3 ms·

I wonder if any smart watch apps can reliably achieve something similar. I looked briefly for an Apple watch app that did it but no luck.

idiotsecant 4y ago
It seems like it would be trivial to write an app that would vibrate the watch every once in a while, with the frequency of vibration inversely proportional to how far you were from magnetic north, but this would no doubt be a pretty big battery drain.
- dfc 4y ago
  I don't think it is a question of how far you are from magnetic north. The north paw device helped people identify where magnetic north is relative to your current heading.
  - stonemetal12 4y ago
    I am pretty sure by "how far from" he meant the delta of magnetic north to heading angle. Since an Apple watch doesn't have the ability to vibrate any where except the watch body it can't "point" at magnetic north like the North paw does, it would have to indicate magnetic north some other way.
    - idiotsecant 4y ago
      Yes, this was my (clumsy) intention, 'far' in the sense of angular deviation. The thing about our analog brains is that we are very good at processing signals that vary proportionally to some quantity but not very good at internalizing 'limit switch' type signals.
thatguy0900 4y ago
Thinking about it the ankle is a pretty clever Place. My wrists are very often in different orientations to my body, but my ankles are more or less always in line with the way I'm facing.
- usgroup 4y ago
  Belt is better still by the same arc of reason.
  - kelnos 4y ago
    Downside of a belt is that you have a much longer way around your body, which means longer wires, and perhaps an easier chance of breaking something. A belt also implies pants that can accept a belt, which probably wouldn't work for a lot of people, at least not every day with every type/style/color of clothing. The anklet is reasonably unobtrusive, and unless you are wearing form-fitting pants, you can keep it under your pants leg to keep it out of sight. Even if you're wearing tighter pants, shorts, or a skirt, and you don't mind the under-house-arrest tracker vibe, it's still wearable, and might make for a fun conversation topic. Agreed that the belt is better from the standpoint of what the device is for, but I think the anklet is a bit more practical. I know I would definitely wear it more often (more or less all the time), but I could not say the same about a belt.
    - lucasgonze 4y ago
      Underpants. Northpaw Underpants.
      - ytdytvhxgydvhh 4y ago
        Based on the interest around the recent chess cheating rumors I’d suggest an insertable version: The North Paw Grandmaster.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
LeifCarrotson 4y ago
My Garmin contains a magnetic compass and can display your ABCs (altitude, barometer, compass) on the watchface or widget. You can also query the compass using the API: https://developer.garmin.com/connect-iq/sdk/ https://developer.garmin.com/connect-iq/sdk/ and issue alerts using the built-in vibration motor; it would be pretty easy to build a Connect app to do this.
noja 4y ago
I found several iPhone apps: - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/talk-compass/id1540530352 (has speech prompts, works while screen is locked) - https://apps.apple.com/qa/app/talking-compass/id1476144391 (speech prompts did not work for me) - https://apps.apple.com/de/app/blind-compass/id1546647415 (did not work while screen is locked)
dzhiurgis 4y ago
Watch wouldn’t be perfect since your hands move a ton. Perfect for phone since it’s in a pocket. Might confuse you with notifications tho.

idiotsecant 4y ago

It seems like it would be trivial to write an app that would vibrate the watch every once in a while, with the frequency of vibration inversely proportional to how far you were from magnetic north, but this would no doubt be a pretty big battery drain.

dfc 4y ago
I don't think it is a question of how far you are from magnetic north. The north paw device helped people identify where magnetic north is relative to your current heading.
- stonemetal12 4y ago
  I am pretty sure by "how far from" he meant the delta of magnetic north to heading angle. Since an Apple watch doesn't have the ability to vibrate any where except the watch body it can't "point" at magnetic north like the North paw does, it would have to indicate magnetic north some other way.
  - idiotsecant 4y ago
    Yes, this was my (clumsy) intention, 'far' in the sense of angular deviation. The thing about our analog brains is that we are very good at processing signals that vary proportionally to some quantity but not very good at internalizing 'limit switch' type signals.

thatguy0900 4y ago

Thinking about it the ankle is a pretty clever Place. My wrists are very often in different orientations to my body, but my ankles are more or less always in line with the way I'm facing.

usgroup 4y ago
Belt is better still by the same arc of reason.
- kelnos 4y ago
  Downside of a belt is that you have a much longer way around your body, which means longer wires, and perhaps an easier chance of breaking something. A belt also implies pants that can accept a belt, which probably wouldn't work for a lot of people, at least not every day with every type/style/color of clothing. The anklet is reasonably unobtrusive, and unless you are wearing form-fitting pants, you can keep it under your pants leg to keep it out of sight. Even if you're wearing tighter pants, shorts, or a skirt, and you don't mind the under-house-arrest tracker vibe, it's still wearable, and might make for a fun conversation topic. Agreed that the belt is better from the standpoint of what the device is for, but I think the anklet is a bit more practical. I know I would definitely wear it more often (more or less all the time), but I could not say the same about a belt.
  - lucasgonze 4y ago
    Underpants. Northpaw Underpants.
    - ytdytvhxgydvhh 4y ago
      Based on the interest around the recent chess cheating rumors I’d suggest an insertable version: The North Paw Grandmaster.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

LeifCarrotson 4y ago

My Garmin contains a magnetic compass and can display your ABCs (altitude, barometer, compass) on the watchface or widget. You can also query the compass using the API: https://developer.garmin.com/connect-iq/sdk/ https://developer.garmin.com/connect-iq/sdk/ and issue alerts using the built-in vibration motor; it would be pretty easy to build a Connect app to do this.

noja 4y ago

I found several iPhone apps: - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/talk-compass/id1540530352 (has speech prompts, works while screen is locked) - https://apps.apple.com/qa/app/talking-compass/id1476144391 (speech prompts did not work for me) - https://apps.apple.com/de/app/blind-compass/id1546647415 (did not work while screen is locked)

dzhiurgis 4y ago

Watch wouldn’t be perfect since your hands move a ton. Perfect for phone since it’s in a pocket. Might confuse you with notifications tho.