SPOT or DeLorme inReach SE
- Thread starter Daboo
- Start date
Chris, I've got the Spot (Generation 2) and it's worked great for me. I bought it so Joanne could track me on the Epic Ride and she refused to learn how to use it. She didn't care where I was and figured that if I got hurt, someone would call her, plus, as it turned out, other people did follow my track on Spotwalla and would say, "Oh, I noticed that Phil is in Nova Scotia." And she'd say, "Oh, really?"
I don't know if Spotwalla works for the DeLorme products or not, but it's one of the best things about the Spot. I can use it to track all my rides and I can make those visible to other people or not, my choice.
There was discussion that made it sound like the Spot would eat batteries in just a couple of weeks, but I only had to replace them once on the Epic Ride. I put in a new set after Jim and I got back from our flight out to the western reaches of the Yukon River and they lasted till I got home.
There is other discussion about how quickly you'd get help with the Spot and some of the LD riders who travel into really distant places are carrying personal locator beacons, but those things are really expensive and the service for them is more expensive than Spot's.
Other discussion centers around whether to have the Spot on your body or on the bike. I can see some possible advantages to carrying it on me, but mine is on the bike.
I don't know if Spotwalla works for the DeLorme products or not, but it's one of the best things about the Spot. I can use it to track all my rides and I can make those visible to other people or not, my choice.
There was discussion that made it sound like the Spot would eat batteries in just a couple of weeks, but I only had to replace them once on the Epic Ride. I put in a new set after Jim and I got back from our flight out to the western reaches of the Yukon River and they lasted till I got home.
There is other discussion about how quickly you'd get help with the Spot and some of the LD riders who travel into really distant places are carrying personal locator beacons, but those things are really expensive and the service for them is more expensive than Spot's.
Other discussion centers around whether to have the Spot on your body or on the bike. I can see some possible advantages to carrying it on me, but mine is on the bike.
I have traced a route when I had SPOT on line and it showed my route. One of the nice features of SPOT is you can sign up to bring yourself home from over 150 miles if you injured on a ride. I had a nice ride in a ambulance from Longansport, IN to near Kalamazoo, MI to a rehab facility for no cost because I had signed up for this insurance. I don't know what it would of cost, but I sure if I did not have this insurance; I would have ridden in the back of some friends or relatives vehicle in a lot more pain.
I have a SPOT 2 and I have used it tied to the bag on the back of my bike while riding in Australia and attached to my upper arm while trekking in Nepal.
The SPOT works very well and yes I did have a few occasions while trekking in Nepal when messages were not sent. I put that down to my process rather than the SPOT. I pushed the message button and waited for the message LED to illuminate BUT the LED means it has sent the message (not that it has actually been re-transmitted by the satellite). If I had waited another 10 minutes or so the message would have been sent OK.
I find the SPOT to be very capable and I really like the message facility as it allows me to send a predetermined message home to my family to let them know if I am OK or need help.
Seagrass
The SPOT works very well and yes I did have a few occasions while trekking in Nepal when messages were not sent. I put that down to my process rather than the SPOT. I pushed the message button and waited for the message LED to illuminate BUT the LED means it has sent the message (not that it has actually been re-transmitted by the satellite). If I had waited another 10 minutes or so the message would have been sent OK.
I find the SPOT to be very capable and I really like the message facility as it allows me to send a predetermined message home to my family to let them know if I am OK or need help.
Seagrass
I bought the DeLorme inReach Explorer before our Thai trip this past December. Did a lot of research on both of the units, and DeLorme came out the winner. By far. Yeah, its more expensive, but you get so much more for the $$ you're spending.
When using the device, we keep it in the left side chest pocket of the Roadcrafter. Would work fine in the map case of the tank bag, but more than likely, you'll be separated from your bike if you crash.
I work in a 911 center, and I won't go into my rants about Spots sometimes crappy coverage. But, DeLorme has a lot more power than the Spot does. So, if you happen to be stuck in the mtns under a heavy cloud cover and rain, I hope you are not going to rely on the Spot to save you. End of rant. If I were going to be out in the sticks by myself and didn't care about all the bells and whistles, I'd get this one:
https://www.acrartex.com/products/catalog/personal-locator-beacons/resqlinkplus/#sthash.D3B2e2if.dpbs
But the Explorer has fit the bill for us quite nicely.
This guy did a good comparison:
http://www.cloudbasemayhem.com/delorme-vs-spot-when-your-life-depends-on-it/
When using the device, we keep it in the left side chest pocket of the Roadcrafter. Would work fine in the map case of the tank bag, but more than likely, you'll be separated from your bike if you crash.
I work in a 911 center, and I won't go into my rants about Spots sometimes crappy coverage. But, DeLorme has a lot more power than the Spot does. So, if you happen to be stuck in the mtns under a heavy cloud cover and rain, I hope you are not going to rely on the Spot to save you. End of rant. If I were going to be out in the sticks by myself and didn't care about all the bells and whistles, I'd get this one:
https://www.acrartex.com/products/catalog/personal-locator-beacons/resqlinkplus/#sthash.D3B2e2if.dpbs
But the Explorer has fit the bill for us quite nicely.
This guy did a good comparison:
http://www.cloudbasemayhem.com/delorme-vs-spot-when-your-life-depends-on-it/
As a pilot who has never had to use the ELT, he has a point! I am seriously considering adding the ResQlink to our stash of electronic goodies. We are heading back to Thailand December of 2017, hopefully for a 8 or 9 week trip instead of 5 like the last one. This time, though, we'll be heading out on less traveled roads. Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia.I'm looking through the review in that comparison you linked to. I wish the guy would say what he really feels.(The emphasis is mine.)
So, the moral here is that if you are doing something remote and slightly dangerous like flying, you NEED to use a tracking device, endstop. If you don’t, you’re an idiot.
Chris
The DeLorme worked great in Thailand, we sent messages back and forth to my phone, etc. But if I'm gonna head out into the "jungle", I want the peace of mind the ResQLink will give me. Not to say the DeLorme wouldn't work...... But as we know, sometimes things don't work as they are supposed to. Took over seven months to find our friends plane after he and his buddies crashed on the way back to SoCal from Vegas. ELT failed.
And yes, I have the MedJet Assist policy as well. (and another medevac policy that will serve us close to home) It is spendy, but I know it'll get us home if need be.