Track Pets And Property With Garmin GTU 10

I?ve been pretty harsh with my criticism of Garmin but their latest announcement coming courtesy of AT&T us actually quite interesting. They?ve got a small device called the GTU 10 that you can attach to the collar of a pet or to other property and track it online or through a smartphone. If you?re worried the new puppy might scamper away, the GTU 10 could be a nice security blanket.

(Device shown is not Garmin, for conceptual purposes only)

The best feature in my opinion is the ability to create up to 10 boundary lines and when the tracker crosses certain boundaries, the owner is alerted through E-Mail or other preferred messaging solution. This automated monitoring could definitely ease some minds.

What else could you use the GTU 10 for? Most of my ideas include either a small child or pet, snooping/spying on a person/spouse, or for some reason attaching it to outrageously expensive property that might grow legs and walk away. So yeah, for me the uses are extremely limited. Feel free to provide your own ideas in the comments.

If you DID have the perfect reason to buy the GTU 10, I?m afraid the cost and limitations make it a rather unattractive proposition. The device costs $199 which comes with 1-year of service, but you can only see the most recent 10 locations recorded. Pay $4.99 extra/month and you can get a complete history of the previous 7-days. Note to Garmin: just give all the information to everyone who invests in this rather than the nickel and dime thing, please.

I?m not even sure the Garmin GTU 10 will have an Android Application. The press release notes smartphone access, but they could simply have a mobile optimized website. However, I thought this was an interesting idea to explore because with Android Open Accessory on the way, we?re going to be seeing a lot more innovation in these types of solutions.

Source: http://phandroid.com/2011/05/12/track-pets-and-property-with-garmin-gtu-10/

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