Personally I use microsurvey Fieldgenius and a Leica 1203+ and previously magnet field with a Sokkia ix-503 (gone due to constant problems). Trimble access is also supposed to run on it as long as you pay an expensive ransom to Trimble for it to run on a third-party windows 10 tablet. The tablet itself has always been stable and reliable. Magnet field software was stable, just the hardware was bad as I mentioned. Fieldgenius crashes and glitches out no matter what its run on... mesa 2, Allegro 2, tsc3, tsc7.?ÿ
Best you watch the video linked to above then regarding the Bluetooth comment, will be a revelation.
Looking up the specs for the phone in the video says v5.0
The android version of Fieldgenius won't support total stations for another year or so from what they told one of our office staff recently. I haven't spoken to them about it since the last time I was talking to them about the crashes with FG 10 on windows 10. They've not been in contact for a couple months at least so I assume they gave up fixing it.?ÿ
@lukenz?ÿ
I just watched it now, that's impressive. My phone has Bluetooth 5.1 but I was under the impression that being class 1 Bluetooth is what gave long range connection. My phone and that pixel don't list what class they are.?ÿ
Using my Bluetooth earbuds I can barely make it to the back of the truck with the phone inside and they cut out.?ÿ
AFAIK the version affects data transfer speeds but I could be wrong. Now I need to attempt to install another x pad trial and use it before it expires this time. That is if it will run the Leica 1200 and not just a Geomax.?ÿ
Think you'll find XPad easy to use, and isn't as buggy as the software your currently using from your comments on here, not perfect but good. Not sure if it does run Lecia as the two brands like to keep some distance between each other, two different value propositions.
I use the Trimble TDC600 for GPS, and T7 for GPS and total station work. I also have access on my laptop as a backup, as I often work far from home.?ÿ
Last week in Guyana i found a guy with a boat to give us a ride to some points up a narrow canal in the rice fields. Getting back into the boat I had my cell phone in my back pocket, and I put the TDC600 in the same pocket. Getting in to the boat I heard and felt a crack. The hand strap on the TDC600 busted the screen on my cell phone. Totally unusable. Nothing happened at all to the TDC600. I always carry a spare cell phone (google fi), so I was able to continue working. The good thing was the guy (and two helpers) didn't charge me for the boat ride, which was about 3 hours. He wouldn't even take gas money.?ÿ?ÿ
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Also did a lot of points by tractor down totally impassable roads, could not even walk on these roads, my boots kept getting stuck until I was exhausted. So we found a guy with a big tractor and paid him $50 for about 5 hours of transport. He had a helper too, so it was me, my guide, the driver, and another guy riding on the tractor, I was basically riding on the trailer hitch. But that is another story for another day...
That is one of my favorite all time videos. I had been chased off that road by a momma/baby bear pair the day before (explanation for OC).
I only showed ~1800 feet from my phone to the long range Bluetooth handle on the Z90. It is not obvious, but as I drove away, the phone was in my breast pocket, updating continuously.
I know for sure that it works on a Google Pixel 4a phone and a Samsung S21. I suspect that any modern phone with "Bluetooth 5.0, A2DP, LE, aptX HD" will do the same.?ÿ
In that video, when I got out of the truck, I deleted the Bluetooth paring to the robot and did a find and pair at ~1800 feet. Again, I made a clean connection which was just unimaginable until I discovered I could do it.
If I walk away with the phone on the pole (not in your pocket, not in the cab of the truck) I can get > 2100 feet distant in that open country. Which was surprising to me because I can barely get 900 feet to a Mesa 3 / RT4 by standing on one foot and jumping and holding my mouth in a grimace.
I started out with a 7" tablet which was really nice, but I now much prefer the smallest screen possible. I can read the screen just as well, the screen is a little brighter and it fits in my pocket. I only have to carry one device. I leave it on the pole if I am going 50'. If I am going 1/2 mile I put it in my pocket. The Pixels run all day on a charge, but I can charge from 20% to 70% in the time it takes me to eat lunch. When I had an 'accident' a few months ago Amazon delivered the replacement the next day. So the entire data collector is the same price as a screen replacement on the collectors we have sold in the past. I have also upgraded to a OtterBox case with a nice screen protector.
