Spot Messenger?

[Bod]

I've searched the archives and read the posts but would like current info. Have you used one? Good or bad results. Thinking about buying one for peace of mind for those left at home.
Thanks

[tristanmac]

Excellent piece of equipment. Cant say enough about them.

[larry56b]

Good investment for peace of mind.We use it for snowmobiling mostly but I am taking it hunting this fall.

[Rackmastr]

Just got one this summer and it seems like a pretty cool peice of kit.

Next week will be my first week of using one on a hunt, but I can tell ya that while out hiking this summer its worked great!!

[RJ]

Got it, love it.

[srupp]

any questions..

Steven Rupp

SPOT Canada rep

[trapman]

just came back from a sheep hunt worked great .wifes could see were we where on the tracking mode .sent them a message we were all right each night and told them if we sent 3 messages in 10 minutes call the plane we had our sheep . It worked great .Just remember if you tell her you are going hunting and the tracking mode is on you better be going hunting

[todbartell]

got one this summer, works well. $50 rebate on until end of the year too!

[reg]

They work great. I have had mine for 3 years and use it often when travelling to let friends know my location. I also use it in my airplane .

[Jagermeister]

I have had one in the box for about 3 years and decided to have it activated recently. The first order of business for me was to place a call to Srupp and with his guidance and suggestions, I went online and went through the activation process.
The only issue I have is that sometimes it appears that the OK/√ does not always go through. I have followed the instructions (or at least I think I have) with getting a clear sky window and waiting for the unit to acquire a fix. Good thing I have more time to familiarize myself with it. At this time I am thinking I may be the fault, playing with it some more should eliminate the "me factor". Now I think I will go out and power it up, wait the customary period and send the the OK/√ message.
Thanks Steven, talk to again soon.

[srupp]

Jagermeister..

If your still having issues..give me a call and we'll go through the process step by step..its important to get this procedure down....

and its my pleasure..

cheers
Steven

[kootenayslam]

if you ever hunt alone it's a must have. period. even with 2 people way in the backcountry it's worth having.

[kayjayess]

Got the spot connect this year for our aug stones hunt. It paid for itself 10 fold our first trip. Highly recommend it!

[Jagermeister]

I went outside and powered the unit up. Waited a couple of minutes and then pressed the OK/√ send button, the time was 7:38 PM. My iPhone is one of the recipients as too is my wife's. Goes to my email account too.
7:48 PM, the iPhones ring and message received. Email cane in precisely at the same time as the others. Must be getting the hang of it.
Thanks for the offer Steven. I think I have it now, but I will call you later in the week regardless. PM me a good time to do that.

[Whonnock Boy]

Just going to activate my Spot that the wife bought for me a while ago. Does anyone know of any promo codes?

[Slinky Pickle]

We used my Spot Connect just this weekend. Although we didn't need the "Oh s&%t" button, I did send out a few texts to tell folks what we were into. We managed to get things sorted out without needing any more help.

On a related matter, there is now one less functional Forestry bridge in 3-32. www.ospreydesign.ca/bridge (http://www.ospreydesign.ca/bridge)

[todbartell]

Just going to activate my Spot that the wife bought for me a while ago. Does anyone know of any promo codes?

rebate won't apply to units purchases before May 1st (only good for Spot-2 GPS messengers)

[Backcountry archer]

I use mine on every excursion. I add different recipients for any partner that is with me and their family will get an O.K. message whenever I send one out.
Good piece of mind for the wives back home.http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/images/icons/icon14.png

[Sitkaspruce]

Have had one now for three years, one of the best "pieces of mind" for my wife I have ever bought. Will not leave home without it (for hunting and fishing that is....)

Now have two more for work.

Buy one, you will never regret it.

Cheers

SS

[buck nash]

Great piece of kit but lots of my ok messages didn't go through which had my wife more worried than if I didn't have a spot. Still it was good when I got my bear this spring at the end of the day. I told my wife to expect to hear from me around 8:30. By the time I got into cell range it was 12:30. She'd received most of the messages so she wasn't worried. Also good for when you change plans and decide to move to another area. Mine's an older generation unit though so hopefully the new ones send a better signal.

