Page 23 - May June 2019 TPA Journal

Camera – you probably are already familiar with the camera on your smart phone, but there are things of which
to be aware.
Burst mode – in still picture mode, holding down on the camera trigger captures a burst of images.

High dynamic range – HDR balances the light and dark of images, but it takes longer for the phone to
process. If you have a fixed object scene with lots of shadows, HDR may be the solution. You can turn
on/off HDR in the settings of the camera.

Location tags – your camera can and probably should automatically capture the time/date and location
of where an image or video was captured. You can turn on/off the location tags in settings.
Geospatial (GPS and WiFi) – GPS provides gross locations/altitude, and WiFi-based location provides more
precision but uses more power. Normally, the GPS is not used directly but is used by apps that rely on location,
such as the camera, Google maps, etc.

Other – beyond the obvious phone, text, camera, and GPS functions, your phone probably also has a flashlight
feature, a compass feature, tilt gauge, multiple calendar/clock functions, and perhaps one or more bio sensors
such as heart rate monitor, iris reader, etc.

Apps
There are 2.1 million apps for Androids and 2 million for Apples iOS. Some are fun, some are functional, and a
few are simply stupid. Here are 4 must-have apps for LE and be aware there may be issues for iOS vs. Android.

Cargo decoder - Cargo Decoder is the means to prevent “blue canaries.” It is the app version of the data in the
Emergency Response Guidebook (ERG2016), as well as the ERG2012 and the ERG2008. Although the orange
ERG books are provided free to every officer and first responder, too often they are not immediately available.
Cargo Decoder solves this. By entering the 4-digit placard code on the tanker or container, the content is identi-
fied, the potential hazards are explained, and the proactive distances/measures are provided.

Figure 1 - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.strategiesinsoftware.erg

Waze – Available for phone, tablet, or desktop, it is a real-time, crowd-sourced road and traffic situational tool
that alerts about traffic conditions, wrecks, the presence of law enforcement, debris/obstacles on the road, con-
struction, etc. It is important because it provides immediate information about the road. For hands-free driving, it
has a voice notification of hazards. Beyond use on the phone, a case can be made to have it running on an
older, or near-retirement desktop unit in dispatch, as Waze will often display events and hazards significantly in
advance of 911 or other notifications.

May/June 2019 www.texaspoliceassociation.com • 866-997-8282 19