Garmin InReach

[jlaner0408]

Heading west in a few months and have been given the direct order that I will always be able to be reached and/or have my location pinged at any given time (because inevitably I will be carried off by a pack of wolves, but I digress). My question being twofold:

1) Would anyone suggest owning any device other than the InReach for communicating, tracking, SOS, etc?
and
2) Does anyone know if they will be updating their versions of the InReach or coming out with new models anytime soon?

I know a lot of people complain about the small screen size, so I wasn't sure if Garmin was planning to address this or not. I won't actually be using the device until August 2018, so I have some time before I have to purchase it, but I didn't want to purchase it and then they release a new model the next day. And since I'll be living in Idaho soon and (hopefully) be out of cell service quite often, I want to get the best device I can for my wife's well being. Thanks for any help!

 

[Hunter6]

I wouldn’t worry to much about the screen size. I just sync to my phone and communicating is just like delayed texting.


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[Justin Crossley]

Wait until after the shows early in 2018 if you want to make sure you get the newest options. I haven't heard anything specific, but most the new stuff if any should get released at the upcoming shows.

I'm really happy with my Garmin InReach by the way.

 

[dotman]

Yup just sync to your phone, I never use the screen on the unit but it is there if needed. Battery life is excellent, I leave mine on all day and receive and send texts as they come. I highly recommend paying for the unlimited package during the hunting season or times you’ll use it a lot.

I would wait till Spring to think about buying it though, unless you can get a smoking deal now there’s no reason to get it yet.

 

[mfllood3800]

I have had both the Garmin In Reach Explorer + and the Delorme systems
Either unit will work for what you want.

I like the Garmin In Reach Explorer+, as it offers the topo maps built in as a great redundant item for navigating should something happen to your phone, as well as SOS features for texting the wife, and giving coordinates for search and rescue teams.

Any Delorme or Garmin in reach hand held can be paired with an app for your phone - it's called EarthMate. This allows the larger phone screen to be use for maps, tracking, texting, waypoints etc....

I snuck around their web site to see if anything new was in the works for 2018 and couldn't find anything.

There are also hand helds like Spot or even Sat phones for emerg sos type needs.

But the Garmin/Delorme IN Reach hand helds are the way to go in my opinion.
No reason to get the expensive Garmin In Reach Explorer+ unless you need the redundancy of mapping separate from your phone.

I personally have it and it works for me and how my system operates. I also have the phone app to utilize my phone as well.

 

[AdamW]

I've gotten $250 worth of peace of mind out of my InReach. I charged it in July for vacation and it has sat in my gear tote since. I pulled it out a few weeks ago and it was still 100% charged.

 

[cnelk]

Alaska, Wyoming, Nebraska or not leaving Colorado, my inReach is always with me

 

[mrbillbrown]

It’s the real deal and I haven’t found anything better for price and value. Keeps my wife happy for sure.

 

[jlaner0408]

Wow. Thanks for all the information! I’ll hold off on getting one until later this spring by the sounds of it. I didn’t realize the earth mate app was so well received- it sounds like that’s definitely the way to go for day to day use.

 

[ChukarUp]

Sounds like you are on the right track. Doesn't hurt to wait if you can. I think there might be one or two of these in the Rokslide classifieds right now too ... might be worth checking out.

I just bought a Garmin InReach + this season. I personally found that texts were delayed when I went through the app on my iPhone. I may have missed a step to move them along, not sure ... so I just used the Garmin unit itself. It did everything I needed it to do, both navigating and communicating. Money well spent for sure.

 

[Big Nasty]

I couldn't live without my inreach. Use mostly the phone app with it. Communicate with hunting partners while hunting, home, bush pilots for pickup, pretty much any type of communication. Some messages get delayed but they all go through. One thing our hunting group did was always put the time when we sent the message, some messages were delayed an hour in bad service areas (big mountain gully's) but delayed communication is better then none at all. Even if you never have to use the SOS feature its still worth its weight in gold to have that piece of mind. Cheap Insurance IMO.

 

[Downeaster]

This was my first elk season with the explorer. Started out carrying turned on and ready to go since i was solo packing and texting the first week. Worked as described after a bit of working out the kinks with the earthmate app. After that i just keep it off on day trips and figure ill turn it on if i ever need it as it seems to grab satelites without trouble. Only thing id change is having the ability to put my onyx chip in it. All in all the piece of mind is worth the money even if the $25 a month fee hurts a little in the not so busy season.

 

[amp713]

I've got a spot for sale for $50 if interested

 

[AustinL911]

I run the Delorme InReach (yellow one). I like it for the piece of mind, however, it did let me down on my most recent trip to Colorado. I leave it plugged into a power source on the drive out (~24hr) and have it set to track every 10min. It worked flawless for the trip out and for the first 1/2 day I was out in the bush. But then, it just shut off. Battery fully charged....and dead. Soft reset over and over and still nothing. I was PISSED. I managed to find a spot in the high country to get some cell reception to let me family know I wasn't dead and what was going on. I tried and tried the next two days to get it to turn back on. Went to bed and tried again in the morning, and it turns on like nothing happened and worked fine the rest of my trip.

Got home and did some Googling. Come to find out others have had the same issue. Turns out when you make them track for that long and that frequently (it was like 300 pings), it can make them freak out. I need to update the firmware in mine, so hopefully that will fix the problem. I also won't be setting it to track as much on the trip out, just in case. Regardless, I'm a little less confident in mine after that little episode.

 

[TNHunter]

I like mine but had problems with canopy overhead blocking some signals when it should not have. Clear overhead in some areas but down in the valley and could not get a text out or receive. Not totally fool proof but better than nothing. I’ll always carry mine even with the issues


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[jlaner0408]

It sounds like I’ll definitey be going to Inreach route. I’ll just probably wait until later this spring to grab one of the newer models (if a newer one gets released)