Amber Alert GPS Review 2. The Amber Alert GPS is a GPS tracker optimized for kids. It has the most features of any GPS tracker we tested, including two- way calling, a panic button and live tracking.
It also has customizable zones and alerts. For its exceptional functionality, the Amber Alert GPS is our Top Ten Reviews Gold Award winner for GPS trackers. Features. Like every other GPS tracker that we reviewed, the Amber Alert has real- time GPS tracking, which means you can see the location of the tracker on a map. You access the map using either a smartphone app, tablet app or Amber Alert's web portal. Most trackers allow you to choose the update interval for the tracker, but you can only set the Amber Alert to five- minute update intervals. Despite this lack of flexibility, we found five minutes to be a useful interval setting, because it provides a good mix of battery life preservation and accuracy. Of course, you can always manually ping the device to get its location in between updates.
One of its most useful features is two- way calling, which allows it to communicate with one phone number of your choice. You can call your child from that number at any time to check on them. The Amber Alert does not ring; your child only knows you're listening when they hear your voice. This also enables you to listen to your child's surroundings without them knowing.
Another feature enabled by two- way calling is the Amber Alert's SOS button. When your child presses this button, the device immediately calls you and sends text alerts to up to 1. This enables your child to call you anytime they choose. A feature essential to the best GPS trackers is zones. The Amber Alert allows you to designate zones on the online map.
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Jump to: GARMIN RECEIVERS * MAGELLAN RECEIVERS * LOWRANCE RECEIVERS Vector-Map Software * Scanned-Map Software * Raster-Map Software * GPS-to-MAP (Intermediate Software) Commentary/For the record. One can check for the latest. Live traffic services are destined to be one of the biggest advances in GPS systems. While GPS devices strive to provide the fastest route from point A to B, they generally do so by considering the most optimistic road conditions. Amazon.com: Nokia E72 Unlocked Phone Featuring GPS with Voice Navigation - U.S. Version with Full Warranty (Zodium Black): Cell Phones & Accessories.
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These zones could cover a neighborhood, a row of houses or even another city. You can tell the app to notify you whenever the tracker enters or exits one of these zones.
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This is a good way to make sure your child stays where they should and stay away from dangerous areas. One feature unique to the Amber Alert is the predator alert. If you enable this feature, you will be alerted when the tracker is near a registered sex offender's residence. This keeps you aware of possible threats near your home. The tracker also has speeding alerts. You can set a maximum speed that the device is supposed to travel. If the device goes faster than that speed, then you will be alerted.
The Amber Alert GPS is a feature-rich GPS tracker with voice-to-voice functionality. Learn more in this.
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This helps you keep your teenage driver accountable for speeding. Interface. You can track the Amber Alert from either an Android or an Apple device using its free app, or on a computer using its web portal. The app shows a map with the location of the tracker superimposed over it. In our testing, we found the app to be intuitive, although the graphics seem a bit outdated compared to some competing apps. One useful feature we found is that when you go to the history pane, the app shows the battery level of the tracker next to every location update. This can show you exactly when the device ran out of power and help you approximate future battery life.
One feature that the Amber Alert lacks is the ability to create zones directly from the app. Instead, you have to log in to the web portal to create the zones.
Despite this shortcoming, the app is still above average, because it's so easy to use. Design. This GPS has the approximate dimensions of a garage door opener and weighs just over 2 ounces. It features the SOS button and two volume keys. It also has a micro- USB port for charging. It has an exceptional build, with high- quality buttons that click firmly. It also has tight- fitting covers for the power and SIM card ports. In our battery life tests, the Amber Alert lasted for 4.
This is slightly below average among the trackers we tested, but impressive if you consider the sheer amount of updates it provides with the short update interval. One feature that we wish the Amber Alert had is motion- activated tracking. Several of its competitors go into sleep mode when they're not moving, thus prolonging battery life.
Several accessories are available to buy for this tracker, including colorful nameplates that snap onto the plain black face of the device. You can also buy a sleeve that is perfect for hooking onto your child's backpack. Monthly Pricing. This device uses GPS technology to determine its location and then transfers that information to its server using the AT& T network. This service plan is an additional monthly cost, and there is also an activation fee. If you choose to cancel prior to your one- year contract being up, you are subject to an early- termination fee. Several competing GPS trackers have no- contract pricing, which gives you more flexibility.
