For years Garmin has dominated the satellite messaging category with its family of inReach devices. But competitors have emerged, thankfully, and it’s helping to keep prices down, drive product innovation, and perhaps improve customer service.
For nearly three weeks this spring I used the Somewear Global Hotspot ($280, 4 oz/113 grams), one of these newer devices, while guiding trips in southern Utah, giving me an opportunity to test its reliability and features, and to better understand how it compares to other units like the inReach Mini, Zoleo, Spot X, Spot Gen4.
Review: Somewear Global Hotspot
At its core, the Somewear Global Hotspot is a two-way satellite messenger, capable of both sending and receiving texts in areas without cell service.
The device uses the Iridium network, which has truly global coverage. A subscription is required. I found the messaging experience to be remarkably zippy — when I had good signal strength (conveniently displayed by the app in the upper-right corner), messages were sent and received with a short delay, usually seconds, sometimes a few minutes. It felt significantly faster than my inReach Mini, which I was using simultaneously for inReach-to-inReach conversations with other guides who were in the field.
Three types of messages can be sent with the Hotspot:
- SOS, using a dedicated physical button on the device;
- Location tracking, using the power button on the device;
- Custom, by pairing your smartphone to the device with the Somewear Mobile App.
The Somewear Mobile App also transmits texts over cell service or WiFi, making for a seamless messaging experience (and also saving money, because this data is run through your phone provider, not against your Somewhere service plan). When bouncing back and forth between civilization and the wilderness, as you might do on a thru-hike and as I do while guiding, text conversations do not get disjointed when the connection changes.
As a standalone unit, the Somewhere is physically appealing, being palm-sized and only 4.0 oz (113 grams). The original unit (and my review unit) was dark blue/light blue; it was updated to black/blue in spring 2021, but otherwise is the same as the original.
An emergency message can be sent using the dedicated button, which is protected well by a cap. Tracking can be initiated by rapidly pressing the on/off button three times.
To type, send, receive, and read text messages, the device must be paired with a smartphone.
The device gives little indication about its operations. It doesn’t beep or vibrate, and it has just one external white-only LED light with three blinking patterns (for on, pairing, and tracking modes).
The Mobile App has some weather and mapping features. But, honestly, I recommend that you get this data from elsewhere. The weather forecasts are pulled from Dark Sky, which is an Apple product that poorly predicts mountain weather. And for your mapping, I highly recommend instead the Gaia GPS or CalTopo apps. Somewear partnered with onX Backcountry, which I’m less familiar with and which I don’t see compelling reasons to use over Gaia or CalTopo.
The Hotspot against the competition
How does the Somewear Global Hotspot compare to other satellite messengers?
Somewear Hotspot versus Spot Gen4 and Spot X
The SPOT Gen4 is a one-way device, capable of only sending messages. Its technology was groundbreaking in 2008 when it was released but is now obsolete.
The SPOT X is a two-way messenger with a physical keyboard. But it’s heavier and clunkier than the Somewear Hotspot, and does not offer seamless messaging.
Conclusion: The Somewear Hotspot is a clear winner over both SPOT devices.
Somewear Hotspot versus Garmin inReach, specifically the Mini
The Mini is marginally smaller and lighter (by a half-ounce, or 15 grams), and as a standalone device it has more functionality — like the Somewear, it can send an SOS message; but messages can also be read and typed out (albeit painfully slowly) using its small screen and virtual keyboard.
The Somewear device has one physical advantage. When it’s laid flat on the ground, as it’s designed to, its antenna points at the sky. It doesn’t need to be propped up with a rock or piece of gear, as with the Mini.
Somewear offers seamless messaging; the inReach does not. This is a major omission by inReach, which is vulnerable to disjointed text conversations when you come back into cell/wifi range (or get back out of it).
