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A
year and a half ago, some of us civilian boaters were a little jealous
when thousands of Coast Guard personnel were equipped with these Personal
Locator Beacons capable of 406-MHz satellite calling and 121.5-MHz homing.
Last July the FCC decided that all Americans, even landlubbers, could
have PLBs. The $750 Fastfind is particularly petite at nine ounces and
6"x3"x2" and features a five-year, user-replaceable battery.
And the $1,200 Fastfind Plus is the only PLB currently built with an internal
GPS, adding only two ounces to the same case and considerably speeding
up search and rescue—at least potentially. Some experts are beginning
to wonder if all this technology, particularly the GPS part, can be squeezed
into such a convenient package and still perform optimally. Read my column
for further information.
McMurdo Pains Wessex
Phone: (800) 576-2605. www.mcmpw.com.
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