[ufishifish2]

I have some for employees to use in the bush.... just in case.
The first generation SPOTs were nothing more than overpriced paper weights IMO which I believe is why they came out with the Gen2 ones so quickly. I have the old ones sitting in boxes collecting dust, but sure like the newer ones. They seem to work very well!

[srupp]

hmmmm...never had any problems with the first gen units..thats what convinced me they work...

steven

[sapper]

This is a timely post. I just got an "Atmosphere" (used to be Coast Mountain Sports) flyer in the mail and the Spot 2 is on sale there for $120, regular $170.

[Squirrelnuts]

I'm looking forward to this: http://www.delorme.com/inreach/

2-way messaging and message delivery confirmation. Looks promising.

[farside]

Decided that its time for me to get the Spot Connect.

Wanted to head into an area 2 weekends ago but being alone and no cell service - decided to pass on the adventure. would not have hesitated if I had the "Connect".

[srupp]

hmmm Farside that is EXACTLY what SPOT was designed to do....have HELP and 911 available wherever you go...any questions send me a PM witha phone #...

I am not sure that Connect is any better in doing what SPOT was designed to do...and I have tested the #$#%^%#%^** out of this product..

And unlike Jim Shockey..I HAVE trusted my life to this product and you can too......

cheers
Steven

[Slinky Pickle]

One thing I like about the Connect over the original Spot is that you can make up text messages on the fly. The preprogrammed ones are fine if you have thought of everything ahead of time but as I found out this weekend, I wanted to get some info out that wasn't in my preprogrammed messages.

I think that Spot in general, still has a little work to do on their documentation and I found the online account setup a little clunky. I had to dig around a fair bit to get it all sorted out. There are also a few features or settings in my unit that are not described in the documentation at all so I have no idea what to set them to. The online documentation differs slightly from what came in the box and if I had to go by the box instructions I think I would still be trying to pair it to my phone.

I have not tried the Facebook or Twitter aspects of the Connect and I don't plan to. I'll leave that for the younger adventurers.

All in all... it's a great tool.

[buck nash]

I'm looking forward to this: http://www.delorme.com/inreach/

2-way messaging and message delivery confirmation. Looks promising.

I'll be keeping an eye on this one as well.

[Elkhound]

Have one for 2 years. Never used it yet or activated it. I really need to get out hunting. I must get ahold of Srupp and figure out how to use it sometime.

[srupp]

anytime Dave..its not helping staying unactivated....

steven

[stoneguide]

I have used a Gen I S.P.O.T for at least 3 years now. I like it best as I think a personal locator should be as basic as can be. The more you start adding to it the more chance of failure.
I too wanted to be able to communicate but for that I bought a Sat. phone.

My S.P.O.T has sent thousands of OK messages and has been on for days and days with the tracking feature. It has not missed a beat. Its been in tight mountain valley to the wide open prairies. I have used it all over BC, Alberta and part of the Yukon.

It is with me no matter where I travel now. Would never leave home without it strapped on top of my pack or on the dash of my truck set in tracking mode.
SG

[budismyhorse]

They are an amazing invention that is for sure, but BE AWARE, there are limitations.

They don't work worth a sh#t in dense cover.........I should know........gong show last week while working in the bush up north. No one was getting my check in's and the SAR/Police were dispatched......groan. Sorry taxpayers.

[budismyhorse]

I'm looking forward to this: http://www.delorme.com/inreach/

2-way messaging and message delivery confirmation. Looks promising.

Hey now that is cool.......what is the sticker on these bad boys....

[srupp]

hmmmm wrong application...check ins are just that check ins...the user should pick a time and check in ..for best results open look at sky do this 2 x /day

help was not pressed nor was 911......

folks are not inteneded to dive under the deepest cover to then try and check in...

I agree with above post KISS..keep it simple...sweetie...

