Anti-theft, GPS thief positioning, owner-recognizing....bottle cage!

[Andre Jute]

Not necessarily recommended because I have no experience of the product, but interesting:

Anti-theft, GPS thief positioning, owner-recognizing....bottle cage!
https://www.banggood.com/CYCPLUS-007-Bottle-Cage-GPS-Anti-theft-IPX67-Waterproof-Shockproof-Intelligent-Unlock-Hidden-Design-p-1160427.html

The first year is free, the second year has a subscription payable via the app but it is less than USD5 so I wouldn't worry about it; I presume it is to pay to keep the GPS service alive.

[David Simpson]

I am trying to figure out how this device notifies you of its location. It has GPS so that it can determine where it is, but how does it let you know where it is (after the bike is stolen)? It seems that you need to buy a SIM card for this device, and presumably pay a monthly charge to your mobile phone company.

- DaveS

[Andre Jute]

I am trying to figure out how this device notifies you of its location. It has GPS so that it can determine where it is, but how does it let you know where it is (after the bike is stolen)? It seems that you need to buy a SIM card for this device, and presumably pay a monthly charge to your mobile phone company.

- DaveS

Down the page, read under "About Positioning" that it broadcasts the position of the stolen bike continuously for 30 hours, so you have that long to recover your bike; nearby it is implied that the condition is that the battery must be at least 50% charged.

You don't need to buy a SIM card, you can get one free under various pay-as-you-go schemes, and those are topped up by prepayments, so you don't pay a monthly charge either.

It seems to me the phone card's financial health isn't the limiting factor, but the battery life is.

[David Simpson]

I see. So you would get a pay-as-you-go SIM card, and you would only be charged when the bike was stolen and the device was sending its location. That makes more sense.

Yes, I agree that 30 hours is rather short. However, it is 30 more hours that you would have without the device.

- DaveS

[Pavel]

A sim gives an ID for the telephone network. But it does need to be able to communicate with cell towers somehow, so I would think a monthly data fee would be needed. That $5 per year makes me suspicious that the company shall not be around for long.

I'm mystified as to why not put in a more powerful battery - and of course the more popular a device such as this gets, the more likely that it would be removed by the thief. One hidden inside the bikes' tube, now that would be my preference, along with a longer life battery. Add some storage capacity and a music player and a headphone jack while at it, please.

[Andre Jute]

....so I would think a monthly data fee would be needed.

No. You get a SIM card free, maybe the mobile provider gives you some free time on it to attract your business, otherwise load it with a fiver's worth of time, and you're set.

However, many of the providers of pay as you go cards demand that you make at least one chargeable call every month (or some other arrangement), so you might have to take that card out and put it in a phone and make a call, or at least test its theft signal once a month. It's not free after you pay the initial capital charge of the bottle cage and associated electronics and SIM card, that's for sure, but the ongoing cost needn't be more than a few dollars a year.

[David Simpson]

One hidden inside the bikes' tube, now that would be my preference...

Both the GPS and the mobile phone transmitter wouldn't work very well inside a metal bike tube. Ideally, the battery and main parts would be inside the bike tube, and the GPS antenna and mobile phone antenna outside. But that would make for a more complicated installation process.

Following your trail of thought... it would be nice to have a larger capacity rechargeable battery inside a bike tube, powered by the dyno hub (or house mains when at home), and powering all the electronic devices on the bike (lights, GPS, mobile phone, sound system, ...). It would definitely add weight, but I suspect that most of us on this forum are more concerned with comfort than weight.

- DaveS

[Pavel]

David.  If you build it ... I will come. 

[John Saxby]

This is all you need: https://www.anker.com/products/A1211012

Light, compact, smooooth, lives inside a handlebar bag, hooked up to a Sinewave (in my case) or something similar, snoozin' and chargin' all day; then the end of the day and into the evening, you just charge up whatever needs a boost. Will handle a couple of items simultaneously if you have a splitter, which Sinewave thoughtfully supplies. Works with my Panasonic camera, my old-but-still-sound Moto G phone, an Eneloop double-batt charger, and my Cygolite headlamp.  As a rule, only a couple of these require charging at the same time, but the Anker recharges them in an hour or two at most, using only around 30% of its capacity.  (I rarely let my electronic wotsits run down beyond 50%.)