I'm off to a distant place in a far away land and i'm bringing gear such as a laptop and other expensive goodies that are tempting targets for thieves.
So I was wondering the viability of installing a tracking device into laptop, the most likely target of theft.
The technical side i can deal with: I'm probably going to put in a low level RF transmitter for short range tracking (so i can locate it once i know its general location) and a GPS receiver for long range tracking (for finding out the general location in the first place). They'll be linked to a modified Cell-phone that i can query by text-messaging to get the GPS coordinates. I've already identified a suitable hiding place inside the body of the laptop and can power it by the battery and an additional hidden backup.
Now, the information in the laptop isn't worth very much, I'm going to be using an internet backup solution so i'll never lose my data even if the laptop gets hit by a lightning bolt.
So i'm wondering: is it worth to go through the trouble of paying a hansome sum (cost of equipment and monthly cell-phone charges) to retrieve a laptop? or am I better off simply buying insurance? The cost of insurance and the cost of tracking are about the same.
Or should i just save my money and take the risk? I'm obviously going to invest in some anti-theft gear like chains and locks (although i'm fully aware these are more of a deterrent than actual preventative measures).
The bonus of laptop retrieval is the off-chance that i find a ring of laptop thieves and get a reward from the police. Although the majority of laptop thefts are from opportunists rather than professional thieves.
Any thoughts?
So I was wondering the viability of installing a tracking device into laptop, the most likely target of theft.
The technical side i can deal with: I'm probably going to put in a low level RF transmitter for short range tracking (so i can locate it once i know its general location) and a GPS receiver for long range tracking (for finding out the general location in the first place). They'll be linked to a modified Cell-phone that i can query by text-messaging to get the GPS coordinates. I've already identified a suitable hiding place inside the body of the laptop and can power it by the battery and an additional hidden backup.
Now, the information in the laptop isn't worth very much, I'm going to be using an internet backup solution so i'll never lose my data even if the laptop gets hit by a lightning bolt.
So i'm wondering: is it worth to go through the trouble of paying a hansome sum (cost of equipment and monthly cell-phone charges) to retrieve a laptop? or am I better off simply buying insurance? The cost of insurance and the cost of tracking are about the same.
Or should i just save my money and take the risk? I'm obviously going to invest in some anti-theft gear like chains and locks (although i'm fully aware these are more of a deterrent than actual preventative measures).
The bonus of laptop retrieval is the off-chance that i find a ring of laptop thieves and get a reward from the police. Although the majority of laptop thefts are from opportunists rather than professional thieves.
Any thoughts?