Still a need for a dedicated GPS?

[dotman]

I am rolling with a Garmin 64s, Delorme inreach and an iPhone 6 w/onx maps app. I am the wrong guy to ask!


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Haha, you sound like me

 

[dotman]

Has anyone tried the Delorme Hunt App? Isn't it similar to onx?

 

[avluey]

Downloaded HuntX over the weekend and was planning on getting Gaia too and then ran into a deal I couldn't say no to in a Cabela's bargain cave. Garmin Dakota 20 bundle (MSRP $400) for just over $100. Anyone have any experience with the Dakota? It came with a 100K topo disc for the entire country. I'm headed to Wyoming next week for backcountry elk and am semi-familiar with the area I'm headed into. Haven't had time to start tooling around with it yet - are there any other maps I should be looking to acquire?

 

[Firstcoueswas80]

My biggest concern with using solely the cell phone is recharging it if it dies. Solar chargers are light and work well but they're not as simple as just replacing the double a batteries

 

[COlineman78]

My biggest concern with using solely the cell phone is recharging it if it dies. Solar chargers are light and work well but they're not as simple as just replacing the double a batteries

Solar chargers only become net positive on weight for hunts over 5 days by my calculations based on my personal heavy cell phone usage. I use 18650 batteries in combination with this: $4.87 Miller ML-102 Universal USB Smart Charger (Version 9.0) - for 16340 / 14500 / unprotected 18650 batteries at FastTech - Worldwide Free Shipping

I also use 18650 battery powered flashlights; this way everything runs off the same power source. You can also use the same item to charge the batteries off of the solar panel for longer trips. I have a GoalZero Nomad 7+ that I use to do this for around 13oz and just take 1 extra battery.

 

[Travis Bertrand]

Ever since iPhone updated so it enabled gps mode in airplane mode, I have left my gps at home. no need for redundancy!

 

[sneaky]

Until OnX fixes some of their glitches for their mobile app I'll keep carrying my GPS. Layers freezing up and shutting down cost us at least one buck this year. It came off private and crossed over a strip of WMA...that we didn't know the boundary of until the opportunity had passed and the app finally un- effed itself. Lesson learned the hard way.

 

[justinspicher]

I use just my phone for everything. I agree that recharging is more difficult than changing batteries, which is why I started to do some of my recharging while I'm glassing. I can recharge 10-15% much faster several times a day than try to do once at camp.

 

[FURMAN]

If you are backpack hunting and navigating around a lot of private the GPS is far more Convenient due to the far better battery life. If you are hunting National forest or from the road phones are probably fine. Phone batteries are going to have to be far superior to current models before I give up my GPS.

 

[Carlin59]

I run both onX on my iPhone and a chip in my Garmin. I love having the aerial view available on the phone, and the ability to switch GMU by species easily (mostly applicable for me in WY vs. CO where GMU are mostly the same outside of sheep/goats). Overall, the phone gets the nod for ease of use, and when I'm in big blocks of land (national forest) for example, the Garmin stays in the pack usually. However, one downside of the phone app is there is no easy ability to move your cursor to a spot and have it tell you it is "x" distance away. This is especially useful for navigating tight public/private boundaries. For example, on an antelope hunt last weekend, i passed on two nice goats i had comfortable in my sites. I knew i was close to an un-fenced state/private boundary. The goats were 115 in one case, but the garmin told me i was 90 yards from the boundary so i passed. The other example was goats at 150, Garmin said I only had 125yds of public real estate left. I sent onX a support request to see if i was missing something with the way i was using the phone app, and they confirmed that the simple cursor-distance of the handheld garmins is not a current feature on the phone app.

 

[COlineman78]

Until OnX fixes some of their glitches for their mobile app I'll keep carrying my GPS. Layers freezing up and shutting down cost us at least one buck this year. It came off private and crossed over a strip of WMA...that we didn't know the boundary of until the opportunity had passed and the app finally un- effed itself. Lesson learned the hard way.

I was disappointed by the HUNT app when I tried it out this year for Android; it was very buggy. The ROAM seemed less buggy and IMO has everything most people will need. I still prefer BCN though for those on Android.

 

[COLOelkman]

I also only use BCN with my phone for my GPS, camera, video and even a phone. I try to bring a backup GPS in the truck just in case but have found that I can work around all the issues/drawbacks to using a phone only. I'm not very tech savvy and have had my struggles learning BCN but I still like it a lot and will never go back to a GPS. Not that they don't have some advantages but they don't outweigh the benefits of using the phone for me.

 

[rbljack]

Seeing how this came back up to the top....I am curious where things stand with the updated technology. I recently found out that it appears the onX maps app can now download maps to my phone and can be used even when cell services aren't available. I don't understand this new technology yet, and have relied on a separate GPS for my hiking/hunting. Im looking to hear how yall like using this newer Onx Map application with the phones. I agree that battery life for the phones may be the biggest downside. I was looking to save weight, but if I have to add a solar charger, not sure if there is any weight savings to be had.

Still debating....

 

[COLOelkman]

Seeing how this came back up to the top....I am curious where things stand with the updated technology. I recently found out that it appears the onX maps app can now download maps to my phone and can be used even when cell services aren't available. I don't understand this new technology yet, and have relied on a separate GPS for my hiking/hunting. Im looking to hear how yall like using this newer Onx Map application with the phones. I agree that battery life for the phones may be the biggest downside. I was looking to save weight, but if I have to add a solar charger, not sure if there is any weight savings to be had.

Still debating....

My phone has replaceable batteries so I bring extras with me. Most phones don't have that feature so in that case, I think a precharged battery unit is better and more versatile than a solar panel. You can charge your phone at night if needed. I have a Poseidon from Dark Energy which is 10,000 mAh so it can charge my phone 3 times and is bomb-proof and weighs about the s a me as my phone.

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