BLE Coded PHY is on my radar. The theoretical range boost is huge, something like 4x over standard in ideal conditions. The challenge right now is that flutter_blue_plus (the BLE library I'm using) has limited support for negotiating Coded PHY, and both devices need to support it. But phone hardware has been shipping with it since around 2020 so the install base is there. Definitely something I want to add, probably as an automatic upgrade when both peers support it.

Nice list, thanks. Meshtastic bridge is on the V2.0 roadmap so the app can route through LoRa hardware for multi-kilometer range. Being able to detect and pair with these devices over BLE is exactly how I'd want the integration to work.

Thanks you! Just started working on this project based on systems I use, and have gripes with, in the military. No plans to abandon it, but I understand your concern. This is the project I actually want to use myself so it's going to keep getting built.

1.Your tier determines your own device limit. If you have Pro+Link (8 devices), you can host a session with 8 people. The people joining don't need Pro+Link, they just need the free version with Field Link support (which covers 2 devices). So the session creator's tier sets the ceiling, not the lowest paying member. 2.Not yet, but it's open source so you can build from source and verify. Reproducible builds are something I'd like to get to but haven't prioritized over features yet. Fair ask though. 3.Good catch. AirDrop is just one option in the iOS share sheet for AAR exports. On Android it'll use the native share intent, so whatever sharing apps you have installed (email, Drive, Nearby Share, etc). The session export is just a JSON file so it works over any transfer method. I have put off building out the Android version for now because as a solo dev I need 12 testers before I can submit to the Play Store. If you are interested, or know anyone that is, please reach out! Would love to get testers for the Android version going! 4.That's an interesting idea. Something like a "source license" tier where you get build access and can self-host updates if the project goes dark. I'll think about that. The MIT + Commons Clause license already lets you build from source for personal use, but a paid tier with commercial self-build rights could make sense for teams that need that guarantee. 5.Good catch, the correct link is https://github.com/RedGridTactical/RedGridMGRS. Must be a typo somewhere, I'll fix it. 6.Yes, OpenStreetMap is actually what the offline maps use under the hood already. The tile sources are OpenTopoMap (which is built on OSM data) and USGS Topo. Adding more tile sources including vanilla OSM is on the list! 7.I hadn't seen fixphrase before, that's interesting. what3words has licensing issues that make it hard to integrate into open source projects, but an open alternative like that could work. I'll look into it. The main concern would be making sure it works fully offline since the whole point is no network dependency.

I appreciate all the feedback!

Meshtastic is great if you're willing to carry extra hardware. Everyone in your group needs a LoRa radio (which can range from $30-50 each), and you need to pair them, flash the firmware, configure channels, etc. For a SAR team or preppers who already own the gear, it's definitely a solid choice.

Red Grid Link was more so for those already carrying their phones and those that don't want to buy anything else. The trade-off is range for convenience. BLE gets you maybe ~50-100m in the open, ~20-60m in densely woooded areas. That's enough to keep tabs on a hunting party spread across a hillside or a hiking group. Absolutely not a replacement for a radio relay across a valley.

Different tools for different problems. If I need a 2km mesh range I'd set up Meshtastic too.

Apologies for posting the incorrect link to the Red Grid MGRS test. Below is the corrected link, thank you for bringing that to my attention!

https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.redgrid.red_grid_li...

Yes, definitely as a fallback! Currently working on a new build. If you are interested in testing please see the following link to become a tester!

https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.redgrid.red_grid_li...

Definitely was one of the use cases I designed around!

It's not long range by any stretch. The use case is more "my group split up on a trail and I want to know which fork they took" vs "track someone across a mountain." The ghost marker system helps here too. If someone walks out of range, their last known position and direction stays on your map, so you at least know where they're heading and how long ago they traveled that direction.

For the time being yes, I am looking for Android testers (need 12 to publish and I am a solo dev), if you are interested please reach out!

Haha fair point. In open terrain you get maybe 50-100m which I agree, not far. In practice it's more useful than it sounds though. You don't need miles of range when the point is "where did my buddy go 5 minutes ago." And if they walk out of range their last position and heading stick on your map as a ghost marker so you're not totally blind or left guessing.

Well... I have a hard time imagining to get location by yelling "where are you? " "by the trees!" It really sounds immensely useful to know last location (while they were still in range).

Use case: I was out, picking wild lingonberries in the forest with a group of ~10, some kids. At a "secret" location, with everyone wandering off in a direction they see more of them. Shouting did not help much.