Delorme In-Reach

[SteveAE]

Due to family health concerns and the desire for emergency communications while in the backcountry (bush) during our upcoming Northern Canada/Alaska trip, I purchased a Delorme In-Reach and have been testing it out over the past month.

The In-Reach provides two way satellite SMS (text) messaging from anywhere in the world that there is a clear view of the sky via the Iridium satellite constellation at a much lower price than a traditional sat phone (this is much different than SPOT or a PLB). It allows family and friends to follow along by sending out a link to a map that shows your exact location, has a tracking feature (someday, I should tie it onto my dog to see where she wanders), a social media link (personally not interested), and a web page that shows your travels. It can also be remotely pinged so other people can see where you are without your having to initiate a contact. And, of course, it will send a emergency message to the local PSAP (emergency coordinator....err. 911). There are three programmable canned messages that are free to send out as many times as you wish, you just need internet access to program them. A number of quick messages that can be pre-written to save typing time (nice when running away from a bear....or mosquitoes:)) and of course you can type whatever you want into it whenever you want. Entering text is a bit laborious, but you can use a computer (via USB) or smart phone (via Bluetooth) if available.

My conclusion....well worth the purchase price ($299.00 retail...but sometimes on sale) and monthly subscription charge ($15.00 per month for the base plan that you can activate/suspend at will without charge).

I recognize that most folks on this site don't need these capabilities, but for those that might, this product would be worth looking at.

Note that I have no relationship with Delorme or any of it's affiliates (if any). Just sharing what I have learned about this product.

Safe travels.

[chloe_s_ranch]

I have had the Inreach Explorer for almost a year, and can also say that it has worked very well out in the boonies. Sending out one of the three free canned messages several times a day is a way to leave "breadcrumbs" that loved ones can see on their computer or smartphone, either on a topo map or satellite view.

[SteveAE]

Tiger4x4RV wrote:
Unless something has changed since I bought my InReach, it can receive e-mail messages only as replies to messages it has sent. See my comments in the other thread.

Yes, to communicate directly with the In-Reach, the person must have first received a message (at anytime in the past as long as account has stayed active)from it. There isn't a direct phone number or email address.

But, there is another way too:
If you give anyone your Map Share web address, they can go to your "website" and send you a message directly from it (as long as you enable this feature). The website also shows all locations that you sent a message from (assuming "Send to Map Share" was enabled). So viewers of your site can see a "trail of breadcrumbs" (so to speak) of your travels. Fun stuff.

[Tiger4x4RV]

Unless something has changed since I bought my InReach, it can receive e-mail messages only as replies to messages it has sent. See my comments in the other thread.

[profdant139]

Just to add to Steve's comments, I think the DeLorme can receive short email messages -- so, for example, someone could say "come home quick, Dad is sick" or whatever. For those of us with aging relatives, that is very valuable -- often, we are out of cell range for many days at a time, with no way of finding out what is going on at home.

[jimbob3ca]

I was about to post a link to a previous thread that discussed devices such as the inreach, but I see that Tiger 4x4 has already done that. I won't repeat my comments that are already on that thread, but I would like to stress that mine (An inreach explorer model) has worked very well for me. My son rode a mountain bike on the Tour Divide Mountain Bike race last summer. For almost twenty days with it mounted on his handlebars over some of the roughest trails in the mountains, it continued to work flawlessly. There are shortcomings to be aware of, one being that a clear line of sight is needed to the sky for it to access the satellites and even with that, it does not necessarily act instantly. Another is that in order for someone to contact you, you must have messaged them so that they can reply, or use the link to contact you if necessary.

[agesilaus]

You could be right, I'll look into it again.

[SteveAE]

agesilaus,

You might have the In-Reach confused with SPOT and I would encourage you to take a second look.
Regarding HAM radio. I am a long time HAM and have multiple portable radios. It's all about choosing the appropriate tool for the job and for the task that I have (wilderness backcountry travel in N. Canada and Alaska), there is no better, cost effective, solution that I am aware of.

[Tiger4x4RV]

I have had an InReach for about 6 months. I test it everywhere I go, which is often far from pavement, and it has always worked.

You might want to check out a recent thread on this topic:
http://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/fuseaction/thread/tid/28679851.cfm

[agesilaus]

I thought about getting one of these since we drive on 4WD roads and sometimes get 60 or 70 miles from the nearest paved road. But I read a lot of reviews and they were mostly bad, saying that Inreach just did not work as advertised. I asked here and was given the advice to get a HAM licence and get a handheld 2 way radio.