# SPOT Connect — user reviews > 71 indexed App Store user reviews of SPOT Connect by SPOT LLC, rated 1.00/5 from 4 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spot-connect/id423066534/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spot-connect/id423066534.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 0 · 4★ 0 · 3★ 0 · 2★ 0 · 1★ 4 ## Newest reviews (18 of 71) ### 3/5 — Bluetooth issues *2015-12-22, version 1.6* Having difficulty establishing Bluetooth connection on an iPhone 6 with iOS 9.2 and the 1.6 version of the app... Even with new batteries installed, hope this gets resolved soon. ### 2/5 — Needs fixing *2014-05-01, version 1.4* The app once worked very well logging all crumbs in the 10 minute increments. Over the past two months the app may take log three crumbs within a 4 hour time period. The app will not show a GPS yet, the Connect I use logs everything as it should. The developers need to invest into fixing these issues. This latest issue causes me to question the viability as a safety device. ### 2/5 — Bluetooth troublesome *2014-03-19, version 1.3.1* I've had the Spot Connect for two years now. It works, but is a hassle to connect to Bluetooth each home the unit is turned on. The iPhone shows the connection, but the app doesn't see it. Cycling Bluetooth on the phone usually fixes it, but still a hassle, especially when attention is needed elsewhere and not fiddling with the phone. Unforgivable that this is not fixed yet. I'll buy DeLorme next time. ### 1/5 — Terrible. *2013-06-29, version 1.3.1* In iPhone Settings, paired successfully. Then the app refused to recognize the Spot device after logging in. So, I guess that's it. Great job. UPDATE: I wrote this review a year ago but didn't submit, went on 2 more climbs and app would not sync up, so still worthless. I hope this keeps anyone from buying the actual Spot, unless you need it for the SOS. Submitting review now and getting ready to start class action suit if I don't get a refund on this worthless device. ### 3/5 — Could use some more work *2013-06-10, version 1.3.1* This app does as advertised, but there are a few things that could really improve it's usability. 1. Work when not connected to spot so that you can do things like sync and edit messages without having to connect first. 2. Display GPS coordinates on screen. It would be nice to be able to actually see where I am, particularly since this device is generally used outside of cell service, so you cannot load any maps. 3. Offline maps. This could be a real boon when outside of cell service. It could be a paid add-on, and personally, it would be worth my while to purchase. Overall, everything does work and I have not been disappointed in my 6 months of using this device so far. Update June 2013. Still no iphone 5 support? And bluetooth issues on occasion. App doesn't always connect even when phone says it's connected. ### 1/5 — Still sucking! *2013-06-09* If you have an iPhone save your money because spot seems to ignore the fact that the connect has issues with iPhone (blue tooth won't re- connect on its own ... Like even my $20 Chinese knock off crap will! Your lucky if even half you check in go through (some take over a half hour to actually go through) wont post check ins to FB or Twitter anymore..... Save your money and just get the reg old spot if you have an iPhone otherwise your like me and throwing most of your $130 a year away!!! ( I only keep it because of the SOS otherwise they could have shoved it a year ago!!) and don't think they care. They don't! These are the same complaint they people have made for over a year now!!! And now I live how most of the reviews seemed to have...... Disappeared! IT's LIKE MAGIC! Don't be fooled by so few reviews..... There used to be like 50 all bad Oh and looky.... I signed up for $130 worth of service and my bill now shows $179...... ### 1/5 — After all these years, SPOT still is a problem *2013-05-18* Firstly, let me say that I've tried to give SPOT the benefit of doubt over an extended period. From rude support staff, to staff who have no clue about the products or services they are supporting; they single handedly must seek out the worst they can find. The site promises all sorts of functionality; yet when the cards are down, the messaging is hit-and-miss. Some get through, some don't. Emails get billed as SMS's. Offline maps are promised, yet missing from the app. Bluetooth connection to the iPhone is sometime a problem. They have had years to correct these bugs; but haven't. Updates are few and far between and firmware for the devices rarely changes to address problems. All in all - I'd look for another device if your life depends on it. ### 2/5 — Good concept, but unreliable and quirky *2013-02-20* I purchased SPOT connect as a part of required equipment for an expedition to Kilimanjaro. I thoroughly tested the reporting functions before I left and although the app is quirky, unstable, and cumbersome to use, at least I confirmed it was working. I set it up to report to Facebook and text message to my wife and it worked before I left the US. When I got on the mountain where it counts, I reported my location once a day for 7 days and received confirmations each time within the app that the check-ins went through to both Facebook and text. When I got off the mountain and checked Facebook, only one out of 7 check ins went through. My wife confirmed she only received one out of 7 of the text notifications I sent, and she had three sleepless nights because I promised I would check in and she received nothing for the