The 8 Best Avalanche Beacons
Special Honors
Breitling Emergency At first glance, this model seems an awful lot like the company's Aerospace offerings, which have made it all the way out into Earth's orbit. In terms of most functions, like dual digital displays set into an analog dial, and the ability to frack multiple time zones and run a 24-hour chronograph, they are identical. This offering, however, also houses a dual-frequency distress beacon that can relay your coordinates from just about anywhere in the world. There's even a compass etched into its bezel to allow you to find your bearings using nothing but the sun's position. breitling.com
Editor's Notes
October 16, 2020:
Saw an upgrade to the Arva Evo4 in the Arva Evo5 Black, which is about the same size and weight, but which has increased its range from 40 to 50 meters. We also added the Black Diamond Guide BT, which is similar in build to the Pieps DPS Sport, which we removed to make way for the Black Diamond model. This was because the slide and lock mechanisms on the Guide BT were a bit easier to use, even though the overall performance of the antennas was similar.
We also added two models that aren't traditional avalanche beacons in the McMurdo Fast Find 220 and the Breitling Emergency, the latter of which was restricted to our special honors section due to its exorbitant cost. The McMurdo model is a solid transmitter you can use from just about anywhere on earth that can connect with a GPS satellite, and it requires no subscription to make use of one. And while the Breitling is a particularly capable luxury watch, it's also equipped with an emergency pull tab that will activate a GPS-connected distress signal no matter your location.
November 22, 2019:
While the highly regarded Pieps DSP Pro needed a replacement because it's no longer available, the Pieps DSP Sport is still on the list and it has many of the same functions plus the reliability of the Pieps brand, but it's still no match for the Pro's battery life.
Our replacement for the top spot is the Mammut Barryvox S, which boasts a more than 300 hour battery life and the ability to detect micro movements such as a heartbeat. We also chose this model because the basic functions are intuitive enough for beginners, while the advanced features can make a huge difference in multiple burial scenarios. Plus the display is so large it can be read with goggles on.
An avalanche beacon can be the difference between life or death but remember not to develop a false sense of security and forgo important planning and safety measures before embarking into the wilderness.