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Anywhere to monitor Garmin account charges for InReach Mini 2?

4957510
5 days ago

We are absolute newbies to InReach Mini 2 and have the Enabled plan as we really just want SOS and basic GPS capabilities while backpacking.

Just experimenting with Tracking stored only on the device (Settings/Tracking/Send Interval set to Off), our hiking route (Activity) ends up later in the Explore iOS App and also shows up in the Garmin Explore Web via login. That data must get from the Mini 2 to the iPhone via Bluetooth, and then via the internet when the iOS App syncs with the online account as viewed through a computer browser, right?

But when one does use features that cost per usage (like Text Message or Weather Request for $0.50 each, or live tracking for others to see where we are...), is there a way to look online or via an App at those charges accumulating in our Garmin account? I've searched but not found anyplace showing such.

Kind of hoping so because we are pretty green and it would be good to know when we've stumbled into a feature that triggers those little charges...

Thanks!

PS: The tracking collected by the device, by the way, showed a fairly nutty and incorrect route for our easy hike in Yosemite. So I think we learned that no, the InReach Mini 2 can't work when it's deep in a pants pocket. Yes, some trees of course, and while I'm not planning on having the thing on top of my head for another test, maybe it won't be too bad if in a top, light shirt pocket?

  • +1 2 days ago

    Deep in a pants pocket is a bad idea. Although the M2 is better than the M1, it really does have a crummy GPS patch antenna system. You should carry the device as high on your body as possible, with the face of the unit pointed straight up. High your pack strap is a good location.

    I have had reasonable luck with shirt pocket. The problem is that your body is mostly water and blocks GPS signals pretty effectively. If you do carry in a shirt pocket, do so with the face of the device away from your body.

    Yes - M2 > phone via BT > anyplace else via Internet. A sync operation is required. It may or may not happen automatically in whatever app you are using on the phone.

    Garmin inReach accounts are notorious for NOT providing any useful up-to-the-minute charging info - on the device, in connected mobile apps, or on the web. The only thing that seems accurate is your monthly bill. (It might not be accurate, but it's what you are going to pay.)

    As long as you stay away from ALL inReach activities (messages, weather requests, and certainly tracking), you should not be charged. The only thing you cannot control is the automatic hourly check for incoming inReach messages. If somebody DOES send you a message, you will receive it during the hourly mail check. And you will be charged for it. (You're going to get charge for it whether you actually see it or not. Just pointing out the mail check thing for your info.) The mail check is automatic and cannot be disabled.

    PSA: There is a gaping hole in depending on manual SOS without continuous tracking. There are several scenarios in which manual SOS is not feasible: you are disabled/unconscious, you are stuck in a location with no inReach connectivity, your device battery is dead, you smashed the device... Continuous tracking will not get an SOS out. But it WILL give SAR a fairly recent starting point when somebody eventually reports you missing. 

    In my head, economizing by not sending continuous track points is false economy. Is a few bucks a day worth your life? /rant