Customer reviews from Garmin
Garmin - InReach GPS with Built-In Bluetooth - Red/Black
Average customer rating
4.1
(717 Reviews)
Rating breakdown 717 reviews
5 Stars
411
4 Stars
133
3 Stars
74
2 Stars
45
1 Star
54
Customer Reviews for Garmin - InReach GPS with Built-In Bluetooth - Red/Black
Customer Rating
4
Inreach Mini
on August 21, 2019
Posted by: Birdhnr
Just purchased and seems to work well. However activation, updating and web experience is quite confusing. Too many updating sites. i.e. webupdater, Garmin express, inreach site. Some work and some don’t.
Also need a printed map of the menus on the unit. Not intuitive of where to go for desired feature. Have to trial and error to find a selection.
Unit does work fine. Happy with its performance.
Also need a printed map of the menus on the unit. Not intuitive of where to go for desired feature. Have to trial and error to find a selection.
Unit does work fine. Happy with its performance.
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
3
Great little device. GPS reception not very good.
on August 23, 2019
Posted by: bikerpilot
Great little device. However, the software is clunky and GPS receiver is not very sensitive. I expected this device to pick up a GPS signal when my cell phone would be unable. Unfortunately this is not true. I.e.: My phone gets GPS signal in house just fine, the Inreach does not. When clipped to the belt of my jeans, when riding my motorcycle, it also does not always have GPS reception (as evidenced by not sending out the message until I got home!). GPS reception not to be confused with Iridium reception!
Response from GarminBy Chris, Garmin, September 4, 2019
Sorry you had issues with it., To clarify how it works, your cell phone GPS signal in the house is typically provided by cell tower triangulation not GPS directly and your signal not being sent is based on Iridium reception not connectivity to the GPS network
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
3
Good hardware. Poor software
on August 24, 2019
Posted by: Nonexistent
As others have indicated, Garmin does a good job developing their products (rugged, good buttonholing) but the software is many degrees of separation behind.
Bought the Mini for the JMT mostly for the SOS function but wanted to try out the Earthmate.mapping and the preset messaging and the weather. As usual, didn’t use the SOS and was disappointed with the mapping. Poor tracking, poor visibility on the trail. Doesn’t scroll or enlarge smoothly. Most of the time the map was almost useless. in the real world the battery of the mini doesn’t last as long as Garmin says, even when you make all the adjustments which means you can’t use the mapping function.
The preset function worked well when the “satellite was found”. The weather updates were ok.
I would buy it again with the service and will use it on future travels. But my expectations with Garmin are always muted as experience reinforces.
Bought the Mini for the JMT mostly for the SOS function but wanted to try out the Earthmate.mapping and the preset messaging and the weather. As usual, didn’t use the SOS and was disappointed with the mapping. Poor tracking, poor visibility on the trail. Doesn’t scroll or enlarge smoothly. Most of the time the map was almost useless. in the real world the battery of the mini doesn’t last as long as Garmin says, even when you make all the adjustments which means you can’t use the mapping function.
The preset function worked well when the “satellite was found”. The weather updates were ok.
I would buy it again with the service and will use it on future travels. But my expectations with Garmin are always muted as experience reinforces.
Response from GarminBy Garmin, Outdoor, September 25, 2019
Thank you for your review and your experience with the inReach Mini. We would like to discuss this further over email. If you could please email us at product.support@garmin.com.
Thanks
Jenny
Thanks
Jenny
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
5
Good so far.
on August 26, 2019
Posted by: Ed50
Already have an Oregon 650t which I really like so opted for the mini just for the satcom capabilities. It's smaller and lighter than I thought, very good attributes. Setup was easy except for the WEB app, that wasn't that hard just took a while to connect. I had everything but that working and couldn't figure out why it didn't work. Tried again next day and it was working. Patience is a virtue.
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
4
Still too early to tell . . .
on August 27, 2019
Posted by: Anonymous
My first test wasn't a good one. In clear sky with no obstructions, the outbound text was picked up on the test cell phone within seconds. But the return reply from that cell phone to the inReach Mini took about 25 minutes. I find this to be unacceptable but am hoping that when I'm travelling at 400 mph at 40,000' the results will be better. This device should be a godsend for communicating with people via text on the ground while I'm traveling. Hope it works!!
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
5
inReach Mini - Excellent
on August 29, 2019
Posted by: AK Jack
My inReach Mini worked perfectly well for 9-day float trip in remote western Alaska out of cell range. I used the Mini with the Garmin Earthmate app on my iPhone to monitor our location on the river, text my family, and text our outfitter for pickup details.
I have also applied the inReach Mini with iPhone Earthmate to successfully locate survey monuments and bearing trees from a 40-year old survey.
inReach Mini is a very good value for my applications. I haven't used the tracking function, but plan to apply tracking this winter backcountry skiing.
I have also applied the inReach Mini with iPhone Earthmate to successfully locate survey monuments and bearing trees from a 40-year old survey.
inReach Mini is a very good value for my applications. I haven't used the tracking function, but plan to apply tracking this winter backcountry skiing.
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
5
Functional and Perfect Size
on August 29, 2019
Posted by: manothegreek
I did not want another full size device for my motorcycle trips.. so I opted for the mini. I paired this small device with my phone and use my garmin app for maps and communication.. I can tuck this device away in my tank bag, on my shoulder straps or jacket etc. problem solved..
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin
Customer Rating
4
Great for most things
on August 30, 2019
Posted by: Super Hiker Woman
I think the Garmin InReach Mini is great for its SOS feature (at least I assume it is. I didn’t have to use it in that way). It’s also great for being able to communicate with people. What it’s not great at is accurately tracking mileage. I realize this is true about most GPS devices and apps. So, use it for SOS and communicating, but don’t rely on it to accurately track your mileage.
Written by a customer while visiting Garmin