[Geowanking] low cost gps location broadcasting hw / sw

[M. Adam Davis]

Another free services is mologogo, and it turns out that the wireless web
feature is not needed for packet data, therefore you don't have to pay the
$0.35/day.  You can get a $20 credit every 90 days (which is never used but
you have to add money every 3 months regardless of usage) and get tracking
down to $0.22 per day.  You may be able to find some convenience stores and
other shops that sell $10 credits, so you'd then only need to pay $0.11/day
for tracking.  See
http://mologogo.wikispaces.com/message/view/home/5054205for details.

Mologogo is another service you can use, and it appears to be more up to
date than instamapper: http://www.mologogo.com/  with better instructions
for installation of the java mobile app on a wider variety of phones.  Troll
ebay and craigslist for a cheaper, older boost phone using the phone
compatibility list: http://mologogo.wikispaces.com/Phone+List and you may be
able to find one for free or cheaper than a new one at Target, etc.

-Adam

On Tue, Feb 1, 2011 at 2:07 PM, M. Adam Davis <adavis at ubasics.com> wrote:

> Go to http://www.instamapper.com/diy.html and follow the instructions.
> $50 prepaid phone from Target, $0.35/day for tracking ($50 phone includes
> $10 credit, so you're good for about a month before having to buy more
> credit). 3-6 days standby time (significantly less depending on cellular
> conditions and your update rate - one minute update rate will drain the
> battery in 8-12 hours).  For more time, strap a larger battery to it - the
> one it has is under 1AH, so you can easily double or triple that time with 3
> AA NiMH 2000mAH cells, or some Li-Ion cells such as
> http://www.sparkfun.com/products/8483 and
> http://www.sparkfun.com/products/8484.  You'll need to charge them
> externally, of course.  Works on Nextel/Boost network (make sure you have
> coverage in the areas you're interested in).  Cellular accessories, such as
> car chargers, holders, etc may come in handy if you simply want the tracker
> to work whenever a vehicle is on.
>
> I have built other GPS tracking devices, and it's unlikely that you can
> beat the cost if you need cellular coverage.  For short range work a
> hacked-together FRS radio pair, microcontollers (such as arduino), and GPS
> is still more expensive to start up, but there are no ongoing costs so might
> be better savings in the long run.  Note that it may be illegal to use FRS
> radios this way.
>
> -Adam
>
> On Tue, Feb 1, 2011 at 12:24 PM, Paul Faunik <paulfaunik at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>
>> I'm looking to build a location transmitter that would have the following
>> constraints
>>
>> - low cost (sub $50) for the hw
>> - long battery life. based on the device broadcasting location every 5 min
>> and doing nothing else. days between charges?
>> - two simple buttons : start broadcasting : stop broadcasting
>> - the geo coordinates are relatively accurate most of the time - 30 meters
>> (used almost exclusively outdoors in San Francisco)
>>
>> One thought is it could some super cheap older model cell phone, some
>> simple native app to send geo coords to web service or send sms (if this
>> circumvents a data plan), super cheap pay as you go phone plan, put it all
>> in a box and just expose two buttons and the charging plug.
>>
>> Other alternatives?
>>
>> Anyone ever built or heard of such a project?
>>
>> thanks,
>>
>> Paul
>>
>>
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>>
>
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