ACR Bivy Stick Satellite Communicator - Two-Way Global SMS, GPS Tracker, Off-Grid Communication, SOS Emergency Beacon, Satellite Messenger & Location Sharing - iOS/Android App

UPDATE: November 11, 2023. The Bivy Stick is still working just fine. On a recent camping trip, I sent and received 84 messages from family and friends while off-grid deep in the forest. I still highly recommend this device. They say that the Garmin inReach is the best SOS locator out there. Since I don't have an inReach I can't say whether it is or isn't. I do know that there is no way I'm going to pay the high price for an inReach when there are many alternatives out there for far less money and will do the same thing. I chose the ACR Bivy Stick for my Locator. I've had it now for two months and have used it a lot. Where many people go wrong is that they buy something like this and then go out off-grid and expect it to work perfectly. That is a reasonable expectation. But the problem is that they don't take the time to really learn the device and practice with it a little. When I received mine I took it out in the desert and sent and received several messages to my sister, and to my own cellphone. I also sent messages to my email address. At first the email did not work. Or so I thought. I later found out that my email account was putting all messages from the Bivy Stick in a Spam folder. That was an easy fix once I got home. I then sent a test SOS to Global Rescue to see how that worked. They told me that I could test the SOS feature anytime, just be sure to let them know that it is only a test. I did find out that the Android app does have a few minor bugs in it, but nothing that would affect how it worked. Tech support asked me to let them know of any bugs so they could fix them in the next update. Which I am doing. On my last 5 day camping trip in the High Sierra mountains (off-grid) I sent and received daily TEXT messages to my sons more or less just to test the device and really get to know it. I did learn that you really do need a pretty clear shot of the open sky for best signal strength. But that is true no matter which device you use. I am very happy with the Bivy Stick. Even if money was no object, I still think I would buy the Bivy Stick over the Garmin inReach. I am not knocking the inReach! I just can't see where the inReach will give me that much more in reliability and features than the Bivy Stick. The bottom line is, practice with it and learn to use it. Had I not quickly learned about my email account Spam folder I would have been disappointed with the email feature and would have blamed it on the Bivy Stick. .

The Bivy Stick requires study. Like anything you need to learn how to use it and it does a VERY GOOD job. I needed it for my international trips to countries that have political risk and also, I use it for my backcountry motorcycle rides. This simple device gives me peace of mind. I can turn on tracking so if I come up missing I can be found. It also has a SOS button that I can press and get help dispatched right away if I were injured. I used to carry a HAM radio with me on my trips but it requires me and my wife to jump through hoops to get it to work. I love HAM radio but I needed something more simple and the Bivy Stick is it. A bit of advice, you need to take some time to learn about it. Google videos of how to use it and it will become more clear. It is a clever system but education is needed for you and your loved one that will track you. I read the one star ratings and I believe they wanted a no effort system. That simply does not exist. You need to learn about Bivy Stick and practice a little with it. Only then will it be clear. I am happy with my purchase and customer service was the best. I would recommend this to a friend. I am a happy customer!!!!!!

Apparently if you don't charge this at least once every 6 months, the battery dies and won't charge. That seems to be the case for me. Purchased April 2, 2025, dead now April 19, 2026 and won't charge. $200 gone.

Bought this for a family member travelling in the third world. They didn't have time to practice and even though it was correctly set up on their phone (by me). They were intimidated by the interface so did not use features like the text messages or location broadcast for tracking. They did know that the big red button would call for help and they fortunately did not have to use that. The charge lasted for more than a month in the role of a 'just in case" device and we were all happier the option was available. Turned off subscription until the next trip.

The app and the device both have some quirks..It is better in most respects than the Spot devices, but even the first gen Garmin inReach mini is better on all fronts than the Bivy and a lot more reliable. It seems to have issues staying connected to my phone (I have tested with the Samsung S23+ and a few other Android phones) and it is pretty bad at managing how it sends messages or acquires GPS coordinates which kill your phone's battery pretty quickly. The Garmin messengers are just a lot smarter imo. The built in display and interface of the Garmin messenger make it easy to quickly and easily see what its status is and read any incoming messages if your phone dies. Sometimes the Bivy app crashes, which typically stops route tracking and of course means you won't receive any incoming messages. Supposedly you can trigger route tracking directly from the Bivy device, however this feature never worked for me even when the device indicated that it was tracking. The subscription plan was really the only thing I like about the Bivy since it rolls any un-used points over to the next month. This is great because sometime I have to text _a lot_ from the trail, especially the month when some issues came up with the property management at my apartment. A similar situation happen when I had the Garmin messenger and it cost me a lot in text message fees--but both times save me easily a thousand bucks and a ton of stress. Worth it. Tbh I would take a used first gen Garmin inReach mini over any Bivy device.

Fantastic satellite GPS and Two-way communicator! I heard about this product online and decided to give it a try for my elk hunting trips in Idaho vs spending an egregious price for any Garmin product + subscription. I had no trouble in the field with sending / receiving text messages in the Idaho Sawtooth's when a Iridium satellite would pass over (same satellite network as Garmin). I signed up for a 3 month subscription (winter was coming) and recently tried to re-activate my subscription. My bivy stick had an anomaly and wouldn't take a charge so I contacted ACR. Melanie was FANTASTIC and sent me a replacement Bivy Free of charge. The customer service is amazing and I'm thoroughly convinced that Bivy is a very suitable alternative to other Satellite GPS / two-way communicators on the market. I've already referred friends to this company / product for a cost effective way of staying in communication out in the forests.

Great device and great value. I've taken it on many hikes now and being able to communicate with friends/family while way out in the wild is great. Also let's you share your location, check weather, and maps although having a dedicated GPS map service should be part of your gear load-out anyway. The customer support is amazing as well. I highly recommend this product if you don't want to drop all that money on a Garmin. Super happy with this purchase.

Very good unit for off grid coms and check it's. The only draw back is the cost. Pretty self explanatory. Easy to use. As advertised, I have upgraded the review because if you do your research it is exactly what it says it is. Update: It no longer works or powers up after 3 years. I downgraded fro 5 stars to 2 stars