SPOT Satellite Messenger vs PLB

Before Christmas I purchased a SPOT 1, at a really good price and was looking forward to using it this summer. Over the past couple of years I have enjoyed going on kayaking trips vicariously through others who use SPOT while they are on the water.

However, last week at the Outdoor Adventure Show I was speaking with a gentleman from the Canadian National Search and Rescue Secretariat and got into a discussion with him about SPOT, PLB's and their differences. I left their booth conflicted as I thought that with SPOT I would be safe and be able to entertain those shorebound all at the same time. Not entirely true apparently.

I entered SPOT vs PLB in Google and came up with over 25, 000 hits. One of the first ones,

http://desertexplorer.wordpress.com/2010/02/05/revisiting-the-spot-versus-plb-question/

led me here

http://www.acrelectronics.com/faqs/spotvs.aspx

I could not find a SPOT vs PLB comparison page on the SPOT website.

http://www.findmespot.ca/en/

Here is an article from Adventure Kayak Magazine from a Coast Guard rescue near the north shore of Lake Superior last September.

http://www.adventurekayakmag.com/blogs/flotsam-a-jetsam/blogs-flotsom-jetsom/1188-tandem-kayakers-rescued-on-superior.html

The personal locator beacon referred to in the article was activated at 12:59 pm, a Canadian AIRPLANE located them at 3:19 pm and they were finally plucked out of the water by a US HELICOPTER at 4:01pm.

To me, 3 hours and 2 minutes is a little too long to be floating around in the water waiting on a rescue.

One of the points that I have discovered that causes me some concern is that the SPOT signal ggoes to a call center in Texas which dispatches the closest emergency responders. Once a traditional PLB is activated the signal is picked up by the National Search and Rescue Secretariat which coordinates the rescue from, in our case, CFB Trenton.

I think I am going to sell my SPOT and purchase a PLB. It may not be as fun as a SPOT for those shorebound, and for dissecting my trip afterwards, but I think I will feel that much more confident that a big yellow helicopter will reach me faster when I really need a big yellow helicopter to find me FAST.

Anyone looking for a brand new SPOT Satellite Messenger?

I welcome any thoughts on this especially from those that have experience with both, or experience with one or the other.

SPOT Satellite Messenger vs PLB

Hi Alan,

Quote:
...
However, last week at the Outdoor Adventure Show I was speaking with a gentleman from the Canadian National Search and Rescue Secretariat and got into a discussion with him about SPOT, PLB's and their differences. I left their booth conflicted as I thought that with SPOT I would be safe and be able to entertain those shorebound all at the same time. Not entirely true apparently.


I too have chatted with Search & Rescue as well as the Marine units at various shows and answer I come away with is: from their persective, a PLB is better and an EPIRB even better (how for kayak I have no idea).

I've been waiting to try find a sale on PLB's, but no luck so far, might just have to break down and spend the bucks.

Quote:
The personal locator beacon referred to in the article was activated at 12:59 pm, a Canadian AIRPLANE located them at 3:19 pm and they were finally plucked out of the water by a US HELICOPTER at 4:01pm.

To me, 3 hours and 2 minutes is a little too long to be floating around in the water waiting on a rescue.


That does seem a long time, having a PLB would lead one to believe that it is faster.
Again, talking to one the SAR folks about paddling on Superior, they indicated that once they get the signal to the time the C130 is dispatched to your general location would be about 30-45 minutes, and then the chopper or Coast Guard or helpful sole to pick you up.

Quote:
I welcome any thoughts on this especially from those that have experience with both, or experience with one or the other.


Maybe if we get a few people together we can go for a bulk purchase and get a discount on the price.

Goni.

Re: SPOT Satellite Messenger vs PLB

Thanks for the feedback Goni.

Good info

Alan, thanks for the info. I had a Spot on my Christmas list... am now updating that list ;) I agree, not transmitting on 406 alone is a deal breaker for me.

Goni, I think the EPIRB is preferred for a couple reasons. #1 it floats. Unfortunately since we are really more in the water than on it, the auto activation features really would not work in our case. I think the other benefit is that it designated for marine use so they will know this is marine emergency. Me thinks when you ask the question and mention boat, EPIRB is the standard answer.