4 years from the Yukon to ALaska,,to Alberta to BC...spring bear summer fun,,fall hunting even @ work....they all have come through..

perhaps a failure to use the unit properly...?? just a question...


rescue usually requires a 911 call...usually..dont know the details on this case..


steven

[budismyhorse]

we use the spot to do hourly check in's faithfull works in 99% of the places we work........this particular area was very dense cover so I/we learned a lesson that day the spot ( even sat phones) won't work if your in dogs hair thick bush. End of the day, at 5:30 I was back to the truck and hit the check in button as normal, left the unit on the dash while I geared down and ended up calling off the dogs in the process unbeknownced to me. It wasn't until I got back to town and cell coverage that I found out what panic and BS I caused. The last message they got from me was 1pm when I left the truck to work. I made my check in's as normal every hour but they were not sending because the cover was too thick.

it isn't the wrong application, it just has limitations.........like I stated above. From this point forward, when working in that type of bush, we'll come up with something different for a safe work procedure.

So the Corp Spot contacts would state that the units are NOT MEANT for hourly check in's as part of a field program?

Someone also told me they don't work well on the coast......

[budismyhorse]

Steven, if that is the official SPOT position that hourly check in's are the wrong application for their products.......I would like to get that in writing so I can show my employer. Cheers. JB

[srupp]

no, thats not what I meant to say...just never had someone needing to check in everyhour.... in that application..circumstance perhaps tracking would be a better solution??when I said 2 x a day..that was what I normally do..in case I forget one of them...thats my personal use...

I know the literature says find a clear unobstructed view of the sky...I have "pushed mine" and even checked in under thick canopy of trees..hell even in on a bear trail in Kwatna...but if in doubt follow the literature..clear unobstructed view of the sky..lol

99% of the plces is about what SPOT uses as a number also...so when I check in 2 x a day it ensures reciept by Susan...

IN an EMERGENCY using HELP or 911 get to a open location,,do the activation.....then shut er down and do it AGAIN..the unit (GEN2 ) will acknowlege message sent..



JB is your the GEN 1 or GEN 2 unit??


Check in as many times as you need/want there is no usage fee for messages...nor any limit on how many mesages you send..but as a matter of practicality...did out the unit find the open space with clear unobstructed viw of sky...activate unit...press the check in button(s)...wait 5 minutes or so..you could be 10 minutes of every hour doing check in while perhaps tracking you could just keep going?? since I dont know your application...its obiously worked very well=99% with many check ins....usually missing 1 or 2 check ins isnt such a big deal...when one remembers just check in... in my use for hunting..I have missed up to 2 days..by forgetting..when the 3rd am I sent it..Susan knw all was well.....and no HELP or 911 messages...

cheers
Steven

[Deaddog]

We have two units for our work, in the south they seem to work well, in some of our northern trips they have been unreliable, I have heard the newer versions may be better, however we still take a sat phone as we have not been able to count on the units one hundred percent, they have been a nice to have but did not live up to our needs so far.. DD

[Call of the Wild]

I'm looking forward to this: http://www.delorme.com/inreach/

2-way messaging and message delivery confirmation. Looks promising.

the spot is a greaT product but I've been thinking of such a product for a long time. I hope in a few years most company will have a two way texting communication with their gps. I guess I have to wait more to upgrade my gps.

[budismyhorse]

it was a GEN 1 in that case.

Last fall, using my GEN 2, I was up north hunting stones and checked in while eating dinner each night.......when I got home I went to my account and to my horror saw 2 check ins were missing. These were in the middle of an open basin where you can watch a caribou run away for the evening.

Anyways, they have limitations, which is my original statement.

I've always maintained while it does give the people back home some comfort it also causes them to wait on that check in each night driving them to drink. Those nights where the check in DIDN'T come in for some reason were HELL for my wife. I prefer (but can't convince the wife or family to let me) to just carry it and use it as a 911 or HELP application..........screw the check ins. They add stress and technology where I don't want it. "Did it send, did it send now?.....how about now?" PHHHHFT. I'd rather be glassing.

[Slinky Pickle]

I'm new to the Spot world but what I have been doing is use the tracking feature and check in rarely or randomly. If I think I will be stationary for a while then I will check in just so they know I'm not stuck under a rock... or paw.

