50bowhunter
Active member
I used my phone last month in Wyoming and it worked absolutely perfect. Can’t imagine trying to hunt public land in the west without it.
GPS vs Phone
- Thread starter Brachii
- Start date
JonathonJEB
Active member
my opinion is if i had to pick one it would be the GPS with Chip, but I do enjoy using both to have aerial imagery while out in the field. But app has not worked as fast or accurate as my GPS has.
i could not decided what to trust before taking my first western hunt in October 2017 .i took both .. i am not tech savey what so ever
both have pluses and minuses
if i had to choose one i would go with gps
gps ... battery life , very dependable and easy to use turn it on and your there.. draw back clutter screen too much info
phone ... very adaptable, use friendly better graphics ..draw back battery life .maps slow loading
i hunted in low access area property boundires always changing the gps and chip saved my trip
i would not go with out gps and chip
both have pluses and minuses
if i had to choose one i would go with gps
gps ... battery life , very dependable and easy to use turn it on and your there.. draw back clutter screen too much info
phone ... very adaptable, use friendly better graphics ..draw back battery life .maps slow loading
i hunted in low access area property boundires always changing the gps and chip saved my trip
i would not go with out gps and chip
I was a bit weary of the Onx maps phone app on my central wyoming hunt this year - I figured something would go wrong and I would lose all my waypoints, maps, etc. I was really surprised and now I highly recommend the app. I had zero issues and was able to use the aerial maps to help us follow ravines in our stalk to get into range.
Just make sure you become familiar with the app at home, download all your maps, and get used to using it. I will say that if I were going on a hunt in a wilderness area or more remote hunt I would have the GPS chip for backup. But for my antelope, it was a more easy going hunt and the app saved me some $.
Just make sure you become familiar with the app at home, download all your maps, and get used to using it. I will say that if I were going on a hunt in a wilderness area or more remote hunt I would have the GPS chip for backup. But for my antelope, it was a more easy going hunt and the app saved me some $.
Bigjav
Active member
Well I think the best bet is to have both if possible. The battery life on the gps is way batter than the phone and if you end up in an area that you weren't anticipating and don't have the map downloaded fr that area the app is useless if you don't have service. The phone shows walk in areas that the chip doesn't and the aerial imagery is very helpful as well. This year I tried to be sneaky and download the maps to an iPad to take in my backpack because of the extended battery life compared to the phone but low and behold the iPad isn't the one with cellular capabilities so it was useless. I have the app on my phone but didn't have the maps downloaded and cell service was spotty at best so it was just one more obstacle to overcome.
I've been using back country navigator on my phone for years. It was out before OnX. Plan on getting the OnX app for all the added info they have.
Never had a single navigation problem. Carry a small charge pac in case battery dies. Also carry an old Etrex with camp and parking marked. Have never used it in field since going to the phone. Overhead image mapping is a game changer.
Never had a single navigation problem. Carry a small charge pac in case battery dies. Also carry an old Etrex with camp and parking marked. Have never used it in field since going to the phone. Overhead image mapping is a game changer.
midwesthunter
Well-known member
I use both a garmin with a onx chip and my phone with the app. I like to use the phone since it has a larger screen for looking at terrain, use the garmin for walking and checking up on boundaries since battery last longer.
Jim/Wa
Active member
My Iphone GPS is more accurate than my Garmin, even in airplane mode. The Garmin is garbage for recording total distance and elevation gain -- my etrex 20 doesn't even record total elevation gain but if it did, it has too many outliers to be accurate. The Garmin does, however, use a chip reasonably well and I don't have to keep buying it every year like the phone app. Soooo, I use Onx on the Garmin and use the Iphone to record route and trip data.
efw
Active member
I used downloaded & saved maps while phone was in airplane mode hunting in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wyoming this year and didn’t have any problems whatsoever.
Chips have to be updated annually and I don’t have a desktop so can scout as well on GPS as on phone plus map layers on ap are SUPER useful.
I keep a paper map & compass on me anytime I’m afield so that’s my backup but haven’t needed it w/ phone and pocket portable power supply. I’d never go back.
Chips have to be updated annually and I don’t have a desktop so can scout as well on GPS as on phone plus map layers on ap are SUPER useful.
I keep a paper map & compass on me anytime I’m afield so that’s my backup but haven’t needed it w/ phone and pocket portable power supply. I’d never go back.
Western Traveler1
Well-known member
I am not tech savvy and had trouble downloading the OnX maps and overlays for my WYO elk unit. I discovered OnX employs several techs happy to take your calls.
They walked me through downloading all the maps I wanted taking many calls before I left home. They were polite and helpful. I carry my Garmin with chip (and a paper map for backup). I stored my waypoints on my Garmin but used my phone the most.
They walked me through downloading all the maps I wanted taking many calls before I left home. They were polite and helpful. I carry my Garmin with chip (and a paper map for backup). I stored my waypoints on my Garmin but used my phone the most.
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