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Check out this latest innovation from Garmin here.
At $23 retail I wonder if these would catch on. The guy in the video says with the Chirp you can spend less time entering coords for a multi and have time to find more caches. Whew! I was spending way too much of my day on that.:rolleyes:
Yeah, we were talking about this in national chat last night. It is actually not a horrible price, but I am not sure it's any less prone to being taken than a traditional stage of a multi, possibly more prone to it. But depending on how much and what additional data can be sent from it, it might have other uses.
I love your new tag line Dave...:p
You can now create a cache which can only be found by high end Garmin devices!
Well, Magellans were never known for finding caches anyway. :DQuote:
Originally Posted by lexmano
I like the idea, but I'm sure it uses some proprietary protocol, so it will be limited only for garmins and therefore useless. What's wrong with printing a QR code with coordinates of the next stage? You scan it and you are all set to go. How can a battery last there one year?Quote:
Originally Posted by Mainiac1957
I have two 2032 batteries in one of my caches which lasted about 3 years (You know which one.) I'm not sure how this chip knows there is GPSr present, but I can't imagine it is a continuous transmission.
I imagine it won't be long before there are some hacks for this device. I already have a cache idea for how I'd like to hack one.
Great, now we can have a $20 chirp missing from the cache along with the $10 geocoin.
Or a high end smart phone that Cano is mentioning to read a QR code. What's the sense?Quote:
Originally Posted by lexmano
Any new product is bound to have limitations but often their successors will have more features and be more compatible. For that reason I'm keeping an open mind about this.
However, I do fear that it might be one step closer to a prediction I have made before... These things being planted on every telephone pole, guard rail, and street sign and people being able to log them just by driving by them and calling it a find. :eek::eek: I'm just hoping the new lamecaching.com site is up before then! :D
Except QR codes are open, anybody can implement reader in any device with camera without paying any license to anyone, you don't need a high end phone for that. You don't even need any device either, all you need is a pen and paper and decode it by hand if you want to.Quote:
Originally Posted by Haffy
Technology has been here for quite a while, only you need is any bluetooth device as a beacon and any bluetooth enabled cellphone to register it when you drive by. It's cheap and accessible and yet I still see no caches like this :(Quote:
Originally Posted by brdad
My Magellan finds caches as good as Pam's Garmin. Haven't compared it to my Oregon yet since my sister has the Magellan to "see if she likes Geocaching". What my Magellan did that pushed me away from it was acquire satellites so slowly that we sat around waiting for it to be ready to go. I heard that I should be turning it on and off in the same general area. Nope, that didn't do it. If I had to change batteries, another long wait while it acquired satellites. I wouldn't have switched to Garmin if it hadn't been for that.Quote:
Originally Posted by brdad
There is now an attribute for caches that utilize this new device.
http://www.geocaching.com/images/att...beacon-yes.gif - Wireless Beacon
Four US caches are currently using this attribute
SBS - You're In a World of Hertz (GC2G604) by ecanderson (4/1.5)
Heard A Bird ? (GC2GRHF) by towtrkdug (5/1.5)
THE SECOND COMING (GC2FYWA) by The Late Dr HaZzMaTt (4.5/4.5)
Color in the Dotte (GC2GXN1) by KCViper295 (2/3.5)
Low tech users can use wireless bacon and dogs :)Quote:
Originally Posted by brdad
And what do you need to read a QR code, some 300 dollar smart phone or what? Not any more proprietary than what you are suggesting for reading the code.Quote:
Originally Posted by cano
I'm so irate and discouraged at reading this thread......I'd better wait a few days to comment.
If you are having problems what word proprietary means or you are missing any information about QR codes, I suggest you start studying, so you don't look like an ignorant, because I already explained everything.Quote:
Originally Posted by Haffy
While not proprietary by manufacturer, decoding a QR code at a cache site does require special equipment which many cachers do not have. Until a few months ago, I didn't have a camera on my phone, and I do not think the one I have now is capable of decoding QR codes. And I'm not interested in QR code caches enough to find out, and those QR code caches which are puzzles on the cache page can be easily decoded online at several web sites. While I take no opposition to someone hiding a cache which requires decoding of QR codes (even at the cache site of it is so noted in the description), I would not like to see the use of QR codes implemented in all caches. I feel exactly the same way about this new Chirp.Quote:
Originally Posted by cano
Thanks but I never called you ignorant just because you can't speak proper English either, just saying be nice.Quote:
Originally Posted by cano
I saw that, but I don't think cano was calling you ignorant, but warned against looking like "an ignorant" - perhaps like we use the phrase to "look like a fool".Quote:
Originally Posted by Haffy
I'm happy to remain ignorant of QR code until I am forced to do otherwise. :)
I can speak three other languages beside English and I never called you or anybody else ignorant for not speaking any of this languages (properly) either, so I guess I'm nice, maybe perhaps too nice (by your logic).Quote:
Originally Posted by Haffy
I know, my English is not perfect, so which part of "Except QR codes are open, anybody can implement reader in any device with camera without paying any license to anyone, you don't need a high end phone for that. You don't even need any device either, all you need is a pen and paper and decode it by hand if you want to." you didn't understand? Maybe I can explain it a different way.
QR code is an ISO standard and it's specification is open and widely known, you don't need special equipment to decode it. It can be done by pen and paper even at a cache site, but I wouldn't do it this way.Quote:
Originally Posted by brdad
I have had a camera phone since 2003, but didn't have a GPS until 2006. It's year 2010 and I don't think there is an excuse for not being to decode a QR code.Quote:
Originally Posted by brdad
Different people like different way of caching. Different caches require a different equipment to find a cache. You may need GPS, car, kayak, climbing gear, QR code reader, what ever. In all cases you can choose from which manufacturer you buy. This cannot be said about chirp. It's a bad idea to have a vendor lock in the game.Quote:
Originally Posted by brdad
I'd forgotten it can be done by hand, but it certainly is not the preferred method of doing so. Much like one could swim to Monhegan island to do the caches there. :pQuote:
Originally Posted by cano
I agree, that is why I have no problem if a few hiders want to hide a QR code cache. Regarding the Chirp, it may be proprietary, but it's the first of its kind. I'm guessing other similar devices which are more universal will soon follow. And I am guessing gc.com assumes this, too, since the attribute is not for "Garmin Chirp", it is for "Wireless Beacon".Quote:
Originally Posted by cano
I can ask for a beer in about 10 languages. :D:DQuote:
Originally Posted by cano
I once met a guy while geocaching who could say "go F yourself" in 50 languages, I learned a lot from him that day, thanks for the cache :)Quote:
Originally Posted by WhereRWe?