tracker choice

wytnyt · Dec 30, 2017

ive been going around and around on buying the best tracker-probably more so than deciding on my choice of which drone to buy
please guys/gals help a guy decide

sar104 · Dec 30, 2017

wytnyt said:
ive been going around and around on buying the best tracker-probably more so than deciding on my choice of which drone to buy
please guys/gals help a guy decide

It really depends on where you are flying:

Good GSM coverage: Trackimo.

Everywhere else: Marco Polo.

msinger · Dec 30, 2017

Another perk of the Marco Polo tracker is that it has no monthly fee.

wytnyt · Dec 30, 2017

msinger said:
Another perk of the Marco Polo tracker is that it has no monthly fee.

the fees dont concern me,i can cut the kids allowance,i just want the best one
i was leaning towards the trackimo but it has several concerning reviews on amazon.

maxfaxdude · Dec 30, 2017

Lost the Mavic once with an Atti mode fly away. Never found it. Immediately bought the Marco Polo. I've used it to find the Mavic twice. The first time I flew into a tree about 30 yards away. The foliage was so dense, I couldn't see the Mavic but found and rescued it with the Marco Polo Tracker. The second incident occurred just 2 months ago. Flying way out in the desert. I flew a little too far out and had to land in hilly terrain about 3/4 mile from my takeoff point with just 2% battery left. Out comes the Marco Polo tracker and it lead me to the Mavic in less than 15 minutes.

maxfaxdude · Dec 30, 2017

The Marco Polo has:
1) A 2+ mile range
2) Works in hilly and mountainous terrain
3) Has no monthly or yearly fees
4) Does not rely on 3rd party networks

wytnyt · Dec 30, 2017

maxfaxdude said:
Lost the Mavic once with an Atti mode fly away. Never found it. Immediately bought the Marco Polo. I've used it to find the Mavic twice. The first time I flew into a tree about 30 yards away. The foliage was so dense, I couldn't see the Mavic but found and rescued it with the Marco Polo Tracker. The second incident occurred just 2 months ago. Flying way out in the desert. I flew a little too far out and had to land in hilly terrain about 3/4 mile from my takeoff point with just 2% battery left. Out comes the Marco Polo tracker and it lead me to the Mavic in less than 15 minutes.

sounds good,i like that its compact and doesnt send out constant signals.

BD0G · Dec 31, 2017

Yup, The Trackimo relies on GSM cellular networks. So if you have no cell service then you have no Mavic Pro. Even worse the older Trackimo's rely on 2 G Cellular networks that are being decommissioned by many cellular providers. It is my understanding that the newer Trackimo's Now use the 3 G networks.

Dabrain · Dec 31, 2017

I don't need no stinking Cellular Network. Seriously lost MP deep in the forest hills in Oregon, found MP in about 50 min. Marco Polo led me right to the MP.

Pixar · Dec 31, 2017

Just ordered my 3rd MarcoPolo last week

Callum · Dec 31, 2017

Chinese GPS tracker.

Because trackimo is a rip off, and Marco Polo don't make a version for Europe.

Pixar · Dec 31, 2017

what does Europe have to do with not be able to use Marco Polo there? Just wondering since its a system all its own.

Callum · Dec 31, 2017

Pixar said:
what does Europe have to do with not be able to use Marco Polo there? Just wondering since its a system all its own.

It's not legal to use that frequency in Europe. It's reserved and used for mobile communication and land and maritime military.
In the UK it's used by one of the operators for 3G coverage.

So I'm not sure wether it's just the legal side or wether interference near cell towers would cause issues as well.

There are plenty of frequencies they could use but they only seem to be interested in catering for the states..

Pixar · Dec 31, 2017

Interesting, thanks for the info.

Panamawise · Mar 4, 2018

Callum said:
It's not legal to use that frequency in Europe. It's reserved and used for mobile communication and land and maritime military.
In the UK it's used by one of the operators for 3G coverage.

So I'm not sure wether it's just the legal side or wether interference near cell towers would cause issues as well.

There are plenty of frequencies they could use but they only seem to be interested in catering for the states..

Hi, I just lost my Mavic in the Republic of Panama... I wonder if Marco Polo would work in that country.

Callum · Mar 4, 2018

Panamawise said:
Hi, I just lost my Mavic in the Republic of Panama... I wonder if Marco Polo would work in that country.

They dont seem to use those frequencies for mobile communication and cant see any official spectrum allocation table so dont see why not.

Panamawise · Mar 4, 2018

Callum said:
They dont seem to use those frequencies for mobile communication and cant see any official spectrum allocation table so dont see why not.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. Marco Polo, although a bit expensive appears to be the most reliable solution. I wonder, of course, what happens to a disconnected drone... if it plummets like a stone, then there's not much point investing more money to retrieve the debris!

sar104 · Mar 4, 2018

Panamawise said:
Hi, I just lost my Mavic in the Republic of Panama... I wonder if Marco Polo would work in that country.

It will work anywhere, since it doesn't rely on any infrastructure - it's simplex communication from the tracker to the handset. Whether or not the frequencies that it uses are approved for such a use in any particular country is a different question.