Buying used/transferring ownership of Satellite Communicators?

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

Given my misadventures so far, I should probably buy a satellite communicator if I continue to backpack.

BUT, I don't expect that I'll be able to backpack for much more than a year or two. So there's no point in my buying an expensive new unit. (Garmin.) Or paying a bunch of money for monthly subscriptions that I might use only a couple days each month.

Is there a used market out there? Do the companies allow users to sell/transfer their devices to a new owner?

Or are there backpacker "Satellite Communicator Clubs" where a few people buy in and share use of the device/subscriptioin among themselves? (Like Flying Clubs with airplanes?)

(As an aside, Motorola just came out with a new unit and the company that sells the app for it is offering a free one year subscription for it. $150, not including tax for everything, for one year.

I might be willing to part with $150 for a year of coverage. (Assuming it works, they have the bugs worked out, etc.))

[CannondaleKid]

Sorry, I have nothing to offer in reference to Satellite Communicators.
However...

I don't expect that I'll be able to backpack for much more than a year or two

Ok, as one who is 73 years old I just have to wonder..
If you are in fact 65 and are reasonably fit, unless you have some type of degenerative condition I'd expect at least another 10 years.
(If in top notch physical condition, 80-85 wouldn't be to much to ask.)

[chumley]

@CannondaleKid Maybe he's just a busy guy!

Given my misadventures so far, I should probably buy a satellite communicator .... there's no point in my buying an expensive new unit ... or paying a bunch of money for monthly subscriptions

These statements are contradictory. If you think you need one, the cost shouldn't be a major factor. Unless you are placing the value on your life somewhere in the 3-digit range, in which case, you probably shouldn't bother or care.

[xsproutx]

Agree with Chums, especially with the fact you've had an experience recently that had the high potential of completely effing your world up.
You can buy devices used, no issues there.
Not aware of any groups as such; would be kind of a pain to unregister/re-register to each user.
SatComm devices aren't the only game in town; if you want just SOS and nothing else, you can get a PLB which will have around the same initial cost but no monthly subscription. Zoleo/Garmin, probably the two biggest satcomm companies these days, have subs that are only 10-15 bucks a month, so pretty cheap. Zoleo allows you to pause as well whereas Garmin locks you in (unless they've changed recently)

[hikeaz]

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[ShatteredArm]

@xsproutx
Yeah, my Garmin subscription is $12/month, 5 free messages per month. That's the lowest level subscription, but I think it's more than adequate if you just want peace of mind. And the overage costs are pretty minimal ($.50/message, tracking $.10/point).

Also, I think Garmin does have a pay-as-you-go subscription, but it costs more overall if you use it relatively often. I went with the contract because it was almost certainly going to be cheaper based on how often I might use it.

[xsproutx]

@ShatteredArm
Yeh, Zoleo's plans start at 20 bucks but include more messages. I went with it because the mid-tier is a better value and I like having the 1k character limit for app-to-app. Now that my daughter can read/write, she likes to hit me up more often than maybe I'd prefer but hey, makes her happy.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

@CannondaleKid
Thanks for the encouragement.

I think I'm in reasonably good shape, physically, for my age. (A little north of 65.) But my knees are sometimes tender if I angle them slightly wrong. Loading them with 30 lbs and going on rocky trails where I have to let down onto one foot/knee isn't a recipe for longevity. (Remember I oped to ditch my backpack because I hurt my knee when ended up off trail.) And I can't afford knee surgery. So once one goes, it's over for me.

Mentally, I seem to be forgetting more things lately. I'm at the point where I can still remember, with time, what I've forgotten. So, for example, my spelling has become worse - but I can catch most of my spelling mistakes. (But didn't catch "forrest" for "forest" a few months ago.) I expect that, in a few years, I shouldn't go on a trail alone. Maybe not drive.

Financially/world event-wise, I'm not optimistic at all. I expect that the American Life, as we've known it, is rapidly coming to an end.

So those are my reasons for not wanting to make a large investment in much of anything anymore, let alone backpacking.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

@chumley
Tnx. I wasn't thorough in my preface above. The communicator would primarily be for a friend, who worries a lot about me when she doesn't hear from me when there's no cell coverage on a hike.

Given my misadventures so far, she is somewhat justified in worrying.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

@xsproutx
I thought about the de-registering/re-registering more. I suppose the solution there is for the Club to buy a cheap smart phone and link the communicator to that phone.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

@hikeaz
Thanks! I'll check 'em out.

[RowdyandMe]

Well I basically have two communication devices. I have one and Rowdy has one.

[RedRoxx44]

I bought a used Sat phone from ebay or amazon then started out with Globalstar. I finally just decided to get a monthly subscription as I didn't want to be literally out the door and realize I had to sign up for something. It's expensive but I got the cheapest plan available at the time. I've used it really very little, but the few calls I've made the sound quality ( out in the open) was excellent and a conversation could easily be done ( although quickly at that cost). My mom is now over 100 years and I don't need to call in anymore as she is in a care home but I still have it just in case, and carry it in one of the vehicles on my little adventures most of the time. I don't carry it hiking, just never saw the need.

[LindaAnn]

@TooOld2HikeQ
Buy the good stuff if you can afford it. Lighter weight and good gear makes hiking/backpacking a lot more enjoyable.

If you decide a few years from now to stop backpacking, just sell the gear for half price. And if society falls apart before then, you’ll still have good gear, or you can sell it at a premium.

Besides hiking/backpacking, a satellite communicator is handy if you drive a lot. If you have any vehicle trouble, you can contact someone for help. I’ve had to do that before and I didn’t want to make two little kids walk the highway until someone stopped or we got a cell signal. Took 45 minutes to get a tow truck and I wasn’t stuck somewhere without cell svc.

[TooOld2Hike_EP]

A heads up: The company who made the "Motorola" Defy satellite communicator is no longer.