Hi all,
we've been happily using a fleet of Samsung Tab A 2019 8" tablets across sub-tropical turtle nesting beaches in Western Australia. Unfortunately, they are now at end of life and we're looking for replacement models. Together with silicone sleeves, tempered glass screen protectors and neoprene sleeves for transport, we were in turtle monitoring heaven.
Some tablets being prepared...
Two last batches heading out to two sub-tropical islands off the Pilbara coast, Thevenard and Delambre Island
Previously we've used the AU$ 100 Lenovo Tab3 7", which unfortunately had a sluggish GPS chip and no really good protective sleeve option. Here's our device shoot-out of our pre-Samsung Tab A 2019 trials.
The winning factors turned out to be the "iPad mini" form factor (8" display) and a fast GPS chip, combined with a AU$ 250 price for tablet and covers.
The holy grail we haven't found yet would include a powerful PIT tag scanner (reading through a human forearm would be enough) and a reliable compass (for bearings).
Pit tags are rice-grain sized passive integrated transponders (PIT) applied into turtles by syringes like these. They end up ca 5cm deep inside the animal's shoulder but can migrate through the muscle. A good approximation to test PIT tag scanners is to cover a PIT tag with a human forearm and scan through the arm. To my knowledge, there are no PIT tag scanners integrated into tablets yet. Domestic pets have PIT tags implanted (known as microchips) under the skin between the shoulders, where a scanner only needs to penetrate skin. Horses have PIT tags too, so any solution here would also benefit equestrian uses.
Our corporate supplier recommends as a replacement model the Samsung Tab A7 lite. Has anyone used this device so far?
What are everyone's favourite tablets to run ODK Collect?
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Hi @Florian_May, Hope you are well!
I used Samsung tab a7 lite for data collection purposes for 45 days approx. The best thing about this tab is its compact size and our data collectors appreciate this tab as battery optimization is also good for this tab.This tab has good GPS antenna connection which help to take GPS connection.
I am not sure if you have Redmi9A phone in your country. We used Redmi phones in one data collection and these cost us nearly $100. The main concern to choosing Redmi phones in India is they are cheap, have the nice build quality, also have a WIFI scan function so we can easily connect any redmi phone with the same WIFI connection from scanning another redmi's QR code. However, there is one negative point which is they do not come with a compass chip in a phone so in the field survey where you need to find out the northeast corner then you need to use another device to identify the northeast corner which we used in the census.
Now come on PIT tag scanner, I never did this however I used Redmi7A then 9A and these phones have good algorithms where they can scan bar codes quickly and accurately.
Now let's come on ODK Build, I have Samsung tab S6 lite LTE with Logitech keyboard with this I can work on ODK Build with my tab. I got this tab in $300, in a sale in India.
One last point you mention about the iPad mini, it's much expensive, does not support much android software. So, I do not recommend using any iOS device for data collection(if we have nearby 200 data collectors then NO if we have a few data collectors as one or two and budget allows then go ahead).
Best,
@iamnarendrasingh
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Thanks for sharing your experiences, @iamnarendrasingh ! I've clarified a few points in my post. My tired eyes mixed up Build and Collect, fixed now.
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We also tend to opt for Samsung Tab A range, either with or without sim card slot.
Galaxy Tab Active is OK too. The tab active is cheap as chips at the moment. Not amazing processors but perfectly functional for using Collect.
Overall, my experience is that the Samsung tablets have great build quality
PIT scanning isn't on my radar as people tend to complain more than turtles if you give them a sub-dermal implant. With PIT not being widely used for consumer levels stuff afaik there's no tablet with this built in.
Best tablets I ever had were 2013 Google Nexus 7. Built to last! I still have a dozen of those in action after going around the world a hundred times, though sadly soon to be retired.
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What is the current state of the art in 2022 for field hardware?
Tablets
I am currently using Galaxy Tab S6 (LTE but without SIM) and have just acquired Galaxy Tab S8+ / S8 Ultra units to trial.
Benefits of the Galaxy Tab S series are
- Speed, especially with complicated forms/massive CSVs
- High resolution, allowing for increased annotated image resolution (4 - 5.5MP equiv)
- Large screen provides more area for selections/columns/annotations etc
- Good handwriting recognition (offline)
- Have a GPS chip even in wireless only models
- Can operate in DeX mode either alone (with bluetooth or folio keyboard/mouse) or with external display and tablet acts as touchpad or second screen, great for review
- This allows windowed mode for up to five apps with window transparency - I have run Collect in one window, joined a Zoom call in another plus kept a browser open; shared my screen and demonstrated Collect form capture before switching to the browser to show the results in Central
- Active s-pen stylus
- More precise screen input
- Can use pen while wearing gloves
- Can trigger camera shutter remotely with pen button, reducing screen shake, or allowing extended one arm positioning
- Good battery life and very fast charging (45W for S8) (S6 LTE with 15W charging managed 12hr shifts with charging during meal breaks)
- Long period of software support
Downsides of the Galaxy Tab S series
- Cost - especially if you need a fleet of them, and cost of spare s-pens (~$80ea)
- Not waterproof (IP67+) or ruggedised
- Too large for some use cases (11/12.4/14.6")
- Device cameras are wide and normal, no optical telephoto option
A silicone&plastic "rugged" case provides bump protection, a handhold/stand and a neck/shoulder strap. eg (1) and (2). Won't prevent from a direct screen strike or submerging. I have used the shoulder strap / hand hold combination for extended periods without discomfort. A 'third leg' strap would be valuable to prevent it swinging out and smashing when climbing ladders etc.
Many of my environments would benefit being truly rugged and IP waterproof and a subset of those would require / have less hurdles if they had ATEX/IECEx certification.
There are some recent (2019) spec devices with certification, many others are generations older in terms of CPU / RAM / camera / display. If there are companies making a custom enclosure for a Tab S7/S8 I would like to know more! They are all, without exception, eye wateringly expensive.
Cameras
The large live view / exposure adjustment and modern image processing gets 90% of the way there for image capture, but occasionally I need a real flash or a lengthy telephoto.
To avoid having to plug in a card reader or keep loading an adhoc wifi network to download images from a camera I searched for a way to push images to the tablet as they are captured. The methods I found were:
-
Eye-fi SD card
-
Toshiba FlashAir SD card
- unsupported since Jan 2020
-
Generic SD card with wireless functionality
- I trialled the uSD to SD version of this card. It worked but the adhoc wifi connection and image push was unreliable. Software is not great.
- Galaxy S22 Ultra / Note 20 Ultra
- replaces tablet & camera but costs more than a Tab S8 Ultra
- IP68 protection
- Ultrawide / wide / 3x tele / 10x tele cameras with advanced image processing
- 7" screen & S-Pen
-
Nikon Snapbridge over BTLE
- Most other camera brands I looked at will connect for social media sharing but won't auto push to device, if there are others I missed, I'd like to know!
- Lots of compatible cameras, including rugged W300, cheap A300, superzoom A900/A1000 and also more pro/prosumer models, including DSLRs. Do not use the B500/B600, it doesn't have an orientation sensor so portrait images will be rotated. Some models are only wifi compatible, these won't push.
-
When tablet is paired to camera, and set to push, all captured images are transmitted in a 2 megapixel version over bluetooth to the tablet approximately 5 seconds after capture. User can take photos, complete form, get to image section and choose select from gallery and images will be there to choose from
- Can connect over ad hoc wifi to control camera and download high resolution images.
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