SPOT Gen3 Global Satellite GPS Messengers
SPOT Gen3 Global Satellite GPS Messengers
Have you guys seen this [promotion for SPOT Gen3 global satellite GPS messengers]? Buy, send in rebate, and it's free--a very good safety device to have on your boat.
EJO
"Clumsy Cleat"look up what it means
50th edition 2008 Montauk 150, w/60HP Mercury Bigfoot
"Clumsy Cleat"look up what it means
50th edition 2008 Montauk 150, w/60HP Mercury Bigfoot
Re: SPOT Gen3 Global Satellite GPS Messengers
Like many free offers, this one requires that you purchase a subscription in order to have the device work. A subscription is $200-per-year or $20-per-month. This model is now about three years old. The communication is only one-way: you send a message. There are only four possible messages: OK, HELP, SOS, or a custom message.
The device has to communicate with satellites. It has only 0.4-Watts of radio power. It runs on its internal battery. The satellite network is a private network. (I believe it is Globalstar.) Only the satellites can receive this message. They are thousands of miles away. When you send a distress alert there is no way to know if anyone received it.
I'll stick with my DSC VHF Marine Band radio and the RESCUE 21 radio system for distress alerting when I am in my boat. There are no subscriptions required. It transmits at 25-watts. It runs on my dual boat batteries with over 150-Ampere-hour capacity. The government of the USA and Canada have built an elaborate billion-dollar state-of-the-art radio network to listen for my distress alert, and it covers at least 20-miles offshore for a 1-Watt transmitter with an antenna 6-feet high; with my transmitter at 25-Watts and my antenna about 10-feet off the water, my coverage with RESCUE 21 is probably greater than 30-miles offshore. The amount of time I am boating more than 30-miles offshore is extremely limited, perhaps 30-minutes per year. My radio is a two-way device and communicates with other boats. Another boat a mile away will receive my distress alert. When you send a distress alert you will receive an acknowledgement if another radio receives it.
If you want to be tracked while boating, get an AIS Class-B transponder. You can be tracked for free by several AIS global tracking websites. There is a one-time cost of about $700.
The device has to communicate with satellites. It has only 0.4-Watts of radio power. It runs on its internal battery. The satellite network is a private network. (I believe it is Globalstar.) Only the satellites can receive this message. They are thousands of miles away. When you send a distress alert there is no way to know if anyone received it.
I'll stick with my DSC VHF Marine Band radio and the RESCUE 21 radio system for distress alerting when I am in my boat. There are no subscriptions required. It transmits at 25-watts. It runs on my dual boat batteries with over 150-Ampere-hour capacity. The government of the USA and Canada have built an elaborate billion-dollar state-of-the-art radio network to listen for my distress alert, and it covers at least 20-miles offshore for a 1-Watt transmitter with an antenna 6-feet high; with my transmitter at 25-Watts and my antenna about 10-feet off the water, my coverage with RESCUE 21 is probably greater than 30-miles offshore. The amount of time I am boating more than 30-miles offshore is extremely limited, perhaps 30-minutes per year. My radio is a two-way device and communicates with other boats. Another boat a mile away will receive my distress alert. When you send a distress alert you will receive an acknowledgement if another radio receives it.
If you want to be tracked while boating, get an AIS Class-B transponder. You can be tracked for free by several AIS global tracking websites. There is a one-time cost of about $700.