Gear Review: DeLorme inReach SE 2-Way Satellite Communicator

　　Before leaving for the John Muir Trail, I decided it was time to purchase a satellite messenger or personal locator beacon. My first thought was to buy a device that strictly worked as a personal locator beacon (PLB), but was turned off of the idea after doing some research for three major reasons.

　　What good is a personal locator beacon if I suffer a traumatic fall or catastrophic injury? I would have no way to activate it in this case. I knew I needed something with tracking so that my family and/or search and rescue could locate me in the event of a worst case scenario.

　　PLBs lack the ability to check their functionality and current state.

　　PLBs lack the ability to communicate with loved ones or search and rescue. Sometimes you just want to let your family know you’re going to be late, or that a storm slowed you down. Maybe you had a shoe blow out on some nasty granite and need them to mail you a new pair at your next resupply. In these situations, a PLB is useless.

　　After ruling out a PLB, I started looking at multi-functional devices that acted as a PLB, GPS, messenger, and tracker. If you’re doing research on these devices, like I did, you’re probably stuck on the same two as I was, the SPOT Gen 3 and the DeLorme inReach SE. I ended up choosing the DeLorme inReach SE over the SPOT for three reasons.

　　The inReach uses the Iridium satellite network giving the device far greater and more reliable coverage. The SPOT coverage is fine for continental travel that’s not too close to the poles. The inReach gives you coverage from pole to pole. This is huge for world travelers looking for a reliable device.

　　The second reason I chose the inReach was the highly function GUI and display that allows for real time message creating. The SPOT does not come with a display, so you just have to rely on the tactile buttons and preset messages. Not very useful when you need to relay and receive real time messages and information.

　　The third major reason I choose the DeLorme inReach SE was the availability of flexible month to month plans. I take on big trip once a year that requires a lot of messaging and tracking, but the rest of the year, I’m just a weekend warrior. It’s nice to be able to change between plans as needed. These are the three main reasons I chose the DeLorme inReach SE over the SPOT, but I will touch on quite a few more in this review.

　　Delorme also has an even more feature packed device in the inReach Explorer, but I opted for the SE as it contained all the features I needed. In the brochure image below you can see the SE in yellow, and the Explorer in Orange.

　　If you’re on the fence about which inReach to purchase, visit the Delorme site at this link.

　　**For the rest of this review I will refer to the inReach SE as just the inReach. I have no experience with the Explorer and it is not included in this review, but I wanted to let readers know that it is an option if they need the extra features.

　　Physical Specs and Hardware:

　　The inReach SE weighs in at 7 oz. and measures 5.8 x 2.4 x 1 inches. The inReach is waterproof, dustproof, and shockproof. The device fits very nicely in the palm, and is very easy to operate with one hand. Looking at the picture below from top to bottom, you’ll see the antennae, display scree, four tactile buttons, and the SOS button lock. The check mark button is your positive key for selecting option in the menu, and the ‘x’ button is your negative or back button for options in the menu. The down-pad helps you navigate the GUI. Below these three buttons you’ll see an SOS button with it’s lock switch. To signal an SOS, just unlock the switch by swiping it left and press ‘SOS’. It’s a very simple and straightforward layout. There are a lot of positives to this, but also some negatives that I will address in the usability section. To the left of where it says ‘DELORME’, you’ll see a grey dot. This is an LED indicator of satellite availability.

　　The inReach charges and updates via a micro USB port behind a sealed door. Above the USB port door, your see the attachment for a lanyard. This comes with the device, and is something I always keep on. It’s a small weight penalty for some piece of mind when I’m walking over ledges.

　　The back of the inReach has a sturdy clip for those of you who would like to attach this to a belt or strap. I prefer to carry it in the chest pocket of my Osprey 48, and have yet to use the clip.

　　In Use and Functionality:

　　The first thing you’ll need to do upon purchasing an inReach is activate the device. This is a very painless and straightforward process that can be done completely on line. My first suggestion is that you choose a plan. The table below shows the current offerings from Delorme (last updated September 2015). I opted for the Freedom Plan as I tend to have different needs from month to month. For July on the John Muir Trail I had the Recreation Plan, but have since downgraded to the Saftey plan.

　　The image below will give you a feel for the Delorme web interface. The first thing I had to do after creating my account was to update my inReach with a sync. This took a few minutes and then I was ready to go. The Map, Inbox, Messages, and Account tabs are pretty self explanatory. The Contacts tab is really nice as you can upload preset contacts with phone numbers and email addresses for messaging while you’re out in the backcountry. The Social tab allows you to connect your inReach to Facebook and Twitter for posting. This was really nice on the JMT, as I was able to show all of my friends and followers where I was each morning and night. I also sent out messages via social media when I made it special points of interest, ie. Muir Pass.