The other day I wanted to perform a battery life test so I just placed my Spot Connect outside and put it in track mode. Every 24 hours I re-engaged the track mode and just let it go. Although it would normally send out a new position every 10 - 20 minutes, there were times when the tracking dissappeared for hours at a time. I'm not sure what caused that but the Spot never moved during the test. By the way, I got over 120 hours of continuous operation in track mode on a single set of batteries. During much of that time the Bluetooth connection was active as well.

[Squirrelnuts]

Hey now that is cool.......what is the sticker on these bad boys....

Gonna be a bit more than a SPOT; looks like around $250 to start, (plus an annual subscription, of course). More info here: http://blog.delorme.com/

[bighornbob]

it was a GEN 1 in that case.

Last fall, using my GEN 2, I was up north hunting stones and checked in while eating dinner each night.......when I got home I went to my account and to my horror saw 2 check ins were missing. These were in the middle of an open basin where you can watch a caribou run away for the evening.

Anyways, they have limitations, which is my original statement.

I've always maintained while it does give the people back home some comfort it also causes them to wait on that check in each night driving them to drink. Those nights where the check in DIDN'T come in for some reason were HELL for my wife. I prefer (but can't convince the wife or family to let me) to just carry it and use it as a 911 or HELP application..........screw the check ins. They add stress and technology where I don't want it. "Did it send, did it send now?.....how about now?" PHHHHFT. I'd rather be glassing.

Just curious, were you eating dinner in the same spots?? I just lent my SPOT to some friends on a stone hunt. I checked it each night and there was a OK message each night. When I would highlight all their checkins after the hunt and see where they were on the map, I noticed that a few of them were gone. It looks like the newer OK flags covered the older one on the map. This only happened in two spots where I assume they camped and had their tents up.

BHB

[budismyhorse]

Good question bhb..... As I had the same thing happen when my Father was up north on a recent sheep hunt.... They were holed up in a tent for a few days and the map showed only one point.

However in my case last year, the spot checks missing were not sent. Like the email/texts were there for all dates but 2. I made 10 checkins and only 8 were on my account at home.

And believe me..... On that trip there were no repeat camps..... Which may be why we washed out;)

[Jagermeister]

I've had my Gen 1 miss sending on a couple of occasions but I really think it was me.

One of the first things that is stated is that "Tracking must be off to send a Check-in message."
It also goes on to say, "Once activated, the indicator light will blink green every 3 seconds, and solid green for 5 seconds when a SPOTchecking message is being sent. In the SPOTchecking mode, the SPOT messenger sends the message 3 times for maximum reliability. The SPOT network will deliver the first message received to your SPOT team and discard the remaining identical messages. To make sure SPOT has enough time to repeat your messages, leave the SPOT messenger on and with a clear view of the sky for 20 minutes."


"sends the message 3 times for maximum reliability". But this does not mean that the first message received was the first message sent, it could be the second or third message based on this statement, will deliver the first message received to your SPOT team and discard the remaining identical messages.
It would seem to be that if SPOT does not have a clear view sky over a 20 minute period, not all of the messages will be sent. Maybe none of the messages will be sent. The onus then would be on the user to make sure that the parameters be met to ensure reliability. Once I push that button, I make sure that I get the proper 3 second green blinking sequence followed by 5 second solid green indicating that the message is being sent.

Since paying attention to this detail and decreasing the me factor, my unit reliability has improved to 100%.

[TSW]

My only issue with the delorme unit is that it seems that there is a yearly subscription for the maps as well, which I think is lame. I hope I'm wrong because it looks sweet besides that!

[dawn2dusk]

another option is this http://www.gpscentral.ca/products/spot-connect.html

it allows you to use your iphone as a text pad.
SPOT Connect™ turns leading smartphones into a personal one-way satellite communicator capable of sending messages with GPS position to personal contacts, social networks or to summon help in emergencies from remote areas beyond cellular coverage.