Since we tend to get out and walk around, I'm thinking a PLB might be more appropriate, attach a floater for paddling.

One final note from my experience in avaition. Make sure it is OFF when you do not need it! This is more of an issue with the auto-activation, a hard landing can trigger an ELT (the aviation equivalent) and causing some false distress calls. We have that as part of the shutdown checklist. SAR will show up at your door.

Staying with the SPOT for now

So after much input and discussion with many different people, including Kevin Callan and Justine Curgenven. I have decided to stay with the SPOT I have, for now. A friend pointed out that most of the paddling they do is Great Lakes and Georgian Bay based, they take their cell phone, where coverage may be quite wide spread, albeit with gaps and is not to be depended on, and also they take along a VHF radio, paddle in a group of at least two and are concious of the weather and the conditions constantly.

Seeing as how most of the paddling I will be doing will be similar I see no reason why the SPOT wouldn't compliment the above mentioned devices and plans to make any paddle I do as safe as possible.

Perhaps the PLB may be in the future if I was doing more solo, remote or dangerous paddling. But I still think even in that case I may pair it with a SPOT just to give those at home constant reassurance that I was OK.

So for now I will stick with the SPOT and its fun features and make sure I have extra batteries, a VHF radio, a cell phone, a float plan, and have any paddle I go on, solo or otherwise, well thought out, so that I never have to sit in the water for 3 hours waiting on a helicopter to come rescue me.

Thank you all for your input.

Re: SPOT Satellite Messenger vs PLB

Here are some of the comments from a Facebook discussion on this topic


There have been many conflicting articles about the SPOT in the past few months. Rather conflicting and even negating. Our friend Mr. J also has an opinion on them I believe. I have one, and had it for a couple of years. I like it.... I also have a VHF radio. The combination of the two makes me feel safe. That and I don't travel alone. Perhaps it is not the best choice, but I'll stick with it for now. For what it is supposed to provide I am happy. I hope that I just never have to use it or any other PLB.


March 5 at 7:37pm ·Some good points and some good links here, Alan. As always, it seems to boil down to why you want one. Know why you want one first then choose the one that suits your purpose. And speed is always going to be iffy - our SAR all comes out of Trenton, so in Georgian Bay, you're going to wait a couple of hours anyway. Hopefully, you're smart and have the gear to survive that long.

March 5 at 10:44pm why should we suffer by where we choose to paddle? GBay is very busy. I don't understand why the response time should be that slow tho. Think of all the people who go into the wild wilderness who don't wait that long. Does this make sense?

March 6 at 6:27am The unit involved in the rescue in Superior was not a SPOT. It was a PLB, don't remember the brand name, but looking at the photos, it could very well have been an ACR.


March 6 at 7:34am · As a side note, we thought the response time was pretty fast for up here on Superior.


March 6 at 7:36am · Yeah, I was pretty impressed with 3 hours and 2 minutes! Not sure you'll do much better than that with anything.


March 6 at 8:07am · SAR response time, alas, is not like in the movies. It can take 3 hours for someone to get to you on a highway, for heaven's sake!


March 6 at 8:09am · I think the SPOT is a fantastic component for somebody who wanted to make use for the social features of the unit. It's awesome for that. If I was in a position where there was a medium chance that I would need to depend on it for an actual... emergency then I would would want to bring a SOLAS approved device like a PLB or EPIRB. To me it comes down to standards for the electronics and waterproofing. SPOT uses the basic IPX-7 rating for waterproof submersible which is 1m for 30min while SOLAS approved devices are at 5m for 1h.

Over the years I have lost pieces of electronic gear due to water getting into IPX-7 items so I just don't really trust it after after it bangs around the boat for a while. SPOT has got some amazing features with some really cool products coming out now. 2 years from now it's going to look much different with ACR playing catch-up on the social aspect. eg. ACR now has a PLB with their version of OK messages enabled.See More


March 6 at 10:15am · Produced by ACR but it's a collection of their educational videos breaking down the difference between their stuff and SPOT. Also is a good breakdown of the entire SAR system. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eqbf2kGP3QA&feature=youtu.be&a


March 6 at 10:23am ·Thanks DJ and the rest. If I'm some place where I would really have the possibility to maybe need to use the SPOT, then sry, as adventurous as I think I am, I would not be there. Btw, don't you think you should be allowed to upgrade the SPOT like a cell phone?


