the path you’re traveling on. What’s more, an accurate altimeter displays your current elevation at any time"

[Son of a Beach]

ah, ok. If you go anywhere scrubby (where you can't get a view/ point of reference) you will need (at least) a proper compass as well.
I have tried several apps and their inbuilt compasses and they rely on substantial movement (you need to walk a fair way) before they re-align (you may already realise this?) It is the same with direction indicators on the app map screens themselves, they are not sensitive enough (the ones i've used, some may be adequate?)

The iPhone compass works very well for me without movement (it uses magnetometres in 3 dimensions, not movement/GPS). Of course it does suffer from the same problems as other true magnetic compasses in Tasmania, in that interference from nearby iron-rich rocks can pull the needle away from magnetic north. This is a big problem in much of the dolerite covered central plateau.

[gbagua]

Slightly off topic now, but still good to know:

Should I set my GPS for True or Magnetic North?: http://www.markwell.us/geofaq.htm#truemag

[Nuts]

lol, I found the compass (switching to it in the app, i'd cached tiles but was likely 'live' at the time ) was giving a different (in fact at times opposite) direction to the tracking pointer (which wouldn't change quickly enough to be useful, or was it? was the compass out? : ))... In the end I just bashed in one direction long enough until I could get a 'view'.

I guess the point was (surrounded by scrub with the only view being the sky) that.. a technumpty... like myself.. would have been out of there in 15mins rather than an hour or two, getting enough distance in several different directions to be confident which was correct. It's probably not such a different scenario for any gps. Things might have been a lot quicker if I had been watching what was going on rather than the usual, just pulling out the phone when not sure of direction?

[Son of a Beach]

Yes, I'm getting a bit concerned about how much I'm using the maps, GPS, etc on the phone these days. I've never owned a GPS before the phone, and never felt the need. I have other reasons (ie, app development and testing) for using maps on the phone, and therefore tend to use it quite a bit lately. But I don't like that trend in my behaviour.

[Nuts]

wouldn't be too worried unless your walking into things I would think it could be a problem if you hadn't already developed the other skills, looking around and comparing.