I went with the SPOT II took advantage of the $50 rebate this year. It has the two primary functions that are neccessary to me (SOS and check-in with loved ones capability). Plus you have to pay for each text message and you can bet it ain't cheap.

[Jagermeister]

another option is this http://www.gpscentral.ca/products/spot-connect.html

it allows you to use your iphone as a text pad.
SPOT Connect™ turns leading smartphones into a personal one-way satellite communicator capable of sending messages with GPS position to personal contacts, social networks or to summon help in emergencies from remote areas beyond cellular coverage.

I went with the SPOT II took advantage of the $50 rebate this year. It has the two primary functions that are neccessary to me (SOS and check-in with loved ones capability). Plus you have to pay for each text message and you can bet it ain't cheap.
I have an iPhone4 and see that you can use with SPOT. The problem with that is, how do you charge your iPhone when you're miles from a power source and you have no room for a solar charger? Turning the iPhone off will save some battery life but I found that the phone is still consuming power because it is capable of receiving messages when it is powered off.

[Blacktail 270]

Just bought one

[Buck]

I'm new to the Spot world but what I have been doing is use the tracking feature and check in rarely or randomly. If I think I will be stationary for a while then I will check in just so they know I'm not stuck under a rock... or paw.

The other day I wanted to perform a battery life test so I just placed my Spot Connect outside and put it in track mode. Every 24 hours I re-engaged the track mode and just let it go. Although it would normally send out a new position every 10 - 20 minutes, there were times when the tracking dissappeared for hours at a time. I'm not sure what caused that but the Spot never moved during the test. By the way, I got over 120 hours of continuous operation in track mode on a single set of batteries. During much of that time the Bluetooth connection was active as well.

How much battery life did you have left on the Iphone.I'm using mine with a Itouch?At this point i am checking in manually and turning of the itouch when not in use.My buddy is bringing a solar charger this year so we will see how that works.

[.303]

xhowever many to speak with SRUPP first. Excellent source of info.

I just recently purchased one and alhtough have not field tested it, I used it in our driveway the first day I got it. It sent a message to our email almost instantly to our exact point.

My wifes step dad has had one for a long time and uses it always to send ok messages. Works great. Get one...

[Slinky Pickle]

How much battery life did you have left on the Iphone.I'm using mine with a Itouch?At this point i am checking in manually and turning of the itouch when not in use.My buddy is bringing a solar charger this year so we will see how that works.

I have an Android not an Iphone but the battery life is probably similar. You just need the phone if you want to start the tracking feature or send a text. Once the Spot is in track mode just shut the phone off and you should be good for ages. I think if you did it that way you could go for days without the phone dying. If you are just turning both on for an occasional check in they you'll do fine.

I'm still not sure why my Connect quit tracking for a few hours the other day but I'll try it again in a few weeks and see what it does.

[hntcrazy]

Spots are good especially backpacking. I also have a spidertracks unit ,its not portable need power source. Awesome for the plane and truck ,boat etc . sends out every 2-10min .Iridium sat . It has 2 way texting via smart phone or apple..

[buck nash]

another option is this http://www.gpscentral.ca/products/spot-connect.html

it allows you to use your iphone as a text pad.
SPOT Connect™ turns leading smartphones into a personal one-way satellite communicator capable of sending messages with GPS position to personal contacts, social networks or to summon help in emergencies from remote areas beyond cellular coverage.

I went with the SPOT II took advantage of the $50 rebate this year. It has the two primary functions that are neccessary to me (SOS and check-in with loved ones capability). Plus you have to pay for each text message and you can bet it ain't cheap.[/QUOTE]

Since it's not going through the cell company's network there should be no charge from them and if you have the service from spot there are no additional charges.

[QUOTE=Jagermeister;967071]I have an iPhone4 and see that you can use with SPOT. The problem with that is, how do you charge your iPhone when you're miles from a power source and you have no room for a solar charger? Turning the iPhone off will save some battery life but I found that the phone is still consuming power because it is capable of receiving messages when it is powered off.

Can you pull the battery when you're not using it?

