Boycott spot messengers.

[silverbullet555]

I havent really looked at them since I bought mine a couple years ago but the contract and price per month were the same when I bought my inReach.

Spot doesn't allow you to turn it off and on. Inreach does. You'll pay more up front for the inreach and less per year if you only need it a month or two per year. After 2 years or less, the inreach total cost is less.



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[Blockcaver]

I sent quite a few InReach messages from a canvas tent with a canvas fly on it a month ago, tons from a pack tent while sheep hunting and even some off a dual wall tent in the arctic last winter. The IR may take longer to lock onto the satellites and longer to transmit a message but it still works. If you are tenting under trees it may not work...due to the trees more than the tent in my experience.

I really like the IR, and was fine with a SPOT Messenger for 7 or 8 years as well. You had to let the SPOT run for 15 or 20 minutes with a clear view of the sky and I always had the messages go through. Cut it short, despite the SPOT saying the message was sent, and I'd have an occasional lost message.

 

[camping1601]

InReach won't work in a tent either.

Which model are you using? My SE works in my camper under some deciduous trees, but my mini not so good.

 

[camping1601]

Mine works under my patio roof, but not inside the house.

 

[sneaky]

InReach won't work in a tent either.

Works fine out of mine

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[Back Country Hunter 2]

My inreach only struggles when it doesn't have a clear view of the sky. Mostly tree cover. It works in my supertarp and my wall tent.

 

[Titan_Bow]

I’ve never had any issues with my InReach. I even used it in Chennai, India this year.


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[jmez]

Mine wouldn't work in tent. It was a Kifaru Tipi. Part of that may have been location and not the tent. There were spots in our camp it wouldn't work, I'd move 15 feet and it would work fine?

I have the mini.

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[camping1601]

Mine wouldn't work in tent. It was a Kifaru Tipi. Part of that may have been location and not the tent. There were spots in our camp it wouldn't work, I'd move 15 feet and it would work fine?

I have the mini.

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I'm convinced the mini doesn't have the power of the full sized units. I used mine in CO with no problem, but after two weekends here in the NE I switched back to the SE. It was really frustrated with it those weekends.

 

[Beendare]

Good thread. I was worried about the reliability of these different units.

At least with a sat phone you know when it cuts you off.......

 

[codym]

I’m not sure which spot you all are talking about but I used the spotx this year on my elk hunt. It was a disaster. Messages never going through, delayed messages and messages never received. The worst thing was on the 3rd day I realized the stupid thing froze up. Couldn’t re-set or shut it off. Had to wait 3 days for the damn battery to die. Good thing I didn’t need the sos in that time. Buddy had a Delohrme and was sending texts the entire time. I took it back to sportsman’s warehouse and they refunded my money