TGC Challenge 2015- Potential Kit List

[ADz]

The problem with using viewranger on most smart phones is the battery life is truly pants. This may be something you need to consider.

Nah, This is just a common misconception. The battery life is pants on some phones and this also depends on what you have installed, what services and what apps are running in background. It's how you run your device and all subjective. Viewranger/GPS in on itself uses very little power.

When out and about and you want to use Viewranger or any other type of GPS navigation/mapping etc and have as much battery as possible dedicated to this then you need to take command of phone and disable other things. Turning airplane mode on isnt enough as background services will still continue to run and attempt to connect/use signal etc. There are plenty of apps that can help you disable as much as poss but or you can do it manually within apps settings. Phones like Samsung also come with power saving modes built in or you can install a custom kernel to save even more power.

Unless you have a ****ty iPhone then you're pretty much screwed. Best you can do it turn airplane mode on and use an external battery and charge if/when needed.

Isn't the Sawyer mini the defacto standard bit of kit we all agree on and own

Yes but that is a dedicated filter. The Travel tap doubles up as your water bottle and is excellent for quick/easy drink as you can just dunk it in stream/pool/puddle etc and drink straight from it. You can use the Sawyer as straw but much quicker to just fill up bottle and carry on. Previously I have used the Tap as my main drinking bottle and the sawyer simply for base camp water collection/filter. You could also use the Tap for this but you can damage the thread if you squeeze too hard or for too long.

Am I the only person that finds the simple luxury of being able to eat from a plate worth the few extra grams

I hear ya. Just depends on meal though to me.

 

[Quixoticgeek]

Nah, This is just a common misconception. The battery life is pants on some phones and this also depends on what you have installed, what services and what apps are running in background. It's how you run your device and all subjective. Viewranger/GPS in on itself uses very little power.

When out and about and you want to use Viewranger or any other type of GPS navigation/mapping etc and have as much battery as possible dedicated to this then you need to take command of phone and disable other things. Turning airplane mode on isnt enough as background services will still continue to run and attempt to connect/use signal etc. There are plenty of apps that can help you disable as much as poss but or you can do it manually within apps settings. Phones like Samsung also come with power saving modes built in or you can install a custom kernel to save even more power.

Unless you have a ****ty iPhone then you're pretty much screwed. Best you can do it turn airplane mode on and use an external battery and charge if/when needed.

Thing is at that point, if I'm effectively dedicating my device to being a viewranger gadget, I may as well carry a dedicated gps like a garmin eTrex 10. Sure it may not have quite the same quality of mapping as viewranger, but it does want from a gps. i.e. 10 fig grid of where I am right now, and record my track for the day...

Yes but that is a dedicated filter. The Travel tap doubles up as your water bottle and is excellent for quick/easy drink as you can just dunk it in stream/pool/puddle etc and drink straight from it. You can use the Sawyer as straw but much quicker to just fill up bottle and carry on. Previously I have used the Tap as my main drinking bottle and the sawyer simply for base camp water collection/filter. You could also use the Tap for this but you can damage the thread if you squeeze too hard or for too long.

Interesting, I carry my sawyer everywhere once it's warm enough to not freeze. I've even used it in restaurants when I was trying to avoid that first day of new water race to the loo... Sometimes I wonder how I coped before I had a water filter. Tho I'm learning a lot more about geology, esp wrt how water is a sod to find on top of the downs and you have to descend a bit to find the water table...

J

 

[ADz]

Thing is at that point, if I'm effectively dedicating my device to being a viewranger gadget, I may as well carry a dedicated gps like a garmin eTrex 10. Sure it may not have quite the same quality of mapping as viewranger, but it does want from a gps. i.e. 10 fig grid of where I am right now, and record my track for the day...

Not really as you can simply enable parts of device you need when you want them. If you need to check emails you can check emails, if you want to make a call you can make a call, or you could even just leave it all enabled and use the extra batteries if needed. It's simply that you're giving a device more than one use. I just honestly do not see the point carrying an extra device with more bulk and weight when you already have a device that can do exactly same but MUCH better job than ANY dedicated device on the market? It just seems silly to me. Carrying the extra batteries for phone would be lighter than carrying the extra device which would do an inferior job to begin with. Doesnt make sense to me.

Interesting, I carry my sawyer everywhere once it's warm enough to not freeze. I've even used it in restaurants when I was trying to avoid that first day of new water race to the loo... Sometimes I wonder how I coped before I had a water filter. Tho I'm learning a lot more about geology, esp wrt how water is a sod to find on top of the downs and you have to descend a bit to find the water table...

J

Indeed. When I first got my Travel tap I even started filtering local tap water. Not sure if it made much difference but seemed to taste better to me. I'll not be using the Tap next time I go out though as I'll be pre-filtering with Sawyer or my my new Katadyn Hiker Pro, using a Raidlight bottle for the extended valve and putting it in my chest bottle holder for quick slurps (Don't like bladders/tubes, they taste funky).