Accuracy GPS trackers can be useful for many things. If you're going on a trip, chances are you have a GPS device in your car to help you get to your destination. But GPS can do much more. Tractive GPS Pet Tracker makes it easy for you to know exactly where your dog or cat is at all times. Unlike a pet cup, the tracker broadcasts the pet's current location in real time. Theoretically, you can also use it to determine the location of small children, but the device is mainly used to monitor pets. To determine the position, the integrated antenna of the tracker receives the signals of the GPS satellites. The maximum deviation here is 7.8 meters.
Usability
On the back is a sticker with a QR code for activation and four small metal contacts. You have to clamp the charger exactly to these contacts to charge the device, which is quite inconvenient. The fully sealed device is completely waterproof. The clips for the Tractive GPS tracker are not particularly robust attachments. They consist of simple plastic mounts that an adventurous puppy can quickly lose in the undergrowth. Recommended for animals weighing 4.5 kg or more.
Somewhat problematic is the attachment of the tracker to the collar of the animal. May need to buy a standard collar if your dog has a special collar. However, it is not a big deal to change dog collars, especially if it allows you to take advantage of Tractive GPS Pet Tracker.
Battery
In addition to the device, the box contains a manual, two plastic clips to attach to a necklace, a clip-on USB charging cable, and a multi-country charger that plugs into a wall outlet.
Battery performance is dependent on individual usage and environmental factors such as temperature and network coverage. Under normal conditions, the average battery life is 2 to 5 days. It can take up to 9 hours for the battery to fully charge again.
Size
The Tractive device itself is a white rounded rectangle measuring 51 x 41 x 15 mm and weighing 35 grams. It doesn't look too obtrusive on a collar, the logo is printed on it. There is a push button on the device for on-. Switching off as well as a small LED to indicate various settings. Where red indicates low battery, white flashes indicate live tracking, green indicates cellular and / or GPS networks where available.
Using the Tractive app, a user profile can be created for the Setting up the GPS Tracker. The app is available for iOS, Android and as a web interface and provides all the basic services. These are for example creating a safe zone or remotely switching the LED display of the tracker. However, some features (like AR tracking) are only available for cell phones. With the GPS app, multiple pets can be monitored at the same time.
The setup process requires a little more than scanning the QR code on the back of the tracker (on the web, you enter a text code). The usual information is then requested for the profile including breed. One user account can be created for multiple animals. Among the advantages is that you can share all the information with other people, so several people can track the animal. The Tractive GPS tracker can be used in more than 150 countries around the world.
Processing
The Tractive GPS tracker does its job of actively tracking pets outside very well. The clips that hold the tracker to the collar are not entirely unproblematic and do not look particularly stable. Otherwise, the device works very confidently and is completely waterproof, which is an advantage especially for dogs that like to take a bath sometimes. The Tractive app is user-friendly and clearly laid out.
Conclusion
Unlike other pet GPS trackers that use either a base station or a Wi-Fi router in the home to create a safe zone, the Tractive app uses signals from GPS satellites. A safe zone is the area where the animal can stay without any problems. Only when this zone is left, the device reacts with an alarm. Most GPS trackers offer a circular safe zone (also called virtual fence or geofence), Tractive offers circles and rectangles. This is very nice, because as a rectangle, it is easier to adjust the safe zone to property boundaries than with a circular safe zone.
When a pet leaves the safe zone, notifications are sent as push notifications to a smartphone. There are no SMS or email options at this time. Subscribers can also see what distance the animal has traveled. With so-called live tracking, the position is determined every 2 to 3 seconds. The movement path of the animal recorded.
Once the pet is outside the safe zone, you can start active tracking with a click of the LIVE button. That checks its position every few seconds. To save battery, automatically turns off after 15 minutes. There is a timeline that informs you when this happens. Restarting is annoying, especially when the pet is on the run, but without compromising the battery, I guess it can't be done. Other than that, the battery life is pretty good. Without live tracking, the battery will last approximately five days . The more often the pet leaves the house, the faster the battery loses power.
If you have received a report of the pet's activity in the last 24 hours, you can export the data to a GPX or KML file. These are XML formats for storing coordinates. Geographical information. You can also use a program such as Google Earth to view the route on the map.