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Autumns Wind · 23-05-2013, 12:13

Has any one used either spot or inreach to stay connected to family and friends. Looking for real reviews. Thanks
Paul M

Bash · 23-05-2013, 12:44

I've been using SPOT since it came out.

Every year I take one of my classes on a two-week sea kayak expedition in Baja. I give the students my SPOT link and leave it up to them whether they want to share it with family and friends. Every time we set up camp I send an OK message with our Lat/Lon coordinates. I've programmed the system so that it also texts these messages to my wife and to the university.

I get positive feedback from parents, who seem to enjoy tracking our progress on google earth.

In cases of emergency I would not use SPOT except as a backup. For that eventuality, I carry a sat phone.

ScuzzMonkey · 23-05-2013, 14:02

We've used a SPOT for the past three years with great success. Like Bash, we usually check in about once a day. People love tracking our progress.

Never had to use it in event of a problem, but it's never failed to register when we have used it for checking in, so I have no reason to believe it wouldn't work in an emergency. It may not be as bullet-proof as an EPIRB in some respects (particularly dependent on location) but it does have one major advantage: it provides a solid last-known-good position. Any emergency signal can fail, but if this one does, and you've otherwise been using it for check-ins regularly, there's some indication of both when and where you ran into trouble.

Jane.Joy · 21-06-2013, 07:43

I have used both SPOT and inReach. The inReach is superior in every regard - coverage, user-friendly interface, maps, etc. The inReach allows for two-way communications - up to 160 characters - to any texting phone or email address. The inReach has an adapter that you can plug in to a 12V outlet instead of eating up batteries. But SPOT is much cheaper. If it's for fun, the inReach is way more fun. If it's for back-up safety - since you can recieve texts, if your SSB or satphone failed, you could actually get short weather updates and advice through the inReach, which you couldn't do through the SPOT. There is another thread here on this topic.... I'll try to find it.