Active Captin and Verizon Service

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narcdawg

New member
Ok..I plan to get a new cell phone. I have looked at the Active Captain site and this software looks very useful. In any event, does anyone on this site use active Captain on a Verizon phone..What model phone do you have?? and how well does it work? I have been told that many of the Verizon phones block aftermarket software from accessing the GPS in the phone, So you can load the charts but the GPS will not show your location.

If anyone has any information/ experience with active Captain on a Verizon phone I would love to hear what you have learned.
 
I use it on my Sprint (HTC) Touch. This device is the same as the Verizon VX6900. The app works beautifully. Very much like the desktop/laptop version. My device has a 240 x 320 display that is 2.8" diagonal. A larger display would be better. Sprint doesn't interfere with this app or my terrestrial gps app either. I'd be surprised if Verizon does.
You could shout out to Jeff Siegel , he may know the answer.
The app itself offers a free trial so you can't get hurt there.
 
I don't know if this is relevant, but on my Verizon BlackBerry Storm, I would have had to pay extra to enable the GPS on the phone. I have so many other GPS devices I didn't see the point (Garmin in the car, Raymarine and Lowrance in the boat.) However, I will try the Active Captain site and see how it works.

Warren
 
I had the same question a while back and what I found was you must have a phone with Windows Mobile Professional to run Active Captain. Verizon is supposed to be coming out with two new phones with this feature, according to the Verizon website they are to be released this month. I asked Jeff Siegel several months back about Verizon and he wasn't familiar with Verizon at the time.

On edit the Verizon XV6900 as Pete suggested appears to be using the Windows Mobile Professional so it may work.
 
I have an Iphone 3gs and added Navionics for a few bucks. The phone has a built in compass and GPS and the program is operated with a touch screen and shows tide locations with data.
This will be a backup to the hard mounted system and paper charts & compass. Its real nice for planning.
 
Jeff Seigel (owner of Active Captain) has been a member of C brats. He has been working on several platforms, and I am sure that he will answer any of your questions--if you ask him.
 
thataway":3f4w9cwl said:
Jeff Seigel ... will answer any of your questions--if you ask him.
Click to expand...
No need to ask...I'm in.

First, there is an annoying thing that Verizon has been doing with their mobile devices with integrated GPS - they lock out the GPS to only work with their own $10/month street navigation software. Other GPS software (like ActiveCaptain Mobile) will work fine with an external Bluetooth GPS (about $30) but it's just obnoxious that Verizon is doing this. They've promised to stop this GPS policy especially for the Omnia which is a very popular device. So far, I'm not sure that they've unlocked the GPS though. Again, it all works fine with a Bluetooth GPS. It is something to ask Verizon about when looking to purchase a device with an integrated GPS.

Looking at Verizon's Windows Mobile Professional line up:

XV6900 - a really successful device. It's about 2 years old and it now costs $10 which is an incredible deal. It's EV-DO which you want for speed - about the only thing to watch out for with an older device. But this one has it so tethering will be pretty fast (1Mbps - DSL speeds).

Sansung Omnia - a very nice device. There are many ActiveCaptain users with it. It's $200 which is a lot more than the XV6900. It has higher resolution. It's also EV-DO Rev A which gives another ~400Kbps in speed if you're in an area that supports it. The camera is 5 megapixels which means it can probably replace your camera for a lot of photography. It has a built-in GPS but has the issue raised above. It's a matter of time before Verizon unlocks the GPS.

HTC Touch Diamond - very similar to the Omnia (but a lower resolution camera) and yet $300. Lot's of users running ActiveCaptain Mobile with this too. It's quite similar to the Omnia. It also has an integrated GPS which is locked out. A lot of people like the look and feel of this device.

HTC Touch Pro - $350. Similar to the HTC Touch Diamond but adds a real slide-out keyboard. If you like having a keyboard, this is a very nice device. Lot's of ActiveCaptain Mobile users running this too. Integrated GPS with lock out issue.

With all of these devices it's really important to hold them and try them in sunlight and other environments. How do you they feel in your hand? Can you type of it? How does it feel in your pocket? This is something you'll likely use for 2 years. Take the time and make a pain of yourself in the Verizon store and try them all out. Even if the store is busy - make them open them up and take time to play with the devices. Do not, under any circumstance, listen to any recommendation that a Verizon employee makes. They don't know what's best for you at all - and they get sales incentives for certain models at different times and they will lead you toward those devices. Don't ask them for any advice and seriously, don't listen to a thing that they say. Remember that any of the phones can be returned if you bring it home and don't like it.

While I'm talking about Verizon, they just came out with another device that I love. I just picked it up and used it at a couple of TrawlerFest seminars we gave along with a talk at an MTOA rendezvous in Mystic, CT. It's the Verizon MiFi.