The Hotspot is less expensive — $280 retail versus $350 for the Mini. Though the real cost of these devices are in the subscription plans (for Somewear, go here; for inReach, go here). The plans are not directly comparable, but overall the Somewear is less expensive to operate, in addition to being less expensive to buy. For example:
- For $15 per month, the Somewear includes 20 messages, whereas the inReach includes only 10;
- And the unlimited plan costs $50 per month for Somewear and $65 for the inReach.
Conclusion: If you expect to regularly carry the device but not a smartphone, which is the case with very few people, the inReach is the better option. Otherwise, the Somewear is more attractive: its seamless messaging and cost-savings more than offset the 0.5-ounce weight penalty and its slightly larger size.
Somewear Hotspot versus Zoleo
The Somewear has a single advantage over the Zoleo: it’s 1.3 ounces lighter, and also smaller.
Both offer seamless messaging, over satellite, wifi, and cell.
Otherwise, Zoleo has more going for it:
- $200 retail price, versus $280
- 900-character limit when the recipient also has the Zoleo app (versus the more standard 160-ish);
- Dedicated phone number and email address, making it extremely easy for a Zoleo owner to be contacted;
- The device has an “Okay” message button, plus multiple lights with different colors and blinking patterns; and,
- More economical service plans, like $35 per month for 250 messages, versus 75 messages for $30 with the Somewear.
Conclusion: If size and weight is a big priority, go with the Hotspot (or maybe the Mini). But if you’re willing to carry a heftier device for more functionality and to save some money, the Zoleo is the better pick.
Availability
Update: August 17, 2022
This summer the Hotspot has been unavailable for purchase. I inquired with Somewear about this, and received the following information from the CEO:
- Large orders from SAR/first responder-type organizations have consumed available units, leaving no inventory available for the public.
- “In the next six months” they expect to make units available for general sales.
Questions about the Somewear Global Hotspot, or have an experience with it? Leave a comment.
Tags: Garmin inReach, SPOT, Zoleo
I have been using the Zoleo for about six weeks now, hiking and biking, as my cellular service around my small town ends in some directions seven miles out. Former SpotX owner for 2.5 years. The Zoleo is a clear winner especially with the EIN number, now has tracking for an additional fee. Only con, has a check in button, but no preset messages. Not a game changer for me. I like the Garmin line but the older Delorme tech is really showing it’s age.
Is there any reason why you left off the bivystick? That seems to be the top competitor for the inreach mini. I would also be interested in a review of the SatPaq. It seems less capable then it’s competitor’s but it offers true pay as you go messaging which I think many people are looking for.
I know of the bivy stick and I’ve seen one in person once, but I don’t know much about it.
I just looked up Zoleo, since it seems like a good option (1.3 ounces heavier doesn’t seem too onerous). They are actually selling it for $150 right now. Would be great if you could add a comparative photo, as you do with the mini. I’ve been using one of the older InReach devices (nothing mini about it) and am thinking about upgrading. Thanks for the advice.
Unfortunately I don’t own a zoleo so I can’t do a size comparison photo. But that review has a size comparison photo against the inreach explorer and spot gen3.
Maybe a stock photo?
There’s one thing that bugs me with the inReach mini. If I’m in a hut or somewhere with a bad GPS signal, the battery drains rapidly because it wastes power trying to find a signal.
Does this happen with the Zoleo or Somewear devices too?
Is the battery life better overall with the screenless devices?
I haven’t seen any scientific analyses of battery life for these devices, like those that you will find for smartphones.
Since the somewear, zoleo, and inreach are all using the iridium network, my guess is that battery consumption is probably similar between the devices, was perhaps some variability depending on software and the antennas. But battery size will probably be the biggest driver of battery life.
Wow. Neither the Somewear or the Zoleo are available in Europe. Am I missing something?
The Somewear is available direct-only, and I’m uncertain if they ship to Europe. Uncertain about the Zoleo. I’m sure that both companies are trying to expand their dealer network and international distribution.
