Selecting a Mobile Phone for Bushwalking [split]

[Ent]

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[tastrax]

I was recently in the same position after having my old GSM phone (for work) for many years. I went with the cheapest Next G Nokia that had a blue tick - E51 - small, light, and its a Nokia! Only complaint is that most of the phones have tiny buttons!

http://www.totaltas.com.au/index.php?pa ... rget=nextg

http://www.nokia.com.au/find-products/a ... /nokia-e51 - business phones tend to have less games but often have more links to the expensive web downloads (like weather, stock positions etc) - I simply turned all that off.

I would stay away from the ZTE's. - terrible software for interacting with the phone.

[BarryJ]

................................... As I am heading bush more often I was wondering is there any advantage (practical) going Next G.........................

Yes, HUGE difference.

.......................... if so does phone models make a great difference. I am looking at a standard phone rather than extending range with in car kit or playing the DB game with external antennas. ......................................

Once again, HUGE difference. Unfortunately you can't always rely on sales staff for advice. Some of the so-called "blue tick" phones (approved for use in remote area) are not as good as some non-approved phones. In the early days of Next G, the "tick" was often given just because the phone either had an extendable aerial or had a socket to enable an external aerial to be plugged in. I have a Nokia 6120c (no external antenna or socket) which is a non-approved phone but I am more than happy with the reception (it works in areas of the Western Lakes where my old CDMA phone was useless). I also believe (but I can't confirm) that Aurora did some testing of mobile phones for their field staff and decided that the Nokia 6120c was a good unit and has their tick of approval.

One point to remember with a mobile phone is that it chews up battery capacity if it is out of range(i.e. in a valley etc) because it is continually searching for a signal. Consequently, if you are in a remote area, it pays to turn the phone off and only turn it on when you want to use it (on a high place etc).

The Nokia 6120c is an earlier version of the E51- I looked at the E51 when I needed to replace my E51 but found a couple of minor differences (so minor, I can't remember what they were now!) which I didn't like, so I stayed with the older model.

[BarryJ]

.......................................
http://www.nokia.com.au/find-products/a ... /nokia-e51 - business phones tend to have less games but often have more links to the expensive web downloads (like weather, stock positions etc) - I simply turned all that off..................

IMHO, web downloads of weather reports are a major advantage with Next G phones. I have bookmarked several Bureau of Meteorology web pages for use. My plan includes $10 worth of data downloads and I never get anywhere that amount each month.

[photohiker]

Get an iPhone on NextG

I've actually got an iPhone on Optus, but have it unlocked so that when I head for parts unknown, I grab a NextG prepaid and some online data allowance. Works a treat, esp. for weather as previously mentioned. There are a couple of really good weather apps for it, and some Nav stuff if you don't have a GPS.

In reality, best to go play with a few likely phones to see which ones do the job for you. I've had all sorts of Nokias and Sony's but the iPhone is in a different league as far as user interface is concerned IMO. YMMV

[Son of a Beach]

I agree... the iPhone is the first phone (that I've tried) that actually makes the data facility, and 'smart phone' features worthwhile (ie, all the stuff apart from the actual phone). A lot of what it does is not new, but is makes the stuff actually useful. Eg, I can read and reply to these forums quite easily, which has always been very painful on any other phone I've tried. It's the first phone which I would classify as being a hand-held computer which includes a phone application, rather than just a phone which includes non-phone applications.

For weather, I use "Pocket Weather Australia". It includes 6 day forecast, animated rain radars, synoptic and satellite charts (and TIDES for my sailboarding!). All the official BOM stations for forecasting and observations. I could also just go to weather web sites, but the application is easy to configure so it has all the information I want well presented and easily accessible without any of the information I don't want.

The integrated true GPS, magnetic compass and motion sensors are a bonus too - great for navigation. I'm currently working on getting tasmap 1:25000 maps (and others) onto it - user supplies their own map images.

(I'm starting to sound like a spammer sprooking phones!)

[Ent]

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[photohiker]

Brett,

You are correct.

From the "98%" Press Release

This significant expansion of the Optus network will be achieved using 900 Megahertz (MHz) spectrum, utilising High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) wireless broadband technology.

Tasmania - Zeehan, Queenstown, St Mary’s, Bicheno. Waratah, Swansea, St Helens, Scamanda, Scottsdale, Bridport, Avoca, Sheffield, Mt Blackwood, Port Arthur, Southport, Bothwell, Kettering, Cygnet, Copping, Dunalley and Orford

Cellular and wireless:

* UMTS/HSDPA (850, 1900, 2100 MHz) <--- that's 3G
* GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz) <--- that's GSM
* Wi-Fi (802.11b/g)
* Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR

So, no. Optus 900mhz and 3G on an iPhone 3G or 3GS is a no go. On the Mainland, iPhones can access Optus' 3G 2100mhz in the cities.

Maybe the next iPhone will do it, but for now, you need a NextG sim in it for Tassie (and most rural areas of Australia)

[Son of a Beach]

Brett... the GPS in the iPhone is good. If satellites can't be found it will fall back to cell-phone towers and wireless networks to get the location (with less accuracy) - although this is more useful in town than out bush. It will display the accuracy of it's location in the mapping software. NB: This is NO replacement for a stand-alone GPS. It is not as rugged as most GPSs, and it automatically goes into sleep mode after a few minutes, so is not good for automatically logging way points. Although it's battery is much the same as any other phone, it would not last long doing GPS stuff continually.

There's a vast array of iPhone software out there, including GPS, mapping and navigation software. I've just started writing a simple map viewing application myself, because I couldn't find anything that suited my exact needs (use my own bitmap maps, automatically tiled as panning/zooming requires).

