We love our pets like our kids and siblings. They are cute and pure of heart, but we can’t deny, they are also stupid from time to time and make us worry a lot. It’s not uncommon for pets to get lost while playing around. If they can find their way back home, they come back, but most of them are unable to do so. Since we can’t just let a member of our family live alone in the streets, we don’t let them get lost in the first place.
The best way to ensure your pets can be found easily is by using GPS trackers. These are attached to the collar of the pet, and then you can trace its location using your mobile. Each tracker comes with an app that you install on your mobile phone. Using that app, you can trace and locate the tracker of your pet. However, most people complain about these trackers running out of battery.
It will take you some time before you might realize that the pet is missing, and the tracker must stay online at least until then. If the tracker is turned off, you won’t be able to trace it. This totally ruins the goal of getting that tracker in the first place. Here I have discussed all the factors that impact the battery timings of your pet’s GPS tracker and how you can make it last longer.
Quality of the Device
The first and most important factor that impacts the life of the battery is the device itself. You need to have a device that doesn’t drain much power, and the battery needs to be high quality and high ampere. If even one of them is not up to the standards, you won’t get good battery timings. If the device will turn off at a critical time, there is no point in buying one. Make sure you buy only the best quality tracker even if it costs extra and the one that has a guarantee on its battery timing.
Movement of the Pet
Movement of the pet is also an important factor that affects the timing of a GPS tracker. The more the pet moves, the more active the device has to be. It won’t get any time to standby. If it’s constantly updating the location data of your pet, you can expect the battery to run out sooner. Dogs are usually more active compared to any other pet. This is the reason you should get special gps for dogs that are manufactured considering their behavior. If your pet doesn’t move around much and mostly likes to rest, the battery will last even longer.
Low Cellular Coverage
The area you live in also impacts the life of a GPS. If there is full cellular coverage easily available, the battery will last longer. The GPS has to keep checking for the strongest signals to keep connected. If the signals are low, it still needs to work harder to keep sending location data. This takes more effort of the device and more power from the battery. This issue usually isn’t seen in the cities. However, if you live in a backward area or countryside, then this could affect the battery timings. Sometimes, weather can also affect those cellular signals even if you are in a well-covered area. You can expect a little change in the life of the tracker.
Cooler or Warmer Temperatures
Tracker batteries perform best in room temperature. It means any temperature lower than -5°C or higher than 40°C could affect their timings. The thing is, you can’t control the temperature outside your house, and there is usually no need for the tracker inside the house. So, when you see the weather is not in your favor, you might want to set charging times accordingly. Don’t let the pet go out of the house if the tracker is not fully charged.
Other Features of the Device
Today’s devices come with many additional features. If you get a good quality cat tracker, it won’t only allow you to track your pet’s location but also to communicate with it. For example, you can see the distance with directions showing how far the pet is. You can see the history of where it has been, and you can vibrate and ring a bell in the collar. All of these features are very useful, but each task requires more processing and more battery power. Although batteries are also designed to cover all these features, you can get a longer life if you turn these features off. Many of these features are mostly dependent on the mobile application, so they won’t take much power from the tracker’s battery.
Usage of Live Tracking
Live tracking requires sending current location using wireless signals every few second[1] . This means that the tracker doesn’t get any rest at all and is constantly performing the most battery consuming task. If it’s not necessary, avoid the usage of live tracking. It will keep sending the location of the pet but after a little break. You don’t need to follow the pet with its every single step. This will significantly increase the life of a fully charged battery and give you more time to search for your pet if it gets lost somewhere.
Blocking in GPS Tracker
If the GPS signals are constantly being blocked by something, it will affect tracker’s timings. Without going into the technical details, you can understand that the device has to try harder to obtain valid GPS signals from the satellites in the orbit. Many different things can block these signals. If your pet is inside the house, the tracker has the optimal temperature, but walls and roof make it hard for signals to go through. You might have noticed that you get strong cellular signals in your basement, GPS tracker also faces a similar issue. It will keep sending the location, but it will have to work harder for it.