If you have a look at the first link in the text, it will take you to the full &quot;e-Trash Transparency&quot; report (<a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.ban.org&#x2F;trash-transparency" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.ban.org&#x2F;trash-transparency</a>). When you download the &#x27;Report&#x27;, on page 105 it describes, in detail, the methodology used.<p>Extracts from the report:
&quot;In order to determine and procure the best equipment for the e-Trash Transparency Project, BAN tested several different subscription-based tracking systems. Based on the findings, it was determined that BAN’s case scenario was better served by a customized solution, but one that made use of “off-the-shelf” GSM&#x2F;GPRS tracking hardware.&quot;
Source: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;s3.amazonaws.com&#x2F;ban-reports&#x2F;Trash+Transparency&#x2F;Disconnect+-+Goodwill+and+Dell+Exporting+the+Publics+E-waste+to+Developing+Countries+Report+-+Web+Version.pdf" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;s3.amazonaws.com&#x2F;ban-reports&#x2F;Trash+Transparency&#x2F;Disc...</a><p>&quot;The combined cost of a single tracker, external battery, the SIM card, the M2M service rates package was approximately $175 (including shipping and taxes). The project, funded in large part by a grant from the Body Shop Foundation, included the purchase of over 200 trackers.&quot;<p>&quot;Free and open source software called OpenGTS was used to collect and display data in a user-friendly manner...software included integration with Google Maps&quot;<p>&quot;The trackers that were used usually had at least a 9-month battery life, with some trackers still communicating after 12 months. The battery life varies depending on many factors including signal strength, temperature and sleep mode settings. Prolonged battery life is primarily attributed to the tracker possessing a sleep mode function, which allows the device to hibernate in a power-saving mode for a preset time. Typically, each tracker was set to “wake up” every 24 hours, calculate its position based on the satellite signals it received, send the data to BAN’s server via local GSM networks and then reenter sleep mode function.&quot;