BWCA SPOT X Boundary Waters Gear Forum
Chat Rooms (0 Chatting)  |  Search  |   Login/Join
* For the benefit of the community, commercial posting is not allowed.
Boundary Waters Quetico Forum
   Gear Forum
      SPOT X     

Author

Text

Michwall2
distinguished member(1435)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
06/25/2018 09:34AM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
Anyone have experience with the new SPOT X? Looks like SPOT is getting on board with the messaging capabilities and still at a lower price than the InReach product.

Thanks for your input.
 
      Print Top Bottom Previous Next
06/25/2018 12:52PM  
You'll be interested in this blog entry and discussion
 
06/25/2018 12:54PM  
You may also want to read about the new InReach mini also.
 
Marten
distinguished member(514)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
06/25/2018 01:53PM  
Competition is good for us consumers. Globalstar has hiked the minimum satellite pa kage to $1100 US (after fees and taxes) per year. I will be moving to a new device but will wait a bit longer because there is so much more that will probably be added to these devices. Competition is good!!

Checking into Iridium (Inreaches satellite provider) and Globalstar (Spot satellite provider) shows me that Iridium is making money and Globalstar loses big every year. Also Iridium has just finished replacing their satellites.

For the typical paddler the Garmin plans look the cheapest over the long run and you can get the weather on the Inreach.
 
Jackfish
Moderator
  
06/25/2018 01:54PM  
I have a Generation 2 SPOT and it has worked fine - just as advertised. However, the SPOT X version has interested me because of it's 2-way capabilities.

The first place I looked was REI. It may interest you, as it did me, to read the customer reviews on the REI website. I'm going to wait a while before making that kind of investment.
 
andym
distinguished member(5340)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberpower member
  
06/25/2018 02:14PM  
Based on the REI reviews and the difference in the satellite networks, I decided to go with a Garmin Inreach Explorer+. The Spot X looks great but I'll wait for a later version when I'm sure that they have worked out the kinks and see how Globalstar is doing.
 
Minnesotian
distinguished member(2309)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
06/25/2018 04:22PM  

Also, I noticed on the Spot X review:

"Unlike Garmin, SPOT does not offer a month-to-month plan, i.e. activate your service only for the months when you’ll use the device. For owners that need service for only a few months per year, the long-term cost of an inReach will probably be less."

 
Northwoodsman
distinguished member(2059)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
06/25/2018 06:39PM  
I don't mean to hijack a thread but it's not too far off base. Be wary when you read reviews on a site that you are comfortable with and trust these days. Many reviews come from another source, which is legal if you disclose it. A month or so ago I went to the website of a large outdoor gear cooperative to read reviews on something because I have been a member for over 25 years and I trust that many of their members have the same interests that I do, use equipment in much the same way, and have similar expectations as I do. I was shocked too see that the majority of the reviews cam from other sources, namely the manufacturers own website. I'm not viewing this in a negative manner, I just want to bring it to your attention in case you haven't noticed it.

I have the InReach SE (older model) and I love it. I also opt in for the annual extraction insurance that is optional for my plan because it's only like $18 per year. It's cheap insurance in the event that you get stuck with a bill for whatever reason. Beware that in the terms that this insurance only covers the registered owner of the unit and nobody else in the group, in the family, or that you may come across needing assistance. Just wanted to throw this out there for those of us that like to read the first couple sentences and then click "I Agree to the Terms & Conditions...". I'm not sure who charges for rescues and who doesn't but like I said, it's $18 per year.

No matter which device you choose, make sure that you know how to use it, it is charged or has fresh batteries, and keep it with you! If you are in your tent at night and a tree falls on you it won't do you any good if it is attached to the thwart in your canoe. If you just paddle out 100 feet to get water and you capsize and get tangled up and can't make it back to shore, it won't do you any good in your tent. I used to leave mine attached to my smaller pack on portages and then it dawned on me, I double portage and make 3 trips across, I only had my InReach with me 1/3 of the time. Duh!
 
andym
distinguished member(5340)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberpower member
  
06/25/2018 07:08PM  
Good point about the InReach insurance. It really bugs me that it doesn’t cover immediate family or offer that option.

I think Spot may have a monthly plan but it may also have an activation fee each time you go off and back on a plan. With Garmin the activation for monthly plans is an annual fee.
 
06/25/2018 07:42PM  
andym: "Good point about the InReach insurance. It really bugs me that it doesn’t cover immediate family or offer that option.


I think Spot may have a monthly plan but it may also have an activation fee each time you go off and back on a plan. With Garmin the activation for monthly plans is an annual fee."



