Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 08-01-2015, 08:21 PM   #1
Guru
 
O C Diver's Avatar
 
City: Fort Myers, FL... Summers in the Great Lakes
Vessel Name: Slow Hand
Vessel Model: Cherubini Independence 45
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 12,834
Spot Trace for family boat tracking?

There was a recent thread on family tracking your boat through an AIS web site. Was looking at different offerings for Satellite tracking and came across this.

Spot Trace

In a nutshell, it's Satellite tracking for vehicles that can be viewed on a computer or smart phone app. The pings can be set at 2.5, 5, 10, 30, or 60 minutes and there is some decent software to save battery life for when the boats not moving etc. This is tracking only. No emergency call button or text messaging. Being on the East coast, I can live without cell service for a day or 2. Have an EPIRB for real emergencies and VHF for everything else. Admiral would probably be happier knowing where I was.

The units on sale for $50 and the service plan is $100 per year. Seemed like a very inexpensive way for people to know where you are.

Anybody have experience with this unit or Spot in general?

Ted
__________________
Blog: mvslowhand.com
I'm tired of fast moves, I've got a slow groove, on my mind.....
I want to spend some time, Not come and go in a heated rush.....
"Slow Hand" by The Pointer Sisters
O C Diver is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-01-2015, 08:33 PM   #2
Guru
 
Old deckhand's Avatar
 
City: Sitka
Vessel Model: Transpacific Marine Eagle 32
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 519
Yes have used one but now use a Delorme.
Old deckhand is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-01-2015, 09:07 PM   #3
Guru
 
O C Diver's Avatar
 
City: Fort Myers, FL... Summers in the Great Lakes
Vessel Name: Slow Hand
Vessel Model: Cherubini Independence 45
Join Date: Dec 2010
Posts: 12,834
Quote:
Originally Posted by Old deckhand View Post
Yes have used one but now use a Delorme.
Any opinion? Did it perform as advertised?

Ted
__________________
Blog: mvslowhand.com
I'm tired of fast moves, I've got a slow groove, on my mind.....
I want to spend some time, Not come and go in a heated rush.....
"Slow Hand" by The Pointer Sisters
O C Diver is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-01-2015, 11:06 PM   #4
Senior Member
 
HenryD's Avatar
 
City: North Port, FL
Vessel Name: Seven Tenths (sold)
Vessel Model: Mirage / Great Harbour 47
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 477
Ted,
We have a SPOT Trace onboard. We bought it in January at the Miami boat show.
We are on our second unit - the first one was replaced under warranty by SPOT after it sometimes would stop working.
We like the Trace because it runs on 12v and can be wired directly into the boat to eliminate having to power it on/off each day. BUT the unit notices we have stopped moving for the day or even in a lock and stops transmitting. The "Dock mode" feature we thought would re-activate the unit when we moved again but that has not been working for us.
Unfortunately, we have contacted support many times and are still trying to determine if this is a problem or the way the unit is designed.
We moved the boat from FL to Kingston, Ontario over the last 2 months and our friends and family have followed us on the SPOT web site. If I forget to power off the unit and power it back up after a lockage, we get a text message or call from one of our friends asking "what happened".
When I tried to contact SPOT via their support web form, I got back a message that said "If you are still having a problem, call our 800 number".


The support person I have talked to several times, has suggested my boat does not move fast enough to trigger the movement switch and I need to shake it violently each time the unit thinks we have stopped. She also mentioned that TRACE was primarily designed to "trace an asset".


Just - FYI - Henry
HenryD is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-01-2015, 11:12 PM   #5
Al
Guru
 
Al's Avatar
 
City: ketchikan, Alaska
Vessel Name: 'SLO'~BELLE
Vessel Model: 1978 Marben-27' Flybridge Trawler(extended to 30 feet) Pilothouse Pocket Cruiser[
Join Date: Apr 2012
Posts: 2,206
I await Deckhand's response to O.C. As DH is from Sitka and somewhat a neighbor his detail will be of interest. I have a SPOT that I have not activated due to confusion on the contract. While it is an annual contract, use is marginal and during the summer months when longer trips are in play. Delorme sounds as though it married SPOT with other features. Hope DC includes the cost of contract. I see these units for sale on both Amazon and Ebay.

Al
Al is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Trawler Port Captains
Port Captains are TF volunteers who can serve as local guides or assist with local arrangements and information. Search below to locate Port Captains near your destination. To learn more about this program read here: TF Port Captain Program





All times are GMT -5. The time now is 06:35 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Search Engine Optimization by vBSEO 3.6.0
Copyright 2006 - 2012