It is difficult to provide a table of battery life for the different Go Direct sensors, due to factors such as the age of the battery, the charge of the battery, and the ambient temperature. Some sensors draw more power and some Go Direct devices have larger batteries than others. In limited testing, using Go Direct sensors with newer batteries, we found:
- Go Direct® Acceleration Sensor (
GDX-ACC ), 16-20 hours - Go Direct® Salinity Sensor (
GDX-SAL ), 16-20 hours - Go Direct® Soil Moisture Sensor (
GDX-SM ), 7-8 hours - Go Direct® Weather System (
GDX-WTHR ), 34-38 hours.
When designing your remote data logging experiment, keep in mind that the Go Direct sensor can run using its internal battery, or it can be connected to an external power source. If you are running your remote logging experiment over a single class period, using the device’s battery power should be fine. If your experiment is for a full day or overnight, then you should consider running the sensor on external power.
External Power Supply
Providing an external USB power source is the best strategy for longer experiments in the field. A good option is LabQuest® Battery Boost 3 (
Any external USB power source with Always-on capability, such as those designed for use with IoT (Internet of Things) devices, should work. This feature is available on some Anker power banks (usually requires a specific button press to activate) and most Voltaic power banks.
Go Direct Sensor