March 6 at 11:50am · I prefer the SPOT basically so everyone at home knows where i am and that I am okay. It relieves anxiety on trip - especially a solo trip. I've yet to use the SOS or Help feature - thank goodness - but I always get a signal - more so than if I was using a sat. phone


March 6 at 1:30pm · LikeUnlike · 1 person
Loading...Alan Drummond Thank you all for the comments. Thanks Ray for clarifying the unit used. I will edit my note to reflect that. DJ, insightful and informative as usual. BK, SV, LB, DR and KC thank you for your thought s and comments as well.
Truth be told th...ough I am no further ahead in my decision making process. I guess I have a lot of research to do before the hard water goes soft again. Thanks againSee More


March 6 at 2:55pm · Alan Drummond Here is the link to our National Search and Rescue Secretariat's website
http://www.nss.gc.ca/site/index_e.asp


March 6 at 2:59pm ·The SPOT works great for what it's designed for. If you are paddling on Lake Ontario and Georgian Bay 95% of the time then I wouldn't tell anybody to get anything fancier. Those areas all have full VHF radio and cell coverage so generally speaking you have redundant back-ups if necessary. You could start looking at other options for a trip on Lake Superior but then you could always rent a PLB if you thought you might be doing something more risky.


March 6 at 2:59pm · Again, Alan, it all depends on what you want to do and where you want to go. Speaking as someone who likes "backup plans for my backup plan", I regard the Spot (attached to me or someone in my group) as useful but not a stand-alone thing. Cell phones in a GOOD waterproof container, VHF bolted to my body, sat phone for areas outside cell coverage (but speaking as someone who has used one, they aren't goof-proof either!!) plus a good group/emergency plan should just about do it. ;-)


March 6 at 3:17pm I've been able to find satelite phones for short term rental but I can't find the SPOT. Has anyone heard of renting a SPOT?


March 6 at 5:14pm · LikeUnlikeAlan Drummond Another articel from the Coast Guard news which states that it was a PLB not a SPOT that was activated.
http://coastguardnews.com/coast-guard-rescues-2-in-lake-superior-after-kayak-capsizes/2010/09/17/


March 6 at 11:38pm · LikeUnlikeAlan Drummond Another article similar to the last one, but I love the line that the article finishes off with:
http://www.sootoday.com/content/news/full_story.asp?StoryNumber=48482

" they can take the "search" out of "search and rescue."


March 6 at 11:41pm · LikeUnlikeAlan Drummond So after much input and discussion with many different people, including Kevin Callan and Justine Curgenven. I have decided to stay with the SPOT I have, for now. A friend pointed out that most of the paddling they do is Great Lakes and Geo...rgian Bay based, they take their cell phone, where coverage may be quite wide spread, albeit with gaps and is not to be depended on, and also they take along a VHF radio, paddle in a group of at least two and are concious of the weather and the conditions constantly.

Seeing as how most of the paddling I will be doing will be similar I see no reason why the SPOT wouldn't compliment the above mentioned devices and plans to make any paddle I do as safe as possible.

Perhaps the PLB may be in the future if I was doing more solo, remote or dangerous paddling. But I still think even in that case I may pair it with a SPOT just to give those at home constant reassurance that I was OK.

So for now I will stick with the SPOT and its fun features and make sure I have extra batteries, a VHF radio, a cell phone, a float plan, and have any paddle I go on, solo or otherwise, well thought out, so that I never have to sit in the water for 3 hours waiting on a helicopter to come rescue me.

Thank you all for your input.See More

SPOT is a smart device

So as mentioned previously I decided to go with the SPOT device. What I didn't realize before was that the SPOT is actually a "smart" device. Who knew?
So I spent a part of this mornig setting the device up. When I activated the device to send me a message as to where I was....sitting at the desk in our upstairs spare bedroom/office the SPOT not only activated from inside the house, which I was impressed with, but it got my location wrong. It was only by 10 metres or so, which I thought was pretty good. However the reason I figure the SPOT is a "smart" device is because the location it put me at was in our parking spot where my Jeep is parked. So I'm thinking that the SPOT is trying to communicate with me to go out on a trip so it can be properly utilized.
Lets see your "smart" phone do that!!!