It costs $1. 5 per month to use, which is slightly more expensive than the average GPS tracker. If you own this tracker for two years, you'll spend just shy of $5. Help & Support. The GPS ships with a one- year limited warranty that protects you against manufacturing defects. The company also offers phone and email support, as well as a FAQs section.
The Amber Alert customer representative we spoke to was very knowledgeable about the product and patiently answered all our questions. Summary. The Amber Alert GPS is the best GPS tracker you can buy because of its immense functionality. The predator alert is a one- of- a- kind feature, and the apps and web portal make it simple for even non- tech- savvy parents to monitor their children.
Traffic GPS Review. Live traffic services are destined to be one of the biggest advances in GPS systems. While GPS devices strive to provide the fastest route from point A to B, they generally do so by considering the most optimistic road conditions. This route will be the fastest assuming there are no traffic delays.” Traffic reporting services aim to change that. But which traffic services are the best in North America, what type of data is available, and how well does it work? Traffic Data Suppliers. The traffic data suppliers, like traffic.
INRIX, collect data from road sensors, local departments of transportation, data collected from operators of large fleets of vehicles, and other manual sources such as traffic helicopters and listening to police scanners. In order for your GPS to report traffic information about your route, you need to be driving on a road which is covered by the traffic data suppliers. Traffic Delivery Services. In North America, there are (currently) three delivery methods. The first way is through a wireless data system like that offered by MSN Direct.
They take the traffic data collected by traffic. GPS or added as an external antenna.
A second method is via a “silent” transmission over FM radio. In addition to the music you might hear from a radio station, other “silent” signals can be sent over the frequency. A special FM antenna is either built into your GPS or connected as an antenna which listens for those special signals being broadcast over FM radio frequencies. The final, and least common method is to utilize a data connection from a mobile phone. Your mobile phone connects to the Internet over the phone’s cellular connection, downloads the traffic information, and sends it via Bluetooth to your GPS. Your phone must be in an area covered by your phone’s data plan’s coverage area.
This is the method used by the Tom. Tom PLUS services. Incident Data vs. Flow. There are generally two types of data that can be received about the road network. Incident data and traffic flow data.
Incident data refers to information generally about a specific point/event on a road such as an accident or construction work. Flow data is the average speed vehicles are currently traveling on a particular section of road. Having both types of data is obviously better. For example if the road you are on has only incident coverage, and the weather is so bad that traffic is backing up, you might not get any traffic alerts because there might not be a particular accident that is causing the slower traffic.
Combining Data with Delivery. When considering a traffic service for your GPS, you will want to find out two pieces of information ahead of time. Which companies offer traffic data for the roads I want information for. Which companies offer the traffic delivery service in the areas I will be traveling. So that leaves us with a few different scenarios which will impact if you will be successful in getting live traffic data into your GPS. A) You are in an area where the road network is covered, and you can get a signal. This is the situation you want to be in.
B) You are in an area where the road network is covered, but you cannot receive the traffic signal. Live traffic would not work in that spot since it can’t download the data. C) You are in an area where the road network is not covered, but you can receive the traffic signal.
In this situation your GPS would always report no traffic for that location. D) You are in an area where the road network is not covered, and you cannot receive the signal. Your GPS won’t be able to download any traffic data, but even if it could it wouldn’t have data from that area.
So where are these locations? Consult the following chart.
I would take many of the broadcast coverage maps (not the data coverage maps) with a few big grains of salt. I routinely cannot get a signal in many of the areas claimed by the coverage maps. Those maps seem to indicate “best case” scenarios. Which service goes with which GPS? Most GPS devices are using the Clear Channel Total Traffic Network solution, down the middle column of the chart. If you are looking to use the Tom. Tom RDS- TMC solution, the NAVIGON traffic system, or any of the Garmin devices that use the FM based traffic, that is where you need to look.
Yes, that means that devices from different brands do often use the exact same data from the same traffic service. The differences in those cases come down to presentation. More on that with graphics further down.)Some of the Garmin systems use, or can use, the MSN Direct service instead. That system also includes weather forecasts, movie listings, and current fuel prices in addition to the traffic services offered. If you have a Garmin device and are trying to decide between going the MSN Direct route, or the FM route, first check the appropriate coverage maps.
