The Garmin inReach Messenger Plus is an update and upgrade over the inReach Messenger. For $500 MSRP ($200 more than the previous model), you get the additional features of communicating photos, recorded voice messages, and 1600-character text messages.
Now that I have my Garmin inReach Messenger Plus, I have been exploring the benefits of the new features I wrote about in our First Look story.
I’m not intentionally crashing the Ultimate Motorcycling Yamaha Ténéré 700 Project Bike, playing daredevil to test the SOS response time, or trying to file a claim on the $39 Garmin Search and Rescue Insurance Plan available to subscribers. Instead, I use it to give my family peace of mind when I am riding off the grid, give me peace of mind that I will be rescued if I get into serious trouble, and share in real-time the interesting locations, sights, sounds, and bear scat that my riding leads me to.
Starting at $8 per month for the bare bones SOS service that is pay-per-play if you send messages, the Enabled plan is the perfect budget-conscious protection plan but doesn’t take advantage of the new features. It is the Garmin Messenger app on a compatible smartphone that makes the magic happen with the Messenger Plus.
When you select whom to send your next message to, you are then ready to record up to 30-second voice messages, choose photos from your phone library, shoot live photos, send a MapShare invitation (GPS sharing), or send a Quick Text Message (previously scripted short messages to bypass typing).
Set to Live Tracking every 10 minutes, my invited contacts can follow my progress on the Garmin Explore app (mobile and PC). When I want to share a vista, get mechanical help from my wrenching experts, or send a Garmin SOS Response photo of a compound fracture, it is 6-to-8 intuitive clicks from start to finish.
I carry the Garmin inReach Messenger Plus facing outward in my left inner jacket pocket. When I started riding with it there, I verified that messages and pin drops were not delayed. I also tell my riding partners where it is located, in case they need to access it for me.
When I stop for a water break or to take in a scenic spot, I send a check-in message that pinpoints my exact location and a quick phrase such as, “I’m checking in. Everything is okay.” Happily, check-in messages are free on the $30 plan. If there is a great view, I send a selfie to my riding buddies, who couldn’t seem to make the time for that ride. Once in a while, when I’m in the zone on a spectacular forest road, I remember to include my wife by recording a 30-second message like, “I love you…blah blah blah,” stuff.
I just discovered that the ocean cruise I booked has a very expensive daily Wi-Fi charge. I had a forehead-slapping moment when I realized that my inReach Messenger Plus can keep me connected to family, friends, and work if they have the Garmin Messenger app installed on their phones. They can send me messages, just as I can send them messages. One day of skipping the ship’s Wi-Fi covers a month’s subscription for my inReach.
Garmin recently simplified its subscription model, and now offers four plans. I verified that plans can be changed from your phone Garmin Messenger app on the fly, though it has to be accomplished over an internet connection.
Suppose you have the $8 per month plan with no included text, location, photo, or voice messages, and you get invited on the adventure ride of a lifetime led by Pol Tarrés. In that case, you can instantly upgrade your plan, send contemporaneous photos and voice recordings, and not break the bank. The inReach Standard Plan I use is $30 per month, allowing unlimited 10-minute tracking, 25 photos or voice messages, and 150 1600-character text messages.
I hope I never need to use the Garmin inReach Messenger Plus’s photo-or audio-sending features under stress from a real emergency. Practicing keystrokes as training for the real thing is a good idea. With up to 26 days of battery life, depending on your power setting and usage, you can feel confident the Garmin inReach Messenger Plus will be there when you need it, and it’s also fun to use it for non-essential reasons. While $500 is steep compared to the $300 inReach Messenger, the ability of the Plus to send photos and voice messages makes it worth the investment for riders who want to share their adventures in real-time.
