A quick look at the dreaded 457 Send Failure with the Mammut Pulse beacon caused by mobile phones and metal objects such as avalanche shovels. Is the beacon is still transmitting and if so what effect this has on the signal.
The answer depends. A mobile phone directly on top of the beacon (say in a coat pocket next to the beacon) reduced the signal strength by 30 to 50%, however it didn't stop the victim's beacon from transmitting a usable signal but be careful about search strip widths and erratic readings.
@davidof, I am fairly sure that all beacons suffer from this to a greater or lesser extent, it is just that the Barryvox Pulse has the ability to display an error when the situation exists. It is a bit like the iPhone that that was attacked by the other manufacturers because had reduced performance depending on the way it was held, until Apple released video that exactly the same thing happened to all the other similar phones, and it was quietly forgotten about.
I know that the Pieps DSP Pro and the BCA Tracker 3 are disrupted by heated gloves in the same way as the Barryvox Pulse (I've tested them).
.... It is a bit like the iPhone that that was attacked by the other manufacturers because had reduced performance depending on the way it was held, until Apple released video that exactly the same thing happened to all the other similar phones, and it was quietly forgotten about.
@davidof, I am fairly sure that all beacons suffer from this to a greater or lesser extent
Yes they do but a number of people have been concerned that the Mammut Pulse stops transmitting after a 457 send failure, it is a bit worrying as a message so I just wanted to test the effects.
You can hear the interference with this Ortovox beacon.
As for whether or not you keep your phone switched on or off, I think snowheads can make their own decisions within any group they are skiing with.
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
@davidof, Fair points, and as the video clip shows, it is easy to test by searching at home. As for phones, I thought the recommendation was thigh pockets (assuming you are not touring with the beacon in a thigh pocket).
Anyway one advantage of the Pulse harness is that it is designed to sit much higher on the middle of the chest than other beacons (for the pulse function), so it is few more cm away from your phone, if the phone is in a thigh pocket. But conversely in a worse position, if your phone is a chest pocket.
As other have said, my phone is off unless needed, or in flightsafe mode if I want to take a picture. But then again, I'm not one of those surgically attached to my phone.
After all it is free
After all it is free
@PowderAdict,
Quote:
or in flightsafe mode if I want to take a picture
not sure this will be sufficient in the case of a smartphone. There is so much stuff going on in a smartphone that has nothing to do with whether the phone is enabled for service that I suspect there may well still be a problem even though it is in flight mode (even when it is enabled for service it is only receiving something for a few ms once a second and will transmit a short burst once every 10 minutes or so).