The MiFi is a credit card sized device. It runs on batteries for about 4 hours and can be plugged into DC, AC, or USB for power. It is EV-DO Rev A (the very fastest) when connecting to the Verizon cellular network. This little credit card device is also a WiFi router allowing up to 5 devices to connect to it. So what happens is that it connects to the Verizon network via the cellular link and then allows up to 5 devices to share it over WiFi. It allows secure WiFi connectivity so only people you allow can connect. It is an excellent way to have a single cellular plan that gets share between multiple laptops at the same time (no more fighting with my wife to get the internet connection). The speed was outstanding. I got 1.5Mbps at TrawlerFest in little Greenport, NY - all the way at the end of Long Island. Similar speeds in Mystic. Even on the coast of Maine I get more than 1 megabit connections. That's just about the same as a DSL connection in most areas. It's pretty outstanding.
 
Oops...one thing I forgot.

I currently also have 2 AT&T accounts including an iPhone 3GS. Apple has done a lot to update and fix the things that I originally didn't like about the iPhone for boats. It still isn't perfect but it's getting pretty good.

I plan on doing a variety of iPhone apps over the next few months. We're heading off on our boat for a planned 9 months of cruising. That'll be the perfect chance to do some real iPhone exploration.

If you have to use Verizon, the iPhone isn't a choice currently. If you're open to provider, the iPhone is really something you should consider. And note that we don't provide any software for the iPhone for ActiveCaptain today. My recommendations are honestly based on what I think is best and not how we'll make an extra $20...
 
Thank you very much for your time in responding to my post,

I am STUCK with Verizon so I will head down to the store this weekend and pick up an Omnia. Then, not being a techy, I will probably be calling to find out how to get Active Captain to install and run, if I can manage not to smash the new phone when I try it myself. I just learned to send text messages and take a photo with my current phone, I am sure I will be lost when it come to loading softwear.
 
XV6900 - a really successful device. It's about 2 years old and it now costs $10 which is an incredible deal. It's EV-DO which you want for speed - about the only thing to watch out for with an older device. But this one has it so tethering will be pretty fast (1Mbps - DSL speeds).
Click to expand...

In 07/08 Sprint finally came through with their promised upgrade that provided EVDO REV A (3g), Winmo 6.1, and unlocked the native gps radio(on the chipset).

Verizon followed suit in January
 
Jeff,
Thanks for the very through and excellent discussion of the devices and issues. I am also about to "upgrade" my Verizon phone (and maybe also add an A T & T account because of the I phone. Your discussion really helps in the decision making.

Jeff always comes through, and offers a wonderful service for all of us boaters. Have fun on the cruise!
 
narcdawg":1i9w6ysf said:
I will probably be calling to find out how to get Active Captain to install and run
Click to expand...
It'll be pretty easy. Install the trial version first. That involves downloading an .exe file and running it when you have the device connected to the PC with ActiveSync (XP) or the Mobile Device Manager (Vista). Definitely get a little familiar with syncing to the PC first especially if that's new to you. The trial version installs detailed charts of the Penobscot Bay in Maine (for the 10 of us who need them!) along with low res charts for the entire coastline. It is otherwise fully functional.

And of course, we're always around to help you get past anything that might come up.
 
I called Verizon Tech...they claim the GPS is unlocked on the Omnia. I hope that is true. I looked at an Omnia that someone else has and it seems like a very nice phone. I really can't tell that phone from am iphone but again I know nothing.

Anyway, thanks again for all of the information, hopefully they will have a omnia in stock tomorrow when I stop by.
 
Hi Jeff,

Thanks for the detailed info. I used Active Captain a good bit on the first leg of my SuperLoop trip( Brownsville, Tx to Pensacola. It was great. I was also able to add a few new anchorages and POI to AC. I'll be looking forward to any aps you come up with for the Iphone. The things Verizon locks out of phones is the major reason I used AT&T. Thanks again.

Roger
 
Doryman":3515km0y said:
Jeff, is the iPod Touch a viable option for Active Captain? I know it is for the Navionics charting software.
Click to expand...
Well, currently there's no ActiveCaptain product for the iPhone so anything is possible. The iPod Touch doesn't have a GPS so that's one consideration. I'm very interested in apps that communicate with our ActiveCaptain servers so connectivity it important but that could be accomplished with an iPod Touch especially when paired with a Verizon MiFi - the MiFi creates the cellular connection to WiFi link and the iPod Touch gets on the internet via the WiFi connection. There's rumors of the next iPod Touch getting a GPS too.

There's also rumors of a 10" iPhone/iPod Touch in the works.

The bottom line is that I can't imagine designing something to lock out a particular product unless supporting it would take too much effort.
 
Jeff, would there be any way to get the benefits of Active Captain Mobile using my MacBook with a bluetooth GPS unit and Verizon mobile broadband?

Thanks,
Warren
 
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