Pretty sure the Spot uses a helical antenna, so there is a dead spot the direction the end of the antenna points. Depending on where the satellites are, it might be better to rotate the Spot 90º in the horizontal position so the antenna points left or right on the dash. Also be aware that some vehicles have an infrared reflective (IRR) windshield (like the Mach-E) that blocks radio signals. Putting it on the dash of a Mach-E wont work, cupholder would be best.
Arguably that Spot device is obsolete. Apple already has built-in Emergency SOS messaging on the latest iPhone 14, and Qualcomm will be coming out with Snapdragon Satellite on Android phones later this year, so you can text via satellite from your cell phone. iPhones use the same Globalstar satellites the Spot device uses, and Qualcomm will use the Iridium satellite constellation. iPhone is emergency use only with plans to release a satellite data plan soon, Snapdragon Satellite will also be 2-way with a fee. So I would not recommend buying a Spot device unless you need 2-way capability right now. The only concern I have is network congestion, adding cell phones will significantly increase the traffic levels on the Globalstar and Iridium networks to levels they've never seen before, and they are both 30 year old tech (equivalent to 2G).
@@prifreds The spot plan is much better. The inreach service is slightly better sometimes. I like the spot-x because unlimited tracking is included It's just a slightly longer interval on the cheaper plans. Plus your check-in messages are free and you can pre-program a generous amount of them so if someone messages you you can use a pre-programmed check-in message to reply for free. Like I have a yes message a no message okay message and then a few other generic saved messages.
APRS is a nightmare due to a bunch of crazy hams that have no regard for standardization best practices, don't get me started. Your weather station doesn't need to transmit every 30 seconds 24/7/365 with 3 hops, and your digipeater doesn't need to retransmit everything it hears with 3 hops. Abuse is rampart and it severely degrades airtime. Plus people don't care to maintain the repeaters or set levels properly so the packets are actually decodable. The abusers either don't care or don't understand the problems they create, so APRS is worthless to me these days.
Pretty sure the Spot uses a helical antenna, so there is a dead spot the direction the end of the antenna points. Depending on where the satellites are, it might be better to rotate the Spot 90º in the horizontal position so the antenna points left or right on the dash. Also be aware that some vehicles have an infrared reflective (IRR) windshield (like the Mach-E) that blocks radio signals. Putting it on the dash of a Mach-E wont work, cupholder would be best.
Arguably that Spot device is obsolete. Apple already has built-in Emergency SOS messaging on the latest iPhone 14, and Qualcomm will be coming out with Snapdragon Satellite on Android phones later this year, so you can text via satellite from your cell phone. iPhones use the same Globalstar satellites the Spot device uses, and Qualcomm will use the Iridium satellite constellation. iPhone is emergency use only with plans to release a satellite data plan soon, Snapdragon Satellite will also be 2-way with a fee. So I would not recommend buying a Spot device unless you need 2-way capability right now. The only concern I have is network congestion, adding cell phones will significantly increase the traffic levels on the Globalstar and Iridium networks to levels they've never seen before, and they are both 30 year old tech (equivalent to 2G).
what car is that , looks cool ! 😊
My car is a Hyundai Ioniq-5
Are you Still using the Spot X. I am trying to decide between inreach and Spot X as both are on sale at REI. I like the Spot X flex plan. Thanks !
@@prifreds The spot plan is much better. The inreach service is slightly better sometimes. I like the spot-x because unlimited tracking is included It's just a slightly longer interval on the cheaper plans. Plus your check-in messages are free and you can pre-program a generous amount of them so if someone messages you you can use a pre-programmed check-in message to reply for free. Like I have a yes message a no message okay message and then a few other generic saved messages.
aprs works good also
Not around here It's all in disrepair is there any up in Lawton still? I can't get into anything with my handheld APRS wise here
@@Crazypostman yes it’s all functional here except the dstar gateway.
@@HamRadio200 yeah Marv turn pulled out unfortunately he turned our internet off here too at the firehouse and the mountain
APRS is a nightmare due to a bunch of crazy hams that have no regard for standardization best practices, don't get me started. Your weather station doesn't need to transmit every 30 seconds 24/7/365 with 3 hops, and your digipeater doesn't need to retransmit everything it hears with 3 hops. Abuse is rampart and it severely degrades airtime. Plus people don't care to maintain the repeaters or set levels properly so the packets are actually decodable. The abusers either don't care or don't understand the problems they create, so APRS is worthless to me these days.