my phone compass point in a different direction,why?

[presta]

I lost an atlas page from the bike once, when the vacuum at the back of a passing lorry popped the map holder open.

 

[Bristolian]

Thanks @ebikeerwidnes and @Bristolian I've often wondered why my phone compass is so poor.

Given all the potential interference from cycle equipment is it worth having a compass mounted on one's bike? I'm just interested, not planning to use one.

Is it necessary to spend a significant amount to get a compass that won't suffer from interference?

TBH, I wouldn't expect too much interference from your bike itself unless the frame is steel.

A compass that was completely immune to interference would be self-defeating - it wouldn't work if you block out all the magnetic fluxes around it. The Army used to fit a quasi-compass to a small number of main battle tanks back in the 1970's but at over £10,000 each back then they were treated with kid gloves and hardly ever used. The only place I saw them used was in BATUS - a 2,500 square mile training area in Canada that was just rolling prairie with virtually no features that could be used for map reading. They were installed in each troop leaders' tank so 1 in 4 vehicles.

 

[rogerzilla]

I lost an atlas page from the bike once, when the vacuum at the back of a passing lorry popped the map holder open.

The time triallist's dream. Back when I was young and indestructible, I'd practise on the Hollywood bypass in Birmingham (the much-missed K37/10 course). Almost 30mph *uphill* was possible if four HGVs passed in succession.

 

[mjr]

Gemini is telling me that Google automatically switches the magnetometer off if it senses that it's being interfered with.

🤣 Gemini really will repeat anything it read on Reddit one time!

 

[presta]

🤣 Gemini really will repeat anything it read on Reddit one time!

Well Samsung say the phone has a magnetometer, and it's totally unresponsive to magnetic fields, so something has switched it off, and it isn't me.

 

[mjr]

Well Samsung say the phone has a magnetometer, and it's totally unresponsive to magnetic fields, so something has switched it off, and it isn't me.

How are you trying to access it? Not all apps do, and the methods for apps to do it have changed over the years.

 

[Banjo]

A phone has a speaker which will be magnetic and deviate your bike compass if they are mounted close to each other.

 

[Mr Celine]

When using the OS app on my phone the pointer only shows the correct direction if the phone is tilted upwards at a 45 degree angle. If held flat, the most sensible orientation for map reading, it's adding about 60 degrees. If held vertically it's out by 30 degrees the other way.
When tilted the pointer moves +/- 20 degrees or so depending on the position of the case flap, which has a magnet. When flat or vertical this has very little effect.

When hill walking I use a map and a proper compass.

 

[simongt]

Call me old fashioned, but although I have a compass app on my cellphone, I always take a good quality hand compass with me when I go exploring.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

Call me old fashioned, but although I have a compass app on my cellphone, I always take a good quality hand compass with me when I go exploring.

No - never

a paper map and magnetic compass will never run out of power
phone do
and they also require signals and stuff like that

and Mountain Rescue can confirm that!
(as can the RNLI)

they can do things that paper and magnets can't - like send text messages

but when they run out of electrons they are useless

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

No - never

a paper map and magnetic compass will never run out of power
phone do
and they also require signals and stuff like that

and Mountain Rescue can confirm that!
(as can the RNLI)

they can do things that paper and magnets can't - like send text messages

but when they run out of electrons they are useless

BTW - I heard some years ago that if you are in deep **** and have no signal
and need help

then sending a text message is still worth doing
it needs less signal
and keeps trying so once in a while it will gets through when a call won't
possibly some time after but they sometimes do

 

[Dadam]

and Mountain Rescue can confirm that!

But contacting Mountain Rescue with your paper map and compass can be tricky. You could maybe set fire to the map and do smoke signals but if you need mountain rescue the weather might not be conducive to lighting a fire.

 

[Profpointy]

Mine gets its knickers in a twist now and again, which can be quite confusing when I can't tie in where it's pointing to what I can see. It's fixed by turning it off and on again

 

[DRM]

But contacting Mountain Rescue with your paper map and compass can be tricky. You could maybe set fire to the map and do smoke signals but if you need mountain rescue the weather might not be conducive to lighting a fire.

That's why it's recommended to tell someone your planned route, estimated time to be back, with escape routes listed, and carry a whistle, along with a survival bag and some way to make a hot drink, by all means carry a phone, but don't rely on it for navigation, as emergency calls do go out on any network, you do have a chance of a call being recieved once you can get any signal

 

[mjr]

Mine gets its knickers in a twist now and again, which can be quite confusing when I can't tie in where it's pointing to what I can see. It's fixed by turning it off and on again

Do you have the new emergency number on speed dial, or memorised? 😉

I use Trail Sense as phone compass app & it shows sun and moon positions on the compass ring, as a check.