G'day folks welcome to another KOTW review video Today we're going to discuss satellite
communicators specifically the three big names in this space Garmin, Zoleo and the ACR Bivy Stick
If you're looking for specific info on one of these gadgets or the costs involved in
running these in Australia, feel free to use the chapters below to skip to that part of the video
So let's start with why do I need a satellite messenger? Well technically you don't need one
There are plenty of other methods to signal from signal flags to PLBs Some are more efficient
than others and some are also a lot more costly than others You can buy PLBs for around about
the same price as the Zoleo communicator at the moment but the advantage of course that the PLB
doesn't require a subscription for you to use it Also with a PLB if you hit the SOS button
the call goes straight to a government agency whereas the communicators use private companies
So why did I pick a satellite Communicator over a PLB? Well I do a lot of solo camping and hiking,
fishing things like that and my wife always likes to know that I'm safe so with a communicator I can
just send her a message to say yep I'm safe, I've arrived, I've set up camp things like that Also
if you do send an SOS with the communicator the rescue team can communicate with you and either
find a solution for your problem and then not send out a rescue team or obviously they can send out
a rescue team if you really need it Living in Australia we pretty much have no phone signal
as soon as you leave a Metro region so obviously a communicator is a great idea if you need to talk
to someone with a communicator you can just send check-in messages or if you really want to you can
have a text conversation with someone What's the disadvantage of a communicator? Obviously
the cost So with the PLB there's no subscription, with the communicator there's generally a monthly
or an annual subscription fee to be able to use the SOS the other disadvantage of course
is the SOS goes to a private company not to a government owned agency so it might take
longer. I have seen videos where someone's used one of the communicators - they were stuck in a
mountain and a snowstorm came in and they didn't get rescued for about 48 hours which is not ideal
Let's move on to the various devices We'll start with a Garmin They have the InReach system which
runs on a few different devices but their latest one is the InReach Mini 2. They've also recently
released the Garmin InReach Messenger which behaves more like the Zoleo or the ACR Bivy Stick
which we'll look at later in the video The InReach Mini 2 is different to the other devices in that
it has a small 176 by 176 pixel screen to display your tracks or a digital compass the device
connects Garmin Explore app on your phone to make it more usable than just tapping away on the keys
on the actual device With the Mini2 the messages are sent via the app which means that only people
with the app will be able to communicate with you whereas with the other devices they allow you to
communicate via regular text message to your contacts the new Garmin InReach Messenger is
more like the other two devices in that it sends messages to the regular text app however with both
Garmin devices the mobile number linked to the device comes from a pool of numbers which means
a number is not linked to your specific device so you need to message somebody first before they can
reply to you With the Zoleo you have a permanent number linked to your device that you can share
with friends and family and they can message you whenever they feel the need to check up on you
likewise with a Bivy Stick as long as you have an active subscription because the Zoleo and the Bivy
Stick don't have screens the only way to send messages is by linking the device to your phone
via Bluetooth Both devices have their own phone apps Is this an issue? Not really because who
leaves home without their phone these days? Also if you happen to have phone signal at the time of
sending a message via Zoleo or the Bivy Stick it will use your mobile plan instead of using
the satellite messaging which is obviously free Just to re-iterate though - all three
devices can be used to send check-in messages or SOS messages without being connected to your
phone all you do is click the little send message button on the side of the device
all three devices are waterproof but the Zoleo wins out with an ip68 rating the Bivy Stick and
the InReach Mini 2 are only rated to ipx7 All three devices use the Iridium Satellite Network
which means you get coverage globally except for at the extreme poles The Mini 2 and the Bivy
Stick both weigh 100 grams while the Zoleo weighs around 150 grams With regards to battery life the
Mini2 quotes 14 days with 10 minute tracking the Zoleo quotes 200 hours with regular use and the
Bivy Stick quotes up to 120 hours with standard operation at default settings which means 10
minute tracking intervals All three devices are small enough to be attached to a backpack for
hiking but the InReach Mini 2 is the smallest The Bivy Stick has a quarter inch screw mount similar
to a camera tripod for mounting on your vehicle or in your boat As mentioned previously if you
purchase a Zoleo or a Bivy Stick in Australia you are assigned an Australian mobile number which
will be linked to your device To keep the number active you need to have a subscription in place
If you cancel a subscription you will lose the number In the case of the Zoleo you can suspend
the subscription but keep the number by paying a monthly fee to retain that number You can suspend
the subscription with the other two devices too but in the case of the Bivy Stick you will lose
your number and be assigned a new number when you reactivate the subscription Also please note
If you do not have a subscription for any of these three devices the SOS button will not work So what
do these devices cost to run in Australia we'll start by looking at purchase price The Garmin
InReach Mini 2 is the most expensive at around $600 recommended retail price Next is the Bivy
Sstick at around $499 recommended retail price and finally the Zoleo at a recommended retail
price of about $350. If you would like to support my channel there are two links in the description
to purchase the Mini 2 or the Zoleo and I will receive a small commission from the purchase.
Now the cost of the subscriptions, and it's more complex than it actually looks On the screen is
the monthly fee for the basic subscription for each device on a casual basis. I'm using casual
subscription because I currently only use a device for about three months of the year - I'm a bit
of a fair weather camper The Garmin costs $25 per month which includes 10 text messages free
preset check-in messages and tracking intervals of 10 minutes or more Any message over 10 you
will be charged at 75 cents per message incoming messages also count towards your message count
The Zoleo is $32 per month but includes more text messages - 25 to be exact however the 25
also includes any check-in messages that you may send Also, if you want tracking, this will cost
you another $7.95 per month on top of the $32 fee but it will give you unlimited check-ins
The Bivy Stick costs $30 per month for which you will receive 20 credits these credits go
towards your text messages and your tracking You have unlimited free check-in messages Tracking
credits are used as per the image currently shown on the screen Also, any unused credits
will roll over from month to month That's the simple cost breakdown but there's more
The Garmin requires an initial activation fee and an annual program fee which is charged on
the anniversary of your first activation There is no charge to suspend the service but there
is a charge to reactivate it every time There is a minimum 30-day contract on their freedom plan
For the Zoleo there is currently a $40 activation fee and a minimum three-month contract To suspend
the subscription without losing the mobile number that's attached to your device there
is a $6 per month fee If you cancel your subscription completely to avoid paying
the $6 fee, you will then need to pay the $40 activation fee to start using the device again
With the Bivy Stick there's no activation fee or annual fee however the initial activation is a
minimum two months on the plus plan or higher so a minimum of $110 for the first two months There is
no fee to suspend the service and no reactivation charge but you will lose your dedicated mobile
number and get a new one when you reactivate Displayed on the screen at the moment is a
breakdown that I did for myself and the total cost for the first year including the cost of
the device and then the ongoing running costs over the next two years for three months use per year
For my specific requirements the Bivy Stick is the most cost effective however if you plan to
use the device for more than three months of the year or for the full 12 months of the year or if
you require a higher plan you may find that one of the other devices is better value for money There
are links below to the various plans for each device Let me know in the comments below your
experience with any of these communicators or if you have any questions and I'll try
to answer them for you as I've done plenty of research before forking out my $500 for a device
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