I very much dislike Telstra as a business, but unfortunately, there's little choice in much of Tasmania. Where I live Telstra is the only reliable network, and I'm only 15 minutes from Launceston CBD.

Photohiker... the iPhone also works fine with a plain old GSM/EDGE sim card. You just get a slower data connection (which is no problem for those of us who only use the data connection at home/work where it automatically goes over the WiFi network instead of over the phone network).

[photohiker]

SOB,

Roger that. I have one too, so I know. The built-in wireless preference make the phone an excellent home/office device even if the network aint so hot.

Note that you actually need a plain old GSM/EDGE network to access if you want to use it, and it is absent in large tracts of Australia on the Optus network.

I've played with several of the Nav apps, Motion X-GPS seems to be the best so far. It's battery intensive though, and you wouldn't want to be using it on anything over a few hours. Definitely no replacement for a dedicated GPS unit.

[Ent]

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[photohiker]

Brett,

Here is my strategy:

* iPhone on 2 year Optus contract
* free unlock (takes a couple of weeks)
* Prepaid Telstra sim for anytime I am heading away from populated areas.

Works for me, and I don't need to give Telstra much $$ this way.

I think 850mhz is the general standard for 3G worldwide. Telstra held on to the 850mhz spectrum post CDMA, effectively locking out competitors.

[Ent]

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[Son of a Beach]

What's a vacuum cleaner?

[Ent]

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[sthughes]

I had a ZTE850 - while it felt cheap and had a horribly slow user interface it always did what I asked of it over nearly 3 years (a record time for me - by about 2 years ).
I've now got an E51. Nice and small, cheapish and has good reception. I also have a bluetooth GPS module for it which seems to get good reception, although will only spit out Latitude & longitude (no GDA/ADG grids). Can run Google maps as well.
I use it for web surfing (checking out BWT (and sometimes posting), msn messaging and another neat trick is that with some free My Net Fone software it turns into a VOIP phone They integrate nicely with Microsoft Office too if you use Outlook.
NextG is very handy for weather etc. Bigpond weather (and news etc) is free to browse, and when I'm in WiFi range (Home and Maccas) I use Weatherzone. Also use BOM occasionally and have never blown my included data allowance.
Of course in my opinion (but having not ever used it) the Iphone is way better except for size and price. I'd buy one of them if I didn't have a budget
Oh yeah and I HATE Telstra with a passion (after several episodes of lousy service and of course their inflated prices for everything) . But unfortunatley in Tassie they are the only ones that have decent reception in my opinion (yep I've tried Optus, Virgin & Vodafone). If Optus do match NextG I'll be the first to jump ship!

P.S. With no reception the battery is down for the count in under 48 hrs - so turn it off when bushwalking!

[Ent]

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[sthughes]

Lol - I have had 4 (I think) Nokias fail me. Lets just say they wouldn't survive your now infamous 'bucket test'
When I got the NextG ZTE, and saw the prices of new NextG's at the time, I made a point of not taking it kayaking and sailing. So it's more good management than good quality that saw it last better.

[Ent]

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[BarryJ]

I must admit that I would prefer my mobile phone.to be waterproof; even if it meant only having the phone option.

I don't need my pone to be a camera/mp3 player etc. but, having drowned at least three, I would definitely like my next phone to be waterproof (and must use the NextG network - unless someone else develops a network as widespread).

[north-north-west]

For weather, I use "Pocket Weather Australia". It includes 6 day forecast, animated rain radars, synoptic and satellite charts (and TIDES for my sailboarding!). All the official BOM stations for forecasting and observations. I could also just go to weather web sites, but the application is easy to configure so it has all the information I want well presented and easily accessible without any of the information I don't want.

The integrated true GPS, magnetic compass and motion sensors are a bonus too - great for navigation.

I wish I'd known that before I bought the GPS.
Ah well, I don't really have much use for a phone, anyway.

[Ent]

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[BarryJ]

I manage to kill (or at best, severely wound) most of my phones in 18 months to two years. One of those I drowned was only 3 months old!

Edit: Several years ago (when I was changing across to CDMA) the sales guy was rattling on about what the phone would do and I guess my eyes must have glazed over or something because he actually asked what I would be using the phone for. When I replied "Making phone calls" he didn't miss a beat; just said "It will do that too!".

[Ent]

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[tasadam]

I was thinking of a quip but before I would do that I first must check back through every post to find what sensitivities I might ruffle

Brett I think it's okay, I don't think the weight of the phones has been discussed.

[Nuts]

I was thinking of a quip but before I would do that I first must check back through every post to find what sensitivities I might ruffle

Good idea, seems something is sinking in

[Ent]

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[loric]

Telstra NextG for me (up in Vic highcountry) Waaay better than the alternatives.
Any decent phone with a blue tick is fine i reckon - as long as it has a decent battery and web data capabilities. Telstra has data included in their plans and the biggie - bigpond stuff is free so you can browse heaps of stuff for no cost. (e.g. BOM weather, sensis, whereis etc) e.g. you can check the weather, then if it looks to be crapping out you can arrange to bail halfway, look up the name of the local taxi service, get em to pick you up... etc.
PLUS - nextG cards on postpaid can be used in the iridium sat phones... so you have that capability if you want it.

[Ent]

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[photohiker]

That's right Brett.

You can get a $10/month NextG sim only plan and use it for the satphone. Calls cost a packet per minute, but if it's only for emergencies, who cares. It actually works out a lot cheaper than the Telstra alternative satphone plans.