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 <[email protected]> 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 <[email protected]> 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 >> >> >> _______________________________________________ >> Geowanking mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://geowanking.org/mailman/listinfo/geowanking_geowanking.org >> >> >
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