Personal Locator &/or SPOT ideas ???

[rob_macca67 Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close rob_macca67]

Guys......


I generally do a bit of bush offroading/exploring during my days off during the week and the missus gets a bit concerned that if something was to happen, how would she know where I was & how to locate me...... So, I thought I would post up here to get others ideas / suggestions on what's out there that I could possibly use.


I know of the SPOT device that was shown to me by another fellow PP member (outdoorgaz) and I need to research it a bit more as I also believe there is a annual fee involved. One advantage with these is apparently u can set up individual TEXT messages for different scenarios.... I don't really want the personal EPIRB but would consider one of these if I couldn't find anything else suitable... Obviously, I also want to use this on our annual family remote touring trips....


So.... what other options are there out there and what sort of fees (if any) are included...... ???




cheers....


Rob

[ntp Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close ntp]

Guys......


I generally do a bit of bush offroading/exploring during my days off during the week and the missus gets a bit concerned that if something was to happen, how would she know where I was & how to locate me......

Mine simply took out a $1M life insurance policy for me & no longer cares.

[mjrandom Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close mjrandom]

Of course she cares! She needs to know when she can claim against the policy!

[Andosan Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Andosan]

SPOT fees are about $150 per annum for the full subscription. This gives the basic emergency service plus tracking through their website.There are three customisable text messages you can send, plus the full emergency signal.

With the tracking signal on, every ten minutes it sends a short signal back to the system operators in the US, where it then gets plotted on a map. You can give access for anyone to view the map on the web, so they can see where you are, track progress, check your last known location etc.

The emergency signal also goes back to the operators in the US who then initiate a 000 call in Australia with the GPS coordinates of the unit.All messages are sent with GPS coordinates of the unit's current location.

There are pro's and con's vs personal EPIRB's:
- Ongoing cost of the SPOT (con)
- Perhaps a risk that the communication chain has failed for some reason (con)
- Ability to communicate on a regular basis (pro)
- tracking feature (pro)
- sends exact location (pro) vs EPIRB that is only accurate to within a few hundred metres (so I believe)
- poor GPS signal under heavy tree cover (con)

Hope this helps.

Ando

[ntp Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close ntp]

- sends exact location (pro) vs EPIRB that is only accurate to within a few hundred metres (so I believe)

Personal Locator Beacons (PLBs) with GPS are accurate within 100m.

You forgot to mention battery life. (Spot - con; EPIRB - pro)

[rob_macca67 Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close rob_macca67]

Thanks Ando, that's the sort of info I'm looking for......

Is there any competitors similar to SPOT or is SPOT the only provider?



rob

SPOT fees are about $150 per annum for the full subscription. This gives the basic emergency service plus tracking through their website.There are three customisable text messages you can send, plus the full emergency signal.

With the tracking signal on, every ten minutes it sends a short signal back to the system operators in the US, where it then gets plotted on a map. You can give access for anyone to view the map on the web, so they can see where you are, track progress, check your last known location etc.

The emergency signal also goes back to the operators in the US who then initiate a 000 call in Australia with the GPS coordinates of the unit.All messages are sent with GPS coordinates of the unit's current location.

There are pro's and con's vs personal EPIRB's:
- Ongoing cost of the SPOT (con)
- Perhaps a risk that the communication chain has failed for some reason (con)
- Ability to communicate on a regular basis (pro)
- tracking feature (pro)
- sends exact location (pro) vs EPIRB that is only accurate to within a few hundred metres (so I believe)
- poor GPS signal under heavy tree cover (con)

Hope this helps.

Ando

[ntp Addicted PP Member Find all posts View Profile Close ntp]

Is there any competitors similar to SPOT or is SPOT the only provider?

InReach?

www.inreachdeloreme.com

www.alwaysinreach.com.au

[Bushbasher Out of control poster! Find all posts View Profile Close Bushbasher]

Mine simply took out a $1M life insurance policy for me & no longer cares.

And they say that they love us.

[Lenny67 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Lenny67]

I have gadget in my Prado that I can ring and it gives me Gps co-ordinates, speed and time. Costs me 150 a year for a sim but I know where my car is if the wifes in it! My wife has the number stored in her phone also, no phone service no good though..

[JoshF Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close JoshF]

SPOT fees are about $150 per annum for the full subscription. This gives the basic emergency service plus tracking through their website.There are three customisable text messages you can send, plus the full emergency signal.

With the tracking signal on, every ten minutes it sends a short signal back to the system operators in the US, where it then gets plotted on a map. You can give access for anyone to view the map on the web, so they can see where you are, track progress, check your last known location etc.

The emergency signal also goes back to the operators in the US who then initiate a 000 call in Australia with the GPS coordinates of the unit.All messages are sent with GPS coordinates of the unit's current location.

There are pro's and con's vs personal EPIRB's:
- Ongoing cost of the SPOT (con)
- Perhaps a risk that the communication chain has failed for some reason (con)
- Ability to communicate on a regular basis (pro)
- tracking feature (pro)
- sends exact location (pro) vs EPIRB that is only accurate to within a few hundred metres (so I believe)
- poor GPS signal under heavy tree cover (con)

Hope this helps.

Ando

I have one for my Scout Group - Three messages are customisable but you must have internet access to modify them. You can't do it once in the field

- Perhaps a risk that the communication chain has failed for some reason (con) - Spot shows you in Green or Red whether the alert/message is sending or has had issues

- poor GPS signal under heavy tree cover (con) This is basically the same for all satellite based communications, EPIRB/PLB, Spot. Sat phone all suffer with branches and leaves and also rock.

Spot sell another device for a specific SMS use via sat using a Droid or iphone (not sure it does anything else though)

Spot V3 has 12 volt support so you can run it in car all the time and batteries when hiking etc (v2 was lithium batteries only) tracker on V3 can be configured for movement whereas V2 you need to press the track button every 24 hours

[jonoxplor Member Find all posts View Profile Close jonoxplor]

I have a GME GPS EPIRB registered to my PWC and 4WD, I don't think about it but I always have it with me, and I just do a battery check before a long trip. Accurate to within 100 meters and can be used anywhere, It's massive, floats, practically indestructible and I hope I never have to activate it...

[rob_macca67 Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close rob_macca67]

Spot V3 has 12 volt support so you can run it in car all the time and batteries when hiking etc (v2 was lithium batteries only) tracker on V3 can be configured for movement whereas V2 you need to press the track button every 24 hours

I like this idea of being able to run off your car battery..... Is there a limit on the track location that is sent out (breadcrumbs) b4 u have to pay more? I know one of the others (inReach) is limited to 100 b4 u start paying more & I'm not sure if thats 100 per outing or per year.....

[JoshF Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close JoshF]

I like this idea of being able to run off your car battery..... Is there a limit on the track location that is sent out (breadcrumbs) b4 u have to pay more? I know one of the others (inReach) is limited to 100 b4 u start paying more & I'm not sure if thats 100 per outing or per year.....

My V2 Spot subscription is based on an annual service which covers SMS/Email for update messages including Help, Track function (optional) and SOS (not the same as Help), there is no minimum or maximum messages/updates as part of the service. $180 per annum

[K & M McF Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close K & M McF]

We have a Spot 1 and have had now for about 4 years. Still using original battery, so that is not a con. Works under all but the heaviest tree cover, easy solution, walk a few metres. A very good investment that the annual cost makes worthwhile, your friends and family know where you are each night. Highly recommended.

[JoshF Advanced Member Find all posts View Profile Close JoshF]

Still think a Sat Phone is the best choice given all other options have limitations by design when it comes to flexibility, then again it has a cost model also