On 5/8/2013 7:36 PM, bumper wrote:

Q - How much does Spot charge for truly reliable service?

A - Sorry, not available.

InReach is the better solution, though more expensive.

I have the original InReach (smartphone version). When Delorme came
out with the newer, smaller InReach SE with LCD screen (the one Eric
says they are not shipping yet), I considered upgrading. However, the
SE uses an internal lithium battery while my older InReach uses 2 AA
batteries (lithium, alkaline, or NiMH). I prefer the ability to swap
batteries on longer trips, as I use the InReach in power planes,
including week long camping trips in the Idaho back country, where
the ability to send and recieve text messages via the InReach is
appreciated by wife and family.

Note: My original InReach was defective. It would shut down and/or
lock-up for no apparent reason. The replacement works flawlessly,
even after dropping it and sending it flying even higher and into the
concrete after my attempt to catch it only made matters worse (I had
my hands full).

Paul Remde told me the inReach SE units were to ship to him Monday, so
expects to begin deliveries to his customers next week. I'm looking
forward to testing it.

--
Eric Greenwell - Washington State, USA (change ".netto" to ".us" to
email me)