ResQLink™

I’m not a big fan of the exposed wrap around antenna design.

You press an SOS button and it sends a message with your position from GPS?  SAR comes and rescues you?

No functionality to let them know the nature of your injury or send non emergency messages?  or for them to let you know when they’ll rescue you?

That is correct Jerry. Push and hope. I have a McMurdo FastFind Ranger but prefer the additional features available with the inReach.

https://www.oroliamaritime.com/products/mcmurdo-fastfind-ranger/

https://explore.garmin.com/en-US/inreach/

Here are some basics of PLB function

https://www.oroliamaritime.com/wp-content/uploads/3798-Ranger-FAQ-406-PLB-iss1.pdf

It’s a standard PLB. The specs have been Standardised around the world (except for the quite unnecessary skins).

The wrap-around antenna is also pretty much standard and is dictated by the power output and the frequencies used.

It is a PLB, for rescue work. The coordination of PLB rescues is international, and the operation of the PLB network is international. You do NOT need any service plans for a PLB, unlike a phone. All you have to do is register it with your local government authority.

It is not an emergency phone, and it is not for chit-chatting. If you want chit-chat, buy a sat-phone and PAY for it (in cost and service fees). You may, or you may not, get a connection with a phone. By and large, your PLB signal will get through, even from the bottom of a canyon (although you may have to wait for a satellite to go overhead).

Cheers

Pretty sure we all know that Roger.  McMurdo uses a different antenna so not standardized. The links I provided give all the basics.

Hi Ken

Looking at the McMurdo web site, the antenna looks exactly the same to me as on the KTi and others I have looked at. It unwraps and pops up. The form factor is constrained by the technical requirements.

The rest of my comments were aimed more at Jerry’s query about messages, and for the benefit of novices who have not met PLBs before.

Cheers

sending a daily message to wife she does not consider chit chat, and me knowing she hasn’t blown up the house : )

Inreach mini costs about the same.  The access fee is, $12 per month.

Resqlink – 5.2 ounces, Inreach mini – 3.4 ounces

PLB is a really useful functionality, whether that’s better just depends on the individual.  Lots of people have successfully pushed the button and been rescued.

Jerry

Just in case anyone is unclear, with a PLB you sacrifice the messaging of the InReach, but in return you get:

• Access to the same international rescue organisation used by commercial airliners and shipping.
• A much stronger signal that can punch through heavy canopy
• Fuller satellite coverage that will work better if you’re in a valley or canyon
• A stronger and more reliable sealed single use battery that’s always fully charged
• A homing signal that will guide SAR to your exact position.
• No ongoing subscription to lapse just when you need the service…

These days you can find PLBs the same weight as the InReach Mini.

In short – the PLB will be more reliable if calling in the rescue is your priority.

So –  pros and cons. If you’re in a party, the ideal would be to carry both the InReach and a PLB or perhaps replace the InReach with a sat phone if you’re heading somewhere seriously remote.

thanks, good comparison

A couple of nits to pick:

A much stronger signal that can punch through heavy canopy

Signal strength isn’t everything. My InReach SE has punched through dense redwood forest canopies many, many times. Haven’t tried the Mini yet.

Fuller satellite coverage that will work better if you’re in a valley or canyon

About 70 LEO or MEO satellites listening for PLB signals (GEO sats easily blocked); 66 Iridium LEO satellites for InReach, so not a huge difference. And my InReach SE has sent & received messages in deep canyons many times.

Both devices have good use cases; understanding the differences in real-world use is key.

— Rex

So Mr. Larson, was there a point you were wanting to make or is all this rehashing of the obvious sufficient?

Does anyone know what is the maximum radiated power for ResQLink or an Inreach Mini?
We know that all PLBs have a 5 Watt signal strength, so a comparison would be interesting.

I am not opposed to the either device: it’s just that they are so much more expensive to buy and use.
And my wife walks with me, so chatting to her while walking does not involve any electronics at all. :)

Cheers

The Inreach manual says 1.6W.

https://static.garmin.com/pumac/InReach_User_Manual.pdf

PLBs have three ways to find you.

1. They send your GPS coordinates on 406MHz, which is picked up by satellites in both GEO and LEO. That is the most precise and fastest way.
2. LEO satellites can use the doppler effect to triangulate your position to within about 1km, in case GPS isn’t working. I think it takes about 15-30 minutes for a satellite to pass by.
3. They send out a 121.5MHz signal that can be found with radio direction finding techniques from the ground or from the air (as in an airplane but not from space). That is the least practical way to locate you, but it could still help.

