Zoleo Vs Garmin

[BKhunter]

Hey All,

Was curious if I should go with a Zoleo or a Garmin inReach or Montana. Was curious what the pros and cons are of each and why you would prefer one over the other. Want to be able to stay in contact with my family just to check in and let them know I am safe while out in backcountry.

I'd be open to other opinions on other Garmin models as well.

 

[PredatorSlayer]

I really like my inreach mini. Prior to this I had a delorme version.

 

[Bubblehide]

There was a recent post that made some excellent points of why to go with Zoleo.

 

[BKhunter]

There was a recent post that made some excellent points of why to go with Zoleo.

If you happen to know the link I would love to read it. I did a quick search and read some posting but they all seemed to lean to the inreach. Some were older reviews so looking for something little more recent.

 

[Ridgehunter604]

Possibly referring to elkstabbers recent post on the inreach failures?
It sounds like a lot of it was due to not having the software updated but he also felt like the zoleo was a bit more rugged.
Search garmin inreach failure or something like that.

 

[Team4LongGun]

I have both and only use ZOLEO now. Main thing is it’s much faster transmission times-send and receive.

 

[Gone4Days]

I use Zoleo.

 

[406life]

I used the InReach Mini for a handful of years, and now the Zoleo. My recommendation is the Zoleo. Both operate on the same Iridium system. The Mini has the screen built in, so if your phone goes down you can still use it to 2-way text. But the app, ease of use, speed of messages in and out, lack of connective to phone from device issues, and dedicated SMS number of the Zoleo beats the Mini hands down. When the Zoleo 2 comes out and has a screen, there won't be any reason to stick with the InReach. My only complaint about the Zoleo is it is slightly bigger than the Mini, about the size of a deck of cards. Also, if you are on Guidefitter you can get a deep discount on the Zoleo. Even at full price it is half what a Mini 2 is retailing for.

 

[mdx24]

TLDR: I have a Zoleo that I used on my elk hunt this year and it worked great. It has some room for minor improvements, but nothing too major.

Zoleo is my first satellite communicator, so I can't speak for the Garmin, but I can tell you about my experience of using the Zoleo for 22 consecutive days back in July/August. I went with the Zoleo over the InReach for two reasons. First, I foresaw 98% of my communication being custom texts and not a check-in or canned response. Zoleo's mid tier plan offered far more messages than the InReach and the phone based interface seemed like a no brainer for that purpose. Second was the price.

The Zoleo was super easy to setup. It probably took about 8 minutes from unboxing it to having it activated with a plan and everything. Connecting to the phone was simple, far easier than any other bluetooth device. Over my time of usage, I had no issues at all with it. Messages were generally fast to send and receive. Occasionally it might take 10 minutes to get a message out, but that was rare. For the most part, it felt like texting as normal with only a slight delay between messages compared to SMS. I guess that is the point of this system. Battery life was more than adequate. I was usually charging it every 4-5 days. It would go down to 30% battery and I would just charge to be safe and this was with a fair amount of usage. I also found the weather reports to be quite helpful as we had thunderstorms on and off the whole time we were out.

To finish it out, here are the things I think could have been better:
-Needs a message counter. Unless you physically go count all the messages in your conversations, you have no way to know where you're at until they send you a message when you've used up 80%. I'm sure a simple app update would fix this.
-Group messaging would be really helpful (Garmin currently supports this). We had two other parties meeting us up there. Would have been great to be able to send all the info for our base camp location in one conversation.
-The check-in button got pressed a couple times on accident
-Weather report time intervals are super whack. It will give hourly intervals that are all over like 8,10,2,6, 8. Just stick to hourly or bi-hourly. It would also be nice to have coordinates or a more precise idea of the location of the weather station giving the reports. In our case, I think it was likely 30 miles or more away.
-Lastly, I don't mind not having a screen, but I wish there was a little more functionality without a phone. I would like to be able to send a non-emergency "need help" message (like when our truck got stuck, again the Garmin would have a win here), an everything is ok message, and pure coordinates without an "ok" message.
-Wouldn't hurt for it to be a little smaller

I hope that helps!

 

[ILIKEGEAR]

We do a review + raffle on Garmin and Zoleo and recommend the Zoleo most often to our winners, with the exception of those who don't want to have to rely on their phone in the field. If communication is your main purpose, go Zoleo.

 

[AM3]

Recently got a Zoleo. So far the app works pretty well. Have an 8 day moose trip next week that will be a good test. Brother in law has the mini and likes it also.

 

[Dbornhorstjr]

I used the InReach Mini for a handful of years, and now the Zoleo. My recommendation is the Zoleo. Both operate on the same Iridium system. The Mini has the screen built in, so if your phone goes down you can still use it to 2-way text. But the app, ease of use, speed of messages in and out, lack of connective to phone from device issues, and dedicated SMS number of the Zoleo beats the Mini hands down. When the Zoleo 2 comes out and has a screen, there won't be any reason to stick with the InReach. My only complaint about the Zoleo is it is slightly bigger than the Mini, about the size of a deck of cards. Also, if you are on Guidefitter you can get a deep discount on the Zoleo. Even at full price it is half what a Mini 2 is retailing for.

Do you know if they will be coming out with a Zoleo 2?

 

[Loper]

For the last two seasons I've had a Zoleo and my buddy has had a InReach. His InReach is extremely slow to send and receive messages in the mountains of Idaho and Wyoming, where mine sends and receives without issue. This convinced my other buddies to not even hesitate and buy a Zoleo.

 

[Roosterstraw]

The new garmin messenger looks nice.

 

[Desk Jockey]

We do a review + raffle on Garmin and Zoleo and recommend the Zoleo most often to our winners, with the exception of those who don't want to have to rely on their phone in the field. If communication is your main purpose, go Zoleo.

The new garmin messenger looks nice.

I am leaning toward that new garmin Seems to be the best of both worlds.

 

[snowymtnwolf]

Zoleo zoleo zoleo

From the min you turn it on, you can send and receive within a min. In my tent and under trees. I wouldn’t believe it IF I didn’t do this repeatedly.

I’m a Garmin person through and through, but the mini inreach let us down two years in a row. So buddy and I went zoleo and could always communicate, where as buddy with Garmin in reach could not.

But I have others with inreach that say they never have a problem.

But I personally have tried both side by side and zoleo for the win.

I think you pay a tiny bit more for their plan, especially their setup plan which requires 90 day use before pausing.

But to me, it’s worth it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[AZHunter07]

I just got home from my elk hunt, I bought the inReach mini by Garmin. I downloaded the Earthmate App and paired the 2. We had no wifi signal, so when the mini was on, I could text my family to let them know my old ass was ok.

 

[Beendare]

REI recently had the Zoloeo on sale, $150, I picked one up

A couple buddies recommended it over inReach…and some of the online comparisons rate it better.

Technology is never 100%-

I always have battery along with my phone in the backcountry so I dont need the screen on the inreach

worth mentioning the new iPhone 14 has a satellite SOS button that may suffice for some