Garmin 66i Review - Best of both worlds! Garmin InReach and GPSMAP

[@BlkInc1]

I just bought this and plan to test it around my neighborhood tomorrow.

[@PagosaCreative]

You’ll love it

[@DARTHDANSAN]

How’d it go ?

[@dynamicphotography_]

I use this Garmin. It's been absolutely invaluable for communication when far from cellular connectivity. I love it. Good video. Lot's of good info. 👍

[@PagosaCreative]

Thank you! I love this device.

[@robertm3769]

Awesome video, love the 14ers tip 👍 Have done 16 so far, can't wait to try this out this year, thanks!

[@dougw9224]

fyi, On the flashlight mode, the "sos" will blink the light in morse code

[@PagosaCreative]

Hey thanks! That’s great to know.

[@DARTHDANSAN]

I have the mini and the 66i . I have yet use the 66i but boy do I love gadgets lol

[@PagosaCreative]

Seriously! It’s a problem. I have the mini as well. Now my wife and I use these to communicate in the backcountry when we are doing separate things. The 66i is the device I’ve been waiting for!

[@telebruce221]

thanks for this! I just spent the better part of today getting familiar with this new toy. I'm upgrading from the 62st, so the interface is familiar to me, but much easier to use on this unit. for those that whine about it's 'clunkyness' - try using a touch screen in a driving downpour, or with gloves in below freezing temperatures. For a GPS buttons are the only way to go! Question for you: What are you going to use as a backup battery source? Garmin says the battery lasts about 30 hours (about as long as AA batteries in my 62st) and I'm looking for the best/lightest backup to give it a recharge on longer trips. I will likely just use it to verify my position or send message, (I prefer map and compass) but sometimes I do run it all the time and will need to recharge. Thanks!

[@mrbreakit6063]

@Tele Bruce- This is a bit of a technical response, as people around the world have different needs and resources. Garmin states the battery is 3100 mAh at 3.8vdc, also known as 9.3W hours. support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=qeNGXOUgCfAoONGxMim5g6 Using a small portable lithium based battery pack rated 6,000 to 8,000 mAh with a micro USB plug, it should recharge the 66i about two times (accounting for loss/inefficiency, etc) if it’s not stone dead. That allows for more than 3 days of constant use 24 hours a day. My experience is that the cheap units are incorrectly rated much higher than actual, they are fragile in rough terrain, and they completely fail in hot or cold environments. For a walking trail, no problem. Not seeing civilization for a few days, shop elsewhere. I use a Mophie Powerstation Plus, it’s about the size and weight of an iPhone 8. Works like a champ 95% of the time, also use it to charge my phone (has both micro usb and Apple lightning). Charging both phone and GPS, I easily get 3 - 4 days with power to spare. If I’m way off grid, I use a more robust, waterproof power bank and use a small folding solar panel hanging on my pack that recharges the power bank all day. For power conservation, go into the main menu, go to setup, display, and turn battery save on. It shuts off the screen when the backlight times out. Tap the power button to wake it up. While you’re there, turn screen capture off. This enables the power button to be a shortcut to screen brightness, tracking status, weather, BT and wireless, and messages. Turn all of that off if not in use. For starvation power diet, put it in expedition mode, but experiment at home first. To your insightful point about operating buttons in the rain or cold, I’m not a fan of peeling back the waterproof power plug cover every time I need to recharge it. I recently ordered the Garmin powered mount to experiment with the power input points on the bottom of the unit. I’m sure someone clever will eventually come up with a more robust, trail friendly connection option for this.

[@DARTHDANSAN]

Anker 26000 MAH power bank paired with anker solar panel . Or even the flash fish 200w portable power station

[@Andrew-dp3jm]

hey man great review! was wondering if you had links to the products you use for cliping to your backpack e.g the clip and lanyard you talked about! thanks

[@livestock984]

“Boom mount snuffles” 😂

[@FlorinSirbu.]

Good video. Can you tell me if you can add waypoints and edit tracks and then upload them to an iPad/iPhone using explore app ore connect app ? Have you tried ? Regards, Florin

[@Demitiger666]

Can you use an Inreach device to message another inreach device?

[@PagosaCreative]

Yes. My wife has the inreach mini and we can send messages back and forth.

[@MrAndrewsAdventures]

Thanks for the great review man. My wife and I are at the cusp of purchasing both the mini2 and 66i. So similar to the setup you have. I was curious though, in terms of the subscription service for both your devices. Do you guys have two separate plans assigned to each device under one account? Or do you have to make separate accounts (One under your name and one for your wife)? I’d also like to ability to communicate with her while we are separated in the backcountry….or in the event of a disaster in case we are ever separated. I haven’t gone through the process of subscribing to the service yet because we don’t have the devices, so maybe it a simple option Garmin offers. Thanks in advance.

[@PagosaCreative]

We have multiple accounts. It probably is best to set things up under one account though. I'll also say after using this set up for a bit over a year...it doesn't work quite how we hoped. I have found messages to be so delayed at times that it didn't work for our purposes. I think it's good to have the option to send messages back and forth but I wouldn't rely on it working each and every time.

[@simonamutenya4490]

How do I download tracks on my 66s? Doesn't seem possible like on the 64

[@kriswibbenhorstermeister9885]

From what I understand, if you want texting capabilities, you want the 66i, not the 66sr. Is that correct?

[@PagosaCreative]

Sorry for my late reply here but yes you are correct

[@LifeOfMikey1]

how do you compare this to the inreach mini2 is it essentially the same thing as the mini but with the added gps features ?

[@PagosaCreative]

It is essentially the same but it puts all the topo maps and mapping features right on the device. I hate to have to use my phone in the backcountry so this replaces the need to use the phone.

[@jaredwhite489]

Says WiFi connectiontivy, but isn’t it satilite based like garmin InReach?

[@derekboehninganderson5209]

I’m still researching devices. I’ve read the inreach mini and explorer+ can pair to iPad and provide location for apps like Gaia GPS. Can the 66i do the same?

[@PagosaCreative]

Hey Derek, I’m a little confused by your question. The 66i does indeed pair with an iPad, as you can see in my video that is what I’m doing. Gaia uses your phones GPS for location so pairing it with the Garmin. Isn’t necessary. The 66i has all the functionality that the Explorer+ and inreach have, though it may look different as it does not use the Earthmate app. I hope I answered your question? I’m not sure if I did.

[@derekboehninganderson5209]

@@PagosaCreative I was asking about the ipad... which most don't have GPS unless you have the version with cellular service.

[@thomaspiteo9821]

My iPad can use my 64 gps through blue tooth.

[@TexasBuyer2001]

How much was the Amazon deal?

[@PagosaCreative]

I got it for $478

[@fishsizzle83]

City nav??

[@PagosaCreative]

You could certainly use it for City nav but I think there are better options for that.

[@kayasper6081]

I have several Garmin products, among them the Garmin GPSMAP66i. They all are a real struggle to understand and use, very anti intuitive. The service centre/helpdesk is very limited. Although their products look quite promising, I would not advice buy any of them. I lost lot of time with them, money and frustration, while I could have enjoy actually making trips in nature in stead.