Is wireless RV tech a smart move?

I can lock my door and drawers from kilometres away if I’ve forgotten; retract the power awning if the wind blows up during my bush walk; check if the gathering clouds or tree shade have slowed the solar recharge of my lithium battery and can turn on the awning light to welcome me home after dark – as long as my mobile phone has an internet connection to my WiFi. I could, but should I?

My old school travelling friends indignantly say ‘no – that’s not camping!’ And they're right: it’s not. But am I wrong if I want to live in the 21st century?

Real life dilemma

There’s part of my brain that says it’s not OK to replace simple ideas with complicated and problematic technology, just because you can. At some stage trusting motherboards and nodes can create a disconnect between you and the environment that you’ve paid good money for an off-road camper or caravan to experience.

Like watching a live music concert through your phone camera’s screen, there’s a point where digital should take a back seat to reality.

You can’t really blame the caravan manufacturers, nor the tech companies developing novel, labour-saving gadgets. Some people will only travel to remote areas if they can take an apartment-living experience with them.

Fair enough I say. The most important thing about life is to be in it, rather than a spectator. The further you get out of your comfort zone, the further you're likely to go next time. However, can we get too ‘App-happy?’ I believe so.

The acid test is how dependent you become on doing something via an App that you could do yourself if your phone battery isn’t exhausted and your WiFi doesn’t work, or if you're out of mobile signal range.

Turning on lights is a good example. It’s a switch, right, so its quick to use by hand than to access as part of an App? But how about adjusting the side-by-side ride height of your air suspension as you negotiate a narrow, treed track?

The ZoneRV boys told me proudly how they were able to do this via an iPad from the comfort of their tow tug while crossing Fraser Island, leaning their expensive full-height caravan away from trackside trees to avoid damage.

It sounded impressive at the time, but then I wondered how I would do this when driving and whether it would lead me into tight situations that I’d otherwise avoid if left to my own devices?

And do I need to stream a music playlist to outside BBQ speakers? OK, it shows my age, but to my mind the sound of silence (the real thing; not Dami Im’s or Simon & Garfunkel’s versions) has always been my preferred remote area soundtrack. Less is more.

App Happy examples

Certainly, it seems with the latest raft of  caravans that we are getting ‘App Happy’. Here are some examples...

Following the lead of RV technology innovators like Queensland’s’ ZoneRV and Kedron, the Jayco Silverline comes with home-style voice-activated lighting in case you can’t be bothered walking three metres to the wall switch, and an App controlled Carefree electric awning that will work from your smartphone while you're within Bluetooth range.

Perhaps less essential, some models in Dometic’s CFX range of portable fridges can now be controlled remotely via a Wi-Fi-enabled smartphone App so you can keep an eye on temperatures while you're trying to relax in the Great Outdoors.

The App also has a temperature alarm function as well as a lid open alert – handy if the kids fail to close it properly, I guess.

And instead of having fixed inside and outside speakers on your caravan, today’s hip travellers can use Fusion’s Stereoactive Bluetooth speaker, which can be located anywhere inside or outside the van/camper via the system’s puck mounting system.

Wireless towing!

Do trailer connections confuse and annoy you? If so, West Australia-based WiTi is claiming an industry first with its wireless trailer braking system, that also doubles as a unique caravan security device that literally stops thieves in their tracks.

Designed to support all electric brake controllers, the wi-fi enabled system replaces the wired connection between the tow vehicle and caravan with a wireless interface, making the head-spinning issue of making flat and round plugs (that our kids do with plastic blocks in Playgroup) and their associated wiring, a thing of the past.

Then there's the iTow tow ball 'scale' that sends a signal to your smartphone and will tell you where you stand on ball weight, allowing you to move weight around  to increase or decrease the tow loading.

Of course you can buy a simple mechanical device to put under your A-frame, but the iTow is much more sophisticated and can be used to measure changing loads during a long trip, such as when your water tanks and jerry cans are full or empty and where you should put all those cases of wine you bought on impulse!

Levelling from the driver's seat

Levelling our caravans and campers is another chore that seems to do fellow travellers’ heads in. Seems my App-free technique of eye-balling the caravan for level and adjusting it based on which way the entry door swings and the sink water pools, is now rated decidedly ‘old school’! So's an old fashioned spirit level...

Instead, to ensure a good night’s sleep and that the shower water in your ensuite finds the plug hole, the latest 'must-have' gizmo is the Australian-developed Savvylevel  remote levelling device. When you get to your site, your smartphone App consults the small Savvylevel box that can be mounted on your A-frame (or any level surface inside your van/trailer).

This lets you know how far off level front-rear and side-side you are and advises you how much one or both need to be raised or lowered to achieve a perfectly level rig. So, no more guesswork and a sound sleep!

The Apps you actually need

Then, of course there are all the travel ‘Apps’, that will locate the closest free-camp, dump point and will tell you where to find the best coffee and the cheapest fuel in any town you pass through. Saves all that time-wasting to-and-fro communication with the locals!

Of course, useful technology has its place. Under this heading I would place the phone or tablet-based App for the Redarc RedVision management hub that allows Track Trailer hybrid owners the ability to raise and lower the T4’s pop-top roof via its electrically-operated rams and to lock and unlock all the interior drawers and cupboards from your tow vehicle, in case it’s raining and you forgot.

It’s also handy to know the state of charge of your battery and the level of your fresh and grey water tanks, but how urgent is it to know this when you’re enjoying some Aboriginal rock art? These things can easily be checked when you get back via ‘old school’ gauges.

Security is a good thing that you can monitor via a smartphone. I had a Black Knight satellite tracker in my previous caravan and by checking the App on my phone I could be reassured that it was parked in my caravan port or camp site (although I could still look out the window and check the former!). Although I got a surprise initially when I entered the wrong registration number and found that it was somewhere in Beijing, although I could see it was still at home in Australia!

However, there’s one App that I’d like that I haven’t yet seen – although I’m sure there must be one out there. I want to know how long my gas bottle(s) will last, so I know if I can enjoy another hot shower in a remote area...

App happy quips aside, I think there are three important lessons here:

1. Don’t use Apps and technology that will isolate you from the travel/remote area experience that you’ve invested so much time and effort in.

2. Don’t complicate your life with things that you can just as easily do yourself, e.g. turning on, dimming lights, checking levels.

3. Make sure that whatever you control via an App has can be over-ridden manually in case you (a) lose your phone, (b) it runs out of juice, or (c) your WiFi connection fails.

If the worst happens, you’ll be back doing what my old friends call ‘camping’!