Hey All,
I just pulled the trigger last week on the Zoleo and am taking it into the field next week. It was down to the Somewear vs. the Zoleo. I elected to go with Zoleo for the reasons mentioned in the review, plus it has a 2-year warranty vs. 9 months for the Somewear. Most of my backcountry time is spent in waterways and the fact that the Somewear floats almost made me disregard all of the rest, but especially after reading the review I am feeling good about going with the preponderance of favorables for the Zoleo. Thanks Skurka.
Hi,
The unit in your review is blue, but the current one on Somewear website is black. Any significant changes other the color? Thanks!
I noticed this too, but I don’t think that there’s any functional or under the hood differences between the device that I was using and the new color scheme.
Thanks for the great review. I’m on the fence between all of these units, but the Somewear certainly makes the most financial sense due to the low data plan costs. For the occasional user, it’s significantly less expensive than either the ZOLEO or the InReach.
The key is that Somewear doesn’t charge a fee to suspend your account, so infrequent use (a few months a year) becomes much more economical.
The device that makes the most financial sense is a PLB. Buy it once, use it for emergencies only. Let me not work for you if your family wants the option of communicating with you, but for many people it’s a viable solution and it generally is under discussed.
PLB’s are the lowest cost for sure, but definitely not apples to apples with the two way satellite messengers on this thread.
The ability to message what an emergency is, or with messages other than a true emergency, and to receive messages has real value.For example, friends of mine were backpacking in an area when a wildfire started up nearby. They didn’t so much need rescue as intel on where the fire was and how to get around it – there was still time for them to respond, and the area rescue teams were largely overwhelmed with those in the immediate path of the fire – but the ability to not only send out an SOS, but also to receive messages was key.
That makes the question of what option makes the most financial sense a bit harder to give a blanket answer to – it will likely depend on the user.
The other benefit of Somewear vs Zoleo besides weight is plan flexibility and cost. Zoleo charges you $4 even when your plan is paused. Somewear you only pay for months you want service. There’s also an ultralight annual plan that works out to about $8/mo, which is quite a bit cheaper than any of the other options I’ve seen.
Thanks for the write-up Andrew and thank you everyone else for the comments. I got the Somewear after reading this. I began to feel that the additional initial cost of the Somewear Hotspot would eventually break even with the Zoleo’s inflexible plan, somewhere after the 4th month of use. I wasn’t aware of Satellite Hotspots so this was exciting. I was between the Somewear and Zoleo and the review here and follow-up comments were invaluable in contributing to my decision. Ultimately, the subscription details for the Somewear are what won me over. The waterproof rating was also a factor as I have made mistakes in that regard. The weight difference seemed negligible to me and with where I’m at as $100 could save weight more effectively in other departments. As David mention, the $4 subscription pause with Zoleo was off-putting and seemed a little ridiculous to me. But the fine print that mentions it is unable to be paused during the first 3 months on top of the $20 activation fee bothered me. To me, it reads like I am committed to immediately spending another $80 right off the bat for the most inexpensive plan and the activation fee. I only need to get out a few messages and appreciate the tracking offered by Somewear while Zoleo charges $6 on top of any plan for that. The cheapest plan by Somewear is an annual contract but at $8 I can hardly complain. I can literally get a year’s worth of service with the Somewear considering the amount of messaging I need to do for less money than the cheapest activation with Zoleo. With all this in mind, I began to notice that the additional initial cost of the Somewear Hotspot would eventually break even with the Zoleo’s inflexible plan, somewhere after the 4th month of use.
Great and thorough comparison! I’ve seen this in most reviews of similar devices. I don’t think it’s a fair comparison to compare the lower message plans with Garmin’s. I’d take 10 messages and unlimited preset over 20 messages any day. I’d probably take it over 30-40 as well. I’ll use regular messages for communication with people who are coming/meeting up with, but anything else is just hey I’m okay or here’s my coordinates for camp. I imagine a large subset of people are in the same boat as me there.
