Delorme Inreach SE @ 190 grams is a good choice if you are in the market for a PLB or Satellite Phone. It is only slightly dearer (and heavier) than a stand-alone PLB (& so much cheaper than lighter than an Iridium Extreme) but with two way SMS messaging functionality from anywhere on earth. Whenever you send someone an SMS with it your exact GPS location goes with the message. The service is also much cheaper than a satellite phone – from less than $20/month.
NB: Delorme has been taken over by Garmin: https://explore.garmin.com/en-AU/inreach/
Garmin now offer an updated version wich is lighter ans d smaller with the same functionality, The Garmin Inreach Mini at 100 grams. I currently own both. The latest model of the Mini has greatly extended battery life.
You can also load maps on it and use it as a GPS. You can pair it with your mobile phone to make it even more user friendly. It has a tracking function which can notify your friends every few minutes of your exact location (people can even ‘ping’ you to trigger your location) – and of course it has an SOS button which will bring emergency services if you need rescuing. The fact that it has two-way messaging will mean that unnecessary rescues will be reduced enormously.
The internal battery will last a trip up to 10 days (ie over 100 hours), but of course can be recharged on the go eg with one of these: Charging More details here: http://www.inreachdelorme.com/product-info/inreachse.php and here:Get Lost Get Found Best PLB/Epirb
A PS: The battery will last this long when it has a clear view of the sky and can contact the satellite quickly (usually every 20 minutes). If you obstruct its view of the sky it will chew through batteries much more quickly. I am assuming you will turn the device off of a night in my estimates.
This is another really handy lightweight (50 gram) device for keeping in touch when there is no phont service: Gotenna
As are these: Emergency CB Radios
See also:
Jelly the World’s Smallest 4G Smartphone
Update (Jun 2018):
Three is now a new half size Garmin Inreach weighing a mere 100 grams with all the same functionality: Garmin Inreach Mini
And there is a new improved version of the above phone, named the Atom which is waterproof and boasts a 16 meg camera: Mighty Tiny Phone
Things just keep getting better and better! And better Jelly 2 Mini Smartphone The new Unihertz phones are also Zello enabled.
To see what else I carry in my pack see: A Gorilla in the Hand
First Published Jun 29, 2016
Overall do you think this unit works as well as the New Garmin devices?
I am not a review site Bob. I own this one and the Garmin Mini (because it is lighter). They are about the same but I realise there are newer models and other devices which I am not going to spend my hard-earned cash on as the ones I have will suffice. Cheers, Steve.
Se pueden hacer llamadas locales, según el texto no entiendo cómo funciona gracias
You can just send text messages with a satellite messenger. Cheers, Steve.
hi
where can i buy one?
Hi Roy, I think it is best if you Google this up yourself (for your location).There are also some other new models/manufacturers of these devices which might better suit your needs. I am still using the original one (with the screen) even though ether are now lighter models (without screens) but I think the additional safety of still being able to use it unpaired via its screen justifies the extra weight. I recently had to do this. It’s why I carry it as well as my satellite phone (though I will be buying a new lighter model Iridium some time). This is one’s life after all – if you don’t value it much then it wasn’t worth much! There are people who will try to save five bucks when their life depends on it. That would be very woolly thinking. Cheers, Steve.
I would like to use to keep in contact with my family in the USA when I go to Uruguay or Argentina.
This will do the job. Cheers, Steve.