first 6 days. Perhaps this is because Kilimanjaro is on the edge of their satellite coverage, but it is very concerning that I would receive in-app confirmations that all my messages went through when they really didn't. I contacted customer service and they were very helpful and gave me a full subscription refund. I can't recommend this product until they fix the bugs. Also, we discovered that a peculiarity of being a US customer is that you can't set up the text messaging function unless you specify the carrier of the number you want to use. If your number happens to be an overseas number and the carrier is not on their short list of options, there is no way to set it up to send text messages. In that case you can only use email, Facebook, and the "shared page" option. If your support crew only has a cell phone but no Internet access, you're sunk. ### 4/5 — Good App - Could Be Better *2013-01-26* I bought the Spot Connect device and a service plan and began testing while on a hike. Pairing my iPhone 5 with the device worked reasonably well, but sometimes I had to turn the device off and on to get the "connected" message. I tested the "Checkin/Ok" feature several times using predefined messages. Since my wife had an iPhone also, we could see when the messages was received on her phone. It takes awhile so be patient for the message to go out. My wish here is that the developers improve the clarity of the sending process. If I'm severely injured on a mountain side, i want it crystal clear what's going on with the device. Once you tap "send," you eventually get the word "sending" in a tiny font. It's easy to think it didn't work and tap "send" again which cancels the transmission. Eventually, a tiny blue progress bar appears which indicates it is now sending (the envelope on the screen also flashes green). Somewhat confusingly, it the indicates the next message will be sent in 500 seconds and begins a countdown. The device sends 3 messages to the satellite to make sure at least one gets through. What I think would help is this: Once the user taps on "send" and new screen should appear with big green progress bars and large font size for each transmission along with an explanation of what's going on. Just make it more user friendly. Don't assume a high level of geekiness with every user. If there ever was an app that needs to be clear, this is it. To be fair, most of the app is very clear so the developers do understand it's importance. ### 4/5 — Works reasonably well *2013-01-23, version 1.3* No problem pairing with my iPhone. App does crash once in awhile but it does what it's supposed to. The real issue is the need to keep the GPS unit face up in order to work. ### 1/5 — Can't use *2012-12-14, version 1.3* I wanted to go hunting and tried to set this thing up with no success. I got it paired with my phone but when I turn the app on it tells me "no accessories attached". Of course customer service is not available because it is after 5 and a weekend! Not really happy with this . And after the reviews I am dreading to talk to customer service! Paid $270 for everything! So here it is a year later and still trying to use this. Totally unreliable for an emergency device and it tells you "no accessories attached" when you ate trying to pair it. I will have NO confidence that it can be paired out in the field in an emergency! ### 4/5 — Still a little buggy *2012-11-28, version 1.3* Better than the pervious version but still a few bugs! At least now I don't need to be connected to the device for the app to work. ### 1/5 — No info ur in catch 22 *2012-10-05, version 1.2* Catch 22 game as it ask for user pass with no link to sign up for new and in their web no proper FAQ how to sign up so here us I can say to u guys that any fool can make things complicated it requires genius to make it simple. ### 3/5 — "How it works"page no back button *2012-09-26* Looking at App prior to purchasing a connect device. The "How it works" page has no way back. Will this type of issue occur in use? Required an app reload to correct. ### 4/5 — Spot Connect Review *2012-09-19* The app works well as described providing you connect it paired with you iPhone & connected first. Offline maps are ok but very very slow. ### 3/5 — App works ok, spot works well *2012-09-12, version 1.2* Love texting, tracking screen only shows messages it got while watching the screen. ?? I would like to see a display of gps info like positions numbers sn etc, the standard gps status page I use it as a bluetooth gps with any program that uses gps, on my iPhone, iPad and my laptop. But that is spot connect functionality and has nothing to do with this app. ### 1/5 — Full of BUGS and Quirks. Needs lots of work. *2012-08-15* Ok it works but has major flaws. I regret my purchase an upgrade from the spot2 here is why. 1. Spot claims that it "gives GPS functionality to non GPS devices" this is a white lie. This was my main reason for upgrading i thought the spot connect would send a bluetooth gps scentence to my Itouch that i could then use on any mapping program. this is simply not the case. The "GPS functionality" they are talking about is with the map and go feature only. so you get one fix every 15 minutes when tracking. this is absolutely no good for navigating in cities. for a rough position sailing accros an ocean maybe. 