DeLorme inReach Explorer Satellite Messenger

[anonymous1]

I have never seen this before but I think I want it on my Xmas list

http://www.rei.com/product/877499/delorme-inreach-explorer-satellite-messenger

Some guys brought one with them and I am very impressed with how good it works and the resolution of the picture and maps. I was able to track their hunt and be on location for pickup with out a radio call.
Anybody had any bad experience with it.

$20 something per month as needed

 

[mcnejs]

I brought my delorme inreach SE along on my moose hunt this year. It worked great. I already have a good gps so I just got the two way communicator.version. I was very happy with the service and so was my wife. I synced it with my samsung galaxy tab2 and it made a nice backup gps.

 

[Ramcam]

Picked one up this year so far so good.Give it a good workout next week.

 

[0321Tony]

I had the first get and it worked flawless. I just bought the Explorer so no review on that one yet

 

[ChugiakTinkerer]

Picked up an Explorer recently and took it on my recent Gulkana River trip. It does what it claims to do pretty well. Worst case for me in sending out a text was inside the tent in a stand of spruce. In that circumstance it might take several minutes to send the message. If I walked out to a spot with a clear view of the sky it was instantaneous.

It is not a useful tool for navigation. Keep your GPS for that purpose. Had the batteries die in my old eTrex and opted to just use the InReach Explorer rather than dig out some more AA batteries. Ended up overshooting desired campsite and had to settle on floating on to the next one.

Edit to add:
DeLorme used to have a really cruddy subscription model, but the 'Freedom Plans' are excellent for my needs. You pay an annual fee and then have it active for the months you need at the level you need. Unless you're out and about year round, the new plans will probably be cheaper.

 

[Roger]

Man if they would offer the 100K rescue insurance like spot I'd switch over it would be nice having both gps and rescue on same unit.

 

[Anythingalaska]

I borrowed my buddies In Reach on my last hunt to use deep in the mountains. Worked great. I was originally going to buy a sat phone, but I think I might settle for an In-reach now. The only thing I really prefer in a sat phone; is the assurance in being able to actually speak with someone, vs. hoping your text message was sent/received, in a situation like an emergency or a remote float plane pickup. But the In Reach seems to be reliable.

 

[kubs]

I have the Delorme Inreach Explorer. Got it before the summer and have used it on a dozen trips or so. The texting is great, especially if paired with a phone. I dropped mine about 8-10 ft while standing on my boat at the take out. It gave me an error message, I reset it and it went away. I had asked delorme via email about it and they just sent me a new one with a UPS label for returning the old one. Pretty sweet service that I didn't even ask for. There really isn't a map, just able to mark waypoints (found that out after) but the texting is still way worth it.

My buddy and I activated one on the 1st for a fatality and found out the hard way:
Delorme will text you back to confirm a SOS and what you need. We were busy with CPR and didn't notice the text. Lots of questions arise when you don't respond to the text.
Troopers will call your wife (or contact) and ask what is wrong and what do you need.
Heli response is not automatic. Troopers didn't want to send it.

Lessons learned:
Non essential family removed from the SOS emergency contact list.
Wife and Buddy added with the understanding that if it is not a medical emergency we will text and get what we need. If we hit the SOS button we want the "Medical Helicopter sent" the Coast Guard or the 210th.
I WILL respond to the delorme text next time.

I have had several over the years including the spot version with one way texting. This is my favorite so far, much smaller than a sat phone and less likely to be left. It won't be left behind...

 

[brule]

Bought mine in April, used it throughout the summer and fall. Worked flawlessly for two way messaging and it's nice for the family to follow my hunts through the tracking feature. Battery life was good, but I still stick with my garmin GPS for navigation.

 

[akshootnscoot]

Had to do a factory reset on mine once this summer, but used it like crazy. Was able to stay in touch with the wife when I otherwise would have been incommunicado for weeks at a time. Definitely glad I picked it up. I'm sure the next model with picture messaging will be out soon (right after I pick mine up). Love the unlimited freedom plan and being able to suspend it

 

[akshootnscoot]

Kubs, thanks for the heads up on the SOS and emergency contact info. Sorry to hear about your circumstances

 

[rivrat]

Deorme

Deorme

Be careful the rep admitted to me the screen will crack in freezing temps.

And the customer service/repair help was absolutely terrible, in my case, with a broken, cracked screen.

Unit still works great for sending/receiving messages . It did send one message I didn't type-

 

[KodiakZach]

Had to do a factory reset on mine once this summer, but used it like crazy. Was able to stay in touch with the wife when I otherwise would have been incommunicado for weeks at a time. Definitely glad I picked it up. I'm sure the next model with picture messaging will be out soon (right after I pick mine up). Love the unlimited freedom plan and being able to suspend it

Just thought I'd throw my two cents in. I bought one in May to take commercial fishing all summer. It worked well everywhere but every couple weeks I had to run the "factory reset" as it would make a noise that I had received a message - but wouldn't display the message. Otherwise worked great.

 

[JDH88]

I recently bought one and used it on a hunt last week. I used it paired with my Samsung S4 and also without, worked great with no issues.