Yea me as well. I mainly use the preset function to “ping” my location 2/3 times per day and campsite and the messages only if I really need more communication.
One thing worth considering is post-purchase support. I’ve emailed Somewear folks several times after purchasing the device, and wasn’t able to get a response from their support team.
It was tough to decide between them & the inReach mini, but the fact of the matter is that I could not even reach anyone from Somewear over the phone.
It’s such a pity because the Somewear has superior (in my opinion) subscription plans which are more economical.
As much as I’d like to support a growing startup, I ultimately cancelled my order with them & went with the inReach despite the lack of seamless message continuity.
Thanks for the wonderful review Andrew & please keep posting awesome content like this!!!!
I’m torn between the InReach and Zoleo. I don’t get out but a few times a year but to places that don’t get great cell service and my wife worries when I’m out so the messages are important along with my kids worries about me. I also plan on doing some adventures im the Bob Marshall so I need one for that. I hate paying $$$ for most of a year im not using it.
Btw the bivy you have to pay for SOS coverage separately, anywhere from 7 days to a year.
if you get out that often, have you considered renting one? or, maybe a plb, which would give you an SOS option but which does not have a monthly or annual subscription fee.
Renting might be an option as long as it ships, need to look into that more but in my area there are no rentals for that type of equipment. PLB are an option but no communication what I don’t think my wife would like or be comfortable with.
Somewhere is very appealing but I’ve heard customer service and support is horrible and there pricing is a little confusing of tracking or messaging being combined together. They say 6/7 tracking equals 1 message and then charge per data point and message overages, which for $50 unlimited it make it less confusing just that.
Plus somewhere doesn’t do immediate plan changes.
Somewhere is the cheapest but doesn’t seems as on par with zoleo and garmin, but I could be wrong.
Why those two? For occasional use, it seems Somewear has the best plan options – no need to pay for months you’re not using like Zoleo or Inreach, which was what pushed me to it.
the main reason is b/c of what Andrew highlighted above, at a 1.3oz penalty I can swallow the weight for extra functions and plan options along with what appears to be poor customer service. Somewhere’s plans are vague and unclear how they work with tracking and messages being combined together. Yes somewhere doesn’t charge for months used but the plan change isn’t immediate and personally for me I think I can swallow paying $4/month for more features and clearer pricing.
If I only use zoleo 2 months out of the year I’m only paying $32 for the entire year which is less than I spend feeding my family of 4 dinner at a sandwich place over the weekend.
I think the biggest difference is for Zoleo you can pay $41/month have 250 messages and unlimited tracking and pay $.25 extra per message vs somewhere you pay $30/month for 75 messages OR 600 tracking points and for overages you pay $.5/message over and $.08/tracking point.
depending on how frequent your tracking will determine how fast your going through the tracking points….. which depending on where your going and doing could be big on determining our location if something happens.
I’m not sure I’m following your math. 10 months at $4/mo is $40. Plus 2 months at $41 with 250 messages and unlimited tracking, we’re at $122/yr.
With Somewear you could just pay $50 for the two months of use and have unlimited messaging and tracking for $100/yr – unlimited is about as clear as it gets.
Somewear also offers seamless cell/WiFi messaging, so I’d be interested to hear how that differs from Zoleo… Just that Zoleo also has a dedicated email address, or is there also something different about how the phone number works?
I’ve also had good experiences with Somewear customer service myself so not sure if that’s changed, or how Zoleo compares.
A few extra buttons and indicator lights could be a plus, and maybe worth it depending on the user’s priorities. And I see Zoleo has improved their tracking options since I made my decision for Somewear last year, as they really didn’t even offer tracking at that point at all.
