Disc Storage for Thru Hike

[gbolt]

There has been a lot of discussion on External Batteries and number of mAH for a Thru Hike. What about Data Storage / Pictures and Video from Camera Roll. I have an I phone 6 with Lifeproof case and 128gb of Storage. Suggestions on a Disc or Drive that will work with the case on and how many gb’s if any are needed? Cost is also a consideration. 128 goes for around $100 it seems, while 64 goes for $60 and 32 for $20. I just spend $69 to for Insect Shield so I am down to the last few gear dollars before departing for the trail. Asking because Amazon Reviews are all over the place as to Positive or Negative experiences no matter which Drive or Company, although Kingston was the favorite but also the most expensive for storage space.

[Slo-go'en]

Just how many hours of video or thousands of pictures do you intend to take? 128G is a lot of space. I splurged and put a 16G card in my phone (ZTE) and haven't come close to filling it up with pictures, maps, music and apps. 16G cards are pretty cheap. Get a couple or buy one along the way if you need to.

[Southeast]

One consideration is getting a microSD to lightening card reader and couple microSD cards. You could then mail one home every so often.

Another option to save space is to change the video resolution down to 720p at 30fps. Maybe something to keep in your back pocket and use on the trail if you are getting low.

And fwiw.. I’ve used the full 128 GB on my phone before during a 17 day trip to New Zealand but that is the extreme high end for me.i had 600 vid clips to then wade thru - which is both a blessing and a curse.

[Cheyou]

Can’t you keep it in the cloud ?

thom

[raysuf]

Finding a cloud solution will be the lightest and once it's uploaded someone else will manage the backups. Icloud storage cost $9.99 per month for 2TB or $2.99 per month for 200GB. Google photos will has unlimited storage if you upload pictures and video at lower quality, don't know all those details. Upload over data or wifi. Electronics have gotten better, but cold, heat, and water can mess with storage devices. Uploading to online storage asap is your best bet.

[Offshore]

Unless you are willing to go to the expense and weight of a ruggedized drive, a cloud solution is best. I use OneDrive, Adobe's Creative Cloud, and Dropbox - all with Android tablets and iPhones. (I don't think Apple really does the cloud well, so I stay away from iCloud Drive.) I'd give the edge to Dropbox as it just seems to sync faster. It also offers an automatic photo upload from the iOS camera roll. If you go with a cloud solution, do your homework with the apps for the cloud provider you choose and be sure you set it up correctly. You want to moving files to the cloud and not sync. If you are set up to sync, removing files from your phone will also remove them from the cloud. Practice the workflow before you hike.

[rhjanes]

+ 1 to the cloud. Set up like a Google Photo app on your phone. The transfer from my IPHONE to Google Photos is automagic. However they STAY on the phone also. Have a Flash or SD card with you. Hit the public library, plug in the phone, plug in the Flash/SD, copy from phone to the Flash/SD. Verify they are ALSO in the Cloud (Google Photos, dropbox, etc), then sit and delete most of the photos and video from the phone. Now you have free space on the phone and you now have TWO copies. One in the cloud and one on the flash/SD.
You could do this a little each time you hit a town....or just hope for the best and don't bother with the SD/Flash until your phone is getting say to 15 percent free space. But then you will spend a bit of time in town doing clean up.

[rocketsocks]

I got about 20 movies, 200 photos, 400 songs and 12 audio books on a 64 gigs with 12 gigabytes leftover to fool with...also apps and maps out the ying yang.