From the Andrew Skurka blog post:

Service plans
Like all SPOT and inReach products, the SPOT X requires a service plan. SPOT offers two levels:
Weekender ($20 per month, or $200 annually), with 25 free messages per month (or 300 total per year) and unlimited tracking; and,
Adventurer ($30 per month, or $300 annually), with unlimited messaging and tracking.
Both plans incur a $20 activation fee.
Unlike Garmin, SPOT does not offer a month-to-month plan, i.e. activate your service only for the months when you’ll use the device. For owners that need service for only a few months per year, the long-term cost of an inReach will probably be less.
 
06/25/2018 10:37PM  
Marten: "Competition is good for us consumers. Globalstar has hiked the minimum satellite pa kage to $1100 US (after fees and taxes) per year. I will be moving to a new device but will wait a bit longer because there is so much more that will probably be added to these devices. Competition is good!!


Checking into Iridium (Inreaches satellite provider) and Globalstar (Spot satellite provider) shows me that Iridium is making money and Globalstar loses big every year. Also Iridium has just finished replacing their satellites.


For the typical paddler the Garmin plans look the cheapest over the long run and you can get the weather on the Inreach."

Also Iridium has just finished replacing their satellites.

Or really close to it according to Wiki



Irudium 2nd Gen started going up last year
 
tombo131
distinguished member (132)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
06/26/2018 08:59AM  
I haven't tried the Spot X, but did just recently use my InReach Explorer + in the BW. I hear Northwoodsman's caution on retail reviews, but it is somewhat concerning to see some reviews about the reliability of the Spot. My group used the Garmin to send quite a few messages back and forth with family to check on our young children, and had 100% success on sends and receives. Connecting to a phone via Bluetooth takes care of the lack of keyboard problem. The month-to-month plan works well for me as I went from paying the ~$65 last month to have unlimited usage to putting it fully in suspended plan mode now as I probably won't need it for several more months.

That said, Garmin has been putting the InReach Explorer+ on sale, so I'd expect they're coming out with a new model soon too.
 
arm2008
distinguished member (176)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
06/26/2018 09:18AM  
I'm starting to feel really bad for you all that only need service a couple months a year! I'm outdoor "adventuring" about 50 weekends a year - hiking, camping, canoeing - and typically don't have cell service for at least part of the day. Still torn between the 2 major competitors, but for me I might as well have an active plan year round.
 
andym
distinguished member(5340)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberpower member
  
06/26/2018 04:57PM  
arm2008: "I'm starting to feel really bad for you all that only need service a couple months a year! I'm outdoor "adventuring" about 50 weekends a year - hiking, camping, canoeing - and typically don't have cell service for at least part of the day. Still torn between the 2 major competitors, but for me I might as well have an active plan year round."


There's just really good cell coverage where we hike near home. One of our favorite hikes is actually up a mountain that has a bunch of cell and comm towers at the top. On the water, the cell coverage is good.
 
Marten
distinguished member(514)distinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished memberdistinguished member
  
06/26/2018 05:46PM  


I rechecked and see Iridium is not quite done yet.
Iridium news release
 
annlikesbass2
member (25)member
  
06/27/2018 03:47PM  
Be leery of relying on technology. Know your gear, route and maps. Don't take chances in high winds or run rapids. Be safe. All these devices can't replace good backcountry skills. I realize it's for emergencies. Just don't rely on it. You'll feel more alive depending on yourself.
 
Jackfish
Moderator
  
06/27/2018 04:37PM  
annlikesbass2: "Be leery of relying on technology. Know your gear, route and maps. "

+2! Definitely!
 
07/04/2018 10:10AM  
Here's a recent comment from a reader on Skurka's blog post about the SpotX:

"I believe the Spot X DOES have month to month options available. I just spoke to Spot customer service (also on website: https://www.findmespot.com/spotx/lander.php) and they said they offer what they call “Flex charge” for the Spot X. This allows month to month (1 month min service) starting at $14.95/month and does require a $24.95 annual fee as well. This seems comparable to the inReach month to month option unless I am missing what others consider to be month to month. That’s entirely possible. I also note when comparing the two basic monthly subscriptions that Spot offers 20 text messages vs. inReach’s 10; a small win for Spot. Customer service also mentioned that they MAY offer Flex charge in the future for other devices which could be terrific for those like me with older Spot devices (Gen2). We’ll see…"


SPOTX link
 
07/04/2018 10:49AM  
Thanks for the update boonie........... the description of the monthly flex plan on their website that you linked is different than what it was the last time I looked at the website. So they've either changed the monthly plan to a flex plan or they changed the description to make it obvious that you can activate it for a month here and there as you need it.
 
      Print Top Bottom Previous Next