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#298571 - 03/07/21 04:12 AM Bluetooth marker: largely usesless?
Bingley Offline
Veteran

Registered: 02/27/08
Posts: 1576
https://guaranteedsurvival.com/products/breadcrumb-bluetooth-marker

It looks like this gadget has a range of up to 150 yards. The range strikes me as too short. The cost also seems too high for something you might lose. Maybe one day they'll come up with a better tracker, but this doesn't seem to be it. What do you guys think?

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#298572 - 03/07/21 06:28 AM Re: Bluetooth marker: largely usesless? [Re: Bingley]
Phaedrus Offline
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 04/28/10
Posts: 3148
Loc: Big Sky Country
Looks way too expensive for such limited capability.
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“I'd rather have questions that cannot be answered than answers that can't be questioned.” —Richard Feynman

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#298573 - 03/07/21 07:52 AM Re: Bluetooth marker: largely usesless? [Re: Bingley]
M_a_x Offline
Veteran

Registered: 08/16/02
Posts: 1203
Loc: Germany
It´s a marker not a tracker. The range may be limited even further when there is not a clear line of sight for the radio frequency. I think that range is adequate for the advertised applications. Tracking or finding a missing person is not one of them. Bluetooth is more of a short range technology (you surely noticed that they call 150 yards "long range"). There are better trackers using mobile phone technology or APRS (e. g. the PicoAPRS which has about the size of a matchbox).
I would not buy one of those Breadcrumbs at that price point.
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If it isn´t broken, it doesn´t have enough features yet.

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#298574 - 03/07/21 01:03 PM Re: Bluetooth marker: largely usesless? [Re: Bingley]
Ren Offline
Addict

Registered: 11/05/07
Posts: 522
Loc: Wales, UK
Think there is more capable technology out there?

Like LoRa (short for Long Range) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LoRa low power wide area network stuff. Each device has GPS and a LoRa radio. So each device knows where it is, and can talk to other LoRa devices in range (or out of range as long as there are other LoRa devices to forward on the message).

But not there yet as a usable off the shelf product for regular folk to use.
Most seem to be buy a bare electronics board (<$30) with some soldering possibly required.

There is a Android phone app that allows you to pair your LoRa device with your phone.

https://www.meshtastic.org/


Edited by Ren (03/07/21 02:09 PM)

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#298575 - 03/07/21 03:21 PM Re: Bluetooth marker: largely usesless? [Re: Bingley]
chaosmagnet Online   content
Sheriff
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 12/03/09
Posts: 3819
Loc: USA
Getting 150 yards out of a Bluetooth device strikes me as highly unlikely. I would expect more like 20 yards max in the real world.

LoRa is pretty neat but as Ren says it requires significant tech know-how. Unless you have a bunch of tech savvy friends or want to have a number of LoRa devices yourself its use will be sharply limited.

There are ham radio HTs with features that might be more useful — APRS reporting can work for some miles without a repeater, and far longer with one. This requires licensing and expensive equipment.

For worldwide capability without a license exam, something like a SPOT could be a viable option.

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#298579 - 03/08/21 12:38 AM Re: Bluetooth marker: largely usesless? [Re: Bingley]
haertig Offline
Pooh-Bah

Registered: 03/13/05
Posts: 2322
Loc: Colorado
Question: What works better at 150 yards, is much cheaper, and does not rely on any technology on the receiving end?

At night: A blinking LED flashlight!

During daytime: A beeping piezolectric buzzer!

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