How to Select the Right GPS Tracker for Your Needs

Posted on by Sarath
A man holding ALLROUND Finder 4G and a mobile phone in which Finder Portal is opened in it
25
Jun

Understanding the difference between the right GPS Tracker and the best GPS tracker is crucial. The best GPS tracker on the market might be expensive and feature-rich, but it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the right one for you.

So how do you choose the right GPS Tracker from the best GPS Trackers in the market.

Let’s explore further!

Identifying Your Needs

Before choosing a GPS Tracker, it’s essential to specify your needs.

Ask yourself what are you trying to achieve by implementing the GPS Tracking technology?

It is the first step towards selecting the best GPS Tracker because once you started to compare the products without clear idea of what you need to achieve, it is possible that you might end up buying the wrong device.

So pay attention folks.!!

Here are some common scenarios and solution for each:

Child Safety

If your child is going on a trip, you’ll want to know their location at all times and ensure they can contact you in case of danger.

Solution: A tracker device with dedicated SOS button and Realtime tracking is what required here. It should have the best connectivity at all terrain. Unlike any other devices, the SOS button helps two-way communication which is a good choice for ensuring child safety.

Vehicle Security

When leaving your car unattended for few days while you are on your vacation trip, or you are exploring the places on your car or caravan, and you want to secure your vehicle while you are not around.

Solution: Here the security is required mostly when the vehicle is not moving. So, features such as Geo fencing, vibrational alarms and ignition alarms would be a great combination to achieve the security of your vehicle. Of course, live tracking is also a must have thing.

Look for device that provide these features. Also, a device that runs on its battery will provide covertness provided it has long battery life.

Parcel Tracking

You are sending an important parcel across borders, and you just wanted to make sure it arrives the destination perfectly.

Solution: A GPS Tracker with live tracking feature is what we require here. Devices that provide location alert is also preferable in which you will receive alert when the tracker reach specific destination.

This helps you focus on other tasks peacefully and can avoid being constantly checking the location.

Elderly Care

For a grandparent who might lose their way due to medical conditions.

Solution: As discussed earlier, devices with a dedicated SOS button along with live tracking feature is what we need in situation like this.

Pet Safety

Your dog often runs away to explore the world on their own. The anxiety and helplessness that comes with it is something that no one wants to bear.

Solution: There are tracker devices that designed specifically for pet safety. One of the significant factors in pet tracking devices are the design in which it doesn’t get in the way of Dog’s daily activity. Live tracking of course another important thing for sure.

You will be surprised to view the travelled routes of your pet when you are not with them.

Something that you can create a story for sure!!

Few additional features such as LED lights to locate the pet on dark and sounds from tracker device to train pets responds to it are something that worth mentioning here.

Business Applications

Your rent-a-car business need an upgrade in terms of monitoring the asset’s location in any point during the day.

Solution: Here one would focus more on data gathering and convenience of use. A comprehensive dashboard and easy to download reports are the feature that provide valuable insights into your business. In terms of convenience a tracker device that connected directly to the vehicle battery or OBD port would be much suitable because it avoids frequent recharges.

Adventure Safety

Road trip to new destination and camping is something that we all enjoy. The protection of your vehicle on unfamiliar town is what we need to achieve.

Solution: Situation like this would require device that have features such as ignition alert, vibrational alert, and live tracking. Based on the connection type (directly connected to car battery, OBD and Inbuilt battery), additional features such low battery alarm (for inbuilt battery device), device removal alarm (Inbuilt battery device with magnetic back panel), Power disconnection alarm (for devices directly connected to car’s battery) are also good addition.

Avoiding Overcomplication

Remember, the most feature-rich tracker isn’t always necessary. For instance, in the child safety scenario, devices without an SOS button but with other features like a vibrational alarm might overcomplicate the situation. Once you fully understand the alerts and available connection type it is easy for anyone to choose the best tracker (also the right one !!) for your needs.

As the saying goes not everything that glitters is gold.!!

Additional elements to consider

Even though we have outlined different scenarios and the right solution for each in terms of GPS trackers. It is also important to know some basic requirement that every GPS tracker should have no matter what the application areas they used in.

  1. Design: The device should be suitable for its intended use – discreet for vehicles, comfortable for pets, and user-friendly for personal tracking.
  2. Durability: Choose a device that can withstand various climate conditions and everyday wear and tear.
  3. Connectivity: Ensure that the tracker offers reliable network coverage and connectivity.
  4. User Interface: Look for trackers with an app that is responsive and easy to navigate.
  5. Customer Support: Consider the quality of post-sales service and customer support.
  6. Affordability: Evaluate the cost, including any subscription fees, to ensure it fits your budget.

Alerts and Definitions

Those of you who are new to the tracking arena should have confusion about the terminology used in the article.

Let us take a closer look at each one of them.

  1. Geofencing: On your tracking application, you can set a virtual area on you map and set up alert whenever the tracker device enters or leaves this area. Hence the term Geo fencing.It is one of the highly used alerts in GPS tracking. The efficiency of this alert relies on how fast the system can notify the breach.
  2. Ignition alert: The Ignition Alert is a feature specifically designed for vehicles, which sends a notification to your phone whenever the car’s engine starts. This is particularly useful for monitoring your vehicle’s security. For instance, imagine you’ve parked your car at the airport before a flight. While you’re away, if your car’s engine is started, the Ignition Alert will immediately notify you, allowing you to take swift action. It’s recommended to activate this feature when you expect your car to remain stationary for long periods, like during a trip, to avoid frequent alerts during regular use.
  3. Vibrational Alarm: When this alert is enabled, you will receive notification if there is unwanted vibration on the car which is a sign of vandalism. Great way to prevent theft while parked in public area or places that have previous record of car theft.
  4. Live tracking: As the name suggests the tracker device will show you the live location of your car by using the GPS coordinates. One should note that, unlike GPS on your car which works free of cost, there is subscription involved while using the GPS Tracker.
  5. GPS Accuracy: This is something bit more technical. GPS accuracy is measured in meters and it depends on various factors. If the GPS accuracy of a device is said to be 10 meters, it implies that the current location might vary up to 10 meters from what shown in the mobile/desktop app. Lower the GPS accuracy (ie, 8 meters or 5 meters) more accurate the location is.

Conclusion

In short, Choosing the right GPS Tracker is about matching its features to your specific needs. It’s an investment that requires careful consideration. In this article we just covered some common scenarios that one should encounter in their daily life. If you have any specific scenario in which you think GPS tracker would be a great fit, I welcome you to comment on this article.