I’d disagree though with the review’s statement that the only advantage of Somewear is weight – I think it also works out as more economical for light or occasional use over the long run.
good to hear you’ve had good experience so far.
the math changes after 3 months out of the year if you sticking with the $50 unlimited plan.
also if you don’t care about seamless transition with garmin’s recreational freedom for 2 months use your at $105 including the yearly fee, granted only 40 texts (but those are beyond the “i’m ok” which are free) and unlimited tracking.
little comparision between Inreach and Zoleo plans
InReach Recreation Freedom plan :
$34.95 annual fee
$34.95/month with 40 text messages, unlimited check-ins, unlimited tracking, no monthly suspension fee
Zoleo Intouch
No annual fee
$35/month with 250 messages, no free check-ins, unlimited tracking for extra $6/month, $4/month suspension fee
example for 2months usage with no overages:
Garmin: $104/year
Zoleo: $122/year
you could go over on Garmin by 17 messages to reach Zoleo. Biggest difference with Garmin is how many messages are you getting in and more than the check-in messages sent. all depends on your usage 🙂
Been happy with my Somewear. Glad that it is waterproof, I used it a few times in a thunderstorm and using it without being in a bag seemed ideal. Not sure on that though, I would love to hear from Zoleo users on how they’ve liked it in the rain. I also unexpectedly fell in a creek recently and the waterproof aspect was again appreciated. Haven’t had to contact customer support.
Thank you for the review. I am a serious hiker who cares little about minor differences in annual plans. I think it must be emphasized that the Mini is a fully functional two-way communicator by itself; the Zoleo and some other devices require a mobile phone, rendering it not much more useful than the old SPOT if you don’t have a phone. I have experienced many electronics failures, so I would never want to depend on TWO battery-powered devices to be able to coordinate a rescue. I think the Garmin got it just right with the MINI: full functionality in the smallest package, with enhanced or easier communication when paired with a phone. (I am assuming that the Zoleo offers tracking breadcrumbs which I also depend on when doing long solo trips.)
I’ve been using the Somewear for a few months. Mostly satisfied but the battery stopped working. This is concerning for a device with a 9 month warranty. They took a few days to get back to me and now want me to send it in to see if is repairable before determining whether or not to repair or replace. I waited 4 hours for a rise due to the device not working when expected and have a multi week trip planned in 11 days. So not super ideal option to send in. I asked for a replacement and refund for the month when I first wrote them. I am again asking for a replacement as waiting longer is not ideal. I would definitely dock it some points in the reliability department on account of this. My previous posts about it demonstrate my initial satisfaction. It seems all devices have some drawbacks.
TLDR: I do not recommend Somewear.
Return Policy: You are unable to return the device after it has been activated and are stuck with it. In this day and age a product without a money back guarantee should have been a red flag. Another red flag: it is only sold directly from the company, not through a major retailer, like REI, which stands behind the products they sell. REI does sell the Garmin InReach/2, the ACR Electronics Bivy Stick, the Zoleo and devices from Spot.
Experience: Over 1 year of use. Worked as advertised at first. At some point, weather reports stopped loading and map functionally through the phone’s GPS stopped working without updating the phone’s GPS location in another app first. Messages and–presumably–SOS continued to work.
Customer Service: Terrible. Only via email. Wait time for a response was typically between 5 and 23 (not a typo) days. They do not address your concerns, which is especially frustrating when you’ve waited 23 days for a response to a carefully written email. Even worse, they provided patronizing directions on how to use the basic functions of a cell phone, despite clear and technical descriptions of problems.
Technical Assistance: Only available relayed through customer service emails. Unable to solve technical problems. Eventually received an email from Alan Besquin, Co-founder & CTO that didn’t acknowledge my technical problems, didn’t offer solutions, didn’t offer a direct means of contact, didn’t offer a refund, didn’t offer to try a new device; only offered to reset the device for transfer to another party.
The Zoleo is useless for people from most of the world because “ZOLEO will only accept credit cards with a billing address in the following countries: Canada, United States and its territories, Australia, New Zealand, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom”. Is there such a restriction for Somewear? I can’t find this information on the Somewear website, but this is important information. However, the Somewear seems to be not for sale at all right now? On their own website there is a button “Join the waitlist”, nor can I find it for sale on Amazon or other large retail sites.
