In 2001, the Federal Communications Commission ordered cellular companies to equip all new cell phones with Global Positioning Satellite tracking devices that can pinpoint a user's location to within 50 feet, anywhere on the planet. The agency ordered the move at the behest of law enforcement agencies, who have long wished to be able to tell where 911 calls made on cell phones originate. These devices increase the cost of the phone by about $20. They are required to be in place in all cell phones by 2005..........<br>
http://www.legalaffairs.org/issues/July-August-2003/feature_koerner_julaug03.html
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http://www.wishtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1801022

Yeah, my cell phone from sprint has one of those tracking devices in it. I imagine that its great if you ever get kidnapped, really lost, broken down on the highway, or if you need to get in touch with the local 9-11 on your cell phone. But it is a little disturing that they can know where I am at any time if they so choose.
My phone has an option to turn it off if i want to. But then again there is no easy way to know if it really is turned off or not.
Its a great little feature on a phone if you can trust your phone company and government not to abuse it. But with all the terrorism Patriot Act stuff that we've been putting into law lately, now probably isnt the best time to be introducing this technology. The government's arm is getting a little too long in my opinion. And as for Sprint, I'd be amazed if they havent already sold my personal information to every spam company in America.

The reason for requiring Digital TV tuners in all TV's was so that some of the analog band would be freed for other things. Good enough reason, I think. This goes too far though, why don't they just declare curfew instead or something... Most samsung/sprint phones have had the GPS thing for a while though, I better be able to turn it off like you can in current phones.

Yet another reason why i don't own a cell phone.

so im guessing my morotola i90c from like 3+years ago doesnt have this in it?

Yeah, I dont think they started it until like a year ago.

I feel they actually have legitimate reason for this device.

With 200 million people in this country do you actually believe they have time to watch everyone?
I don't doubt for a second that the government is crooked, but so many people are fucking spazzes.

They've always been able to do this. It's called cell tower triangulation. They can get you to within 100 ft if you're in range of two cell towers, they can nail you to the pavement if you're in range of three.

This is just a method to more easily facilitate it. Instead of 3 cell towers it's 3 GPS satellites.

Verizon has offered this technology in their phones for at least the last two years. A friend has an old Audiovox phone through Verizon and it's GPS-enabled, as was the Verizon network at the time if I remember correctly. I believe a few other CDMA cell carriers also offer GPS enabled phones.

As far as I can tell the requirement of the GPS technology is a good idea for the 911 reasons. If the govenment feels they want to violate my privacy by tracking me down whenever I make a call, so be it.

The benefits far outweight the negatives, in my opinion.

I think the complaint is not that they DO track you, it's they CAN track you. The reason is very legit, that's true! Law Enforcement can track down someone w/ a cell phone on 911 with GPS, in case they are injured, trapped, kidnapped, hostage, etc...<br>
MY complaint is, if they're gonna require GPS tracking of cell phones, which requires a 'signal', why don't they make the companies provide a decent signal everywhere?!!!

Amen to that. Sprint's coverage sucks.

ahh yes, I 100% agree on the suckiness of signals.

btw - Sprint and TMobile suck.

oh and no one here has represented themself as a spaz, I was just saying that.

Forget the cellphones, soon even the dust in the air will be "capable" of spying on you. Not that it WILL, of course. Anyway, if you're not a terrorist you have nothing to hide anyway, right Citizen?

http://prorev.com/2004/11/big-brother-in-dust.htm

9-1-1 phone calls from cell phones are positionally located regardless. the location of the tower your digital phone is transmitting from pops up on their screen and is updated when the call is passed to another tower. obviously this is not as accurate as GPS, but it is pretty damn close considering the number of digital towers out there.