This is weird. I got an automated alert that a “Demo (EZ1000)” unit entered my house.
Weird alert that "Demo" entered my house
I didn’t think too hard about it, but it was exactly when I got home in my wife’s car. I figured a developer was testing something new.
Then I got a couple other alerts telling me the unit left, then re-entered my house. That’s just strange.
So I finally realized, we’re going to a trade show Sunday (Rocky Mountain Fleet Manager’s Association) in Salt Lake City. Ryan Driscoll, our Marketing Manager, put a suitcase full of GPS Insight devices in my car when I was at the office so I could take them to the airport.
I realized he probably left the sample EZ-1000 turned on, inside the box, inside the suitcase, inside my truck, inside my garage.
It still tracked me within 15 feet of its actual location (just as good as the other devices inside of the garage):
EZ-1000 tracks me within 15 feet while inside a suitcase in my hatch
Here is a picture of the suitcase full of devices, & the box containing the EZ-1000 labeled “Demo” — I opened it & turned it off:
EZ-1000 location in the suitcase full of GPS Insight devices
It was a little weird being tracked without knowing it…
This is EXACTLY why we don’t sell GPS Tracking devices unless we ensure they are for corporate or municipal/state use. EZ-1000′s in particular can be easily abused & used to track people without their knowledge. We only sell them to companies using them for legitimate reasons — typically for security guards or occasional use tracking of their vehicles or high value shipments.
The EZ-1000 is a very easy device to give out for demo purposes though, so we do that occasionally as well, as long as we know the company is legitimately interested in tracking THEIR OWN ASSETS.
They work well, even in a suitcase in your car. Just know that we screen customers to ensure they won’t be used for anything which violates someone’s privacy.
For comparison purposes, here is a track of the EZ-1000 hidden in a suitcase in my vehicle (blue line with dots, at 5 minute updates) vs. the “official” GPSI-4000 for that vehicle (red line without dots at 30 second updates). It doesn’t give as much information (1/10th as much) but it is spot on when it does report — note the “pins” are all on top of the red “actual path taken.”
5 minute updates with an EZ-1000 vs. 30 second updates with a GPSI-4000
Rob.
September 19th, 2009 12:23 am
Interesting. Sometimes the best tests are the ones that come up by accident. Have a good time there at the RMFMA show. I used to be an active corporate member, they have a great crew of folks there … say hello to Steve from the City of Loveland for me if he’s there, a great guy and a real forward looking fleet manager. Happy sales … I mean trails