Garmin’s new satellite communicator adds a touchscreen and photo sharing

Garmin announced a caller mentation of its inReach outer communicator with large upgrades that grow and amended the ways you tin support successful interaction portion you’re adventuring extracurricular cellphone coverage. The caller inReach Mini 3 Plus present features a colour show with touchscreen capabilities and adds dependable messaging, longer substance messages, and the quality to nonstop and person photos.

The inReach Mini 3 Plus is disposable present for $499.99, which is simply a sizeable terms bump from the $399.99 inReach Mini 2 that debuted successful 2022. And portion immoderate of the Mini 3 Plus’ functionality similar navigation volition enactment close retired of the box, the outer connection features necessitate an further Garmin inReach monthly subscription that scope successful terms from $7.99 to $49.99 and alteration by the fig of messages you tin send.

Sending customized substance messages utilizing the older’s Mini 2’s buttons to scroll done the alphabet was an arduous process. We haven’t gone hands-on with the instrumentality yet, but arsenic smartphones person demonstrated, the Mini 3 Plus’ touchscreen perchance makes substance messaging overmuch easier, peculiarly erstwhile taking vantage of the caller 1,600 quality limit. Sending and receiving 30-second dependable messages could beryllium adjacent easier. The Mini 3 Plus has a built-in microphone and speaker, and for those times erstwhile you’re retired successful the chaotic and don’t privation to scare distant the wildlife, dependable recordings tin alternatively beryllium transcribed and read.

Sending and receiving photos is besides a utile caller feature, and not conscionable for sharing a beauteous sunset. While the Mini 3 Plus doesn’t person a camera, it tin brace to a smartphone utilizing the Garmin Messenger app truthful you could nonstop a photograph of your determination to assistance with a rescue, oregon an representation of a breached portion of instrumentality you request assistance fixing. 

Battery beingness is rated astatine up to 350 hours erstwhile utilizing the instrumentality to stock your existent determination each 10 minutes, oregon up to 95 hours successful “performance messaging mode” erstwhile you’re truly taking vantage of each the caller features. If you don’t deliberation you’ll request features similar dependable messaging, transcriptions, and photograph sharing, Garmin besides sells a somewhat cheaper mentation called the inReach Mini 3 for $449.99 that inactive has a colour touchscreen and substance messaging capabilities.