looking for some help in regards to the buttons on my inReach SE. The power button, all you have to do it look at it and it powers up the unit. This past weekend while out, the inReach managed to turn itself on and activate the SOS. It is beyond me on how this happened. Luckily i was in a area with half decent phone service and one of my emergency contacts was able to see if i was alright and called off the SOS. I know i read about this issue befor purchasing the unit but this is horrible. i thought i read that a firmware update would fix the issue with it turning on so easily but i did the latest update and it changed nothing. What gives? Are there options to these issues? Right now i figure i need to find a case for it to protect the buttons. Why doesnt the unit come with a deal to cover the buttons. Hoping someone else has a good alternative. Right now im left with not taking it with me half the time...which will lead to stop using it and terminate service.
It's very difficult to accidentally power the unit up. You must press the power (check mark) button, then the left rocker (to highlight the "power on"), then the Check mark again. This must be accomplished within a fairly short time frame or the unit cancels the power-up. A similar sequence is required to "wake" the unit when it is on but locked. While there are no mechanical interlocks to prevent this, it's fairly difficult to do it by accident. And I'm not sure what more they could do in the design to prevent it.
The hard SOS button DOES have a mechanical interlock. Be sure that the slide "clicks" into the locked position. If you don't hear/feel the click, the button is not securely locked. It takes more force to unlock it than you are likely to apply by accident.
It is possible to activate the SOS from the home screen icon. While I don't remember the details, this requires highlighting the SOS icon, pressing Check, then going through a timeout-protected sequence of confirmation actions. Again, not impossible to do by accident, but very difficult. You can cancel an SOS from the unit itself. Should you fail to do so, GEOS will attempt to contact you to confirm the situation. Failure to respond might well result in the dispatch of first responders.
Unfortunately, like Miggy82's SE, my Explorer also turns on with a single touch of the power button. This has resulted in the battery frequently being dead when I go to use it. I suspect that it has also shortened the battery lifespan.
I never reported the unit as being defective during the warranty period, as I assumed that a software change had made the manual instructions incorrect. The three step procedure to power on would definitely cure the problem IF it worked - which it doesn't!.
Unfortunately, like Miggy82's SE, my Explorer also turns on with a single touch of the power button. This has resulted in the battery frequently being dead when I go to use it. I suspect that it has also shortened the battery lifespan.
I never reported the unit as being defective during the warranty period, as I assumed that a software change had made the manual instructions incorrect. The three step procedure to power on would definitely cure the problem IF it worked - which it doesn't!.
I would contact tech support about this. It's not supposed to power-on as you describe. I've never seen a unit (SE, Explorer, Explorer+) with any firmware revision that behaved this way.
hi, i wrote my original message awhile ago. I still have the same issue. you just barely touch the power button and the unit powers up. there is in no way a sequence you have to do to power it up. I have to carry it in a pelican case to keep it from always being powered up in my pack. I prefer to keep it safe in my pack instead of on my belt of outside my pack. does anyone have a good way to contact tech support? i tried through garmin website, their ofiical support center but the page doesnt seem to completly load, no way to actually contact them, just a video.
Hey Hey Hey...fixed the problem it looks like. Hopefully Waterman480 sees this. After spending more time on google i found instructions to do a soft reset. Hold down the x button and down arrow for 60 seconds. after that let go and power up the unit by holding down the check mark button. Now my unit requires the sequence of confirming you want to turn it on. Pretty excited! Headed into the back country for a week will probably leave the pelican case, wish me luck i dont send an SOS again from inside my pack.
Definitely having the loosey-goosey power button issue - turning on by itself with little or no provocation. And efforts to get help from Garmin were futile ("I would suggest using a carry pouch, that way the power button has less of a chance to be bumped and turned on" -- oh yeah? well I suggest you build a product that doesn't malfunction so easily!). I'm trying the reset step Miggy82 proposed (hold down the X button for 60 sec.), but nothing happens when i do that. To make sure, I went a full 90 seconds. Nada. Miggy -- did you do this with device powered off or already powered up? Thanks,