I have Samsung Bluetooth earbuds too. I listen to music on Spotify, talk on the phone and use the X-PAD voice navigation (which is really good). I am totally converted. If an old boomer like me can figure it out, anybody can.
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The new Zoom 95 has some kind of medium range Bluetooth built into the main board. So without the LRBluetooth handle I can go 750 feet to the robot directly. For most construction work that is way good enough. This means you can save another $1800 on the robot kit by doing a 'Long Range Bluetooth Handle Delete'. Bluetooth 5 makes a lot of neat stuff possible.
I'm picking you don't have to use the screen in the rain too often in your neck of the woods? We're more like the PNW here and can't find hardly any phones with a rain mode and not sure if putting a case over them would help out hinder the wet screen issue.
@lukenz If it rains more than 1 drop every foot I have to get in the truck. Don't own any raingear, not sure if you can even buy good rain gear here.?ÿ
If it is -30F with 30+MPH winds then no problem, I have clothes for that. But no rain.
By chance, I got caught out in a complete, total downpour last Thursday afternoon. First time in probably 5 years. Continuous thunder, hail, pouring rain, 1/2" standing on ground. Was 2 miles from pickup. Phone was okay because I have a big cowboy hat and was able to hold the screen under brim to take pictures of my predicament. I was absolutely shocked at how wet you can get.
One local firm seems to have a "policy" that if you slap an a5 size page from a field book on the truck windscreen and get more than four drops of rain in a minute you stay in truck. The rest of us usually get somewhat damper with the odd shower but I draw the line at wrecking good equipment in solid rain (GNSS not the problem, more poles, tripods and tapes)
@lukenz?ÿ
Poles and tripods don't die in the rain, but there gets to be a point where you just can't use the touch screen on the data collector. Hardly ever use a tape measure - but they are just disposable items.
I'm old enough that when I started in this game you packed up the moment you saw any raindrops - you could not afford to ruin a T2 with having moss growing on the inside or having the band go rusty.
These days the gear is waterproof - so we have to be too.
And I'm NOT made of brown sugar...
@jimcox?ÿ
Wooden legs wear out way faster if you get them wet often and with working in the rain comes mud/grit which gets into the adjustable poles and makes them chew out much faster, that is from experience working for a busy firms who do try to work in all weather.
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Also invariably you get wet into the equipment boxes which means pulling everything out when you get back to office. In heavy rain often water gets into the optical plummets and they fog up. I don't mind working in the rain just not surveying in it.
@lukenz?ÿ
I'm mostly worried about the radio handle on my robot. Apparently they're prone to failure in the rain. If I'm doing GPS work I'll keep going in the rain.?ÿ
@jimcox?ÿ
I'm not worried about my tablet in the rain, other than it no longer being usable as you said, if it rains heavy enough. I try to get as much of the field work done before the rain, then spend the rainy time measuring in inside corners with the tape, putting in marker stakes, flagging etc and doing notes.?ÿ
I am worried about the radio handle and seals in the 11 year old robot letting water in. It may not be mine and I didn't pay for it, but destroying equipment still makes for a bad day either way. Enough other people have had water damage to their robots that I'm not going to listen to the "you're not made of sugar" comments.?ÿ
For anyone wondering about the Trimble TDC600 being locked re non Trimble branded field data collection applications. On my TDC600, I am currently running Carlson Layout (for BRx7's), and FieldGenius (for Leica GS18's). Next will be Trimble Access (for Trimble R12/R10). The size of the TDC600 is about perfect for rugged boundary surveys. No problems...just wish FieldGenius didn't freeze up so much.
That is very good to know! Should drive XPAD ok then, just a pity it doesn't have Bluetooth v5.0 which would improve the range to the robot.
Looks like good things come to those that wait.
Panasonic have recently released the toughbook S1 which looks to be the solution.
https://na.panasonic.com/us/computers-tablets-handhelds/tablets/tablets/toughbook-s1
