Figure 3: P-Trac Micro, Bottom

The only physical controls on the P-Trac Micro are the power (PWR) and SET buttons located on the bottom of the unit. Currently the SET button has no purpose, although Brickhouse says a software update is in the works that will allow users to quickly define a Geofence around your current location by pressing the SET button (a handy way to make sure your car doesn't move after you park it, for example).

Pressing and holding the PWR button for 2-3 seconds powers the on or off. Unfortunately there's no visual way to tell if the GPS is turned on or not. I would have liked to see a blinking LED that indicated whether the unit was powered on or not.

Figure 4: Optional Vehicle Magnetic Mount

Brickhouse Security also sells an optional magnetic vehicle case for $79. The waterproof case holds the P-Trac snugly in place and can be mounted to the underside of a car or interior of a trunk lid. The P-Trac Micro is rated to handle the vibration of a vehicle, and the extreme cold/hot temperatures of outdoor life.

Figure 5: Optional Wristband

The optional wristband sells for an additional $40 and comes in child and adult sizes. The child version is pictured above. Depending on the age of the child and intended use, you may be better off just putting the P-Trac in a coat pocket or backpack since the wristband draws attention to the device and can easily be removed. The device is small enough that it's fairly easy to conceal; you can determine the best place to cary the GPS given your own particular tracking needs.

4. Using the P-Track Micro

Figure 6: P-Trac Micro

The P-Trac Micro is capable of tracking via GPS as well as AGPS, or Assisted-GPS. AGPS uses cellular signals to triangulate its location. That means unlike traditional GPS devices, the P-Trac micro also works indoors using a combination of GPS and cellular signals.

The P-Trac Micro uses Sprint's PCS network to send and receive AGPS data. The device can be tracked at any location where the Sprint PCS network has coverage. Should you enter an area with no Sprint coverage, Brickhouse's customer tracking portal will show the device entering and exiting the dead-zone.

AGPS is a key feature that differentiates the P-Trac Micro from other tracking devices. This unit can be tracked in almost any situation: inside a movie theater, in a building, basement, or other area traditionally difficult for GPS signals to penetrate.

Because the P-Trac Micro relies on cellular coverage as well as traditional GPS, there's a monthly service fee associated with its use. You'll need to choose a monthly service plan that makes sense for the intended usage. Brickhouse Security currently offers the following service plans:

A "Locate" is used each time the P-Trac Micro reports its location. If you plan using the P-Trac just to check on the device's location once a day or so, the $30/month plan should suffice. If you want to configure real-time tracking and be able to view logs of where the device has been, you'll likely want either the $45 or $60/month plan.

One of the strengths of the P-Trac system is its flexibility in configuring tracking and alerting. For example, if you're going to track a child, you might setup the unit to report its location once every 30 minutes at night when the child is probably sleeping, but then have the P-Trac report its location once every 5 or 10 minutes during the morning commute time when the child is on the way to school.

Figure 7: Viewing the P-Trac's Location via Brickhouse's Customer Portal

Current location and historical location data is viewed by accessing Brickhouse Security's customer portal, shown above. The secure website requires a username and password unique to each customer, and only displays information about your own device.

The web software offers so many features and can be customized in so many ways that it takes a little training to fully understand all that the P-Trac has to offer.

For example, geofences can be configured by address, range of addresses, or visually drawn on the map. Alerts can be configured to notify you by email and/or SMS if the device enters or exits a specified area. For example, a parent might configure a geofence around local airports and get immediate notification if the child gets near an airport.

You can also configure an escalation order of people to notify in the event of an alert, such as a geofence alert, speeding violation alert, kidnapping risk, custodial interference risk, etc.

Figure 8: Assigning a Device to an Asset

Brickhouse's website allows you to setup "assets", such as vehicles, people, and equipment. A given P-Trac Micro device can then be assigned to an asset, and re-assigned as needed. For example, you might setup assets for each member of your family, or each driver in a delivery or taxi company, and re-assign the P-Trac to each person or car as needed.

Figure 9: Locating and Tracking a Person

Clicking on the personnel tab displays a list of all the people you have setup. Clicking on Locate displays the P-Trac's current location. Clicking on Track opens a pop-up window and refreshes the map every 10 second with the device's location, allowing you to continue tracking the device in real time (note that the web page is refreshed every 10 seconds. The P-Trac will continue to upload its location data on whatever schedule you have defined. The constant refreshing of the web window prevents the system from logging you out and lets you track the device over time).