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Sasol Birds of Southern Africa (1 Viewer)

Birdbrain22

Birdbrain22

Well-known member
Looking for a guide for South Africa... is the Sasol one still the best out there? I looked at the pinned thread but most of that info is from years ago... and i know there must be newer options. Want to know what those more familiar with that area would recommend nowadays. Thanks in advance.
 
I think SASOL (4th edition) has no competition. I also found Faansie Peacock (2014), Chamberlain's LBJs. The definitive guide to Southern Africa's Little Brown Jobs useful.
 
I used it in Botswana, Namibia and Zambia, and a friend has since taken it to Mozambique, so it would seem fairly comprehensive for the wider area too.
 
I used Roberts (both book and app) in Namibia last month. I also have SASOL but preferred the raptors in Roberts. Both guides have strengths and not many weaknesses so you'll be fine with either. Don't rely solely on the app - phones crash, SD cards corrupt - I lost access to my SD card and Roberts app several times a day, usually just when I needed to check a call. A phone restart was necessary but that took time and wasn't always successful. I also agree with James Jobling - Chamberlain's LBJs is a must.
 
DominicBen said:
I used Roberts (both book and app) in Namibia last month. I also have SASOL but preferred the raptors in Roberts. Both guides have strengths and not many weaknesses so you'll be fine with either. Don't rely solely on the app - phones crash, SD cards corrupt - I lost access to my SD card and Roberts app several times a day, usually just when I needed to check a call. A phone restart was necessary but that took time and wasn't always successful. I also agree with James Jobling - Chamberlain's LBJs is a must.
Click to expand...

Being bit of a dinosaur and resistant to change in relation to book v tech, I was going to ask if the app was a complete download or if it was dependent on connectivity.

Until we have planet wide connectivity and much better batteries, tech will continue to have limitations.

You can however, download all the calls to your phone without requiring internet access, we did it for Costa Rica.
 
Last edited:
andyadcock said:
Being bit of a dinosaur and resistant to change in relation to book v tech, I was going to ask if the app was a complete download or if it was dependent on connectivity.

Until we have planet wide connectivity and much better batteries, tech will continue to have limitations.

You can however, download all the calls to your phone without requiring internet access, we did it for Costa Rica.
Click to expand...

It's a download, so everything will be on your phone regardless of connectivity. That's true for most field guide apps, I think.
 
Andrew Whitehouse said:
It's a download, so everything will be on your phone regardless of connectivity. That's true for most field guide apps, I think.
Click to expand...

Thanks, so this from post 8, refers to a phone failure rather than anything else?

'Don't rely solely on the app - phones crash, SD cards corrupt - I lost access to my SD card and Roberts app several times a day,'

I don't think I could ever trust the tech enough to rely on it fully and regardless of a bit of extra weight, will always prefer books.
 
andyadcock said:
Thanks, so this from post 8, refers to a phone failure rather than anything else?

'Don't rely solely on the app - phones crash, SD cards corrupt - I lost access to my SD card and Roberts app several times a day,'

I don't think I could ever trust the tech enough to rely on it fully and regardless of a bit of extra weight, will always prefer books.
Click to expand...

Yes, that sounds like a phone problem. Must admit I've never had a significant issue like that with a field guide app, although I sometimes have to restart them. That only takes a few seconds though.
 
Just to be clear - I used the app offline and the problem was with the SD card. I should have downloaded the whole thing to the phone memory instead of the SD card and then it would have worked - my fault entirely. Apologies for the confusion.

Keeping the phone charged was never a problem - we used the in-car charger, electricity points at campsites, a powerbank etc.
 
I have the Sasol guide book and it's OK, thinking of getting an App for the bird calls but can't decide whether to download Sasol or Roberts. Sasol allow you to download a free sampler and it looks good, the distribution maps are much bigger than the ones in the book which is handy, there are also photographs as well as drawing.
Has anyone got the Roberts app for comparison?
 
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