Garmin InReach V Sat Phone

Macca, thank you for your input.

Just to clarify, the InReach device can send texts to any mobile phone number, so it can be used for day to day non emergency contact to family and friends, but SMS messaging only.

The SOS messaging goes through a third party response centre located in the US.

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G'day Polvo,

I'm with Macca on this.
You say that you already carry a PLB for any "real emergency" and now want a device for social contact. A Satphone would give you that and also give the benefit of an enhanced communicator in emergency situations.

A PLB is fast and easy but does not alert the authorities to the full nature of your emergency. Upon receiving a PLB call, AMSA verify the report then hand the response to one or more of several agencies. This can be anything from an aircraft to a nearby station property. In the meantime you wait without even acknowledgement that your PLB transmission has been received and is being acted upon.
On the other hand, with a Satphone you have the opportunity to describe your situation and even better, to be able to have two-way dialog with an appropriate person such as a RFDS doctor who can give immediate advice. And you have the important reassurance that your plight has been received and is being responded to. I carry both PLB and a Satphone and would select the appropriate device for use, even using both simultaneously in a dire situation.

On top of that, a Satphone allows social and convenience calling with the full flexibility of two-way conversation. Better even than SMS-type calling where you don't even know if the recipient has received or read you message.

If it is simply to reassure concerned family of your well-being then a "SPOT" device could serve.

If the ongoing cost of a Satphone service concerns you, place it in context. Consider the other costs of remote travel; vehicle cost and depreciation, tyres, fuel, maintenance etc. and compare it to the importance you already place on your internet and cell-phones and their ongoing costs and you will find that the Satphone is an affordable but valuable convenience and safety device.

Allan, pretty much what I was thinking in the back of my mind. The cheaper Garmin option has it's limitations that's for sure and one on one conversations cannot be replaced via messaging through a third party.

The costs where never really the primary focus for me, yes saving money is a good thing, in the right place.

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Polvo, we were halfway across the Anne Beadell Hwy when a call to my Satphone alerted me to my sister being in her final moments. I was able to talk to her and express my love for her at that time. It meant a great deal to both of us.
That alone justified my decision to carry the Satphone.

Hi Polvo, thanks for the further explanation of the Garmin device, your original post did not mention direct text to text communication, only the routing of the text through an American Emergency Response system to an Australian Emergency Response service.

As I and others have stated, for one on one communications, you cannot beat a Sat. Phone.

Macca

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Just be aware of the Garmin InReach Explorer's limitations.

Apart from storing pre-set messages for transmission, entering text for a message is, in a reviewer's expression, "clunky". There is no physical keyboard and no touchscreen, only a tiny onscreen keyboard that you must use the toggle button to move a cursor around to select each letter in turn. If you have ever used such a system you will appreciate just how long it takes to compile a message.

This "clunky" Garmin system may be acceptable to fill in your day for a social message but the reality is that if your partner is lying there in pain while you use both hands to fool with this device you will not gain many Brownie Points.
With a Satphone you can listen to instructions whilst having both hands and eyes free to attend to your patient. A Satphone really is a No Brainer.

Allan,
The keyboard is as clunky as a smartphone as there is an app to use on your phone (connected to the InReach, something else that could go wrong) for typing the text messages. But you are correct, having to type a message whilst under duress is not the best situation to be in.

Appreciate the input, one on one conversation has me sticking with my original plan of buying a sat phone.

The global coverage of the Thuraya sat sleeve is not flexible enough for me. For Australia it's probably more than adequate.

Iridium Nertwork has better coverage.

Macca.

Good info, thanks Mark.
We have the ability for others to track our location, we have a Garmin GPS and a PLB (amongst other things) My main reason for another device was to be able to keep in touch with family and friends when outside of phone range, I believe the Garmin InReach can do this quite well and at a reasonable cost. Obviously the difference comes down to talking or texting. The ability to do either in an emergency is definitely a plus.