If you’re in a canyon GPS might not work, so a Spot or Inreach might not work. It’s unlikely, but I’d prefer to have the most reliable type of beacon in case of emergency. And I don’t need any of the communication features, so I’d prefer not to pay for a subscription.

I’ve had an older ResQLink PLB for about five years, and I’ve never had to use it. I’ll probably have to pay for a new battery soon, since it has a finite life. The older ones are still cheaper and lighter than these new ones.

https://www.acrartex.com/products/resqlink-plb

@Matt – thank you. Up to 1.6 W, which is about 1/3 of the standard 5 W a PLB uses.

Cheers

So, I actually had to use the lightest McMurdo. Was able to get to a trailhead, which was much appreciated by the county sheriff, who did not have to organize a search party. My family was called by SARSAT in the middle of the night, so they knew the situation. As soon as the deputy got me within cell phone range, called the family. So for me, the PLB did everything needed. But things might have been different had I been severely injured. Rather than rehab the McMurdo, now use a RescueME, which is much lighter and smaller, so hike with it everywhere, including just day hikes.

In my locale, we have a history of some folks over-relying on the expensive electronics, and being quite unreasonable with SAR folks, including those who are unpaid volunteers. The feeling is that the high-end devices give folks a false sense of security and increase risk-taking. There appears to be a fair amount of evidence to support this.

But I did witness a hiker’s wife with children in tow beside herself when her husband did not show up at a trailhead within a day of the planned pick-up. (He was just delayed.) A chit-chat device, or even short message device would have prevented that. So if one can afford it, I guess it is worth it.

ken…..Just posted this new information to strike up a conversation and for those looking for a PBL that would NOT cost to use once purchased, but will give you the peace of mind if ever needed. As with Roger I also have a wife with me so the daily communication via electronics is not needed, but the ability to contact emergency personal when a evacuation at our age may be necessary.

Wonder how that led screen will hold up. Nice that it displays coordinates when active.

Would be nice if Garmin would not charge for setting up an account after spending hundreds on the device. But the monthly fee isn’t terrible, too high. I have the $35 a month plan and switch it off for the months not needed.

Lets not blame electronics for getting people into trouble. The problem is operator error, like most things.

I have the $12 plan that you can’t turn off, but that’s a small enough fee it’s not that important

If there was a month where I did more than the 10 allowed it’s only $0.50 per message.  You have to pay $0.10 per tracking point, but that’s not important to me.  I could occasionally send a free, preset message if I wanted to update position during the day, but I’ve just been doing 1 (free preset) message at the end of each day

“These days you can find PLBs the same weight as the InReach Mini.”

Doesn’t the Mini require a cellphone to operate?

“In short – the PLB will be more reliable if calling in the rescue is your priority.”

+1  K.I.S.S.  That said, the one situation I can envision in my own suite of accident scenarios, where two way communication could make the difference between losing and saving a limb, or worse, would be snake bite.  Anti venin is extremely expensive and in relatively limited supply;  as a result, SAR crews do not typically bring it along unless they know it is needed.  No way to tell them with a PLB.

Doesn’t the Mini require a cellphone to operate?

You can use most InReach Mini functions without a smart phone, including SOS and two-way texting, if you are very, very patient. Only mapping requires a smart phone.

— Rex

Ignore dismissive terms like chit-chat. I use the Mini to coordinate things like trailhead pickups, and two In-reach devices can communicate with each other to arrange meetings, or indeed, assistance that falls short of a full-blown SAR event. One-way PLB’s have their role, but as the differences in communication reliability narrow, the utility of a two-way message device becomes all the more compelling.

Would it then be reasonable to suggest walkers fall into one of three categories?
* Don’t believe in phones or PLBs.
* Don’t need a phone to ring the wife because she is with me (but might carry a PLB).
* Do need to reassure the wife who is left behind (so a phone makes good sense).

Cheers

Would it then be reasonable to suggest walkers fall into one of three categories?
* Don’t believe in phones or PLBs.
* Don’t need a phone to ring the wife because she is with me (but might carry a PLB).
* Do need to reassure the wife who is left behind (so a phone makes good sense).

#4- Escape the wife (or husband) and don’t tell them that your InReach has messaging capabilities.