I finally got a smartphone! Now what?

by **JQDivide** » 24 Jul 2012, 08:06

Get Angry Birds, Zombie Swipe and Words with Friends to kill time.

Seriously, Get an star chart app. It's fun and educational.

by **colokeith** » 24 Jul 2012, 08:21

Get an extra battery

If you don't get a rugged outdoors case, at least carry a ziplock back to protect the phone from moisture.

Get a good GPS topo Map app

knots guide - or similar app is usefull to learn / remember different knots

backpack planner - or simliar app to maintain a checklist of what you carry on trips.

A good weather app with radar so you can check on incoming weather as long as you have a signal

Kindle app with some good outdoor reference books
* Mountaineering Freedom of the hills
* Mountain Weather (backcountry forecasting and weather safety)
* Wilderness Survival
* Medicine for Mountaineering
*Colorado's 14ers (Roach)

by **MtnClimber82** » 24 Jul 2012, 08:33

I'm still quite new to smartphones myself, but some apps that I've found that I like to use are both the 14ers.com and the 14ers apps, CAIC Mobile, HowSteep (slope angle plus it gives you a rating for avalanche, WI ice climbing, mountain biking, etc), I've used High Altitude with limited success. Also, I am not a fan of GPS Status as others have recommended, instead I've found GPS Essentials to be more useful.

As far as your battery level, I downloaded Juice Defender and on the basic default settings, I got 5-6 more hours of use out of my phone each day. Secondly, you can download an app call Tasker. Tasker is a complex, VERY smart app that allows you to program your phone to do almost anything. For example, you can say, if I turn my phone upside down, play Justin Beiber. Or you can say, if I loose service, shut down all apps. if my gps connects, automatically launch GPS Essentials. Whatever. It is a little complicated and I still haven't come close to mastering it, but it is still very useful.

by **Sgt_Wilky** » 24 Jul 2012, 11:55

MtnClimber82 wrote:I'm still quite new to smartphones myself, but some apps that I've found that I like to use are both the 14ers.com and the 14ers apps, CAIC Mobile, HowSteep (slope angle plus it gives you a rating for avalanche, WI ice climbing, mountain biking, etc), I've used High Altitude with limited success. Also, I am not a fan of GPS Status as others have recommended, instead I've found GPS Essentials to be more useful.

As far as your battery level, I downloaded Juice Defender and on the basic default settings, I got 5-6 more hours of use out of my phone each day. Secondly, you can download an app call Tasker. Tasker is a complex, VERY smart app that allows you to program your phone to do almost anything. For example, you can say, if I turn my phone upside down, play Justin Beiber. Or you can say, if I loose service, shut down all apps. if my gps connects, automatically launch GPS Essentials. Whatever. It is a little complicated and I still haven't come close to mastering it, but it is still very useful.

So, if your phone is upside down, you'd just smash it with a sledge hammer?

by **MtnClimber82** » 24 Jul 2012, 13:08

Sgt_Wilky wrote:So, if your phone is upside down, you'd just smash it with a sledge hammer?

Precisely! haha

by **Markwise** » 24 Jul 2012, 14:29

My absolute favorite, and strong recommendation is an app called BackCountry Navigator. it isn't free but it is honestly worth every penny. You can download great topo and satellite maps ahead of time for offline use and import GPX and KML tracks.

I used it this past week on both Maroons with a Droid Bionic with extended battery and the battery lasted long enough (in airplane mode) on both hikes.

The developer is also great and providing updates and support

by **harrise** » 24 Jul 2012, 15:21

I am here to also trumpet the BackCountry Navigator Pro app. It uses the ArcGIS topo maps, and also has a BLM boundaries overlay for the maps (another $6.99) for a little added property line guidance. But like mentioned before me, I feel it's worth it. The entire state of Colorado is cached on my external 8GB for offline use and I'm nowhere near capacity. And some guide books on the Kindle app too. I use it on a Galaxy Tab 7" in airplane mode and battery life hovers around 86% after an eight hour hike. Also have a Stoic waterproof compression sack for the electronics should it rain heavily.

by **Tony1** » 24 Jul 2012, 15:38

nyker wrote:
Stupid question, how do you cache a route/map to use it offline?

I typically save it as a picture to my desktop (or wherever) and then load it onto the phone via USB.

You can also take a screen picture (Prnt Scrn button for a PC) and do the same with that.

by **colokeith** » 24 Jul 2012, 15:46

Tony1 wrote:
nyker wrote:
Stupid question, how do you cache a route/map to use it offline?

I typically save it as a picture to my desktop (or wherever) and then load it onto the phone via USB.

You can also take a screen picture (Prnt Scrn button for a PC) and do the same with that.

In the 14ers.com app there is an option to cache a route for offline use. This downloads all the route photos / maps to your device.

Any GPS app that is usefull in the outdoors will contain an option to download / cache map tiles for offline use. Don't buy or donwload an app that does not contain this feature.

Saving a map as a picture and loading it on your device (as suggested by Tony1) works if all you want to do is view the map. If you want to view the map with your current gps loaction, and other waypoints on it you need a gps app that caches map tiles.

by **Brian Thomas** » 24 Jul 2012, 17:07

In addition to the 14ers Android app, what I've been doing on some recent trips is (using the default Android browser) is saving the webpage. Saved 14ers.com trip reports (with pictures) and Summitpost route descriptions (for 13ers since most don't have route description on this website) can be viewed with the phone in airplane mode to preserve battery life.

by **nyker** » 30 Jul 2012, 12:37

So, sadly I am learning my main concern with the battery has come true - most climbs/hikes I might do will likely be longer than the batter lasts on this thing!

by **tmathews** » 30 Jul 2012, 12:40

nyker wrote:So, sadly I am learning my main concern with the battery has come true - most climbs/hikes I might do will likely be longer than the batter lasts on this thing!

If you can use the apps with the GPS only enabled to use the apps that you want, put your phone on "Airplane Mode". The constant searching for a cell signal will drain your battery faster than anything.

I finally got a smartphone! Now what?

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