InReach Mini won't charge properly (hardware issue?)

Hi all,

I've barely used my Mini - bought it late 2018 and did a few expeditions but mostly sat in its box, especailly for the last two years!

A friend wants to hike in a remote part of the country and he's relatively inexperieced, so I was gonna give him my inReach.

I powered it up and charged it but the charging is intermitant. If you apply pressure to the USB where it connects to the unit, it does charge.

This leads me to believe the charging port is faulty. What are my options? It is out of warranty but it is very dissappointing - it wasn't cheap!

I've tried different USB's and have been using the supplied Garmin USB to charge with.

Advice welcome!

Thanks,

Ross

Top Replies

5175887 over 2 years ago +1

Ahh, I see. I'll try that and report back. Thanks!

All Replies

0 twolpert over 2 years ago

Open a support ticket. See what Garmin would charge for an out-of-warranty "repair". It won't be a repair - it will be a swap with a refurbished unit. It might be cheaper than you fear. Or not.

0 SloMTBR over 2 years ago

forums.garmin.com/.../inreach-mini-battery-replacement

0 5175887 over 2 years ago

I don't think it's a battery issue - it does charge, function as normal, and holds charge, but the problem is that pressure has to be applied to the chargining point in a way which undermines the reliabiltiy and usefulness of the unit in the field. As such, I believe it's a faulty charging port. Possibly this could be replaced fairly easily?

0 SloMTBR over 2 years ago in reply to 5175887

There's a commonality to some of the replies in the thread I posted, for example,

"I opened it up, disconnected the battery and connected it again. That completely fixed the issue."

0 5175887 over 2 years ago

Ahh, I see. I'll try that and report back. Thanks!