Cellphone GPS as alternative

Ditto.  This is very helpful.

@ David C.  Thanks, I was not aware of that Apple program.  My phone is out of warranty so battery replacement is $29, still way cheaper than a new phone.  But apparently the replacement battery has to be ordered and will not be here in time for my trip.  So maybe later.

I’m looking into a Garmin InReach Mini, largely for significant-other’s peace of mind on my solo trips. At that point does it make sense to just have / carry the larger Inreach rather than have the Mini and be using my Iphone for maps?

I don’t want to buy the bigger device, but I don’t want to carry two devices either….

I have used my Samsung GS5 as my sole gps on a couple of trips and am totally happy with it’s performance.  It is quite water resistant, and has an easily replaceable battery, so you can carry a spare or two at 1.6 Oz ea.  With cell connection turned off and using the camera and Viewranger app for tracking during the day, one battery will last for a couple of days.  So this is my camera and navigation device.  I just bought an InReach Mini, so it is a perfect fit to pair with my phone as well.

Hardware wise, I’m pretty sure there’s not much difference in capability between a cell phone and stand alone gps device.  They both use integrated patch antennas on an internal circuit board.  You would only be able to do better than this if you had an external amplified antenna, but no mass market devices that I’ve found have such things.  Devices that do use such a setup are high-end INS (inertial navigation systems) for aircraft/drones.

Thanks Craig. I think Ill just breakdown and buy in Inreach Mini as planned. I think I was looking for someone to talk me out of a new purchase even though it seems like a smart decision / pairing.