2. the blue tooth pairing is a PITA. be prepaired to go into settings every time and re-pair. 3. Tracking "sort of works" but unless you keep the blue tooth connection alive with your device during tracking (draining both devices batteries faster) you will not see your track points on the saved maps. 4. map and go feature works, but loading maps through the apps interface leaves a lot to be desired. The size of the maps is ridiculus as well. They should design a way to add maps a different way. Also while downloading maps don't do anything else listen to music, etc. The map download fails and the application grew in size by the amount that you had already downloaded. a complete uninstall and reinstall is required to get rid of this unaccesable data. Spot has the potential to turn this app and device combo into a truly great package. They just have a lot of tweaking to do in the app department. I would recommend not buying the device until the reviews of the app improve bigtime. otherwise a spot2 and a handheld gps do a better job. ### 2/5 — Not thought through... *2012-08-14* This whole thing needs more work and more thought into the design and how it might be used in the real world. According to the documenation, once I've paired the device with my iPhone, all I need to do is turn it on for a connection to be re-established. Doesn't work for me - I need to go into pairing mode everytime. The application should allow storing of login credentials. I don't want to have to retype my password *every* bleedin' time. The application should provide some level of functionality even if the SPOT device isn't connected. The application should have a "retry" button if the SPOT device wasn't found. The application needs to be able to function when there's no cell or wifi signal - isn't that the whole point of the SPOT? Sometimes, I'll be out of cell & wifi coverage for days at a time but I still want to interface with my SPOT and send status messages. All in all a reasonable "beta" version. Now send your developers away to make it actually usable in real world scenarios. If there's no prospect of improvements (and in a reasonable timeframe) I'll be sending my SPOT back. ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — Won’t connect *2019-01-01* As other reviews have mentioned, this app doesn’t work any more. I was able to get my iPhone to connect to the device in Bluetooth settings (with some trouble), but the app still can’t find the device. I HOPE the SOS button on the side of the device will still work, but I’m a little apprehensive about relying on it since the app doesn’t. Sure happy I renewed the yearly contract for $200 🙄 ### 1/5 — Cannot Connect since IOS 9 *2016-07-27* It's always been tricky to make connect now fails completely. Also firmware update for device is not working. ### 1/5 — Useless as an emergency tool *2016-04-24* Been a SPOT user since gen 1 and a SPOT connect since its release. App & unit unusable after iOS 9, if I get it to connect it then goes to "sleep" after a few minutes and will not reconnect the it's Bluetooth connection for days. I've rebooted the phone, changed expensive lithium batteries in the unit and tried every tip hey give but the device just cannot be counted upon to work in an emergency any more. SPOT discontinued the item but still gladly takes my money for a messaging account. I'm going to look into Delorme's offering :/ ### 1/5 — Lame *2015-08-15, version 1.5* Dangerous doesn't work ### 1/5 — Not good *2014-05-29, version 1.4* The interface is terrible. ### 1/5 — Not as promised and seems to have some "shady" reviews *2014-01-09, version 1.3.1* The reviews that state it worked with no cell service and instructed you how to pair it with Bluetooth are very suspicious ...this app isn't worth the money and the staff in support are clueless ad rude. I know now where AOL sends its retiring customer service reps to continue the fight against the human race. This app is nothing what it promises and is the worst of worst ad where did all the negative reviews go?cant give it less than one star or it would be a negative two. Steer clear!! ### 1/5 — Unreliable still *2013-11-13, version 1.3.1* Threw mine in the trash where it belongs. ### 1/5 — Can't trust it *2013-10-17, version 1.3.1* It is so fickle with blue tooth pairing and then runs through the lithium batteries like crazy. How are we supposed to trust this device when our lives may depend on it? ### 1/5 — Poor *2013-09-29* The Iphone control panel reported that it had a connection to the Spot Messenger device but the (Updated to latest!) app consistently denied it, even pushing the power button briefly. Thankfully, we had a smartphone with us that worked fine. This is a poor app and makes me think about switching off IPhone to Smartphone. ### 1/5 — Such unrealized promise *2013-09-18* Use your smartphone to send messages and activate satellite tracking when out of cell range? Sounds awesome! The tracking does work, eventually, and is great for adventuring off the beaten path, but there is LOTS of room for improvement. The app is never updated, interface is non iPhone 5 aspect ratio which has been out for a year now. The bluetooth link is very unreliable, requiring to manually reconnect to the device on startup or if the app is closed for extended periods of time. The interface is slow, and the methodology for creating contacts and contact groups doesn't appear to have gone through any kind of user interface testing. ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — Works just like it's supposed to! Love it!!! *2013-10-30, version 1.3.1* After reading all of the negative reviews I was very aprehensive about my husband using this with his new iPad and the ios7. He used it last year with his older one with no problems but I was afraid this time we would have issues. Not so. After a bit of trouble connecting with the bluetooth it worked perfectly. He was hunting with our sons for over a week, no cell service, and we got a message every day from them. He said he never had any trouble with it losing it's connection to the device. We knew where they were at and that they were safe every single day. It's worth every penny! I'm not sure why other folks are having so many problems. One thing I did was connect through the bluetooth on the iPad before starting the app. It took a few times before I got it right. ### 5/5 — Awesome App! *2012-12-02, version 1.3* It synced perfect with my SPOT Connect and I was able to check in from Mount Kilimanjaro with it! Definitely recommend it! ### 5/5 — Works great *2012-07-01, version 1.2* I have no complaints. The tracking is excellent and I was able to send messages from all over Europe quickly and without any issue. ### 5/5 — Works fine for me... *2011-11-04, version 1.1.1* Used it for a full month in some very isolated outback locations, it didnt miss a beat. There is nothing wrong with the App or the SPOT Connect device. ### 5/5 — Great App!! WORKS as intended :) Know what your Buying FIRST *2011-10-15* KNOW WHAT YOUR BUYING THIS WORKS AS IT SHOULD :) This App works as intended!! Yes there is a MINOR issues with BlueTooth but VARY VARY Minor. You pair the 2 devices to each other. That NEVER needs to be done again. You can turn off the PDA (mine is an Iphone 4) all you want and when you turn it back on it connects as intended. If you turn off the SPOT Connect then turn it back on then you need to go in to the PDA bluetooth setting and say connect. When on a trip you would want to turn off the device at night and turn it back on durning the day (well that is if you fill safe at night :) ) when you turn the SPOT Connect back on then that is when you need to go to your PDA setting and reconnect. if you should leave the Spot connect on then you never have to reconnect to your PDA. Know what your getting here. This app controls the spot connect. The spot connect has a yearly fee. I have been a member since 3 month after the SPOT Gen 1 was released and I have had the Gen 2 and the Delorme SPOT and this one is by fair the BEST. I travel cross country on my motorcycle and it is nice for family and friends to track me. It is only Satellite base, does not use cell at all. I also will go hiking in back woods for a week or so at a time and with this I am able to tell everyone I am OK or I need HELP or send a 911. What is great about this unit is that it allows you to send a short custom message for a small fee like .50 per message or some standard messages pre set for included subscription fee. ### 5/5 — Wouldn't think of flying without it! *2011-08-21, version 1.1.1* I use SPOT when I fly, primarily to let my family know I am ok. I wish this worked for iPad, then I wouldn't have to switch from my iPad to my iPhone to send the text by satellite, but overall, I am very happy with this product. ### 5/5 — Spot Connect *2011-08-04, version 1.1.1* To the previous reviewer. It is designed to work with Spot Connect not Spot 2. Spot Connect comes with full instructions. Excellent app as far as I can tell so far. ### 5/5 — Coolest device *2011-05-21, version 1.1* Can't believe I can text outside of cell service - I love my device - wish this was invented years ago - the life saving functionality is a huge plus and I'm much more relaxed as I worry less about my kids ### 5/5 — Great idea *2011-05-06, version 1.1* Bought for my whole family. I don't have to worry about them when they go on their adventures. Love it ### 5/5 — Great Improvment! *2011-04-09* Version 1.1 (edit from previous review) I received a very helpful email from the Vice President of Software development at SPOT. As it turns out the connection issue I mentioned below is actually a flaw in the bluetooth implementation in iOS 4.2.1. After updating to 4.3.1 everything was resolved. With the release of ver. 1.1 there seems to be a speed improvement and the app runs more smoothly. I just used SPOT over the last week in Yosemite and the functionality is great. Definitely recommend this product as an upgrade for existing or new SPOT users. ------------------------------------------- Version 1.0 Admittedly, This new device is pretty amazing. I've been using SPOT since the first generation and have been a fan of their services. This APP however definitely needed some better field testing before it was released to the public. As of version 1.0 if you close out the app and reopen it, SPOT Connect will not be found even though a bluetooth connection is established by the icon up top and the blue led is flashing on the unit. You must turn off bluetooth and reconnect it for the app to find the unit again. This is not an ideal situation for an emergency device. I spoke with their service department today and they are aware of the issue and are working on an update. The app is also sometimes slow to respond and takes a restart for some functionality to return (check-in/ok msg - sending and cancelling). These issues aside, the functionality is amazing. One of the best features (especially for those familiar with older SPOTs) is a sent confirmation. You will see that a message attempt was successfully sent and the interval at which the next attempt is made. The predefined messages are great with the new 14 message capability. It is a very easy to use interface. Once SPOT releases some critical updates I will definitely improve the rating. --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-12.*