Zoleo Satellite Communicator

[Sheppo]

A mate has the Zoleo aswell and it appears to work well. Reasonably priced too considering the communication it allows compared to a full blown satellite phone. I’ll be getting one as soon as I start remote travelling more often.

[Gold Catcher]

On 12/15/2021 at 10:14 AM, GotAU? said:

I keep a ACR ResqLink PLB with me that doesn't require a service subscription, but it is only for dire emergencies and can not be used for messaging.  The Garmin sounds like a good idea for breakdowns and safety check-in’s.  I used to use a Spot for work, but the tracking feature was pretty expensive for it. Is the tracking feature very expensive for the Garmin?

Hey, add me to your family account so I can get in on that tracking you stuff in the goldfields too! 😉

The Garmin rate plans are in between $25 and $50/month. There is also a cheaper plan for $12/ month. It depends how havy you intend to use it. Re familiy account, I could send you my login and password so you can see where I go and where most of my gold finds are. But I won't. 😛

[lostcoast]

I like the lower price point on the Zoleo hardware. I've seen them for $150 locally. But they definitely get you on the monthly plans and fees. The Garmin Inreach Mini plans are less on the lower end (particularly the 'Freedom' plan), but the unit itself is nearly double. They both appear to cost about the same after a couple years or so. 

There are other options such as the ACR Bivy Stick and Somewear Global Hotspot. They're both Iridium/GEOS as well and use an app on your phone. No subscription or activation fees on the Bivy Stick, it's pay as you go. Has location sharing, tracking, and dedicated phone number and email like Zoleo. The Global Hotspot has the best pricing for light use. $108/yr for 10 msg a month. No fees for putting higher priced plans on hold. It has cell/wifi support like the Zoleo and location tracking. Both include weather forecasts from Dark Sky, same as Inreach and Zoleo. Both of these are cheaper options for light occasional use.