Mobile GPS tracking offers a highly robust and flexible route for field resource management and worker safety.
As GPS-enabled handsets are more frequently launched in the marketplace, the availability to consumers and businesses alike is far greater than ever in the past. The opportunity to trial GPS-enabled handsets is very high, given the availability, ease of deployment and very low cost entry costs. Without the need for dedicated hardware or subsidized models of hardware pricing, the need for contracts is also abolished. Thus, more and more companies are choosing to empower their business with mobile handset GPS tracking. Below is an overview of dedicated GPS tracking and mobile handset tracking options as well as their pros and cons:
Hard Install GPS Asset Tracking
Advantages:
- Dedicated Device (GPS Only & Only for this vehicle)
- Hardwire powered, no need for alternate sources of power
- ID doesn’t change based on changes in driver, etc.
Disadvantages:
- Dedicated cost of hardware
- Additional cost of telecom and tracking
- Installation costs
- Time to install and configure is quite burdensome
- 1-1 ratio, only tracks the asset
Mobile Handset Tracking
Advantages:
- Deploys on current wireless handset system (No additional hardware cost or configuration required)
- Very small incremental cost of less than $0.75 per day
- Can install on 10 units or 100 units in same amount of time (eg. BES deployment)
- No installation charges
- Not associated only with the asset, but the individual mobile worker
- Tracks assets as well as workers
- Alerts for safety available via SOS dedicated buttons
Disadvantages
- Extra draw on battery if high frequency of data location reporting
As you can see, mobile handset tracking has more advantages as compared to dedicated GPS tracking. It also has far fewer disadvantages when compared to dedicated GPS tracking. For more information on how to take advantage of mobile handset tracking, contact us today.