[yama49]

Just bought a gen 2 worked great around town, just trying to setup the map feature for the wife in trackong mode.. Does she have to login into my account to see the tracking? Im trying the shared page thing but dont have it figured yet, no big deal if she has to login in.

[BCsniper]

I have had my spot 2 for 3 months and it has been awesome for going out on my own. If I am atving I set the profile up for that and have the possible scenarios that I will have : Broken down or injured but do not require 911, come help me. The regular ok status and I have one I have decided to stay out here tonight, see you tomorrow.

I love that you can configure the different profiles for the different activities. We used the SPOT device for checking in during a road trip to and from Winnipeg. I was stuck behind a fatality, so I updated family and friends, and when we were doing the drive they knew when we hit a new location.

I did have 1 message not send out - when all the lights were green, but in fairness to it, we turned it off immediately after and I found that to be sure you should let it signal for 20 minutes and give it a little cushion, not sure if Proguide can elaborate on it. Since we began doing that we have not had a missed message, if we didn't get a transmission the redlight tells you.

Great comfort and a great investment in my opinion - I used to ATV and hunt by myself in all conditions and different locations, beautiful having help strapped to your arm.

[tash]

I occasionally use a Spot for work.

I had some difficulty setting it up, but that is because it won't send texts to certain cell service providers (Virgin Canada).
Customer service was helpful and easy to deal with.

It's also good to remember that if you are in a moving vehicle, the message may not send properly (at least, that is my experience).

If you set it up to send notifications to email, then a Google Earth map shows up showing where the message originated from.

[meesemoot]

I just got my Spot 2 yesterday, and took it out hunting yesterday and today. I can't figure out the shared page thing to send my friends the tracking information. It loses the emails I entered, and I don't know if it sent the info to the intended recipients. Or, does the shared page need to be updated every time the unit is turned on/off? I also don't know if it immediately emails the tracking link when I set up the shared page, or does it wait until the unit is turned on? I don't want it sending the email before it's turned on, because the recipient would get no tracking info and might delete the email. It sends tracking info reliably inside my vehicle and house, which is better than expected.

[Ry151]

I have the spot 2 and love it. I use it for in my plane so if anything goes wrong than search and rescue can start looking where the track ends. You have to set everything up first in your account online before you go(who gets your messages and what the say). Make sure you test them and tell the people receiving the alerts so they don't think they are spam. I know of a situation where that happened, the person had no idea what it was so they blocked the email. Great for peace of mind. I don't think I'd try the one that pairs to you smart phone

[Ry151]

No she doesn't have to log in. When you create a shared page view it when your done then copy and paste the page address ( http:......)to an email and send it to who ever you want to have instant viewing to where you are. I have a short cut on the desktop scream that my wife can click in and see any new tracks or check in's

[Wheelin Sportsman]

Do you pay per text with the spot connect?

[JAFA]

I bought a Gen 1 used, but in new like condition. It changed everything for my wife at home. Just knowing the kids have a quick way to connect with 911 (lets say dad has a heart attack and croaks... ) has made a world of difference for her.

I feel good having the safety as well. If you don't have one, get one.

Best equipment I have ever bought.

J.

[GoatGuy]

works good.

[Rubberknot]

The spot 2 works awesome. Keeps the wife happy, peace of mind for you too!

[Philcott]

Does anyone know if the $50 .00 rebate is still being offered and where to get one?

[Unclecracka]

They're awesome. Nothing wrong with giving loved ones some peace of mind with a nightly check-in. My Mum is by herself now and she really appreciates it.

Make sure you get the 2nd generation one if your're looking around craigslist/kijiji etc. There are worthwhile improvements to it from gen 1.

[pete_k]

Are they any good?
I dunno, is your life worth less than $150?
Just get one.
Essential kit. (compass, rifle, knife, overnight kit and SPOT)

[Buck]

Do you pay per text with the spot connect?

They have a couple of packages one is 100 texts and the other 500 i believe.I got a deal and received 100 free text with my spot connect purchase.

[Scance]

they work great... use it all the time.. its great also for checking maps later to see where you were on google earth.