PLB’s

BPL has a full review of the SPOT here:

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/spot_satellite_personal_tracker.html

Check out the comments and companion forum thread too.

I've carried a PLB ever since they were made legit in the USA in 2005 in the High Sierra. The latest PLB by McMurdo Fastfind is 5.3 oz. Well worth the weight. Last year on the JMT, as reported on the JMT Yahoo Group, a guy had his life saved due to having the Spot handy. He needed an appendectomy surgery the same day he had a severe attack on the trail. Docs told him he might not have lived if he had not been operated on the same day. I talked to a Ranger familiar with that situation.

This year, we'll be using a Spot, as I sold my older PLB which weighed 13 oz. Another member of the group has a Spot.

got this one , 150g:

didnt bring it on CWT in Scotland as civilisation was near, but will carry it this summer hiking in Greenland

I was looking at the SPOT because the price is right and I like the feature of being able to check in from time to time and the ability to automatically save your route. I've heard mixed reviews about it though. I've heard EXCELLANT reviews on the ACR 406, but at 600 bucks it's pretty pricy.

McMurdo FastFind 210 costs $300 over five years. At REI.
SPOT with 'OK' + '911', is $650 over five years.

Looks as though when my PLB runs out of warranty in 4 years, its replacement (if I'm still around and able to hike) will be a lot lighter and cheaper than my ACR Microfix (10.5 oz. and $500 on sale).

Maybe by then, there will be a gizmo by which you can text at least a brief message. That would make it a lot easier for SAR to know what they need to prepare for!

The Summer 2009 issue of the Gazette, an Alpine Club of Canada publication, features a recent review of the Spot Satellite Personal Tracker. Although the "Gazette" does not seem to be available online at the Alpine Club of Canada website, the author (Langley Muir)of the article apparently can be contacted at langley@magma.ca. In short, the review seems to essentially support the conclusions of the BPL review.