Garmin inReach Mini
Are you often in the back country and wilderness without any communication to the world? In these digital and fast paced times this can often be one of the best blessings of being in the wilderness - until there is an accident or your beloved ones at home haven’t heard for days and are worrying. Garmin has launched a wonderful little device a couple of years ago to exactly tackle this problem. The Garmin inReach Mini.
The Garmin inReach Mini (short inReach) is an Iridium-based satellite communicator. The device has the capability not only to send and receive text messages (and weather information) but also sharing tracking data. The inReach also functions as an emergency device featuring an SOS button directly alerting emergency services. With the Iridium network the device offers these services worldwide everywhere.
The functionality is provided via a small LCD screen or by linking a smartphone (Bluetooth) via the Garmin Earthmate app. The later is much more convenient as composing a message on the tiny screen with the buttons is a tedious process (but works, especially if your smartphone should not be available). To properly function the device needs a working Iridium connection which itself requires some sort of subscription to an Iridium network service provider.
I’ve been using the inReach for several years now. Initially mainly in Switzerland. I was considering getting a Rega radio in case of an emergency in the mountains without cellular reception. Due to the versatility (and also size) of the inReach I decided for the Garmin product. I’m very happy with that choice. Being away from home for several days and having the option to text your beloved ones anytime while also sharing your current location is a real blessing. My family back at home feels much more relaxed knowing where I am and also being able to get an update once in a while.
The device has functioned very well and reliably. It is rugged enough to carry on the outside of your pack - I usually attach it to the carrying straps of my backpack with the provided carabiner. Battery life is great, it usually lasts for multiple days (so far up to 4 while tracking during daytime) and can be easily recharged by the mini-USB connector.
Usability of the inReach is mostly good. The buttons are tactile and big enough also to operate while wearing thinner gloves. The SOS button is protected by a cover not to be pressed accidentally. Typing messages on the tiny screen with the buttons is not very pleasant but would work if your mobile phone would fail. You can also pre-compile messages (presets) and send them on-the-go quite easily. This allows for nightly check-ins with your family at home providing your coordinates and a short update as in “safely arrived at the campground”. Handy feature. For writing longer or more customized text messages the Garmin Earthmate app provides the convenient smartphone-used interface. Be aware that messages via Iridium network might take a bit of time sometimes. I had occasions where a text message was received several minutes later (close to 20min). Often it is much faster.
Probably the only “downside” of the inReach is the Iridium subscription (or data plan) you need. There are several providers out there - you are not limited to the service offered by Garmin. Depending on your needs there are yearly plans, monthly plans or “on-demand” plans. I can highly recommend a third party provider called ProteGear. They offer very flexible options for competitive prices. I for example use the inReach primarily on weekends and occasionally for longer trips during the week. A yearly subscription would not make much sense so I opted for a daily rate. Via a hand web-interface I can turn the service on and off and get billed monthly based on the “consumption”.
All in all I can highly recommend the Garmin inReach Mini. There are alternate products on the market but none seems as rugged and small as the Garmin one - at least not yet or to my knowledge. The inReach is already a couple of years old and there are rumors of a inReach Mini 2 being tested. Hopefully it will be smaller again, feature a USB-C connector and some additional sensors (temperature and barometric pressure would be interesting). On longer or more remote adventures I would not leave home without my inReach.