@Gerrit Holl
SomeWear has a “Contact Us” option on their website – likely the best place to find out what payment options they accept.
If you want to buy a SomeWear while they’re on wait list (my guess is they’re working on some sort of version 2, as BivyStick, InReach, etc have all done recently) I’d be willing to sell mine. Been happy with it, but haven’t had the time to get out and use it as much as I’d like recently.
Per the CEO of Somewear, units have been unavailable this year because they’ve been receiving large orders from SAR/first responder/emergency services, so no inventory has been leftover for general consumers. I just added a small section in the post with some of this information.
I use the Garmin Mini because you can do basic messaging with it alone, without the need for my iPhone to be working as well. We’ve all dropped our smartphones while in civilization, so doing so in the backcountry is to be expected/planned for. But with many more rocks and rivers to hit or fall into serious damage is much more likely. I spelunked in wild caves in college the hard rule was having “3 independent sources of illumination – full stop. The Mini provides comms independence.
I hear this argument often in support of the Mini, but I’m just not convinced that real world experiences support it. Each year I spend about 30-60 days in the field guiding trips, usually with 10 people total (myself included). On average, that’s equivalent to 450 days solo. I can recall only one instance where a phone actually went down — their iPhone must have been “on” in their pocket, and too many butt login attempts caused them to be locked out.
For the rare instance when a phone might go down, I feel like “Okay” messages should be satisfactory for a few days until you exit and can fix the phone (or get a new one). Seriously, what are the odds that your phone goes down AND your emergency contacts absolutely must contact you? Almost zero, probably.
For me it’s not about your emergency contact getting in contact with you if your phone goes down, it’s about if my phone goes down AND I get injured bad enough to push the SOS button, ie i CAN’T make it out. I WANT to know SAR got my message and to be able to talk to them to help locate me and give them my exact emergency. With out a phone you can’t do that with a Zoleo or Somewhere. I know a BLP will sent out the message and have a greater chance of getting received but once again your still sitting there injured wondering if your SOS was received and wondering if they will come….
I understand this thinking, but again I’m uncertain that it’s supported by real world experiences.
1. How many times has your phone died?
2. How many times have you called SAR?
3. What are the odds that your phone dies AND you need to call SAR?
My personal answers:
1. Zero
2. Zero
3. Zero
I think most people would report the same.
In some instances, it’s very reasonable (in fact, wise) to make selections or decisions on the basis of redundancy or low-odds contingencies. For example, I carry anti diarrheal meds, and a backup lighter and water bottle cap, because these items weigh almost nothing and because they’re great to have if you need them.
With sat messengers, I’m less inclined to make my decision based on the same thinking. Redundancy is a nice-to-have feature, for sure, and this is definitely a shortcoming with Zoleo and Somewear. But I wouldn’t rule out either device based purely on this — I don’t think it’s a make-or-break feature.
The stability of the software and firmware, the reliability of the coverage, and the messaging experience would seem to carry at least equal weight, plus perhaps also cost to own and operate, battery life, and customer service.
If you consider all of these factors, you still might conclude that the inReach is the best device (for you), but I can also see the case for other devices that we now have available.
Each to his/her own. Some say one is none, 2 is one. it’s up to your own personal tolerances.
1) how many times has my phone died, with a new phone and new battery… not many, my old phone where it only was able to charge via wireless and battery needed to be charged 2x a day…. often…
2) never and hope to keep it that way but accidents happen
considering the mini is about the same weight as the others i’ll take the redundancy all day long
Andrew
Nice review
Does the mini antenna work best pointed at the sky? I lay it flat on a hood and it takes forever. Maybe that’s why?
As of 8/8/23, the Global Hotspot is now $500 to purchase. (Woof!) There’s also a new device coming out by Somewhere labs called the Node which will be $1k.