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Which GPS?
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Oct 14, 2015 at 2:26 pm #2232004
"I don't like carrying an extra device (smart phone)" I really think that's the point of the inReach. If you carry a GPS (I believe you said you do), then the weight of the inReach won't be much more than a mapping GPS. I doubt I'm alone when I say that I have tried to use my mapping GPS to navigate and it's nearly impossible to do. Zoom out to see where you want to go and the detail you need disappears (GPS's filter out mapping/topo detail based on scale). Zoom in to see the detail you need to plan your route and you can no longer see your planned destination. That's why we all carry full size maps as well as our GPS. On the other hand, if I can get GPS coordinates for my current position (from the inReach) it takes me less than a minute to plot them on my hard copy map. Then route planning gets easy. As far as the inReach mapping screen goes, if you can display geographically correct tracks, waypoints and text on a screen then it's a map. It doesn't have to have an underlying base map to be a map. If you have ever used a GPS track to back-track your way out of a bushwhack, you will be zoomed in so far that any topo mapping detail will be useless. The inReach map screen shows the track very well and zooming in allows you to walk the track if required. I also pre-load tracks or routes on the inReach Explorer and you can clearly see if you are wondering off track even on that tiny screen. Very useful IMO. Here's a shot of Garmin's Foretrex grey scale mapping screen. Much worse than the image of the Explorer's mapping screen shown in the post above.
Oct 15, 2015 at 5:36 am #2232153>>> It's hard for me to understand why their flagship device is lacking real mapping capability. Indeed it is hard to understand… because it's not true. Technically. Sort of. If you stretch your definitions a bit… You can use DeLorme's Earthmate app on your tablet or smartphone to synch with the InReach via Bluetooth, and you will have a topo map displayed on the tablet or smartphone. Which isn't a bad option if you're going to be carrying the smartphone anyway. This is one reason that Skurka recommends the SE over the Explorer on his website- why pay the extra $80 for a really crappy backup GPS when you can just use the SE with a smartphone and Earthmate? (Or Gaia.) Gaia on a smartphone is really a best buy. 7.5' quads can be downloaded for free, and there are tons of accessories for charging a smartphone in the backcountry. The tech geek in my usual hiking crew routinely gets almost three days of tracks on his smartphone without a recharge. Tracks- not just spot location checks. You just have to configure your phone well. Personally I don't care about tracks, just spot checks, so I can go a week, easily. And my phone is also my camera, and on the rare occasion I want it my music too. So, the only functionality I want is the satellite communication. Personally, I want an update of the SPOT Connect. That plus Gaia on my iPhone covers everything I would need, while being smaller and lighter than the InReach. I can't quite bring myself to suck up the extra four ounces. :)
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