Some stuff I learned tracking down this non-story:
- No service provider in Canada has a service like the ones to debut in Finland although the first GPS-enabled cell phone handsets in Canada. )
- A company in the U.S. called Wherify offers a 'Child Locator' service using GPS systems and digital PCS phones. The service is available only in the U.S.
- In all cases, be it Finland, Telus, or Wherify, a consumer GPS deviced can be easily defeated by someone who wants to remain hidden. That is most easily done by simply moving indoors. Consumer GPS systems do not work unless there is a line-of-sight connection to a satellite. Providers are working to get around this limitation mostly by using digital PCS phone transmitters to act as locators. Even still, digital PCS coverage is spotty in many areas and can also be defeated in, say, a parking garage or a subway. And, of course, relying on a cell phone network to transmit data means the cell phone network has to work. And not just any cell phone network but a digital PCS network. Travelling to a remote area or an area where the only cellphone coverage is old-fashioned analog cellular will defeat the GPS system. In all cases, the devices will be defeated as soon as the battery wears out. We're all familiar with how long batteries last in cellphones. They are most quickly drained by making calls. Using them for GPS would drain them even faster. The makers of the Wherify device (it's a thick wrist-watch device that gets locked to a kids' wrist) lasts for about 60 hours before it needs recharging.