That might make your decision for you. Where I live for example the MSN Direct service doesn’t offer flow data, only incident data. The Clear Channel TTN service offers both flow data and incident data. I can also receive the Clear Channel signal in my area, so it is almost no contest for my area. Otherwise consider the subscription costs, how much you might use the additional services like movie times from the MSN Direct service, and how often you might travel outside your usual coverage area. In the cases of an apparent “tie”, I’ve found the Clear Channel Total Traffic Network (FM, RDS- TMC) system to provide slightly better data in the areas I’ve tested both of them in.
What Equipment Do I Need? Generally you will need to purchase a traffic receiver to receive the traffic signal. An increasing number of devices come with an internal traffic receiver built in, but as of this writing those are still rare.
For Garmin devices connecting via the Clear Channel, FM solution you will probably need the GTM- 2. For the MSN Direct service you will want the Garmin GDB 5. MSN Direct Receiver. Tom. Tom devices connected to the Clear Channel traffic service will want the Tom.
Tom RDS- TMC cable, and Tom. Tom devices connected to the Tom. Tom PLUS traffic service will need a compatible mobile phone with a compatible data plan. What’s the Cost? Okay, so you’ve found that you live in an area where traffic reporting data (preferably flow data) is available and you live in an area where you can receive the traffic signal. How much does it cost? The cost will vary from device to device and from service to service. But here are some general estimates.
For the FM (Clear Channel) traffic service — Typically if your GPS comes with a traffic receiver, it will also come with a trial subscription. Generally this is a couple of months. After that, you can expect to pay roughly $6. If you purchase the traffic receiver separately from the GPS, it will also typically come with a trial subscription, but instead of a couple of months the initial subscription will generally be for 1. After that time you can also expect to pay about $6. The MSN Direct service typically comes with a 1.
After that you can choose to pay $5. If you go the Tom. Tom PLUS route, and happen to be one of the lucky people with a compatible phone and compatible data plan, don’t forget to factor in the cost of your data plan if you don’t already have one. While the amount of data transfer depends on the refresh rate you set and the amount of time you drive, Tom.
Tom estimates that with one hour or usage per day at a five minute refresh rate you will probably use about 2. MB of data per month. However with many people already having an unlimited data plan for other uses, this option can make a lot of sense. The traffic subscription itself is about $6. Why Pay at All? Well, that is what at least one GPS company has said in the USA. NAVIGON currently offers a lifetime traffic service based on the Clear Channel Total Traffic Network/INRIX solution.
It is also true that there are many free traffic services in Europe. Part of the difference on that side of the Atlantic is that often the data collection and delivery is performed by governments rather than private companies and the data is offered as a public service. In North America most of the work is still being performed by private organizations who (rightfully so) expect to be paid for the work they are performing.
What does it look like on a Garmin? Pictured here is an image of the Garmin display while there is a traffic delay on the route. Note the icon in the lower right showing a three minute delay.
When there is no traffic delay, no information is shown on the display. The display doesn’t change if there is, or there is not, traffic information being received. You can however look down at the power adapter and determine from the colored lights on the adapter if traffic information is being received.
However this isn’t quite as convenient as having it directly on the display. So what if you want to see the details of what is causing that three minute delay? You click on the “: 0. Here we can see that one mile ahead of my current location there is a delay of about three minutes. I can choose to avoid the delay if I wanted to, however in this case routing around it would have taken longer than just accepting the delay. The Garmin Traffic item in the Menu offers a birds eye view of the surrounding area and its traffic information.
Here you can see some yellow road just under the exclamation mark icon indicating slower flowing traffic. You can also see other traffic incidents in the area, but none that will be part of my current route.
Clicking on the ‘View by Road’ button will send you to the screen shown in the next image. You can also select to view a list of the current surrounding traffic conditions by accessing the ‘Traffic’ item in the Garmin menu. Here you can see a list of traffic reports surrounding my current area. On the route I have selected, there are currently no traffic delays.
But you can see there is an area of Route 1. A, 2. 8 miles to the East, Northeast of me that there is some really slow traffic.