Spot Gen4 One Way Satellite GPS Location Tracking Portable Communicator, Device for Hiking New Technology Locator Gadget, Messenger & Email, Emergency SOS Alerting, Bundled with HogoR Power Bank

Where is the USB port? What is function light? What is SPOT mappings and where do I find it? The quick start guide is atrocious. You'd think they alpha-test the start guide at least, but no. You have to figure out on your own what they are and where to find it. (SPOT mapping is maps.findmespot.com btw. I had to magnify the sample video to figure it out)And what's with the power bank? SPOT is not rechargeable, period. You can't charge the battery through the USB port even if you replace the battery with rechargeable one. It came handy for me because I could use it to recharge my headlamp whose battery only last a few hours. But it can get some people in some serious trouble by misleading them into thinking that they can recharge SPOT 4 with the power bank.I'm still giving it 5 stars for now because it seems to work as advertised and it is cost efficient. I took it outside, pressed check in button and got the message notification on SPOT mapping page in a few minutes. (The Start Guide is wrong on this too. It says turn it on and then check for the message. I waited an hour and then figured out that you have to send it first when nothing happened.)If SOS, SOV and tracking is all you need, this SPOT will, well, hit the spot. Garmin Inreach uses Iridium and can also receive messages. But it's success rate appears no better than SPOT 4 even though it costs 4 times as much. I just need to let people know where I am and be able to call for help when I need it. SPOT 4 appears to meet all my need at a reasonable price.I'll update it after field testing it next week.

This is a great product for helping you be safe out in the wilderness. I don't recommend you use it when it will be inside a vehicle, RV, etc. as the signal is easily lost with that barrier. I tested it on a road trip and if it wasn't sitting on my dash next to the windshield it would sporadically skip location tracking. Speaking of testing, when you complete the initialization test SPOT recommends in the user guide, it has to be completed QUICKLY. It times out if you don't complete the next step in about 2 seconds. This can be tough when you have to lift the covers off the Help and SOS buttons. The first couple of times I tried it I ended up with a flashing SOS light and spent 30 minutes on the phone waiting for SPOT to tell me I did not actually send an SOS. Also, SPOT would be well served to redesign this with USB charging to avoid the need to carry heavy spare batteries in your pack. When I'm out in the backcountry every ounce matters, and I'd prefer not carrying spare batteries. I consider these negative things to be pretty minor in the grand scheme and I'm very satisfued with this piece of gear.

Poor service, only will track or send check in messages in "populated" area. Would not work well off grid in remote areas. Multipleback to back "syncs", multiple "update firmware" alerts after confirmation of update complete is very annoying. Hard to reach a tech support person, instead "refer to the videos". Terrible app functionality, poor web site design. Multiple subscriptions required for full functionality. It's a great idea and if you are staying in a high traffic area is probably ok but this is not useful in extreme remote locations..oh and the website is offering this for $99 at the moment. This battery pack is just a gimmick to make you think you're getting something extra. It's got no value to this item.

I was thrilled to get the Spot Gen4 but the set-up and testing instructions as printed in the enclosed material are less than intuitive and actually seem to be missing important details. The online manual isn't much better I can say that the SOS function works since I accidently set it off while trying to initialize and test the unit. This procedure involves a three step series of button pushing that times out way too quickly if the steps aren't performed in rapid succession and in exactly the right conditions. Unfortunately I'll have to be calling their support number to get up to speed and be able to use the reporting and check in functions.The Hogor charger came with no manual. Power indicator showed minimal charge-- no biggie. Plugged the micro USB into the unit and the other into a power source. I left it connected for 24 hours and the power bank didn't charge at all. I switched charging source and left it for a couple of days. Now the power bank will not even turn on. I swapped the cable out and now it seems to be charging.

So the "instructions" for the SPOT are TERRIBLE, just terrible. There's a lot to figure out just playing with the device. Do not get it and unbox it the night before a trip or anything.BUT if you just want to know you have the ability to send out messages to check in with a loved one or ten, this'll do the job. You have a check-in and message button as well as a non-emergency "help" button and that's a lot of options for reaching out or keeping in contact on top of the all important life threatening emergency "SOS" button.Satellite messaging does do better in a clear sky, but I've gotten a message sent off by sitting the device by a window. I have three windows in my travel rig, so when it failed by one I just used a different window and left it sitting by it while it went through the message sending indication lights and happily did other stuff in the rig while it was doing so. It's just a checkin message, not on the spot lighting fast texting, so that was fine.This is more then enough to know I am safe-er when I am out adventuring. At the very least, my list of contacts will know where I was last if I fall out of communication and can't hit that sos button.A lot (not all, but a lot) of the people disappointed with this device seem to expect it to be something that it isn't. It absolutely performs great in it's designed function.My only complaints are:1. It's not intuitive and the instructions are confusing (even the website could be better designed).2. It doesn't have an internal rechargeable battery.3. I wish I could edit my custom messages in the app in addition to the computer.None of these break the safety reasons I got the device. For that, it's perfectly fine.